msb

Being self taught is the long hard way to do it. It’s amazing what a good teacher can do.

Camera bags come in all sizes and shapes.

Welcome , John! I try and keep a little cash stash handy in case of musical emergencies. And there have been times that I’ve been very happy to have that handy.

Nobody expected it to have a flat back. It was a bit of a shock for them. So none of the various Cavern Bass reissues have been accurate.

Agreed ! I’ve had to deal with several shifty bandleaders , and decided it was not worth the aggravation.

In my 30’s I got tired of the local circuit. Cheap hotels , road food , and spending all of my time in a band vehicle became wearisome. So I decided that I’d sleep in my own bed and just take gigs in town. On my terms. And have a life. And was much happier. Now I’m not a big star , but I’m happy being a simple working class musician.

I use a tube preamp in my gig rig , it’s got a natural warmth , but I don’t look for distortion. And I use a modelling amp for practice. I tend to try and get warm , and deep , but not distorted.

It was a flat back.

If you’re getting jerked around , get out.

They’ve always changed things around.

I think of my Bergantino Forte as being hifi. The tone stack has almost surgical control. It’s full frequency , very clean , and carries some serious slam. It’s an amp that has authority. I have the earlier version that has a compressor rather than a drive. Before that I had been running a GenzBenz Streamliner. A very different amp. Warm and dark. Also with some serious slam. So I wind up getting a good tube preamp and use the effect return channel… but I can switch back to modern hifi in seconds.

I’m hoping you’ll enjoy yourself here. I immediately read that introductory post twice.

An old friend was living in Toronto , when he first heard Jerry Jones was making boutique Danelectros he immediately hopped on his bike and drove to Nashville. Bought one. He eventually sold it and has been kicking himself ever since. Jones retired , closed the shop , sold his tools. Danos by design were cheap instruments , a handmade boutique copy is pretty ironic. But I have to admit the Jones instruments that I’ve checked out were wonderful things.

Along with the Longhorn I’ve got these two classic Japanese surf basses.

My first gig amp was a hundred watt Marshall , sold it about forty years ago. I’d kinda like to try another one now.

Super Bowl Sunday , the old dive was dead. We were snowed out last Sunday but most of the cleanup has been done. We’re getting another Nor’Easter Tuesday night. More snow. winter fun …

I had a little GK MB200 head. I didn’t realize the fan had become gunked up and stopped working. The power module and a couple of other things became overheated , and fried. It was an expensive repair. Now I find it quite reassuring when I hear a fan kick in.

Twenty five used to be the magic number for vintage , although some restricted it to Pre-CBS or Norlan. My Korean re-issue Dano Longhorn has become vintage.

I’ll generally help people getting their stuff in and out , and if several do it’s quick and easy. But it’s easy to get miffed if you’re the only one helping out …

I’m a big fan of modern lightweight cabs. And that’s a beauty.

I use Bergs and appreciate the size , weight , and ease of moving them around. I’m just a blue collar musician , I pack the car , drive it downtown , set it up , play , and then take it all home. No crew , just me. Smile every time I put one in the car.

I like short scales , and would love to find a nice EB-3 sometime. I’m fine with the shape and ergonomics. I have an SG , but they’re not the same thing.

It looks like it might be a bitch to move around , and looks like some serious business. Beauty!

If I think it’s time to clean and oil the fingerboard they all come off , otherwise one at a time. I keep fresh rounds on several , but most have flats that will remain on for some time. A couple have very old rounds. I’ll be re-stringing one tomorrow. I’ll be oiling the fingerboard , and as I have a floating bridge I’ll have some tape down for it. I’m changing string tension so there will probably be a set up involved. I’ve been finding the strings on a big hollow body a bit stiff so I’m putting on Thomastik Infelds. A favourite string. Looking forward to putting them on.

I just turned 72. 1 I’ve cut back on some gigs because we’re looking after my 98 yr old mother-in-law. I do a house band gig every Sunday and like a night for rehearsal or a gig on top of that. But not much more. I used to generally play three or four nights every week. 2 Haven’t dealt with agents for some years , since I decided to cut back on travel many years back. I’ve been fortunate to play as much as I’d like in town. I’ll do a couple of minor drives in the summer , but that’s it. 3 Most gigs I do are return gigs. The phone will ring and I’ll be asked about availability. So more often then not I’ll know many of the regulars by their first names. 4 My gig money generally goes in a sock for musical emergencies. At the moment I’m thinking I should sell some things to make room for something different , but I’m happy with what I have. There are some amps I’d love to try. My gear was bought with gig money. Thankfully my wife always says that if I do see something I like … to get it. 5 Two to three nights per week out max for now. Things usually start to pick up as the dead of winter winds down. So I hope you’ll be back in the usual gigs soon. I know things can turn around just like that. Take advantage of the down time as you can.