Leaderboard

Sly and Robbie, the rhythm twins, are the best for me 🙂

Bernard Edwards and Tony Thompson are the pinnacle, for me. I have a lot of time for Cliff WIlliams and Phil Rudd, too - simple, perhaps, but very effective.

Tommy Shannon and Chris Layton of (Stevie Ray Vaughan and) Double Trouble fame have always been a favourite of mine.

I'm going to be playing live for the first time ever this weekend, and I'm sure I'll love it once I'm done - but right now I'm brickin very nervous about the whole thing. I turned the big 5-0 last week and have organised a bit of a get together for family and friends to 'celebrate' lasting this long without too many bits falling off. My bass tutor is in a band and she's bringing them along to play and very kindly offered if I'd like to sit in on some tracks. Seemed a great idea at the time and I'm only doing three tracks from when I first got into music (Blockbuster and Ballroom Blitz by Sweet and 20th Century Boy by T-Rex), but as it gets closer three things keep springing to mind; 1- I've never played in a band before (only to tracks), 2- I've never played in front of a crowd and 3- The crowd will be made up entirely of family and friends. What could possibly go wrong? I've been on a heavy repeat system of practising and can now play them in my sleep (in fact, I think I may actually do that - certainly they are pretty much always bouncing round in my head) so hopefully I can just go with the flow - just need to get there and get it done, then I'll probably enjoy it a lot more. I'll let you all know how it goes. Wish me luck, I feel like I may need it! 🙂

Roscoe Beck with drummer Tom Brechtline In Robbin Ford’s Blue Line, they always seem to be able to find a different groove and riff for any song Ford wrote.

Have you considered just making your own? That's what I did when I had a very specific setup I wanted to use but didn't want a long pedal board with everything in a row (my always on/infrequent use pedals can go at the back) I bought a job lot of flight cases and ended up making the board to fit inside it. Then I made another to see how many mooer pedals I could fit in. I have a few more cases and tons of scrap wood, so I'll probably just keep making them!

Animal and Floyd Pepper

I like pearl 'guards. I'd have pearl on them both and risk being burned as a witch.....

If you can play them in your sleep then you'll be fine. Nervous energy is a positive thing. Once it's over you might notice that some women, who had once been indifferent to your presence, will look at you in an entirely unwholesome way.

Whoops

Run of 3

Nail varnish 😉

I told him it was unlikely to be a valve, but does he ever listen to me? Oh noooo... no he don't... 😃

You could keep it, just for the crack, like

Great to have my Sterling back after its visit to Mr Shuker. I wasn’t keen on the bland neck (maple board wax/oil jobbie) so after a conversation with DeeDee the bass was taken into the heart of the Peak District. Very happy with the work, a nice vintage tint gloss and stainless frets - looks awesome.

Zigaboo Modeliste and George Porter Jr with the Meters Willie Green and Tony Hall with the Neville Brothers

Video, or it didn't happen

Eugene Wright and Joe Morello...

STPs rhythm section is criminally underrated -

Sparko and The Big Figure

Kenny Gradney, Richie Hayward and Sam Clayton of Little Feat

No one has mentioned Bonham and John Paul Jones - the great rock rhythm section...

You're all fools - Single ply black. 👍 (those stacked knobs look fabulous!)

By halfway through the first song you'll be hooked. Enjoy the years of poverty ahead!! 🙂

Really enjoyed that! Great example of a bass player giving the song exactly what it needs - especially the way he picks up the brass vibe.

