bassicinstinct

[quote name='jakesbass' post='225088' date='Jun 23 2008, 03:33 PM']I can't believe how irresponsible this statement is, It has been made clear in numerous threads here a number of times that artisitic integrity [i][b]is[/b][/i] a matter of life and death. Show some responsibility, please [/quote] You're quite right Jake. I unreservedly withdraw my earlier comments and will duly dress in sackcloth and ashed until such time as I have made good for my disgraceful lack of personal, professional and musical integrity. What the [b]HELL[/b] was I thinking of?

The concept of being "ready" to gig is as whimsical as being able to "afford" to have children. In reality, [b]neither ever happens[/b], but we all still do gigs and have kids, so what's that tell ya? As I think someone has already said, this is music we're talking about here - nobody will die.

[quote name='Jobiebass' post='224467' date='Jun 22 2008, 09:21 PM']Was really considering them. Awesome, thanks all for your replys. Ill get myself some.[/quote] You won't regret it. I've been using them for years with no problems at all and they last for ages - up to [b]10 times[/b] the normal Duracells!!

Duracell Procell via eBay. I pay £8.99 for 10 including P&P. Unbeatable value for money IMHO.

[quote name='cheddatom' post='222266' date='Jun 19 2008, 04:15 PM']Oh, maybe I should try and see a chiro or get more demanding then.[/quote] That would certainly be my plan.

[quote name='bigjohn' post='222071' date='Jun 19 2008, 12:50 PM']My foot was buggered too. I did something to it kicking a wall (whilst playing 5-a side, we conceded a needless and a late equaliser which lost us about 4 places in a 10 team league - in my last game for the team). It never really healed. Last winter it hurt a bit just walking on it, and I started to feel pain in my hip. I went to the doctor and explained to him I'd injured my foot playing football (missing out the bit about me kicking the wall) and that now the slight limp it was giving me was hurting my hip. "Learn to live with it" was his advice. "You're getting old", (I am 33) "Thing's don't heal like they do when you're young.", "You should have gone to the hospital when you did it, they might have been able to help then...) It took me a good 20 mins of argument with the w***er before he referred me to a podiatrist. Who incidentally fixed my foot within about 10 minutes by giving me a pair of insoles. In this case I could see the f***er was loathed to refer me, it was something he considered "complicated" and unresolvable so why should he spend his budget on sorting it. w***er.[/quote] Yep, that's GPs for you.

[quote name='benwhiteuk' post='221613' date='Jun 18 2008, 06:35 PM']The best cheap Warwick would be a Streamer Std – not a rockbass, it’s a proper Warwick. I bought one new in 2003 for £360. It was the single pickup 4 string passive version and I still use it loads. It’s great You can pick them up used for between £150 and £200 (maybe cheaper), and they done them with a 2 pickup configuration as well that I’ve seen going for that sort of price as well. I’d stay clear of the rockbasses, but that’s just me [/quote] I'd certainly agree with all that. I owned and heavily gigged the 2 PUP model for a number of years and was very impressed with it. I paid £300 for it "as new" in 2000 and sold it on eBay 4 years later at a profit of £50. Excellent value for money if you can find one.

So this is effectively the Arbiter Group selling the ex Sound Control stock they bought for next to nothing, discounted by a mere 20% and probably still returning them several hundred % gross margin? Aint capitalism a wonderful thing?

[quote name='cheddatom' post='221319' date='Jun 18 2008, 12:45 PM']I have all the symptoms of CTS but my GP says it's not because he squoze my wrist and it didn't hurt much. I went to see osteopaths for a while, and they seemed really optimistic about it, but after 3 months they said there was nothing they could do, it looks like CTS in early stages, and in 5 years or so I could have surgery to sort it out, and it'd be fine. I don't know if a chiropractor would be any different? Or if i've been fobbed off by my GP? I know i'm jumping on the advice bandwagon, but if anyone has any to offer, it may also help the OP.[/quote] Sounds pretty much like "par for the course" GP behaviour to me, although deciding that it isn't CTS because it "didn't hurt much" is rank incompetence IMHO. Your life in their hands eh?

[quote name='geilerbass' post='221310' date='Jun 18 2008, 12:30 PM']Unless you go private, a GP is often the only way to get serious issues looked at. Sadly, that often involves an uphill struggle against bureacracy and apathy. I've actually got a pretty decent GP right now, who seems genuinely concerned about my well-being and appears willing to refer me when necessary. Unfortunately, I'm having to move in the next couple of months, so will probably have to find a new GP I think there are some good ones out there, but they do seem thin on the ground.[/quote] Absolutely!! The thing that really kills me about most GPs (forgive the pun), is their apparent professional jealousy. When my GP wrote to the hospital (with copy to me) to tell them I wouldn't be proceeding with the surgery, she seemingly couldn't bring herself to even use the word "chiropractic" deciding, instead, to completely misrepresent the position and state that my problems had been alleviated by due to the intervention of a physiotherapist. Needless to say, I corrected her. Pathetic really, isn't it?

Personally, I'd do whatever it takes to [b]avoid[/b] seeing a GP. "Jack of all trades master of none" in my experience, although I'm sure there MUST be a[b] few[/b] good ones out there? Aren't there?

A personal anecdote which may or may not help the OP to reach a decision: I was having problems with tingling, numbness and occasional cramp in the 2nd, 3rd and 4th fingers of both hands. Went to GP who suspected ulnar nerve problems and referred me to the hospital for tests. Test results confirmed [b]lesions on both ulnar nerves[/b], although it was never explained to me how this could have come about. I was advised that surgery was necessary to remedy the problem BUT that the surgery: 1. Could cure or improve the problem. 2. Have no effect. 3. Make the problem worse to the degree that I would no longer have the use of the affected fingers. Not surprisingly, I declined surgery. The good news is that with one Chiropractic manipulation (by my daughter, God bless her) and the judicious use of some warm up exercises, I have had no problem since. Only my experience of course, but I'm certainly convinced.

