casapete

Amen to that! 😆

I think Bob was replaced by Annie Nightingale, and then Mark Ellen and David Hepworth after her. Richard Skinner also presented OGWT, not sure when though - possibly towards the end of it’s run.

Johnnie certainly had a colourful career - from Radio Caroline (somewhat ironically) to BBC Radio 1, then leaving for California when he was told not to play any album tracks on his show, only to return years later to the BBC subsequently getting temporarily suspended over a cocaine scandal in 1999. 😧

A friend of mine plays there occasionally and has nothing but good things to say about it. Northern Guitars has been there for 25, maybe 30 years and used to be run by a guy called Dusty who was a top bloke and quite a character. I’ve bought and traded a few instruments from there over the years. One time I was looking at a Yamaha bass which was in a case on the floor, apparently they had just bought it in. Felt a firm hand on my shoulder and a big feller telling me not to move as it was his guitar that had been stolen a couple of nights ago, and he thought I was the culprit! He apologised when the staff told him I was just browsing, and I left them to sort it out. 😆

I’m guessing you’re referring to Rich Tone Music in Sheffield? If so, I’d agree with you - they appear to be doing well with the s/h market, and seem like good people to deal with too. I went in earlier this year and was impressed with both the stock and also the friendliness/knowledge of the staff.

I remember listening to the Tuesday chart rundown at school in the lunch hour! Johnnie was all about the music ( no gimmicks etc) right through his 58 years of broadcasting.

Johnnie Walker is bowing out from his long radio career today on Radio 2, from 3 - 5pm. For people of a certain age (like me) Johnnie has been one of THE definitive broadcasters , and introduced me to so many bands over the last half century on his shows, including 'The Rock Show' and 'Sounds of the 70s' along with many others. Always lots of great musical knowledge and stories about musicians, as well as having that great voice. He's retiring due to ill health, and I hope he manages to enjoy many more years to come.

I was trying to think which shop with a cafe we'd been to in your area, and that's it! Nice shop, always used to be a lot of younger musos in the cafe, waiting for lessons maybe? Shame it's closed that part of the business. Used to be a great cafe in a music shop in Halifax which we always visited when playing there, think it was called Guitar Zone? Also Woods Music on Manningham Lane in Bradford had a decent small cafe, sadly now gone completely. Going back in time even further, I seem to remember going in what I think was the Fender Soundhouse on London's Tottenham Court Road and seeing a cafe in there?

In my last band we toured throughout the UK, and me and the guitarist would often seek out music shops if we had the time. Been in many where we’ve bought something just because we liked the shop - from a guitar tuner in a great shop in Truro and a gig bag in Epsom to a Strat in Barrow in Furness and a Fender Kingman bass in Guildford! There’s a shop I sometimes visit in Saltburn (Steven James Guitar and Amp Centre) which is next on my list. Great shop, won’t be able to go in again without buying something!

I’ve just ordered a set of D’Addario EXL170S short scale stings on Amazon, for the bargain price of £12.95. From the D’Addario store on Amazon so should be kosher. Get in quick if you’re interested , 49% off their usual price and looks like 10 sets left. 😊

Formal -Mr Wyatt, my old choirmaster at our village church. Taught me all about intervals, key signatures etc. I sang all different parts in the ten years I was in the choir ( from the age of 8 to 18) starting off with treble, then alto, tenor and occasionally bass (due to a lack of enough male voices.) From there I lost my soul to rock n roll, but it stood me in good stead throughout. I’ve had many gigs where I got the job because I could harmonise all thanks to Mr Wyatt. Informal - my partner in my acoustic duo, Gary Gillyett. The most amazing musician I’ve had the pleasure of working with. We met some 40 years ago, and he immediately blew me away with his knowledge of theory and old school music, and is 8 years younger than me! Previously I’d learned a lot from older players, but Gary has been an inspiration and informal teacher ever since we have worked together. Every gig is a school day for me, ( after 30 years together ) and also an absolute blast. I look forward to every gig too, wherever / whatever it is, so I feel truly blessed. (Below is a recent pic of Gary at a jazz gig)

I encountered something similar a number of years ago. New singer in our function band came onboard, promising all sorts of things he could do to increase our presence and reputation, which to be fair was already quite strong. All good to begin with, but after the band didn’t see eye to eye with some of his ideas ( including ‘cheap’ gigs for agents and some of his acquaintances) we discovered he was giving out his personal business cards on our gigs when we thought he was distributing ours. Soon after we gave him the boot, but the damage was already done - he started a new band doing similar stuff to our band and boosting his reputation by quoting his time with us as a reference. Soon many of the gigs we had always done regularly dried up, as he quoted less than our usual fees and was very good with crawling around people, gift of the gab etc. We carried on doing what we could, and managed to keep things going with a new frontman for a few years. However, as money got tight and people started cutting budgets on weddings and corporate events, inevitably there were only so many gigs to go round and we struggled. I had to leave eventually, which turned out okay for me but the band never fully recovered from things and eventually folded. Whilst this may have been the case anyway, I’ve always thought that this guy was largely to blame. ( He now goes out as a solo vocalist with backing tracks….)

I know what you mean, I’ve done the same thing. Had many Rays over the years, from a pre EB to a recent 3eq job, and loved them all. Possibly my favourite was a USA Sub, which only needed a proper scratchplate and was good to go. I can’t think of any other manufacturer who has maintained such a high level of quality and consistency - as others have said, it’s really hard to find a bad one. What finished my using them was the old BC thing - weight. Most were on the cusp of being too heavy for my damaged shoulder, being in the 9lbs zone. Seen a Sub advertised recently that was 10.5lbs! A mate of mine has a fairly recent Ray that comes in at 8.3lbs but from my experience that is a rarity. I did try the US Sterling - had a couple but didn’t seem any weight difference despite the smaller body. Narrower neck was nice though, more jazz like. The other thing that may take some getting used to is the position of the pickup if you play like me and rest your thumb on it - I’m used to a Precision so the change wasn’t an easy one. Still, wonderful basses and still wish I could find one light enough, would definitely have another.

