Linus27

Looking very nice shizzit and no doubt sounding awsome.

I started the evening by watching Alex Al testing out the Reidmar on the EBS blog which then led me to watch the Tal Wilkenfeld videos on the same blog. This then led me to Tal testing a Kala solid body UBass which I must admit sounded very cool and given me a wee bit of GAS. This then led me to Tal performing Serendipity on some Aussie breakfast morning show which I thought was interesting and quite refreshing. This led me to watching some more Tal videos (stay with me here now, its not quite going where you think its going) which then led me to a Jeff Beck video playing a song called Nadia at Ronnie Scotts with, yep, Tal on bass. At first, I thought, ooh, why is he playing rock sounding guitar over Jazz, it sounds all bendy and messy and as subtle as a brick but I'll stick with it as the footage is really clear and I can check Tal's playing out a bit more. Jeff's playing then settled down and started to sound rather good and go more bluesy jazz. As the video went on, some of the sounds and tones Mr Beck was getting out of his guitar were quite angelic and I really liked how Tal just sat in the back dropping little runs in now and again. Now my curiosity had kicked in, it then led me to another Jeff Beck video from the same session, this time with Imogen Heap singing a song called Blanket and again Mr Becks guitar playing was sublime. Now, I really don't like blues but I am in love with Jeff Becks playing, at least on these videos and I am so going to get the Blueray of this gig. Plus the drummer was awsome and ok, I admit, I do have a little soft spot for Tal now. I am not going to watch anymore clips now as I will be up all night and thats a really bad thing. [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=drAv2FoYji8&feature=related[/media] [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z79pgPn357g[/media]

[quote name='funkygreega' timestamp='1329231804' post='1539191'] Oh Lawd! Thats tasty! I am GASsing for a 4 string Musicman StingRay in sunburst, with a maple neck. [/quote] Yeah as soon as I saw it (sildx posted a picture a long time ago) I knew I had to have one. Thankfully they are not crazy money new but very hard to find in the UK

[quote name='Linus27' timestamp='1325347184' post='1482372'] So the start of another year, what does everyone have GAS for in 2012? I would like the following, EBS Reidmar 250 amp EBS Classic 110 or 112 x 2 off Double Bass [/quote] Well my GAS is going very well so far this year. I have the EBS Reidmar which sounds amazing. I have the EBS Classic 112 which also sounds amazing. However, I now have GAS for the following, A Fender Japan Jazz 66B in white with matching headstock, blocks and binding. Yummy.

Great review, thanks for that. can you post some piccies of it set up with the Reidmar please.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1329132903' post='1537481'] It that with 1 or 2 112 cabs? have to say..looks the DB's in the pics [/quote] Just the one Classic 112 so far as that is all I need. Oh and its so loud anyway.

Would be interested in hearing how you get on with the NEO 210. I remember you saying how great the Eden was with the Reidmar so if the Neo 210 is a winner then it must be good. My Classic 112 with the Reidmar sounds awsome, still blown away with it. Keep us posted.

[quote name='rubykon' timestamp='1329051851' post='1536448'] Looks Nice, although I would prefer a simple laptop bag. I also really dig the mono bags... [url="http://www.monocase.com/mono-products2011.asp"]http://www.monocase....roducts2011.asp[/url] [/quote] Those Mono bags looks good as it has lots of pockets to keep cables, batteries, strings etc in. Not sure how protective they are though but they look good.

What you think guys as a hard case for the Reidmar? [url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/rugged-case-large-225744"]http://www.maplin.co.uk/rugged-case-large-225744[/url]

[quote name='blackmn90' timestamp='1328969853' post='1535430'] so if you had F7 going to Bb7 you could play F F# G A. The F# is a chromatic between the F and G and the A is a chromatic of the Bb7 chord if you were to start the chord on the Bb. Basically a chromatic note is a semi-tone away from the target note and is heavily used in walking lines [/quote] Thank you, that makes sense. I know I do that anyway but never knew what it was called

[quote name='blackmn90' timestamp='1328969005' post='1535416'] Great start linus. Now try using more chromaticism and start the chord on another chord tone other than the root. Also once you feel comfortable, try to avoid repetition. [/quote] Thanks blackmn90. Yeah I was aware of the repetion and will work on that. Also starting the chord on a tone other than the root is something I tend to do anyway as a player, usualy linked with some kind of run but I admit, at this stage I was just trying to keep up May I ask what you mean by chromaticism in a musical context?

