Bilbo

As an ideal, I like my sound to be an integrated part of the whole and to blend into the music to the point of it being invisible unless it is removed. A great sounding bass on its own is of no real interest. The relationship between my tone and a drummers ride cymbal is the most important aspect of a lot of my playing and a 'great' bass sound can be crushed by the wrong cymbal. When the two are working together in harmony, I'm in heaven. Its worth mentioning that the sound of a modern orchestra evolved over centuries of experimentation of what the optimum sound was; x violins, x violas, x trombones etc. I think that modern music is more flexible but each of us has to find his or her personal optimum chemistry in terms of where our individual sound fits in with the collective whole. Its a holy grail thing. I have only ever got it for moments.

Need a dep???:

The idea that a bassist can do no wrong implies that there is a 'right' way of playing. I think there is a continuum between boring and repetitive and highly creative and original and, determining where a player is on the continuum is irrelevant. It is where the listener is that matters and we are all in a different space. Every mention of jazz here is shortly followed by references to random noodlng. But lots of the 'can do no wrong' players mentioned here bore me rigid. A great player playing tedious music (Marcus Miller) is no more use to me that a bad player playing great songs (Phil Lynott). One mans 'interesting' is another mans 'inaccesible', one man's 'in the pocket' is another man's tedious and repetitive. The mix required to make a player 'flawless' is individually defined so this debate is moribund.

Did a lovely jazz trio gig last night with a REAL piano. It is sadly very rare to play with a real piano as most venues don't have them anymore. Digital pianos are getting better all of the time but, when you get to play with a great pianist (Ben Pringle - he did some of the music for C4's 'Time Team' - please, nomention of jazz and archaeology ) and a real piano, you realise how poor the electric pianos are. My Wal/SWR/GK set up was perfect as the piano had no amplification so the sound was that much more organic and dynamic. I could get so much more out of the bass as a result.

Sounds cool to me, Pete. We should find a band with a weak bass player and all stand at the back and intimidate him!!!

Start with 'Black Market' of the 'Black Market' CD or the '8.30' live recording (there are versions on Youtube)

Haven't got a scooby.....

Jim Stinnnet's second book of Paul Chambers solos featurs bowed solos specifically. [url="http://www.uptonbass.com/Arcology-The-Music-of-Paul-Chambers-Volume-Two/"]http://www.uptonbass.com/Arcology-The-Musi...ers-Volume-Two/[/url]

Thanks, Kirky! Just what I was looking for.

Looks like a non-starter then! I cannot play a double bass for more than about 15 minutes before I start getting pains in my left arm (not fatigue, real pain!!).

[quote name='mathewsanchez' post='415214' date='Feb 20 2009, 12:55 PM']I used to be able to play twinkle twinkle little star on violin when I was about 8 years old. Can't pick one up without damaging someone's hearing now... [/quote] Well done, son. Can I ask where you did this? I have wanted to do these grades for years but don't know where to go to do them (I left school in 1806).

I have mentioned here before that I have tried the double bass before but, due to injuries caused to my hand(s), I couldn't keep playing. I was wondering, therefore, how these Stagg's compare to the real thing not in terms of the sound etc but in terms of the sheer physicality of playing them. Does the fact that they are smaller make them easier to 'get around'? It may be an option for me as an alternative.

[quote name='JohnSlade07' post='414783' date='Feb 19 2009, 09:35 PM']I've managed to work out the first few bars but would like to finish learning it some time before 2012.[/quote] Have they finally made John Entwhistle's bass playing an Olympic sport?

[quote name='crez5150' post='413323' date='Feb 18 2009, 04:55 PM']Oi Bilbo...... I beat you to that...... [url="http://basschat.co.uk/index.php?showtopic=41648&hl="]Celebrity Face Cyst[/url] and mine was much funnier! ner [/quote] Sorry, crez. I'm new here....

[quote name='Lemuel Beam' post='413037' date='Feb 18 2009, 01:41 PM']Diamondhead - wonder what happened to them?[/quote] [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_Head_(band)"]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Diamond_Head_(band)[/url] I still have a copy of their legendary 'white' album that I bought at a gig!

