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Hi everyone, I just wanted to say a huge thank you to all of you who have supported the site this year—whether by becoming a Supporting Member or purchasing tokens for the marketplace. Your contributions enable us to keep improving the site, reduce our reliance on advertising, and dedicate time to supporting our community. I mention this now because December typically sees a noticeable drop in revenue, and with the challenges many individuals and businesses are facing right now, I’m especially grateful to those of you who continue to renew your subscriptions. Of course, I also deeply appreciate everyone who visits the site, shares their knowledge, and offers support to others. A site like BC is only as valuable as the knowledge contained within the membership. So, thank you once again. I’ll be taking a bit of a BC break over Christmas and New Year, so I want to wish you all a relaxing, joyful time with your friends, family, and instruments 🎸. Cheers, Ped

Hey gang I'm doing a couple of sold-out shows at Newcastle City Hall this weekend in the house band for the Auf Wiedersehen Pet 40th anniversary celebrations. 21 tunes, most of which I've never played before, all of which are bangers. We've been in rehearsals all week, with everything laid out as close as it will be in the night (albeit in a different venue). We're getting monitor mixes and FOH mix as close as it can be, so there shouldn't be a whole lot of work to do when we have production rehearsals in the hall tomorrow. Usually with gigs like this keys and arrangements can be rather fluid, right up to the show itself, and this one is no exception. It keeps me on my toes, especially as a non-reader. A few scribbled notes, a decent memory and a following wind will see me through. Gear-wise, I'm using what I use down the Dog and Duck... Handbox R-400 head, TKS S212 cab, and '71P with flats, and a Maruszczyk Jake with rounds (haven't decided which will get the nod yet), and an LR Baggs Venue DI (used only for silent tuning). FOH is getting the cab mic'd with a Beyer M88 and a DI from the R-400. I'm told a 50/50 mix is being used. The band are a bunch of great lads, and it's been a pleasure so far. Tomorrow, we're moving into the City Hall. I'll post updates when I can. This is Jamie. Jamie's a mixing GOD. Monitors...

A couple of months ago, my eldest son was just starting his BTEC music course at high school, but didn't at that point play an instrument, so he needed to choose something..... Being a super cool kid, he obviously chose bass! 😅👌🥳❤️ He's just turned 15, what a great age to start! (I was 14) I was going to sell this cool little Ibanez GAXB150, but I gifted it to him instead. 😉 Some of his best pals are on the course too, and they've got a band going already, and have been super committed, and working hard to get where they want to be. They've even got their first performance at school next week! He's loving old school thrash metal, so we're off to see Anthrax this week too! 🤘😎 Happy times!

Hi everybody, my name is Brad Lang and I'm a bass player. Thank you for welcoming me to Bassaholics anonymous. My attention has been drawn to a few contributors unaware of any work I've done apart from ABC's 'Lexicon of Love' album. Some suggesting that I only played the fretless parts on said album, and the fretted parts were either Mark Lickley or Trevor Horn. Let me set the record straight. I played both fretless and fretted parts on ALL of the album apart from 'Tears are not enough' 'Poison Arrow' and 'Look of Love'(synth bass) I must thank you for all the nice comments regarding my bass playing on that and further ABC albums. It definitely was a game changer for my career, I was aged 22 at the time. I had played on Philip Jap's single 'Save Us' (and other album tracks) which led me to work with Trevor Horn (with ABC, Dollar and Buggles notably) Natasha's 'Iko Iko' is another track I remember from around that time and of course Wham!'s 'Young Guns'. I also remember from the 80's recording with Jody Watley (Shalamar), Haddaway, Samantha Fox , Adrian Gurvitz, Alvin Stardust, Jermaine Jackson, Elkie Brooks, Gilbert O'Sullivan to name a few, some I can't recall... it was 40 years ago! Chris Tsangarides, Martin Rushent, Gus Dudgeon and Nigel Gray were producers I often worked with. Nigel Gray at 'Surrey Sound Studios' in Leatherhead I remember particularly fondly. Later I recorded albums with Black, Toyah, John Parr, Judy Tzuke , Ray Charles, Wishbone Ash, Gilbert Montagne, Ute Lemper, Barbara Dickson, and tracks with Brian May, Bonnie Tyler, Kylie Minogue and Robbie Williams (my first double bass session) I also worked regularly with Simon Brint who wrote the music for many TV shows in the UK. In case anybody is remotely interested... Thanks for listening to my story.