This morning I thought I would fire up iReal and have a go at writing a bass line to one of the 1200 Jazz songs I have downloaded as well as learning to read the chart. The first one I picked was a track called 52nd Street Theme which if honest I have never heard and had no idea how the bass line goes in it. So attached is what I came up with. Am I heading in the right direction with writing bass lines for this genre? Any tips from the pros? Sorry for a little bit of sloppyness on the changes. If anything, its a good exercise to improve technique as some of the changes are quite fast. [url="http://soundcloud.com/michael-boylan/52nd-street-theme"]http://soundcloud.co...nd-street-theme[/url]

Can we cancel rehearsal next week as its Valentines Day.

So my 2011 MIA Fender Jazz will be 30 in 2041 and possibly just starting to be valuable or at least possibly be close to what I paid for it. However, I will 72 years old so if I am still alive, its not going to be a great sum of money. I wish I still had my 77 Precision. Maybe I should sell some bases and buy a 70's Fender as an investment.

Sorry, got asked to do an encore [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uNsmF9JTpuI[/media]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABxlQkIOfmA[/media]

Thanks Bilbo. I was hoping you would add your views to this thread so very appreciated.

Thanks guys, this is all really helpful and to think I nearly never started this thread for fear of sounding like a knob and to be ridiculed. Just goes to show hey.

[quote name='jjay69' timestamp='1328730315' post='1531887'] Linus im just reading you post for the first time, brilliant, I could have written that myself. 43 this year, played in loads of original and cover rock / blues style bands to next to no punters and am in dire need of a change / new challenge. I too have taken my first steps down the route of "the Jazz" ! So far it's working for me, as in giving me the challange i was after and a complete change of style. Practicing at home has taken on a whole new meaning, new scales, modes and arpeggios to learn, suddenly everything about playing bass has become more interesting again. [/quote] Hey jjay69, that is so cool and it seem along with Urb and yourself that I am not alone in how I am feeling. Can I ask you to share how you went about the change. Was it just a case of learning to play lots of jazz songs or head first into a new band? Any other tips or direction you can share. Thanks

[quote name='phil625sxc' timestamp='1328723085' post='1531729'] If you're ever anywhere near Stoke Newington on a Monday night I play in the house band for a really laid back, friendly and informal jazz jam night, you'd be welcome to come and sit in for a few numbers if you fancy that for a bit of experience ?? [/quote] Hey thank you very much. I'm not that close I'm afraid but thanks for the offer and when I am a bit further down the road, it would be good experience for me.

[quote name='Thurbs' timestamp='1328717852' post='1531619'] + loads... It is the best and most valuable purchase I have made. [/quote] I would have to agree with this also.

[quote name='urb' timestamp='1328715692' post='1531577'] No worries - glad to be of help - I should add I also joined a funk band and a world music / Algerian band - both of which I got to play a lot of very fun and often really cool/exciting gigs with - I love jazz but I love a ton of other music too - I don't discriminate now in terms of what I'm prepared to play - as long as it's good and I 'feel' it.... RE starting I was lucky in that I know two very talented guitar-playing brothers who were ten times better than me - I would learn jazz tunes by wrote, not reading charts at all but learning the chords etc wholesale - then combing that with my limited scale/harmony knowledge and a bit of technique I just went out and started gigging - sometimes it was good, sometimes it was horrible - but you have to just throw yourself in there - there's no substitute for learning to do this stuff on a gig. Mike Stern made a nice point once that 'it takes a minute' to get the stuff you practice at home onto a gig - and he's right, playing all those ideas in the heat of the moment live, in front of an audience that's sitting just inches from you in a small club really gives you nowhere to hide... and when you do dot it, it's bloody brilliant - it's the best feeling to be playing freely, completely improvising new music in front of a crowd who are enjoying it is really something... you have to do it to really appreciate it - but when it works it's really satisfying. EDIT - the iReal app is very cool - if you have the latest version you can even export the songs as MIDI files and can drop them into Logic / Cubase - and then create your own tunes - it's great and I love using it as a practice tool - working on specific things like 2/5/1 chord sequences, all the different scales - major, minor, alterted, augmented, melodic/harmonic minors, learning about chord substitutions, different picking techniques - reading and transcribing - it all adds so much more to your musical outlook - so instead of just following the friggin' guitardist you can write your own tunes, explain to other musicians how you want this bit played etc - and feel a lot more confident as a MUSICIAN - not just the bass player..... [/quote] Once again, many thanks for the reply. It has been very helpful and given me a lot more confidence in my new direction.

