Bilbo

You will, of course, bore everyone senseless and become part of the problem that is killing jazz in the provinces: stagnation. Learn them then never play them again.

Summertime. Actually, the past 5 posts give you the requisite material to gig successfully for the rest of your life.

[quote name='Muzz' post='1334867' date='Aug 10 2011, 12:37 PM']Moondance! [/quote] I can delete posts, you know

Best ones in bold..... [b]12 bar blues (thousands) Rhythm Changes (thousands - I can name 48)[/b] All Gods Children Got Rhythm (5) [b]All The Thngs You Are (6) Cherokee (9) Confirmation (5)[/b] Fine and Dandy (6) [b]Honeysuckle Rose (8)[/b] Sweet Georgia Brown (6) Back Home Again In Indiana (5) [b]What Is This Thing Called Love (6)[/b] Love Me Or Leave Me (6) [b]Out Of Nowhere (5)[/b] Lady Be Good 6) [b]How High The Moon (6)[/b] Pennies From Heaven (5) Acknowledgement to David Bakers How To Play Bebop

Snowboy is a credible percussionist but what little I have heard of his records, its a bit repetitive - lots of two chord vamps, endless grooves on one chord etc. Ok but I don't find it that engaging. If anyone knows differnt, let me know.

Key artists A Tribe Called Quest Brand New Heavies Brooklyn Funk Essentials Corduroy Count Basic D*Note Digable Planets DJ Krush Erik Truffaz Erykah Badu Funki Porcini Gang Starr Gilles Peterson Groove Collective Incognito James Taylor Quartet Jamiroquai Jazzanova Kruder & Dorfmeister Liquid Soul Ronny Jordan Stereo MCs St. Germain Thievery Corporation United Future Organization Urban Species US3 VASSY Young Disciples Azymuth The Asteroids Galaxy Tour Bernard "Pretty" Purdie Bird Blazzaj Blue Six Bonobo The Cat Empire Clazziquai Directions In Groove DJ Cam DJ Greyboy Dodge City Productions Dreamlin Drizabone D'Sound DZihan & Kamien Elektrotwist Fat Freddy's Drop Five Point Plan Freak Power Four 80 East Greyboy Allstars Gota Yashiki Heavyshift Jaga Jazzist Jazzhole Jazztronik Jestofunk Kanda, Kodža i Nebojša Koop Kyoto Jazz Massive Liquid Soul Luke Vibert [7] Los Amigos Invisibles Marius Kahan Mark Farina Medeski, Martin, and Wood Melvin Sparks Mojack Moloko Moodymann Mondo Grosso Monday Michiru Mr. Scruff Muki Noel McKoy Nicola Conte Nujabes Omar Lye-Fook OutKast Paolo Achenza Trio Paul Moran Phil Davis Praful Reuben Wilson rad. RJD2 Skalpel Smoke City Snowboy Soulive Swing Out Sister S-Tone Inc. The Cinematic Orchestra Wax Tailor Xploding Plastix I think I have heard of 3 of these For the record, the link between Jazz and Acid Jazz is pretty loose and the scenes are not linked up much at all. Medeski, Martin and Wood are pretty cool and Azimuth has a history but a lot of this stuff is not really on the radar of the average Jazzer.

I just don't get this gear thing. A bass is a bass. If I turn up and the bass player has a Fender I don't give a rat's a***. If he has a Ken Smith I may think 'ugly f****** bass' but I still don't give a rat's a***. Its the music that matters. I once went to see a jazz gig at the South Bank Centre foyer (October 1987?) and whilst sat there waiting for the gig to start, noticed a guy in a thick spectacles, a tweed jacket and pyjama bottoms. He was carrying a mashed up guitar case which, when opened revealed an SG that looked like it had gone 10 round with Angus Young and lost. When the band started, turns out he was the leader. Massively creative gig; Billy Jenkin's Voice of God Collective. Intensely creative and brilliantly funny. Listen with your ears. Your eyes will stitch you up something chronic

Jeff can play pretty too.

Here's a couple of experimental sketches I did using different software. The middle one is a band in a box job - the bass part and bass solo are me but the piano solo is BitB - astonishing really. Excuse the dodgy vocal; I had a trumpet in mind!! The other two are Sibelius charts put into Cubase with VST strings etc. Not to be taken seriously!!

[quote name='3V17C' post='1328394' date='Aug 5 2011, 10:34 AM']. 'once we did a gig and there weren't many people there'.. oh well.[/quote] A day in the life of a jazz musician.

Not really. Maybe we will all start playing our instruments and valuing them for what they are instead of buying them, playing them for 10 minutes then selling them on so we can buy another one or comissioning new ones that are a hairs breadth different from the last one we commissioned. There are certainly more instrumenhts than there are good players so I see no problem here.

Bought my Eden Metro ten years ago and have not looked at another amp since. Done everything from duos to big bands, rock, funk, blues, jazz, shows, 4 string, 5 string, 6 string. Works for me.

