BenTunnicliffe

I reckon that's quite a while to be setting up and I've only had issues getting everyone's everything together in under an hour when there's been divas wanting stuff moved but then not helping to rearrange second only to people being late which really gets to me when I'm dealing with watch-owning adults. I like to get there with more time than it takes to set up and soundcheck and then have a nice amount of time with everything just sitting there 'cause I find it looks messy when the audience arrive and you're running around not in gig gear uncoiling leads and then losing the impact of one tune because you've ran a verse and chorus in soundcheck. Not always possible but that's what I like so I can chill out for a bit before jumping into it. Had any improvements? B

Hello all, Bit of a cheeky update (first since last October so I don't think I'm pushing it really!). I did Aladdin the panto last december and just got booked to do a very short but fully authorised production of 'The Wiz' in July. I've also been working with various cover/function acts, jazz groups and a few singer/songwriters here and there on the gigging circuit. I'm planning on making the big move to the big smoke next year so I'm really interested in dipping my toes in any kind of short-term work that's knocking around in London if anyone is looking for a dep for something or other; any heads-ups greatelly appreciated. Currently really pushing myself into contemporary, groove-orientated unashamedly poppy music working in the studio I have at my disposal to work on recreating danceable hits that don't mess about with getting those hooks in there and getting people off their feet. If anyone knows of any projects with that backingtrack-aided kind of vibe with up to date grooves and sounds then that's something I'd be more than happy to go extra miles for. Still reading, my own transport, proffessional equipment, flexible timeframes, fast ear, enthusiastic, timely and easy going! Cheers for reading, B. [email protected]

[quote name='Johnston' post='1204947' date='Apr 19 2011, 05:03 PM']Thats something my Mrs was confused about when she first went bass shopping with me. The shops around here unless it's the budget starter pack you get whats on the hanger the majority of times. She couldn't understand why you are paying full whack for something that "You never know who has had their hands on that" .[/quote] You have a Mrs who'll go BASS SHOPPING WITH YOU? Bass direct don't seem to stock those from looking in their catalogue so could you please enlighten me as to where I can get one myself? Glad your money back mate. B.

Have you checked out this website? [url="http://freebasspart.pv24.pagesperso-orange.fr/Bass_Players.htm"]http://freebasspart.pv24.pagesperso-orange...ass_Players.htm[/url] I can only imagine the amount of time the guy has spent writing them all out. Hope that helps, Ben.

[quote name='Davetbass' post='1174987' date='Mar 24 2011, 05:51 PM']Hello, I've realised I can't make a function on the 2nd of April in Glasgow. Can anyone cover at short notice? Decent payer and great musicians involved. Mostly soul standards with with some recent covers thrown in. If interested pm me and I'll send you a set list. Thanks, Dave[/quote] Hi Dave, Absolutely gutted I'm in the studio that weekend now that this has popped up! Always nice to have a trip up to Glasgow. Have you had any luck sorting a dep yet then? Ben.

Wow. Who'd have though pushing such a smallwire literally half a mm onto it's post would save the day. Top plonker. Thanks for the help anyway ou7shined! ADMIN CAN DELETE THIS NOW CHEERS GUYS, SORRY.

Already checked the control cavity and there was one wire that I managed to push on to it's post thingy a bit better but apart from that everything's clean as a whistle. Plugging in the bass as we speak to give it a going over!

Hi guys, I've had a new bass since last Crimbo and I'm having issues with it cutting out compeltely or failing to give the right amount of output etc unless the lead's possitioned in exactly the right place. It's working sometimes but is one of those cases of sitting down with my bass and having to fiddle with the angle the jack is going into the socket for it to finally make a good connection and bring it to life. The bass is active and has a locking jack system and I've tried numerous leads and replaced the battery but the problem doesn't go away. The strange part is that if I hit a note hard the signal cuts out completely and it's been a fantastic case of every time I take it into the shop it works a treat so i have no idea what's going on. The ends of both the leads I've used with it have been fine so i'm a tad reluctant to fork out on another 'lasts forever' lead if I can find out that this does indeed sound like the output of my bass as that's a cheaper issue to resolve by just getting a new unit. I can't possibly have two dead leads can I?!......or can I? When I move the lead around to try and get contact in the bass it makes a sound of a bad connection to me but I suppose that could also be an issue in the lead somewhere. I've just had a look inside and there's nothing visibly making a poor connection at all which is a tad baffling. I've tried different amps etc so it's not a problem with a channel on my amps. Any thoughts would be appreciated. Cheers, Ben.

