Spook

[quote name='thunderbird13' post='732636' date='Feb 2 2010, 10:25 AM']Sorry guys just want to get this off my chest – it supposed to be therapeutic Rant mode on - Been playing in a Hawkwind tribute band for about 9 months now at the start it was hard to remember all the bass parts but I put the work in and got up to a reasonable standard enough to play my first gig with then in December. Now my band leader has announced that he’s changing direction and writing all his own stuff, including the bass lines which he wants me to play without any additional input from me. OK I thought I have to be realistic I’m not that good and after a year of playing I don’t think I have improved much so I’m pretty much stuck at a level somewhere rank beginner and average. So why not just accept it learn his stuff and get on with it – at least I’m still in a band. But it’s beginning to get me down – his new stuff isn’t that good and frankly I’m getting bored playing it and I have some resentment to not being allowed to change it to make it more interesting. Try as hard as I can I just cant get excited about it I have enquired about 2 more bands that have advertised for a bass player recently but after 2 or 3 emails both of them have gone quiet, which is similar to the experience I have this time last year. It took me about a year to find a band and now it looks like its going to be the same again. TBH I really don’t know if I can be bothered with it anymore. Rant mode off - Thank you for your time - now about your business [/quote] I recently left a band I was bored with, (Been with them 15 years), looked around for a few weeks, but nothing stood out, so I'm in the process of forming a completely new band - something I once said I'd never do again. I'd forgotten what a buzz it is to be playing with new musicians, having new ideas and everyone enthusiastic. Give the Partysounds site a try - plenty of folks of all skill levels on there looking to make music. We've all been there - fed up and seemingly nowhere to go, but stick at it and you'll find something you're happy with

[quote name='JackLondon' post='735957' date='Feb 5 2010, 11:29 AM']You do have a point. Someone who doesn't look after their gear shouldn't have it no matter how hard they've worked to get it![/quote] COMPLETE CRAP!! Basses aren't for looking at, they're for PLAYING - if you use them enough, they'll inevitably sustain "Battle scars", no matter how careful you are. Face it - THEY'RE NOTHING MORE THAN A TOOL, the same way a spanner or screwdriver is to a mechanic. Tell me, if you dare, Billy Sheehan's old Precision is any less valid as an instument because it's not been treated like his baby, or for that matter, Rory Gallagher's Strat. At the end of the day looks are completely unimportant IT'S THE SOUND THAT MATTERS!!!

[quote name='silddx' post='735012' date='Feb 4 2010, 01:32 PM']I think it's a complete fallacy that the core tone of your bass is very important. I think in most cases people are deluding themselves. Of all the things - reliability, playability, comfort and looks - tone is by far the easiest to change to your liking. If that is not the case, why do we spend so much on eq and effects? I think this "TONE" nonsense is a legacy of the days when bassists had very little equipment to choose from. Why would you still limit yourself to a Fender Precision because you think it has "thump", when you could have a bass with loads more mid-gig tonal options at the flick of a switch, be more comfortable, more playable and more reliable? You can easily eq that thump in to whatever bass you are playing. Of course, you may only want one tone, but then you may only ever have one hairstyle or only eat Hawaiian pizza. I am a complete convert from the idea of needing valve amp and a Fender, Stingray, blah blah. The future is digital. Get the bass you REALLY want.[/quote] I have to agree! had a couple of 5-stings made to fit (I have small hands and am pretty small physically), and my 70's Precision hasn't seen the light of day since. Got rid of the Ampeg for a Trace Elliot stack, but was disappointed when I "Upgraded" the head. The new American owned version seems to have lost all the tonal character the British produced models had, so all change again to Ashdown - Brilliant piece of kit, though I have been looking at the recent TC Electronics combos

I think the who totally stank! - if they'd played like that in my local pub they'd have been thrown out! Time to call it a day and stop living on past glories I'd say. The Who were one of my all time favourite bands, but I'm afraid without Keith Moon and John Entwhistle they've become a sad parody of what they once were. I read somewhere Pino has his basses custom built, NOT by Fender, but I can't recall which British builder it was

Get rid of her, then you can get even more basses without the hassle!!