Have been on the lookout for a while for a Fender US Standard 2013-16 Precision in Olympic White with maple neck, weighing less than 4kg. I’ve found recently that on brightly lit stages I can’t see where I am on a rosewood fretboard. Having a bad back basses under 4kg are my limit and for some reason even though I’ve arthritis in my left thumb playing a big fat neck doesn’t cause me pain. I’d decided to seek one out as Precisions are my fave basses so I’m going to play them until I physically can’t anymore. This one, a 2014 turned up so I bought it. Has a set of 45-100 Chromes on it and they sound & play really nice.

This story I’ve repeated elsewhere but I think it’s worth putting on here as well. 2001 Ltd Edition Thumb BO. Sometimes, only sometimes, “the one that got away” swims straight back into your net. I bought this bass in 2003, brand new (despite its year). Gigged with it loads in London, recorded an album.., and then traded it in 2011/12 (not sure) for a Stingray. It quickly went to the top of the list in my head of basses I’d wished I’d never got rid of. And then… it appeared up for sale , on Facebook, this week. Mind blown, messages sent and received, confirmation made, bass purchased. I am so happy. And it’s the beautiful beast of a bass that I remember and with 12 years or so having passed, an instrument I can now appreciate more and make sound even better.

Three months ago, I set about "re-doing" our lounge. We've lived here for four and a half years, and it's the last room to tackle. Ok, I haven't rushed it, but I've been steadily working on it when I can. Rewiring, re-plastering, new floor etc, quite a big job. When I started drawing up the plans for the room, and details of shelving etc, I went into detail what my wife wanted, where things would go etc, and she suggested that I should include guitar wall hangers. Now, it may not seem like a big deal, but when your wife wants you to hang guitars in the lounge, then I think you have to admit that you have chosen wisely in the relationship game. Today I finally finished the shelving and the guitar hangers, and it really has started to come together. Just a TV and sound system to go now. She is admittedly my biggest musical fan, and she does often want to come to my gigs. Sitting here, with it all approaching the finish line, I still have to pinch myself when I think about the absolute gem of a woman who has chosen to share her life with me. Just sayin. Rob

I wasn’t really in the market for a new bass, but when I saw this up for sale, I felt I had to seize the opportunity. It’s a masterbuilt Warwick streamer stage II in a beautiful red finish. Interested to know if anyone owns or has previously owned a stage II. This is costing me a little over £3000, which is a lot but considering ordering one of these from Warwick is the pointy end of £8000, I figured it was a decent deal. This bass has never actually been played, so I’m getting a brand new instrument.

Take 5 minutes for a story about a very fine chap. Before the start of the pandemic I ordered a Moollon PV having been in Seoul to visit YJ and Andi Roselund at the Moollon workshop a few months before. I was really taken with the PV's tone. So the Pandemic hit and after working in a factory building respirators for the NHS through most of it I then lost my job. Not good karma. Sadly having paid my deposit I wrote to YJ and Andi saying that I could not afford to continue with the purchase and I heard no more. A few weeks later I saw a red PV up for sale and thought no more of it knowing I could not afford another one. 2 1/2 years later I got a message from Andi saying that YJ had not sold the bass it was still there available for me... Jaw dropping moment. They never got the email and YJ hadn't sold it - he kept it for me. What other maker would do something like that? I had in the meantime managed to get myself back on my feet and could complete the sale. Last week I took delivery of the bass I ordered three years ago. Delivered in pristine condition and sounding like a complete beast. I'm overjoyed to have this bass. I thought I had lost it and out of the kindness of YJ I do. What a bloody awesome bloke - unreal. The bass BTW is staggering, the low end is so deep but articulate and the higher register is thick like a short scale. Its ridiculously good, and oh the colour.. Red............ Red...... Red........