I'm one of the many people here who's not been to a bass bash or bass day of any kind and I think a lot of the attacks aimed at slapping in particular in this thread are a tad unfair really. I've heard just as many if not more people play distasteful fingerstyle playing on records as I have slapping and have seen just as many people bore me or brutally attack my lugs with O.T.T. jaco licks and heavy rock playing in shops as I have with slap. Granted if I was naturally not a big slap fan I'd switch off quicker (which I do) hearing a bit of thwackity thwack but that's not really an observation on slapping and much more my own opinion. As was pointed out by Doddy the need to slap within context does occassionally pop up and most bassists who do stuff in cover bands will need to have a bit of a grasp of the technique if they're going for really recreating particular songs like they were on the records. The super fast chops of Vic, Stanley and mr King haven't ever popped up in my day to day gigs but I believe that covering my ass by being able to play slightly above what generally pops up is always wise seeing as I never really know what's in tomorrow's gig. I think the whole bass day thing is an instant turn off to me as a huge majority of the people there demo'ing seem to be without drums and further accompaniment FROM WHAT I'VE SEEN so both having someone playing fingerstyle or slap wouldn't really float my boat. Some of the guys playing those 32nd note triplets on new gear in our usual shops might only want to sit at home playing along to Mark King though and they have the right to test out gear 'till their hearts content in my eyes but those players aren't really my bag so I certainly wont be sitting down and listening longer than necessary.

Hi guys, Treating myself very soon and would like to finally delve into getting a gadget i've been after for a long time - a Volume Pedal. Basically i don't see the point in spending time learning to play completely differently with my right hand for the sake of being able to use my pinky to roll the volume pot on or off and also don't like the idea of doing that as if I did that on a standard jazz I'd have to turn off the neck pup completely before fading in a sound that in fact isn't the sound I was using in the first place anyway due to it now being a different pup configuration so I thought I'd hunt for a true bypass pedal. I do quite a lot of playing in pits or just at live gigs with horn, string and brass players and being able to hit those delicate last chords with the same amount of crescendo other instrumentalists are able to do due to the basic way their instruments work would be great. I was suprised to get literally almost nothing using a google and BC search so here i am. I'm imagining that I might have to have a pedal made as the spec would have to be as follows..... - WAH type pedal design with up being volume full and down being off or vice versa - Transparent circuitry so that i can fade in/out the sound I always get from my basses - Quiet circuitry - Normal features i.e. jack connections, powerable from a 9v power lead etc Here's the nightmare feature I'd need.... - Two inputs that remain split in the circuitry and go to two seperate outputs. I use two basses at most gigs and would like to be able to have the volume pedal part of the chain for both basses but still be able to chuck them into seperate channels on my amp to seperately EQ them before they head over to the desk via DI out the back. If anyone could suggest a company who already make a pedal similar to that lengthy rant I just had or that could make up a pedal with that spec that'd be really appreciate. Cheers guys, Ben. P.S. I'm also after a true bypass complete mute pedal that has two inputs that remain split on their way to two seperate outputs with un-noisy toggle switches (clanky, metal pedals can be really noisy and i'm sure would get me glared at by the MD from time to time and I know many people use tuner pedals to the same result but I have my tuner in my rack and could do without amassing a huge array of gear on the floor). Any suggestions on that would also be appreciated, CHEERS!

Everything's getting really busy at the moment around me and having now joined a tribute act, new wedding/covers act and another jazz trio I am now realisticly only able to do depping or work in areas that don't require months of rehearsals or time spent developing material etc. Thought this was best pointed out than not as to not waste anyone's time. Thanks to everyone who got in contact, really, really appreciated. Cheers, Ben.

Hello everyone, A shameless bump to add that I have just started my second academic year as a peripatetic electric bass and guitar teacher employed by a local agency which I'm very happy about and enjoying very much. As you can imagine the job involves a lot of on-the-spot reading, good time management as well as dealing responsibly with school children with a range of abilities and attitudes. Still 100% willing to discuss traveling to gigs up to a good 2-3hours away and incredibly grateful of any gigs people pass on in any way. Cheers, Ben.

Hi, Is it electric guitarists or bass guitarists you're after for the gigs? Cheers, Ben.

As a tool for learning everything from the floor up (although it is a bit dry at times on the whole so coupling it with a 'play along with' book might be a good idea) the 'Play Bass Today' series is a good start but deals with standard notation (which is explained aswell). [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Play-Today-Ultimate-Self-Teaching-Method/dp/0634021842/ref=sr_1_9?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1282254785&sr=8-9"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Play-Today-Ultimat...4785&sr=8-9[/url] I can also vouch for the David Overthrow series of books being reliable in introducing solid theory knowledge etc over the series as well as technique and genre knowledge. As a nice touch it give pictures and suggested listening for different styles and techniques frequently through each book which turned me on to a load of bass players I'd never heard of when I first read the books yonks ago. [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Electric-Bass-Method-Beginning/dp/0739006894/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1282254841&sr=1-1"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Complete-Electric-...4841&sr=1-1[/url] Both come with an audio CD. Hope you get somwhere with the frenchman! Ben.

Bump for some updates and enthusiasm to branch out geographically? Cheers, Ben.

Cheers Bilbo. I'm liking that tracks so far.