Seem to remember the guy in Dr Hook using one too - in fact all of the band used Ovations at one point so may have been some sort of endorsement deal.

Looks like it’s an Ovation Magnum 1, made in the late 70’s. The Bass Gallery currently have one advertised on Reverb for £2620. I would imagine it weighs a ton!

Think they were licensed Fender instruments made in India or the far east.

Couple of gigs at the weekend. Friday night was playing at a wedding with the blues band - I know, I couldn’t quite get it either. Venue was a nice country hotel that I’ve done many times before in my old function outfit. Arrived in good time to find another band soundchecking, hadn’t realised they were on as well. Good thing though, as it meant we could set up in front of them, play an hour as guests arrived and then quick pack down and out. We played the more commercial stuff in our repertoire and actually got a few up dancing, but it was a bit of a strange situation - the bride and groom are fans of ours so they called the shots on who they wanted I guess. I used my Precision Lyte into the Rumble 500 combo, and it was fine as usual. We got packed down fairly quickly, and then myself and the drummer availed ourselves of the rather nice hot buffet whilst listening to the function band. Home by just gone 10pm so not too shabby. Sunday evening was another of our trips up to Scarborough with the acoustic duo to play at The Lookout cafe bar on the pier in the harbour. Weather was great despite storm warnings, and another full house at the venue including an old friend who sometimes joins us on bigger gigs playing keys. Usual request format , with standout tunes being some jazz standards ( All the way, Moon River and They can’t take that away from me ), our version of ‘Green Onions’ (which I’m unsure that the requestee knew was a Hammond organ feature), and finished up with some Floyd - ‘Wish you were here’ into ‘Another brick in the wall’. Another enjoyable evening, and we return there in a couple of weeks. 😊

Just goes to show the fun that can be had with two chords! I saw Fats in Sheffield in 1995, and he put on a great show despite being in poor health. His band were wonderful, as were Little Richard’s who was also on the bill with Chuck Berry.

I worked with a band calling themselves ‘The Easybeats’ in the 1980’s. They were playing at a club where I was in the resident band. After me commenting about how none of them sounded Australian, one of them admitted they’d bought the name and used it to get on 1960’s tours etc. I remember them playing ‘Friday on my mind’ ( which I think was the original band’s only UK hit ) and then just random 60’s covers for the rest of their set. Not sure anyone in the audience either knew or cared!

Blimey, that’s going some! I was going to mention Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes - my favourite band, who have got through a lot of members since 1975, but maybe not quite that many. They are still recording and touring, although IMO are past their best days / lineup.

Fender Rumble 500 combo for me. Use it in a quite loud 3 piece blues band and it sounds ace with my Precision. Portable, loud and great EQ presets make using it a joy. Haven’t felt the need to add an extension cab yet which I thought may be necessary, so happy days.

This year has been a strange one for me - left the theatre/tribute band in April (supposedly to play fewer gigs), and then immediately joined a local blues band, as well as continuing with the acoustic duo and the odd dep here and there. Anyway, total gigs for 2024 will be about 85 I think. In previous years I’ve done around 140 though, so at least it’s kind of semi-retirement. 😁

Had three gigs with the acoustic duo this week. First was at the local pub in my village, which we do a couple of times a year. Despite advertising it well, not quite as many punters in as usual. It’s been Hull Fair week though, which is a big event around here so maybe some people were there instead. Anyway, the gig went okay with the bonus of home being only 2 mins away. Last night we played at a nice hotel just outside Scarborough. The event was for a 60th birthday and there were about 80 guests who unfortunately were spread out over 3 rooms, making it hard to connect with them collectively. We set up in a conservatory which ran alongside the bar and the dining areas, and just tried our best to entertain them. Didn’t help having a few kids running around , and even a couple of dogs too! Played all their requests, but had to concede defeat at really winning them over. Turned out many were doctors, who just wanted to talk shop I think. Finished by 10.15, quick pack down and home by 11.30pm. Complete contrast today though - a return to The Sun Inn in Beverley. Arrived at 4.30pm and by the time we’d set up the PA it was full of punters all out for a good time. Inundated with requests, notable ones being ‘Crazy horses’ , ‘Dead flowers’ and ‘Babylon’. Had to skip some stuff by Eminem and Beastie Boys for obvious reasons, but overall a cracking afternoon/ early evening session to a rammed pub. Next visit there is December 22nd when as well as our usual request format we are asking a few local singers to come in and maybe do a few festive classics with us. Got four lined up already, and Paul the landlord is also keen too so should be great fun. (No pics taken today but the pub is opposite Beverley Minster which looked incredible tonight.)

At one of our regular acoustic gigs, the booker actually asks people not to talk while we’re playing when he takes their reservation! Whilst this is probably nice in a folk club environment, for a cafe bar IMO it’s maybe a bit much - when we first started doing the gig I found having the punters so near to me and totally silent a bit unnerving! It’s also a bit like ‘jazz club’ where they applaud my mate’s guitar solos too sometimes, but as it’s such a fabulous gig/ audience I turn a blind eye to it. Better that than pub punters asking you to keep it down so they can chat I guess. 😁

Strangely enough our local Morrisons plays pretty good stuff - plenty of not too obvious pop / soul / rock from recent and not so recent times. Those songs that get you wondering who did them whilst perusing the fruit and veg aisle…..😁