I switched on eBay on Sunday night to check my saved searches...... and I couldn't believe my luck..... A mint condition, 2024 Epiphone Grabber, with it's soft case, had just been listed at £499 Buy It Now with free shipping! An 'excellent feedback' seller too! I really wanted one of these when they were released, but there was no way I was gonna spend £900+ on an Epiphone so, when I saw this, it was a no-brainer! It arrived today, exactly as described..... and I'm thrilled 😎

Snagged one! It's a Thunderbird, it does Thunderbird-y things (except neck dive, which is apparently a Thunderbird-y thing). Only had a quick razz in the headphones but it sounds good to me! It's a hard so-and-so to photograph for the camera in my mobile, it only shows the true sparkle when it's pulling focus and I catch it in the act thus: Sod it, have a video. 07_thunderbird 64 purple moving.mp4

Ah the swings and roundabouts in my head…honestly… In July 2021, Epiphone announced Pelham Blue Jack Casady basses. I missed my old Jack Casady terribly, I sold it when I was broke following the birth of Oldest Daughter. It was a gold Peerless made one I bought when I worked in a guitar shop - I played that thing until my hands couldn’t play anymore, festivals, gigs, somewhere in my memory also says a TV show…anyhow. Here’s me playing the gold one - think this was in The Raymond Review/Soho Review bar… So I got a blue one - and it was lovely, just as i remembered them to be. I got a Babicz bridge on it and changed the knobs to Gibson Amber top Hats - just looked better than the light gold speed knobs it came with. At that time I was in a funk/rock band and played lots of slappy tight stuff - the Casady just sat watching on, and eventually I sold it. As things have a habit of doing - everything changed, I planned to knock it all on the head And stop playing all together. Then a chance exchange of messages turned into a band and it’s going really well - I have myself a lovely Gibson Ripper, and I’d love a second one - but they are inordinately expensive… Ive tried all sorts as a backup - the best being a Shergold Marathon - now with our very own @Maude Anyhow fate stepped in - and my blue Casady reappeared! The Ibanez case, amber knobs and Babicz all telling. I messaged @Grooverjr Turns out @MM Stingray 62 had replaced the machineheads with Grover’s (as now used by Gibson) which is definitely a worthwhile upgrade - smoother and more reassuring. So, it’s home… Couldn’t be more chuffed. Does everything I need - rehearsal tomorrow and gigs 30th/31st… And, it’s blue…

My favourite bass is my 2003 Warwick Corvette Standard. I’ve owned it for 17 years, and I’m sure it’s got some magic in it. I’ve had other Corvette Standards, and I’ve got other ‘nicer’ and ‘fancier’ Corvettes, but this one is special. Maybe it’s just the nostalgia of being my first ‘Wick, but I love it. It didn’t have the most careful first owner, and it’s not exactly been a garage queen with me, and it had picked up plenty of scratches and dents along the way. I decided that I wanted it to look as good as it feels, so I started cooking up a plan. First of all, I stripped it down. Without any hardware, the Swamp Ash body and neck felt astonishingly light - I was tempted to see if I could throw it over the roof of the house! (Even with hardware, it’s only around 3.6kg/8lbs.) Then I set about making a scratchplate. Having never done this before, my favourite bass seemed like the right place to start. Now I know that Warwick sell pickguards for Streamers, and I like the idea but I’ve always felt that they weren’t quite the right shape, so I drew out my own on a piece of cereal box. I then photocopied it, glued the piece of paper to a piece of 6mm ply and rough cut it out with a jigsaw. I did lots of drilling and hand filing to get the neck pocket and pickup hole right… …and then did the same for the outer edge. Then I borrowed a router from a friend, and had my first ever go at routing cutting the scratchplate out of 4-ply pearloid, and putting the 45 degree bevel on. It didn’t come out exactly perfect, but it’s not far off. (This picture is before further refinement with sandpaper, and although it’s still not perfect, it’s a bit better). After then, I took it to Rob at Manton Customs who added pearloid blocks and refretted it. There’s a lovely YouTube video about it, which I found slightly disturbing to watch - it’s not every day you get to see someone taking a chisel to one of your favourite possessions! He does beautiful work, and he’s a lovely chap to boot. Then I took it to Dave Wilson for paint, and it turned out beautifully (as expected!). I also went for a matching headstock, and took the opportunity to swap my broken Just-A-Nut II for a shiny brass JAN III. Then it was just a case of reassembly (most of which Dave did) to see what it all looked like! And a bonus pic with my ‘05 Ltd Ed. I know it won’t be to everyone’s taste, but I’m happy!

