Peter Hook Masterclass

[MB1]

MB1.
..."And Why Not?"
Like him or loathe him he has an individual style and signature sound of his own (you'd not mistake him for say Mark King?)
He is local!...he's just gone past our house on his pushbike!

[Pete Academy]

[quote name='ead' timestamp='1358408949' post='1938510']
Hooky & Master Class - There's some words I never expected to see in the same sentence. Not my personal cup of tea, but good luck to the lad.
[/quote]

Sums up my post.

[uncle psychosis]

Unlike many of the master-class types I've seen at many of these events he may well be able to offer a unique insight into what its like to sell absolutely shedloads of records and be a major force in new musical trends.

Miaaaaaaaaaaow.

[Zenitram]

He might even give some DJing tips.

[chris_b]

I'm not a big fan of his playing, his bands or his music, but as he's so much more successful at this bass playing lark than I ever was, good luck to him.

I’m sure he’ll be able to hold an audience with his playing and anecdotes.

A few years ago I went to a Victor Wooten Masterclass and I found his chat was more interesting than his playing.

Hooky's fans will have a great time.

Edited January 17, 2013 by chris_b

[kerley]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1358415225' post='1938606']
I’m sure he’ll be able to hold an audience with his playing and anecdotes.

[/quote]

Exactly and that is what it is about. Maybe they need to use a word other than Masterclass as that implies a- they are a master and b- it is a class. It is more of a general talk from a bassist in my experience.

Edited January 17, 2013 by kerley

[Marvin]

[quote name='kerley' timestamp='1358417326' post='1938645']
Exactly and that is what it is about. Maybe they need to use a word other than Masterclass as that implies a- they are a master and b- it is a class. It is more of a general talk from a bassist in my experience.
[/quote]

More "An Audience With Peter Hook". They could video it and show for anyone who couldn't attend on a BBC4 at about 1am in the morning

[kerley]

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1358418191' post='1938659']
More "An Audience With Peter Hook". [/quote]

That would need loads of celebrities in the audience so they could cut to shots of them laughing so we know what he has said is funny.

[spongebob]

I'd love to see him doing his stuff. When I was learning, picking out his lines was fun as they were easy to learn, but very effective, and he regularly played over the whole of the neck as many of his lines were very lead or melody based.

Technical? No. But he has a style which is his own - both in sound and in stance!

Regardless of ability, he was the right bassist in the right band(s). Imagine Joy Division with Jaco? Extreme example, granted, but just want to illustrate how what he did was perfect for the overall sound.

.....and I bet he's very entertaining as well, going by his interviews in the press!

[Pete Academy]

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1358418191' post='1938659']
More "An Audience With Peter Hook". They could video it and show for anyone who couldn't attend on a BBC4 at about 1am in the morning
[/quote]

Now that would be a better idea.

[BigRedX]

Pete - I don't know what music you were listening to in the late 70s and early 80s, but I'm guessing it wasn't post-punk and the bands that were being played on John Peel.

In which case you'll have missed out on exactly how massively influential Joy Division as a band a Peter Hook in particular were. At one point it seemed as though half the new bands from the UK who had a bass guitarist were playing like him. While someone can probably find earlier examples of similar playing from another bassist, Peter Hook most definitely made the high-register melodic bass part his own. And when you had so many bands and musicians copying your playing and sound that makes you pretty important as a musician regardless of technical ability.

[BigRedX]

[quote name='Spike Vincent' timestamp='1358387263' post='1938445']
If it's a chance to chat with a nice guy and legitamate legend all well and good,but what's he actually going to teach anyone?
[/quote]

Well judging by the number of people on a recent thread who were struggling to work out exactly how "Love Will Tear Us Apart" was played, quite a lot.

[such]

"technical ability" means nothing more than being able to play exactly what's needed/appropriate for the song. Is Stanley Clarke a better bassist than Peter Hook? Possibly. Would he be a better bassist for Joy Division then?

[tedmanzie]

[quote name='Pete Academy' timestamp='1358368335' post='1938056']
This post will no doubt piss people off, but I gather Peter Hook is doing a masterclass at the Bass Guitar Show. A masterclass? He seems a very average player who happened to be in A successful band.

Am I missing something?
[/quote]


maybe you are missing a pair of ears?

[Low End Bee]

I'd rather listen to an hour Hooky telling me how long your strap can get than listen to 5 minutes of anything recorded by Jaco Pastorius.
I'm not a big NO/JD fan either. Horses for courses.

I think it's quite nice that someone who was/is actually influential on a lot of bands and not from the multi string slappy tappy brigade is doing one of these things.

