tonybassplayer

[quote name='JPJ' post='407793' date='Feb 12 2009, 05:18 PM']I only dep for others, as due to family/work/life reasons I cannot commit to one project full time.

As to the special ingredient argument, sometimes a dep can freshen things up and kick the band on a notch but I guess this depends on the quality of the dep.[/quote]


Yes, from my experience we have had some songs take a new lease of life with a dep ( drummers in particular ) and it is also very good for heightening the concentration level on the night.

So far we have only had one bad night with deps but many good ones ( some have been outstanding ) and I suspect it comes from a lower expectation level of the gig.

At one point we never depped anybody fearing that we would lose that special ingredient but the availability factor of everyone went up dramatically when we realised that it was possible to do it and still put on a good show.

This is a subject that crops up on a regular basis with my main band as we are a six piece pub/function band.

Perhaps I am a little over the top about it but I am a divorced, part time dad with a stressful job and little spare money so playing a nice wedding gig on a Saturday ticks all the boxes for me ( great de-stresser, social night out, earn a few quid and play great dance music ) so when we are " not available" I get a bit narked about it.

Several members of the band like long summer hols ( teachers ) and are not keen on much during the lead up to and during xmas so as you can imagine this frustrates me immensely.

We dep our sax player on a regular basis ( he is one of the teachers ) we have depped our keyboardist a few times with a friend of the band ( although our regular keys player is very good at being available ) we have a few very good drummers available, I was depped once when i was away on business ( I was gutted ) and we have depped the guitarist once but never the singer ( she is excellent and very hard to replace )

Tony

Brilliant set list with something for everyone

Good luck with the learning this week and the gig on Friday

Tony

Any chance of posting the setlist ??

Always intrigued to see what other bands play ( and being a bit nosey )

I bought this about two years ago on ebay and have barely touched it as I am happy on my four strings so I may as well move it on to someone who will actually play it.

Any idea what it may be worth ??

I am thinking along the lines of £130 ish does that sound about right ??

Thanks

Tony

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Thanks for the prompt replies

So is it better to stay on the higher side ?? ie adding more cabs is ok

Tony

Hi

The one thing I never seem to have got my head round is ohms.

Can someone explain how the matching should work in simple terms when an amp is matched to one, two or even four ( in the case of pa ) cabs and probably even more important how a mis matching could cause damage ( ie what to avoid that will damage and what it is not ideal but workable )

Huge thanks and looking forward to being enlightened later today

Tony

Returning from a six week break playing a 6 pm start Sunday 60th birthday party and it was a cracker !! We played with huge amounts of enthusiasm and the guests were well up for a party.

The venue was the Queen Vic at Northowram near Halifax where I am holding my 50th in a few weeks time so I was well pleased with how it absorbed the 100 plus guests.

Love playing gigs like this

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Good chat last night and the singers hubby is also happy to join ( brilliant singer ) so it opens all sorts of opportunities for songs like Paradise by the Dashboard Light etc as they are excellent as individuals but awesome when they sing together.

Now need to find a guitarist willing and able to play a wide repertoire as I think our current drummer will be happy to come on board.

[quote name='niceguyhomer' post='390780' date='Jan 25 2009, 08:49 AM']Great gig last night - that's two this weekend but it nearly didn't happen. Guitarist has problems getting through sound checks without having a strop and last night was no exception. The singer stopped us half way through a song (we'd just played it right through once) when he was satisfied that the sound / balance was right .... just before the guitarist's solo. He began to act like a 5 year old so I told him loud enough for the audience to hear that if he was going to have one of his tantrums, I was off. He shut up.

Band is having second thoughts about splitting up ....what to do...what to do [/quote]


If you have any hesitation don't split up

I feel sad when bands split as it takes a lot of hard work to get from first rehearsal to gig level again

Tony

[quote name='PJ Phillips' post='390404' date='Jan 24 2009, 02:38 PM']Good luck with the band.

If no one wants to take charge then YOU should do it.
Invest in some backline and lights (see Thomann for great deals).
Then take 10-15% off the gig fees to pay for the equipment until you get your money back.

