Your Bass doesn't 'suit' the band...

[Low End Bee]

Strats and possibly a PRS. Are you the Shadows of Santana? It should be you telling them what to play.

[Huge Hands]

I had this with a blues band years ago - I had a rosewood coloured Cort C5 at the time, and they tried to get me to change to a Fender.

I took the "f**k them" attitude and stuck with the Cort, but after a short while I got kicked out.

I guess if it's not your band, you need to be happy with this being a possible outcome. I was gutted at the time.

[LewisK1975]

[quote name='Huge Hands' timestamp='1487780013' post='3242825']
I had this with a blues band years ago - I had a rosewood coloured Cort C5 at the time, and they tried to get me to change to a Fender.

I took the "f**k them" attitude and stuck with the Cort, but after a short while I got kicked out.

I guess if it's not your band, you need to be happy with this being a possible outcome. I was gutted at the time.
[/quote]

I don't think I'm in danger of being kicked out, it's just more of a case of it seeming to be more important to those 'in charge' than it is to me. You're all giving me food for thought though, maybe I'll re-approach the subject with the BL.

[SpondonBassed]

[quote name='tauzero' timestamp='1487777935' post='3242788']
Just auditioned for, and joined, a band that originally formed in the late 1960s, playing my headless Sei Flamboyant 5. They didn't have a problem with it.

Oh, and Rhino Edwards plays a Status Streamline with Quo.
[/quote]

Come to think of it, I was in the same situation with my headless Steiny in a fifties and sixties cover band. They all loved it. I didn't follow through with their offer however so it wasn't "tested" in the field, so to speak.

[BigRedX]

Do they have a keyboard player? If so, I hope his rig consists of (at least) a Hammond C3 plus Leslie, an original Fender Rhodes, a couple of Mini Moogs and a huge wall of Moog modules.

[AdamWoodBass]

When I used to do the session thing years ago I did studio sessions with several different basses and have had the producer or engineer say "that was good but could you play it on a p-bass/jazz bass/<insert bass here>?" I've also had situations where someone has asked me to specifically bring a certain bass to a session. I get that and I'm ok with that as that's the specific sound they're after and at the end of the day they're paying me. But that's about SOUND on a record, not about look.

In terms of if I'm in a band and not in a session context; if someone tells me to play a different bass because of XYZ reason I would probably politely ask them how they would feel if I told them to play a different instrument and suggest they stick to what they know. To be totally honest I'm not sure I'd want to be in a band where they're overly concerned about the "look" of an instrument. I have a guitarist mate who plays fast picking country and western stuff, his axe of choice - a Schecter Hellraiser C1 simply because of how good it sounds when he plays country and western music on it and how it feels in his hand. Designed for metal head shredders but he doesn't care.

[stingrayPete1977]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1487778814' post='3242808']
Image is important. And I find it hilarious that "Progressive" rock band should be so boringly conservative. I'd have understood it if they had deemed you Yamaha to be too conventional.

If this was me, and I really liked the music I'd be tempted to turn up to the next rehearsal with either a Fender in exactly the same colour as the Yamaha, or something really weird looking, but in a nice safe sunburst finish.
[/quote]

Musicman Big Al 5 in sunburst would be perfick!

[RhysP]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1487783057' post='3242869']
Do they have a keyboard player? If so, I hope his rig consists of (at least) a Hammond C3 plus Leslie, an original Fender Rhodes, a couple of Mini Moogs and a huge wall of Moog modules.
[/quote]

Don't forget the Mellotron...

[TrevorR]

Saw Chuck Berry in 1983. The bass player in [size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"]his pick up band was playing a purple Ibanez Explorer bass… Sounded fine (and less out of tune than Chuck’s guitar!).[/color][/font][/size]

[ambient]

I read somewhere about some top American session guy at a recording session.

The producer kept saying, no that's not quite right, maybe try it on a strat. So the guy got up and bent down behind him, sat back down and started playing again.
Same thing from the producer, this time maybe try a telecaster, so whoever the session guy was stood up and appeared to be uncasing a different guitar, sat back down and started playing again.