[quote name='Muppet' post='221119' date='Jun 18 2008, 09:11 AM']Not telling you how to do your job, as I appreciate it is highly skilled and I would have no idea, but telling a chap it sounds like carpal tunnel syndrome from a one line statement and then suggesting he checks online can only make him worry more. The symptoms could relate to a number of things, best diagnosed by a professional, in person. Feel free to disagree if you think it helps the OP.[/quote] Agreed.

Make an appointment with a decent Chiropractor [b]now[/b]. You'll be glad you did, believe me.

[quote name='Huggy and the Bears' post='215391' date='Jun 9 2008, 12:58 PM']In terms of true art, if we look back in history at the periods of great artists (particularly the Impressionists and Renaisance painters period), great debates (similar to this) were held (in coffee houses at the time) that were sometimes controversial, sometimes not. I think it is interesting to observe people's behaviour and I am pleased to be part of such a discussion. Also, it is not a crime to be intellectual - and you don't need a PHd behave intellectually.[/quote] Agree with you entirely.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='215371' date='Jun 9 2008, 12:46 PM']I was just thinking this discussion could use a few insults to stop it getting too intellectual. This is the internet after all. Thanks.[/quote] I'd respectfully beg to differ on that point too. As far as I'm concerned, it truly is a testament to Basschat and it's members that this post [b]hasn't[/b] degenerated into insults and/or name calling. It is self evident that this is a subject upon which people have deeply felt and wildy differing opinions and we should be proud of ourselves that, thus far at least, everyone has behaved with dignity and - dare I say it - integrity.

[quote name='Huggy and the Bears' post='215365' date='Jun 9 2008, 12:40 PM']If you understand integrity to mean having some consistancy between your internal values / beliefs and your actions then it is legitimate to claim musical integrity if you personally believe it to be true. Each of us will have different values and beliefs as none of us will have experienced the same things in life. I would therefore only be sacrificing my musical integrity if I believed that was indeed what I was doing. I give no credence to others judging what my beliefs are. [/quote] Fair point well made. IMHO.obviously.

[quote name='Rich' post='215366' date='Jun 9 2008, 12:40 PM']I've just looked up 'integrity' in my thesaurus... one of the synonyms given is 'righteousness'. Judging by some of the posts here, it looks like it might be missing a 'self-'... [/quote] Mmmm........................

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='215342' date='Jun 9 2008, 12:06 PM']Absoflippinlutely! But it rarely masquerades as art![/quote] Oh, I dunno. If my memory serves me correctly, there is a bassist of very high repute who is well thought of around these parts, and who worked with Mark Ronson on his covers both in the studio and live. Am I to assume that he no longer has any integrity?

[b]Life itself[/b] is a compromise!!! Isn't it?

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='215289' date='Jun 9 2008, 11:07 AM']Fine. But if you put your artistic integrity aside in order to eat, you concede any claim to it. So I find it odd that a cover band musician would maintain any illusion of artistic integrity.[/quote] I don't accept that I've "missed the point" and I couldn't disagree more with your post above. [b]"When you decide that you're going to pick one gig over another for financial reasons, despite the other being more artistically satisfying, then you cannot claim to have artistic integrity."[/b] If you genuinely believe that, I think you'd be hard pressed to find[b] ANY[/b] pro or semi pro musician with integrity (by your definition), unless, of course, he is of "independent means". Don't get me wrong here. I don't disagree with the principle of what you're suggesting but, as someone else has rightly pointed out, one does have to eat and integrity is a dish of little taste or nutritional value, however good for the soul it may be.

An alternative view, of course, would be that doing the likes of Gig1[b] enables[/b] you to do the likes of Gig2. Seems to me that there are many actors who seem to adopt this stance and do "bread and butter" work so that they can display their artistic inegrity in other productions (e.g. doing dross TV sitcoms to finance theatre productions - a la Robert Lindsay for example). That seems to me to be a perfectly sensible attitude and not one which should be criticised IMHO. I do take your point, though, that [b]turning down [/b]Gig2 on a [b]purely financial basis [/b]is a different thing entirely. I'm still not convinced, though, that even this displays a lack of integrity. If your chosen craft is playing bass, I don't see a problem in marketing that craft for the best financial return. On the other hand, I guess if you were a strictly "hobby player", your perspective might be different as you would be selecting your gigs from a purely[b] musical/aritstic [/b]perpective without regard for what you may or may not earn from the show. Boy, this makes my head hurt. I think I need more espresso........................................................

[quote name='Marcus' post='214995' date='Jun 8 2008, 05:31 PM']Thanks mate...... I'm actually off to Nottingham now for the week (on Business) great City for live music, might see if I can stumble accross a band there tonight Best Mark[/quote] Have a good week Mark. As you arrive here, I leave for Turkey for a week. Can't wait!!

Played TheOffice several times with my former Steely Dan tribute band [b]The Danny Steel Orchestra[/b]. Great venue and atmosphere. Hope it goes well for you.

[quote name='OldGit' post='213220' date='Jun 5 2008, 02:02 PM']- I look down upon [i]him[/i] because I play from the music with panache and style and to a very small exclusive audience - I look down upon [i]him[/i] because I play my own version of covers to packed pubs every Saturday night - I look down on them because I earn a fortune playing in a Wurzels Tribute band.[/quote] [b]Precisely!! [/b]