[url="http://www.myspace.com/void2006"]http://www.myspace.com/void2006[/url] Hi guys, Found this band VOID quite a while ago online after hearing about their bass player Dane Alderson playing on a completely unrelated project which led me to wanting to hear other stuff he's done. Void only have a single album to their name which I believe won an award of some kind and it's available on iTunes but not as a physical release as far as I'm aware. It's worth every penny if you're into groove-driven jazz/fusion stuff with a very modern feel, brilliant conversation between soloists, interesting song forms and an incredible sense of production throughout without being dry or compensating. The bass playing on it is like nothing i've heard in a very long time and Dane Alderson displays glimpses of astounding technical ability that when not soloing he just puts out of the way and lets solid, often root note 8ths just take over which is something I personally can't hear enough of - a jazz musician with a sense of control and restraint in a genre often overlooked by some for being full of widdly widdly solos or double thumping nightmares where bass is in the question. They're really worth a look and i'd recommend the track 'J-Lag' as a first listen on their myspace. Lineup of the band is: Dane Alderson - Bass Tom O'Halloran - Keys Troy Roberts - Sax Andy Fisenden - Kit (working with Jay Sean and the Sugarbabes as far as I've heard, an absolute monster groove player) Last I heard the band were sending protools sessions to each other to compose new material for a new album but I haven't heard anything about the progress made so far. This video is of a track not featured on the album but that I'm hoping to hear on the next release... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uW5aWVgxAw"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0uW5aWVgxAw[/url] I'd love to hear what people have to say about Alderson's playing but more importantly the band as a whole. Cheers, Ben.

Just wrote a whole PM to you OG offering to give dep then realised I've got a gig on that night anyway. Shame, sounds like a good one!

Congrats on getting your website Huwberry and business cards are the most useful things EVER. Scribing your number on a beermat is never very dignified....not that I've ever done that. I agree with thepurplebob that it is more about putting yourself in situations where you meet people than how well you play and in situations where there are two things on off clashing on the same night I have more often found it much more beneficial to take the non-paying gig with people I've never met before than to take the gig I've done loads of times that puts a bit in my pocket. Reading isn't vital and there are loads of musicians who've got by without it but seeing as you are [b]competing[/b] for work having things like good reading skills is just one other way to tip the scales in your favour as was mentioned by Bilbo and if you learn to do it the skill's just sitting there waiting to be used. I'd also add that taking up double bass is an incredibly wise move as it opens doors quicker than you'd imagine and i'm sure Bilbo will second that in no time..... Keep us all posted with what's been working for you, can't hurt to learn from each other's experiences. Good luck mate. Ben.

Thanks for the help guys. Being a bit of a no-name and needing at least one seemingly serious job doing as well as some cosmetic stuff what would be a reasonable price to pay for it if it came up for sale? And on that note would I be wiser spending the same money on something with possibly less history but that doesn't have the same level of damage to it? I'm only asking for advice because it seems you can do nearly anything to an electric and it will keep going and sounding relatively the same but these ye olde basses aren't quite so forgiving.... Thanks again.

I gathered old is good Bilbo and cosmetically it certainly IS good. I've had a gander inside but can't see anything writen at all through either the f holes. I can't imagine the repairs it needs would be very cheap would they? Any idea what that cracked material is in the second picture right under the scroll?

Hi guys, A muso friend of mine went abroad about 6weeks ago and very nicely for me he wanted a home for his upright where it would be played, looked after and not just sit around collecting dust. I've played it a hell of a lot since getting ti as I've never had immediate access to a DB for such a long time so I thought I'd make the most of it and I'm now thinking seeing as I've began making a connection with this particular bass (and the owner wont be back for months yet) I might want to make the man an offer for it seeing as he now only plays classical guitar (and after months away travelling and studying music I can't imagine he'll be rolling in it). The problem is I know sod all about DBs when it comes to manufacturers, quality or condition so I was hoping someone could help tell me what such an instrument goes for from looking at these fairly poor pics. History: It was apparently used by someone with links to flamenco music for a rather long time and was then bought by a jazzer in the UK and since then was sold to my friend over here in North Wales. It's gos some weird almost putty-like stuff right in the centre between the tuning pegs, a rather fetching crack running down under the bridge area, damage to the back of the headstock and some kind of duct tape serving some purpose on the bottom; I dare not remove it. There's a pickup fo sorts fitted that I think was mentioned as a Shadow and yet I again I have no idea if that's good or bad. He has been informed it's 'old'.... Any help would be great. I haven't played many basses that play much better than this one but the only upright i've played with a proffessional set-up was an absolute joy to play in comparisson so I think I'd get that done along with the other work. If anyone can tell me how serious the damage looks (especially any story behind that stuff on the headstock) and how much it'd cost/how important it is to have the instrument looked at if it does end up in my hands. I can take more pictures if need be. Cheers guys, Ben.