I'm one of those folks who has a very long fuse, but after a few weeks of band members being awkward in rehearsals and gigs, they asked me to re- arrange the set lists, which I dutifully did, (I was the one in the band who did anything that wasn't simply playing anyway). Half way through the next gig, two of the three of them started whingeing about the set list being in "The wrong order". After finishing the next song, I simply put my bass down, switched my amp off, got of the stage and went for a drink with my mates in the bike club, who'd come along to support the band, telling them they'd better pack up and go home. Funniest bit was, one of them said "You're sacked" - cue howls of laughter from me and my mates. The next day they virtually begged me to reconsider - they had no bass player, and no one to do all the "donkey work" - they tried replacing me, but the lot of them were so lazy it fizzled out after one, (I'm told, horrendous), gig two weeks later. Maybe it was the wrong way to go about it, but I had the feeling they wanted me gone and were deliberately provoking me, but doing that, i even surprised myself! It was simply a gut reaction, and in hindight, (A truly wonderful thing, hingsight!!), the best thing I could possibly have done for myself. In truth the only way to quit a band is just to do it as soon as the thought first comes into your head

Some folks don't get the avatar - guess you have to be "of a certain age" - Did it myself years ago! One day I'll go to my ex's, get into the loft and get the old girl (NOT my ex!!), out and take a pic or three. Sufficice to say over the years it been extensively butchered here's a list of the atrocities I can remember: (there are more!!) Orginal sunburst finish stripped and resprayed with matt black car paint. Telecaster bass pickup put in as close to the neck as it would go - hole gouged out with a screwdriver on the tour bus. Both pots discarded and replaced with mini spst toggle switches, one for each pickup, (Always had the controls full up, so no point interrupting the signal with pots!). Scratch plate thrown away and replaced with a small polished aluminium plate that just covers the electrics cavity. Neck shaved to a square section as thin as it would go then resprayed matt black. Extra string tree added on "D" and "G" strings. Badass bass bridge fitted. Pickups stripped and rewound, then epoxy sealed. Treble edge of fretboard lightly scalloped all the way along the neck. Brass nut re-cut with closer string spacing.

Jools from a band called The CARNIVAL - not flash, but one of those solid-as-a-rock players we'd all like to be

Thanks, folks! I always did like a little chorus / flange on the more melodic stuff, but I always had the sneaky feeling I was using it more as a "Talent Booster" than an addition to my sound. Now I've dumped the FX, I have to rely purely on my hands to create the sound, something I'm much happier with. One thing I am having fum with at the moment is using a heavy-grade "Sharkfin" pick - just gives a different edge (Excuse the pun). Don't get me wrong, I love playing finger style, but I do prefer to play with a pick, for that extra bit of attack ( Old rockers, eh??). As for my old Prec.- I can't honestly see us parting company, even if I never play her again - Too many miles, too much gigging time, so many memories - the first "Proper" bass I bought - grafted and saved for a year to get it and my grandparents made up the difference.

Tried the Canyon III, (with the spalted maple top, very pretty), the other day and liked it a lot - I have small hands, and I'm a short- arse, so "Normal" 5 - strings can be tiring for me to play over, say, a two hour set. I had two basses built to solve this problem, but I think I may buy one of these as a spare. All round, I'd say worth the money

Just to say Hi! The name's Spook, aged 53, from "South OF Heaven". Been playing bass since I was 14, (Still not learned anything!! ), 15 years of it professionally, but mostly for the sheer love of it. I'll stop playing bass when they pry the neck from my cold, dead hands - it's a complete obsession for me! Influence wise, there are so many, from way back in the past, when dinosaurs ruled the Earth, to present day, but particularly, "Old School" players like Andy Frazer of Free, Jack Bruce, Leon Wilkinson, Billy Sheehan et al. Basically, I'm into country and folk, blues, blues based rock and metal. Call me old fashioned and traditional, but if you want to play solos, go buy a guitar, for me bass is the heart of the music, powerful, melodic, soulful, but ALWAYS driving things along. Same thing with the "percussive", slapping style of playing - while I can fully appreciate the skills needed to play the style, (Yes, before you ask, I CAN play that style!), it just leaves me cold, and I avoid it like the plague. Gear wise, I have two custom built 5-strings, and my battered and abused '72 Precision, though the old girl has played literally thousands of gigs and sessions with me over the years, it hasn't left the case since I got the first 5 string, and I'd sell it, but it's in such an abysmal state no one would want it, (Yes seriously it is!!). I use an Ashdown 300W combo, having sold my 600W Trace Eliott / Hartke stack, (2X15 Trace cabs and a 4X10h Hartke Ally cone top end) cos it was a pain in the arse to hump about, even though it had an amazing amount of power and tone. I also ditched my extensive FX rack, and am now using only a rack tuner and radio system alongside the amp - a complete "Back to basics" approach. Think that's all there is to tell - look forward to talking to some of you in the future!