[Doddy]

I think the problem is the use of the word 'Masterclass'. Personally, I don't think that he's a 'master' of the instrument and I'd
expect some one leading a 'class' (which suggests educational)to at least know where an 'A' is on the bass (which he has
admitted that he doesn't).If it was advertised as a Q&A I don't think there would be a problem.
I'm not a fan of Hook at all and I really don't get Joy Division or New Order (except for 'World in Motion' obviously),but I get
that there are people who would like to hear his stories.I don't think he'd offer much in a 'masterclass' setting though.

[tedmanzie]

Everyone likes different music of course, but appreciating that great/memorable/emotional music can be made from simple/basic means is not difficult

I'd really like to hear him talk about how he created his basslines, not from a technical standpoint but from an emotional/ideas point of view.
The interesting thing about listening to any artist talking about their work is getting in their head a bit, to appreciate why they do A and not B or C...

[Pete Academy]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1358424643' post='1938808']
Pete - I don't know what music you were listening to in the late 70s and early 80s, but I'm guessing it wasn't post-punk and the bands that were being played on John Peel.

In which case you'll have missed out on exactly how massively influential Joy Division as a band a Peter Hook in particular were. At one point it seemed as though half the new bands from the UK who had a bass guitarist were playing like him. While someone can probably find earlier examples of similar playing from another bassist, Peter Hook most definitely made the high-register melodic bass part his own. And when you had so many bands and musicians copying your playing and sound that makes you pretty important as a musician regardless of technical ability.
[/quote]

Very fair point.

[Pete Academy]

[quote name='Doddy' timestamp='1358435965' post='1939099']
I think the problem is the use of the word 'Masterclass'. Personally, I don't think that he's a 'master' of the instrument and I'd
expect some one leading a 'class' (which suggests educational)to at least know where an 'A' is on the bass (which he has
admitted that he doesn't).If it was advertised as a Q&A I don't think there would be a problem.
I'm not a fan of Hook at all and I really don't get Joy Division or New Order (except for 'World in Motion' obviously),but I get
that there are people who would like to hear his stories.I don't think he'd offer much in a 'masterclass' setting though.
[/quote]

I can agree with this. I think the organisers should have presented it differently.

Edited January 17, 2013 by Pete Academy

[El Bajo]

I'd never heard of him up until this post and had to google which band he's in. But I'd rather go and listen to what this guy has to say than go and watch a jazz virtuoso give a talk on bass solos of which is absolutley no use to me in the type of bands I play in.

Barring Victor Wooten, the guys speaks a lot of sense about groove.

[Stan_da_man]

Oh God, a bass player who is known and has been in successful bands - I would much prefer an unknown who has done a session with Miles playing reggae in 11/8 timing.

[JellyKnees]

Well I was a big Joy Division fan 'back in the day' and I can appreciate his distinctive style on those early records, but I don't really get the idea of him presenting a masterclass in playing bass. I'm sure he's a nice guy and has some interesting stories etc., but I can't see how he can impart much in the way of bass playing knowledge.

And I don't personally like the way he seems to be cashing in with his recent tour playing the Joy Division stuff. It's simply not JD without Ian Curtis. These old rock stars should either do something new or go away and retire to the country and grow tulips or something.

[kerley]

Yes, masterclass if the wrong word, maybe 'Show and tell' would be better but most master classes are not really classes if when teh player is a master. I have seen a few and never learnt anything from them other than the same sort of stuff Peter Hook would give you. They are what you make of them and depending on questions and where it may go it can be good or dreadful.

[Spike Vincent]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1358424883' post='1938821']
Well judging by the number of people on a recent thread who were struggling to work out exactly how "Love Will Tear Us Apart" was played, quite a lot.
[/quote]

I must have missed that one,it's not exactly difficult to play....

[The Admiral]

FWIW - I saw Frank Gambale and his trio at the NEC guitar show about 10 years ago and it was the the biggest pile of art w*** bollocks jazz rock noodling I've ever heard. His bass player had a custom 6 string, and they were all technically awesome players, but after 2 songs they had cleared the hall pretty much, and it reminded me of those kids that can do fantastic football juggling tricks and 500 keepy uppies at a time, but can't actually play a game of football for sh*t.

Interestingly, Ocean Colour Scene were on the same bill, as they has just signed a deal with Marshall, and they were amazing. Is Steve Craddock a better player than the Aussie sweep picking maestro Gambale -, probably no, but it's about being the right player for the band ad serving the song surely?

I'm not a Hooky/JD/New Order fan at all, but i bet he's got some excellent stories, and surely it's more about making an emotional connection with the listener than playing thousands of notes. BB King has made a career out of being the greatest player of 5 notes in the world, and given the choice between seeing him and Steve Vai, I know who I'd want to watch.

Edited January 17, 2013 by The Admiral