Still the sound wasn't quite right, better but still not quite right. So he again suggested a different guitar. Whatever the next guitar was the producer liked it and was happy.

The session guy actually only had the one guitar, he was just altering where he was playing each time.

Moral of the story, it's not the instrument but how you play it that matters.

[paul_5]

I'd be inclined to get them to buy a bass for you to play at their gigs - see how serious they are about the look of it...

[spectoremg]

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1487784012' post='3242887']
Don't forget the Mellotron...
[/quote]You beat me to it with the Mellotron!

[spectoremg]

[quote name='jacko' timestamp='1487777612' post='3242783']
Tell them old prog bands used ricks and modern prog bands use 6 string Bongos. that should shut the feckers up.
[/quote]This. I can't think of many proggers back in the day who used Fenders bar John Paul Jones and occasionally Geezer.

[Agwin]

[quote name='paul_5' timestamp='1487784971' post='3242899']
I'd be inclined to get them to buy a bass for you to play at their gigs - see how serious they are about the look of it...
[/quote]

That was my first thought when I started reading this topic.
Well actually it was, " You buy it, I'll play it!"

[Wolverinebass]

[quote name='LewisK1975' timestamp='1487775000' post='3242715']
Hey folks.

Whats your opinion on this one?

My favourite Bass to gig with is undoubtedly my sonic blue Yamaha Attitude ltd3. Love everything about it.

Been told that the Prog band I'm in requires a more 'traditional' looking Bass, a Fender basically.

No problem, I have suitable looking Basses I can use, but none of them feel as 'right' to me as the Yamaha.

I'm pretty pragmatic about it and will do what's necessary, I'm not the 'main' guy in the band, and I enjoy the music so if the look is [i]that [/i]important, then so be it.

But what would YOU do?
[/quote]

They're tools. It's a genre that doesn't require a specific instrument type to fit in stylistically. In my experience, anyone who has ever suggested I play "a proper bass - like a fender" is a moron as I deliberately play in genres where you don't need to. That's not to say I dislike fenders, but if someone tells me what to play and it's not warranted due to genre of the band then they can go do one.

[TrevorR]

[size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"]That does seem like pretty odd and controlling behaviour from the band leader (something to watch, methinks!). Of all the basses to take against visually as “not fitting in a modern prog band” the Attitude is an odd one to choose – pretty blue colour or not. It’s a pertty conventional bass overall, as a P/J bass derivative (albeit with tweaks, twirls and additions). In fact, I would have pegged it a pretty nu-proggy overall myself. Odd. Considering other nu-prog bassists the Magenta guy is all Stingrays and the odd jazz, Pete Gee from Pendragon is a Wal player, Pete Trewavas (Transatlantic hat on) loves his Warwicks and Ibanezes right now, Steve from Threshold plays a Sei, Dave Meros from Spock’s Bears likes Ricky’s Sterlings and custom made basses, Jonas Reingold of the Flower Kings loves a Yammy… That’s a pretty broad church into which an Attitude in blue really ought to fit nicely.[/color][/font][/size]
[size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"] [/color][/font][/size]
[size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"]A bit of cyber-stalking of the band’s (absolutely woeful IMHO – they really need to sort that, especially the cover photo on FB which truncates ¼ of their name… d’uh!) website and Facebook page suggests that their previous bassist was a straight down the line traditional finish P and J guy so I guess that’s where their expectations have been set. The other guitars in their were both (pretty boring looking) Strats. So maybe he’s just a retrogressive progressive rocker![/color][/font][/size]
[size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"] [/color][/font][/size]
[size=3][font="Calibri"][color="#000000"]If you like the music and like the band, of course you may not want to rock the boat. However, if it were me, that sort of behaviour/attitude is something I would want to have at my mind and keep an eye on over time…[/color][/font][/size]

[Norris]

See if you can borrow a Daisy Rock bass for your next rehearsal

[SpondonBassed]

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1487784528' post='3242896']
I read somewhere about some top American session guy at a recording session.