Thanks Urb, its really reassuring to know that you have been through the same sort of thing as I am feeling now. Its interesting that you mention about improvising over chord charts. To get the ball rolling and see how I fared, I got the iReal app for my Itouch and downloaded hundreds of Jazz songs and then just jammed over the charts and it was a real surprise at how well I could do it and how much fun it was. Its been a great starting point for me. Thanks also for all the links, they are a great help. When I first decided to play bass some 23 years ago, I locked myself in my room for two years and studied solidly and came out and hit the ground running. So I am planning this year to do something similar and totally immerse myself and soak up as much info as I can. May I ask, how did you get started? What was the first thing you did to move over into the Jazz scene and away from rock etc? Did you just join a band, start a band or spend a long time studying songs? Again some direction or tips would be appreciated.

[quote name='blackmn90' timestamp='1328704848' post='1531360'] [url="http://www.stefanredtenbacher.com/2012/01/08/the-funkestra-proudly-announce-their-monthly-gig-at-the-farncombe-cavern-on-the-outskirts-of-guilford/"]http://www.stefanred...ts-of-guilford/[/url] [/quote] Thank you.

I am currently looking at a total change in direction and a new challenge over the next year or two. My whole musical career has been a case of playing original music, either a mix of guitar based punk pop, folk, rock and my current project which is acoustic soul pop. However, as I get older (42 this year) and as times have moved on, I am finding that less people my age are going to pubs and clubs to listen to the genre of music I am playing. Its not a case of them not liking it, far from it as my acoustic band is doing very well (Mojo cover CD next month, radio sessions, Paul Weller tour support next month etc) but from a live situation, there are less places to play than say ten years ago and a lot of the venues seem empty. It just seems to be cover bands or teenagers playing to their mates. Nothing wrong with this at all but at my age, I feel like a square peg trying to fit into a circle. If I am also totally honest, I am getting a little bored of the whole thing. From a bass playing point of view I don't feel challenged anymore. This might sound really cocky but I have always been one of the most if not the most experienced musician in the bands I have played in as well as the most skilled or accomplished. I am also getting really fed up with playing to 5 - 10 people in pubs/clubs. I am getting to the point where I can't be bothered with it anymore. I am just bored of the genre and scene I find myself playing in as well as not feeling challenged as a bass player anymore. I feel old and need to put things in place for what i am going to do for the next 10 - 20 years as a player and playing the same genre to a few people is not what I am looking at. It would be great to be thrown in at the deep end and work with musicians who are better than me. To start from the bottom again, playing from the seat of your pants, having to think and work things out again knowing that you need to come up to scratch to match the talent of the other musicians. So, I think its time for a new challenge. I have a couple of ideas for two projects but need to research the feasibility of them first. I have always loved Jazz and my bass lines have always had some kind of walking part to them or jazz feel where possible. Ok, so when I say Jazz that really is a sweeping statement so what I mean is more Jazz venues and the type of music that is played in them rather than guitar based rock, pop, folk, punk etc which I have grown up with. However, I know nothing of the jazz scene and if there is one at all. Is it isolated to London and is it on its arse like a lot of other music venues or is it thriving with people actively going out and listening to bands? Where does one go to check out Jazz bands live and get all the info of new bands, venues etc? I only know of Ronnie Scotts, Jagz in Ascot and I think some Jazz club in Reading. After that i am totally ignorant to the whole scene. I need to walk away from what i am doing and have done for years as I am bored of it and feel i can't take it any further as a player and as a genre and come back, start again at the bottom. Sorry for the ramble but needed to get this of my chest and hopefully I can get some good advice, direction and input from people here.