Ra ra ra!

Two thirds of Dave Hollands catalogue! 'Long As You're Living' - Claudia Acuna (5/4) I'll come back with more later.

[quote name='urb' post='412166' date='Feb 17 2009, 04:39 PM']RAWK!!!!!! That's better - now where's my Iron Maiden t-shirt and frightwig...?[/quote] What you have to remember about this is that, at this point, Iron Maiden were only really one step up from a pub band and had only recently released their first LP (I saw them on their first major UK tour that year - still with Paul Di'anno on vox). These were the heady days of the NWOBHM (this band played a track on the FM Records compilation 'Metal for Muthas Volume 2') and there were loads of original bands gigging in pubs all over the UK - and not a tribute band in sight. I was young and impressionable but soon grew out if it but these were my first steps into being a musician and I learned a lot about what it means to play in a band during this period!

Just realised that I had uploaded a low grade version by mistake (hence urb's comments about fuzziness!). Let's try again - this was state of the art recording technology in 1981! Maida Vale BBC studio!

[quote name='dlloyd' post='411056' date='Feb 16 2009, 01:40 PM']His career as a whole was iffy, punctuated by short periods of brilliance. That's the nature of the illness he had. The illness didn't start in the 1980s, he would have had it right from the outset, benefiting creatively from his manic/hypomanic episodes... and he was aware of it, refusing treatment for fear of losing the 'highs'.[/quote] Depends on several things. His illness may have lain dormant until he started drinking (Zawinul talks about this in his biography 'In A Silent Way' - [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silent-Way-Portrait-Joe-Zawinul/dp/1860743269/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1234799439&sr=1-1"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Silent-Way-Portrai...9439&sr=1-1[/url] ) and doing drugs with the likes of Mike Stern. Personally I think of his work as that of a highly capable and vibrant voice but not necessarily one who had a lot to say. I think his 1976 - 1980 work was marvellous but, after he left WR with whom he had started to become unreliable, he was in trouble.

[quote name='dlloyd' post='410957' date='Feb 16 2009, 12:25 PM']I'd say you're overstating that a bit. An individual affected with bipolar in a major depressive episode (as he was at that point), who heavily self-medicates with alcohol and cocaine, frequently sleeping on park benches, etc. has plenty of things to blame for mediocre performance before he needs to blame those around him.[/quote] Your point is valid but I was referring to a career overview not to the defeciencies in his playing that arose over the closing years of his life. There are lots of examples of him throughout his career playing without stellar composers/arrangers and he is not nearly as effective as he was with WR, Mitchell, Metheny etc. Examples include the LPs/tracks he did with Michel Colombier, Airto, Al DiMeola, Mike Stern etc. Even that Trio of Doom thing is a bit iffy.

I write out a chart including chords and dots for groove definition and specific breaks etc. If I have time, I use Sibelius. If not I use a beer mat with the picture torn off.

Pete's tuning idea is one I have thought about for a long time but never actually done anything with. I have a six I don't like playing and would trade it for a 5 but no takers so I thought, what if I tuned my 4 BEAD and worked from there? The questions about neck tension and intonation, however, created what we in the trade call 'the dither' and nothing ever happened. Because I mainly (90%) do jazz gigs, its not a big deal (those low Bs are more a rock/pop/funk thing). I had one gig where I needed the low B but lost that to Mike Mondesir!

My wife once met Francis Rossi at a theatre and went up to him and said 'Hi, Rik'. She then slagged off the play only to find out his daughter was in it

[quote name='GreeneKing' post='407527' date='Feb 12 2009, 12:48 PM']Okay Bilbo recommend me some jazz that's likely accessible for someone with an open ear and mind? Peter[/quote] Hal Williner 'Weird Nightmare' [url="http://www.amazon.co.uk/Weird-Nightmare-Meditations-Various-Artists/dp/B0000028OW/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1234443279&sr=8-1"]http://www.amazon.co.uk/Weird-Nightmare-Me...3279&sr=8-1[/url]