The producer kept saying, no that's not quite right, maybe try it on a strat. So the guy got up and bent down behind him, sat back down and started playing again.
Same thing from the producer, this time maybe try a telecaster, so whoever the session guy was stood up and appeared to be uncasing a different guitar, sat back down and started playing again.

Still the sound wasn't quite right, better but still not quite right. So he again suggested a different guitar. Whatever the next guitar was the producer liked it and was happy.

The session guy actually only had the one guitar, he was just altering where he was playing each time.

Moral of the story, it's not the instrument but how you play it that matters.
[/quote]

Lee Sklar had a switch fitted to one of his basses used in the studio for that same reason. It isn't wired to anything inside the guitar but he claims it gets the same result that you described.

[ambient]

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1487786943' post='3242934']


Lee Sklar had a switch fitted to one of his basses used in the studio for that same reason. It isn't wired to anything inside the guitar but he claims it gets the same result that you described.
[/quote]

Yeah I think he calls it his 'producer switch'.

[Dazed]

The colour eh. Isn't sonic blue a good ole Fender colour? If your happy place is with the Yamaha I'd be inclined to stick with it. If you don't mind being told what to play then use something else.
Although that could open the door to other pointless requests in future .....

[RhysP]

[quote name='TrevorR' timestamp='1487786539' post='3242929']
[size=3][font=Calibri][color=#000000]...the Magenta guy is all Stingrays and the odd jazz,... [/color][/font][/size]
[/quote]

Never seen Dan use a Stingray, only a black jazz bass & more recently a Precision. The bass player before him used to use a Musicman SUB though.

[Grangur]

[quote name='LewisK1975' timestamp='1487775000' post='3242715']
Hey folks.

Whats your opinion on this one?

My favourite Bass to gig with is undoubtedly my sonic blue Yamaha Attitude ltd3. Love everything about it.

Been told that the Prog band I'm in requires a more 'traditional' looking Bass, a Fender basically.

No problem, I have suitable looking Basses I can use, but none of them feel as 'right' to me as the Yamaha.

I'm pretty pragmatic about it and will do what's necessary, I'm not the 'main' guy in the band, and I enjoy the music so if the look is [i]that [/i]important, then so be it.

But what would YOU do?
[/quote]

Ask them what is it about the sound that is wrong. Get a definitive answer. Agree with them on how you can see that aspect of the sound is changable. Then go back next week with "Fender" pickups.

IMHO they're being control-freaks. I bet what they don't like is the Yamaha fret marker lines, as it doesn't scream "Fender" to them. It winds me up. After all being snobish and obsessive about a Fender is like being obsessive about a Ford - its a nothing special, mass market instrument. It gets the job done, but so does a Yam.

Scott sums it up
https://youtu.be/1d0-MzMwfrc?t=530

Edited February 22, 2017 by Grangur

[Mykesbass]

[quote name='TrevorR' timestamp='1487786539' post='3242929']

[size=3][font=Calibri][color=#000000]A bit of cyber-stalking of the band’s (absolutely woeful IMHO – they really need to sort that, especially the cover photo on FB which truncates ¼ of their name… d’uh!) website and Facebook page suggests that their previous bassist was a straight down the line traditional finish P and J guy so I guess that’s where their expectations have been set. The other guitars in their were both (pretty boring looking) Strats. So maybe he’s just a retrogressive progressive rocker![/color][/font][/size]

[/quote]

Indeed. Looking at the web page (not even a site) and the Facebook page, when it comes to image (what on earth is that wedding picture doing at the top of the fb page) I'd have thought a Yamaha Attitude in any colour would be way down the list of things to worry about.

I do like a certain level of a band looking right, but really, this just strikes me as petty, naive and lame.

[SpondonBassed]

[quote name='Grangur' timestamp='1487788661' post='3242956']
...being snobish and obsessive about a Fender is like being obsessive about a Ford - its a nothing special, mass market instrument...
[/quote]

Very well put. May I quote you? It's less vulgar than the way I think about it;
[attachment=238812:EatFender.png]

Edited February 22, 2017 by SpondonBassed

[No lust in Jazz]

Having had a listen to Last flight to Pluto album sampler - the ideal bass to suit the band has to be a twin neck...