After a month of needing something new, switching my mind between a Limelight light relic and a Maruszczyk Jake custom design, I've eventually switched track completely and thought, sod it, I'd like to build something myself. I have always loved the simple, classic look of the Fender 54P design, but I'm going away from the vintage bridge and covers, as I do really like the more modern take on it, a la Mike Lull 54P...so this will be my inspiration...and hopefully I'll end up with one of my own for less than half the price...!! I want a darker wood body, natural Tru-Oil finish, and I'm currently undecided whether to go with a Guitar Build 1 piece swamp ash, or a 2 piece walnut (Kgs?!) body. After my thread yesterday on import tax and duty (as I was stupidly considering buying from the US just to avoid finishing myself!), I've aleady bought the neck, Allparts Tele-Bass, unfinished maple, which I'm planning on tinting and finishing with Tru-Oil...might be a few weeks before it's here though, 2 week back order...🙄 Hipshot B Style Bridge, chrome, 19mm Hipshot Ultralite Clover tuners, chrome Lindy Fralin 51'P Split Single Coil Pup Pickguard...black or white...?! Controls, volume pot and I'm going to throw in a ToneStyler Bass Ten Nervously looking forward to my first ever build...or is it construction when you buy the parts...?!

Picked up my P-Ray bass from Monty's guitars this morning. It's been a long project, but nearly done - just need put the pickup and electronics together tonight. Warmoth P-Bass body with a MM pickup routing USCG Baked birds eye maple 22 fret P-Bass style neck Nordstand 4.4 MM pickup Gotoh metal Going to see how she sounds passive and maybe put a John East MM pre depending. So far plays nice! I'm interested to see how it changes when the pickup goes in.

I think a lot of the 'others' may be D'addarios.

Here's something i've never seen done before

This is one I did after clever matching

Off to see Wilko Johnson tonight! With the superb Norman Watt-Roy on Bass & Dylan Howe on drums. Glenn Tilbrook supporting

Just thought I post this one this is my new gigging Set up the amp may change and the bass will,but those cabs together oh man it bliss I've found the sound I've been looking for

Those cabs are not the same, Kev. The cab police will be along in a minute to explain why you shouldn't trust your ears ...

I would avoid the 100 and go for something more powerful, I used to play in a 3 piece band that did rehearsals in a rehearsal studio that had a 60w Fender Rumble, my bass got completely buried in the mix , ended up going DI into the PA instead

It's dead obvious what the problem is!

Jog on boyo. 😃

Good advice ^^^^^. The most nerve-racking gig I ever did was a big "family & friends" thing. I had one pint to settle the nerves, and I swear it was as-if my drink was spiked with LSD (looked like it on the video too 🤒)... we did 3 songs, one cover and two originals... went down really well to the partisan crowd, so we did the first song again as an encore (Hard To Handle - more like the Black Crowes version than Otis Redding's)... at this point I decided to do the age old trick of singing along into a switched off mic'... which I later discovered was in fact switched on... whoops. 😔 Don't let me put you off though! It was a great experience, everybody had fun, and it got us a good support slot with another band who were being showcased for a recording contract. I'd still rather play to strangers though. 😬

Mark Evans, Phil Rudd & Malcolm Young on early AC/DC stuff always blow me away with how solid they are.

Al Jackson and Duck Dunn at Stax Roger Hawkins and David Hood at Muscle Shoals Steve Gadd and Nathan East with Clapton Hughie Flint and John McVie with John Mayall Gene Crisman and Tommy Cogbill and Mike Leech at American Sound Benny Benjamin and James Jamerson and Bob Babbitt at Motown Ginger Baker and Jack Bruce with Cream Mickey Waller and Ronnie Wood with Jeff Back

Which may be a problem as he is playing for his family

Will be interested in your build, lots of quality parts. I've read good things about Nash 51 P's. If you have a dark body then you want to contrast it, so an off white or cream pickguard would be my choice.

Yes - lovely. There's a LOT of work going into this....that's a lot of demarcation going on. Looks great for it.

https://www.creamery-pickups.co.uk/custom-handwound-pickups-from-the-creamery/scatterwound-bass-pickups.html#.XMKisxbTWEc Reckon this chap will get you close - I have a set of his ‘58s and they are stellar

Thanks - handy stuff to know. I have had some turn up recently, should be able to make something out of this...

The one in this review is unsurpassed, apparently. 🙂

Say wht you want about relicing but this is the nuts....

I never liked the look of a double P - until I heard Jerry Preston with one. 😎 I would love to play with those guys... just once would do!