Ok so my GK MB112II combo is loud. Weirdly loud for such a small unit. But when I’ve taken it out the house it’s too small to be able to hear it properly as it’s firing along the floor. So I bought an amp stand. Which didn’t work as it was designed for a guitar amp which is shallower. There might be better ones which work better for my amp but I didn’t have time to find one as I needed one for last night. So I bought a £9 bit of wood, 22mm x 144mm by 1800mm and made one. I cut a 90 degree angle in 2 identical length at the same time so each side was identical, then braced it together with various bits of wood until I got bored. I just tried to get the biggest tilt on the amp with the 144mm wood width - no audio science here. The width is determined by the space inbetween the (rather large) amp feet. Glued and screwed together and sanded all over and it was done. So the amp fires at me direct when it’s maybe 2m away approximately, it’s super solid and quite light and easy to pack away with my other gear. I might varnish it, I might not! Anyway, I’ve not seen anyone else with something like this or even seen one for sale (I didn’t really look to be honest I just needed a solution fast!) but it works perfectly and costs so little!! if you need something like this have a go at making it yourself, it’s not hard and doesn’t need any special tools.

That turned out to be a wonderful night of Glam rock with BLOCKBUSTARZ at The Stair Arms in Pathead near Edinburgh. Wasn't actually a Biker Rally but a private function invite only. We had folks there from Denmark (approx. 20) Germany, Belgium and Holland along with the various Scots & English contingent. Dancing from the first song with the dance floor full before the 1st set ended. 2nd set we had the floor packed from midway thru the first song. It seemed to be the foreign bikers that started off the dancing and they were well up for it from the sound check when we had cheers, whistles and loud clapping so that was a good start. Started at 8:30 and finished at 12 with a 15min break but what great fun was had by everyone there and for us. Some gigs just have a great atmosphere and you want to keep the party going and this was one of those nights but we literally ran out of songs. For the first time we played every song we've ever done. Superb night. Going home very chuffed. We were told by the organiser that several people had approached him for details on the band and asked where the feck did you find such an amazing band. That was a nice wee compliment too. Several folks also thanked us for a great nights entertainment and we kept getting asked for more. We were due to finish at 11:15pm but alas we simply ran out of time and songs We've been asked if we would consider playing bike rallies in Germany but probably never happen. I'd need to renew my passport. Do passenger planes still have propellers on long haul flights Bit of a nuisance trying to pack up as the dancers continued with backing music from the organiser but several folks both male and female offered to help load our cars but most were worse for wear so we thanked them all but said it was fine and easier to track where things are when loading if we do it ourselves. Always nice to be asked tho. Easy drive home with very little traffic so that was a bonus. No pics as yet but will post if any become available. You can probably tell that i'm fair pleased tonight Dave

So….. I’m putting this here rather than the build diaries because it’s complete. I found the bass on the bay for peanuts, largely because it had a warped (forward bowed) neck, and the truss rod was maxed out. The previous owner had given up on it, describing it as “f@&£&d and bent like a banana” and “ beyond help”. “The fretboard will need to come off and the truss rod replaced….. it’s f£&!@d mate”. Is it really I thought. First job, will the truss rod loosen and the nut come off….. Yep, it did. So, knowing that the truss rod worked, I knew there was hope. I Ordered some tiny washer/shims to drop onto the end of the loose truss rod, just to give the nut some help when it goes back on. I also found, unbelievably, a period correct truss rod cover to replace the one that was missing, thanks to the awesome Henning at Twang vintage guitars in Sweden…. Next, was to clamp it, over heat (a hot water bottle) to coax the neck straight again. Actually it was clamped slightly more the other way, so that it could be loosened off a bit if needs be. I cooked it for an hour, and tightened the truss rod back up while it was still clamped and hot. The hot water bottle doesn’t get hot enough to worry about melting the glue, but the neck got pretty hot under there. After it came out, the result was absolutely perfect, with a slightly bent backward neck, still under tension from the truss rod. The heat had worked perfectly. The plan was to fit the strings in the morning and loosen the truss rod off a bit if needs be to get the action right. So, all that was yesterday, and today the strings went on, after cleaning and conditioning the beautiful fretboard With sheer blind luck, when fully tuned up, the action was perfect! Lovely low and buzz free, it’s spot on at the first attempt. Needless to say I’m over the moon….. These Korean ones had the US made white top pickups, and are really well made and respected, although the shape isn’t for everyone. They CAN fetch quite a bit on the used market. The plan was to fix it, practice my tech skills then flip it….. but I dunno…. 😆, I really love how this bass turned out… What a cracker of a bass. Another one saved from the parts bin. Delighted indeed. Thanks for reading this far 🤘🏻