I have used that Band In A Box shortcut thing to demo tunes too, Mike. I take the midi file over to Cubase and then change the sounds to various Halion samples or Absynth, Massive, Juno - whatever is on there, really (I am no tech-head) . Great way to demo things 'convincingly' although, as I can only play bass and guitar, my options for melodies are limited. I try to sing to 'get the feel' of a song but my voice is weak and often does more harm than good!! I have also done the same with Sibelius charts; written out the part and copied the midi file into Cubase and changed the samples to better quality ones. I'll post some later, if I remember. PS - my Paul Chambers biography is in the later stages of editing but, equally exciting, I have been put forward to write a monthly jazz column for a local arts magazine. May come to nothing but I can only keep trying!!!

I have one bass and one amp. I use the set up at every gig and have done for well over 20 years. What damage there is has occured during load ins/outs and not as a result of the actions of others but by my clumsiness. Nevertheless, the gear all still works. I have had three or four repairs to amps in 30 years and one to a bass. I'd call that reasonable wear and tear, all things considered. Like the OP, however, I have to say I almost never see any boutique gear anywhere, amps or basses. My kid brother runs a Harley repair shop and tells me most Harley's, certainly the better ones, are owned by middle aged men in the middle of a mid-life crisis who only every take them out when the sun is shining. I can't say the same would apply to bass players but I do sometimes wonder whether there is an unconscious tendency to want to 'buy' a better playing experience rather then earn it by concerted practice. I find that I want the music to be better and have yet to feel that I can attribute any shortcomings in that area to the instrument I am playing (or any of the gear owned by anyone else I play with, for that matter). I find the gear is a tiny part of the equation. They all sound like basses to me

My dog has a lead that is nine years old. Does that count?

I have used Rotosound Solo bass strings on the same bass since 1986 and have never had a problem with fretboard wear. I generally get a positive response to my sound and have never had anyone criticise it so see no reason to look for another product unless Rotosound ever cease makign them. NB I change them every decase whether I need to or not. Last string change was, IIRC, pre-Millenium.

No brainer. All Jazz is Super......

[quote name='Earbrass' post='1324389' date='Aug 2 2011, 03:38 PM']I know what you mean - there's no point in endlessly repeating stuff you can play comfortably - but on the other hand, I'm not sure that being in a permanent state of frustration with one's instrument is all that helpful either, and could even lead to some people giving up altogether.[/quote] That's about playing time, not practising. You practise to improve your playing; the reward is being more comfortable and at ease in the playing you do after you have practised. I agree with the need to ensure that you reward yourself with playing but I think it is important to distinguish between what is practising and what is playing. You can play forever and never practice anything. I just decided I don't know how to spell practice/practise/practicing/practising. Maybe I should try harder.

If you haven't got a knot of frustration in your stomach when you are practising, you are probably not learning anything new and should find something more challenging/demanding which does produce that visceral effect.

Recommended.... (I have it on my desk in work) [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Encyclopedia-Reading-Rhythms-Workbook-Instruments/dp/0793573793/ref=cm_cr-mr-title"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Encyclopedia-Readi...=cm_cr-mr-title[/url]

Its Jaco guesting with the Gil Evans Orchestra - Egan was the bass player on the gig, Jaco was 'visiting'. The mud was slung by previous Basschat members who 'don't get' him. For the record, the band are shocking.

Some nice sounds in there, Mike. Do you programme everything yourself? Or are they stock backing tracks? More to the point,. I had that Cool struttin' lp cover on a t-shirt years ago, when Jazzwise started. Its long gone but its a great LP for hearing Paul Chambers

[quote name='lobematt' post='1320135' date='Jul 29 2011, 10:17 AM']Thanks for all the replies. Tapping out the rhythm sounds like a good idea, my problem is though I don't know if I'm doing it right and theres not much point practising something wrong? [/quote] You are missing the point. Its the doing of it that you need to practice. Getting it absolutely right is not actually that important at this stage (it will quickly become obvious as things fall apart when you get it wrong, which you will). What you are doing is practicing something that you can already do but not very quickly. Reading one bar of a rhythm is not that hard. Reading two is a little harder, four starts to get tough but the real test is reading pages and pages of stuff. WHen I say look at a random chart and tap out rhythms, you are not practising 'getting it right' in the conventional sense. you are simply practising 'doing it'. As you get better at 'doing it', you can then focus on 'getting it right'.

[quote name='Skol303' post='1319339' date='Jul 28 2011, 02:25 PM']I mean, where does one opinion end and another begin...?? [/quote] When one basschatter's post stops and another starts.... Seriously, though, I think technique in music is like technique in acting; if you can see it happening, its not working. Trouble is that there are more impressionable kids whose heads are turned by Wootenesque excess than there are people who can recognise what makes a great musician truly great. It distorts everything. I was thinking about the slapping/popping/tapping stuff and wondered how many notes are played with those techniques that are truly musically appropriate as opposed to showboating. I suspect the ratio is not in favvour of musicality.

You choose.....