Found this 2001 Musicman Stingray bass in Blue Pearl 3EQ and I’m very pleased with the condition for a 23yr old bass ! Neck, frets, rosewood fingerboard all in a near new condition ! Fresh 45-100 strings fitted and truss rod tweeked and intonation checked and she’s good to go as my main gigging bass Plays and sounds amazing and it was a sensible price too No EB Musicman case but such is life but it came with a serviceable gig bag ( and since typing this case has arrived too .. thank you GAK )

Is it Gwyneth Paltrow's head?

Looking to play King Crimson-ish type music with no expectations, just for fun and to make some noise. Not looking to start a band or even really play out. I got 2 responses, a drummer and a guitarist. We got together today and it was so much fun. Just 2+ hours of improv noise with lots of effects. I really enjoyed it. I think we're gonna do it once a month.

I recently collected this piece, having won it in a proper auction. It could be a very late '63 but is more probably very early '64 as it doesn't have the raised logo. It's a feather weight, as it's hollow. One volume control is seized but I'm going to try and take it apart and repair it. It needs a tuner ferrule and a screw for one machine head I've plugged it in and it has that sound. I may name it Paul, after my late brother who was born in '64

It's not strictly a new bass day but I recently received two basses in quite quick succession and I think they're both very worthy of a new bass day post. I've chatted with a few people on here about them (most because they were wondering what was enough to part me from Cog pedals) and I said I would put this post up when I'd spent time with both basses. I've been lucky enough to play some of the basses I've dreamed about over the last few years but one that's been firmly etched on the list of dream basses and one which I never thought I would actually own is a Ritter Roya 5-string. Owing to some fortunate timing and very optimistic book-keeping I was recently able to welcome this beautiful bass, named by Jens Ritter as The Red Line. It has an alder body, poplar burl top, black flamed maple fingerboard and Ritter's parametric preamp and triplebucker pick-ups. The neck is maple, it's built to a 35-inch scale and it's been given an arresting paint job that gives the bass its name (more photos below). The preamp and pick-up combination is extremely flexible so it's hard to say precisely what the signature tone is (it reminds me of a Pope preamp in terms of flexibility) but I've been having a lot of fun seeing what sounds I can dial in. I've tried to write the details in a matter-of-fact way but the result is absolutely mesmerising. The bass was exhibited at Guitar Summit in Mannheim a couple of months ago and it's one of the most beautiful basses I've seen in person (although I expect I'm horribly biased here). I should say too that Jens Ritter was very patient in answering all of my questions too, particularly as I was mithering him just before Guitar Summit. Here are a few more photos of it: Knowing the Ritter was coming was incredibly exciting but I was just as excited a few weeks later when my lovely wife went above and beyond (and beyond again) and surprised me with the most amazing gift for one my my milestone birthdays: a Dingwall AB II that I had been enamoured with since I first saw it (and which may look familiar to some on here). It's an incredibly generous gift and, frankly, I'm going to have to try much harder for birthdays and have my work cut out at Christmas. It has a chambered walnut body, wenge fretboard and, unusually for a Dingwall, an ovangkol neck. It has three FDV pick-ups and a Glockenklang preamp. It was originally built for NAMM but was instead tweaked and sent to George Baldwin (Hilltide). Here he is using it far better than I could ever hope to: I love the rustic colouring and styling of the bass on the modern-ish body and it sounds magical: it's got a deep growl but is very articulate. It's a wonderful bass all round and it's a nice thought that this will forever be the birthday bass. A few more photos:

No he’s right, they’re only permitted in Oxfordshire. I tried to play one in Sussex but was arrested for wearing a suede waistcoat in a built up area. Shame really.

No gigs this weekend. I was with my first grandchild. Daryl

Hello Just thought I'd share my experience from this weekend when I was lucky enough to perform at the World David Bowie Fan Convention in Liverpool and meet two of my musical heroes, George Murray and Carlos Alomar. They also guested on two songs with our band, The Bowie Contingent, with George playing my 71 P bass which was an incredible honour. George is a lovely man and was kind enough to sit with me for an hour and let me ask him anything I wanted about his time with Bowie, and about bass playing in general. A wonderful, gracious human being! Lee

Popped into Bassbros yesterday on the hunt for a nice 4 string Precision and this was just begging to come home with me. It appears to be a bit of a case queen with barely a mark on it anywhere and even the case is as new! It was a bit of a toss up between this and a Yamaha BBP34 but this won in the end. I have been playing mainly 5 strings for the last few years and the feeling of getting back on a 4 is just amazing! It has taken a really low setup and surprisingly the stock pickup is really nice. It might still get a Nordstrand or a Fralin at some point but let’s wait and see.

Appreciate this might not be for everyone, but if anyone fancies some bank holiday viewing, my little gothic duo recently made a short 20 minute film with a very old friend (Haunting the Atom) about growing up in a small town, discovering bands (Cure, Sisters of Mercy, Joy Division etc) and getting into bands ourselves. Months of planning went into this (complicated by my Mum passing a few days prior to filming, after a very long illness). Essentially it is a live performance in an old Saxon Church, interspersed with some talk of our roots.An album of the same name is also streaming everywhere worldwide from today. I normally play bass on the original stuff but as we swap out instrumentation, the bass doesn't appear until later. Check it out, I am sure many of you will relate to some of this - even if you like different style of music. It is beautifully shot.

I placed this order quite some time ago, so long ago in fact that I don’t even have the original email chain with all of the details on it. I did ask Jon to ping the spec back to me so I can share it with everyone, but this beauty arrived today. It’s not the first lavish spec Shuker I’ve owned, so I know how good his work is, but this is quite something. The preamp/pickup combo is fierce, a really biting tone. Soon as I get Jon to send the spec back to me I’ll share!

I knew this would be nice to play and would look lovely, but I wasn't prepared for the monstrous sound to come out of it! I have various instruments, each of which has some good qualities but also some failings. This is just huge. Everything's there. I'm lost for words. It's a DiMarzio Billy Sheehan pickup. A Relentless, I think. I went to see The Raven of this parish, hoping to buy his Shuker PJ. I played it, liked it (though I was really looking for a passive P but of course it also works passive and it's not obligatory to use the J pickup) and was about to hand over the cash when, being a nosey sod, I said -what's in that other case? -oh, that's another Shuker, here, have a look. -I'll take it. -Done. Pleasure doing business with you. Might still have to go back for the PJ, mind.

My first gig ever, at the age of 54. Wow, what a buzz Brickmakers Arms, Norwich

I picked this up yesterday after having discussed the build with the luthier around 10 weeks ago. Walnut / maple / shedua body Maple / mahogany / cherry neck and board Herrick multicoil pickups Lusithand Double NFP Sandberg bridge. look close and you’ll see many differences compared to the bass it was inspired by.

NBD just in time for my birthday next week. Here’s my first Fender. Got the American Vintage II 60s P. What an eye candy! Love it so much and loved it even more when I put on some La Bella 760FL. My first bass was a Squier Affinity Pbass when I started learning. Ended up going back at it. The Pure Vintage 60s pickup is amazing for my taste. Love the bottom end, nice warm mid-range tone and not to harsh for me. Here are some quick soundclips I've recorded through my focusrite. Pbass>Cali76 bass comp>Capo (Tone around 50-60%) Vultures: Vultures.wav Disco Yes: Disco Yes.wav Beautiful Daphne Blue P happy kid 13 yrs old me with my first bass on our first big gig @Dubai Original Music Festival