That's pretty normal for anyone starting up a band.
Tell the other members and see if they are happy with it.

For making the initial investment you will end up with your own PA and lights.

I have done it and have played in many bands that have done it that way too.

On a lighter note.... The worst songs are always the winners unfortunately.

Try these (sorry all musos past and present)

Mustang Sally (Ouch)
Brown Eyed Girl
I Will Survive
YMCA
500 Miles
Delilah
Walking On Sunshine
and (God forgive me).....Dancing Queen


I feel dirty now... but believe me, they work

pj[/quote]


Must admit that several of the above are already in our set and most of the remainder are on the "to do" list

[quote name='Crazykiwi' post='390273' date='Jan 24 2009, 11:01 AM']They'll definitely hit the spot at a civil partnership. Nothing wrong with that, but I think you need to understand who your audience are going to be. Disco works well with 30's and above, plus any crowds that aren't too self conscious. Motown works with nearly everyone, no class divides or associations there. We tend to do a mix of both with some cool top 40 stuff thrown in too. In an ideal world my band would have a set dedicated to each, once we'd seen from the first set what the punters liked the most.[/quote]


Yes, that is a very good point.

Our current repertoire is good for most occasions but with a little more commitment we could add more new songs for the younger generation that are at the party as most of the current chart bands play songs that are relatively easy to learn.

[quote name='obbm' post='390407' date='Jan 24 2009, 02:43 PM']Songs that have been used in the soundtracks of movies in the last 20 years or so.[/quote]


Now funny that you should have mentioned that as one of my ideas is to take songs from Grease, Dirty Dancing, Blues Bothers, Commitments and Mamma Mia etc and build a show around them

We already play some of them and they go down really well

I know that I shouldn't really say this but when you are up there playing the one thing that makes you feel good ( and overrides the long drive, no time for soundcheck, no food for 8 hours, no free drinks, hard load in, missed solo's etc etc etc ) is seeing a packed dance floor 8 bars in to the fist song

[quote name='NickThomas' post='390287' date='Jan 24 2009, 11:32 AM']I was in the position of one your prospective band members until recently , and it gave me a very low sense of commitment towards the band.
So much so that I just stopped accepting the crap gigs lol[/quote]


Fully understand your response and if I could get 5/6 members wanting to put 100% commitment in equal shares then that would be perfect but reality is that some people just want to turn up and play which is absolutely fine but we are talking of going out to wedding fayres, meeting potential clients at home, liaising with venues, marketing etc so we will be putting a lot more time effort and money in to the project so I think that deserves more financial recognition.

The female singer in my main band and I have been discussing life, work, music, future etc and we are looking in to possibly forming a partnership to start a party/function band that may ultimately lead us to be able to give up our day jobs although we are under no illusion that it will take a lot of time, investment and hard work to get anywhere near that level.

We have a good blend of skills between us from a marketing, managing, organising, presentation, musical etc point if view.

The function band we currently play in are pretty good musically and a great fun party and pub band but some of the members are very reluctant to move to the next step in investment of equipment and time so we basically cap out at a certain level. The main problem is that of "leadership" as we either end up with everyone doing something or no one doing it. We want to take on that role ( dividing it between us ) and then pay the other band members for playing.

We are meeting tonight to discuss it and just to make sure we are on the same wavelength I am compiling a list of surefire dance floor fillers. Songs that are guaranteed to hit the spot every time. As long as the songs get people on the dance floor then anything is allowed, pop, rock, cheese, soul, funk etc etc

Songs like these

Do You Love Me
Raining Men
I Want You Back
Disco Inferno
Mamma Mia

Hope you can add me another twenty today..........

Looking forward to being able to contribute towards this again as we are playing this weekend after a ridiculous 8 week break !! Things have got to change !!

Definitely A from my view point, it just looks perfect

Thanks for the advice, I hadn't thought of it like that I was more worried about it getting damaged in transit but I might re-consider and offer to post.

Anyone got an approx cost of posting a guitar in a case ??

Virtually unused due to my passion for bass ( bought it with a bonus in 96 ) but unfortunately it has to go as I ain't earning what I need at the moment so every penny counts.

Quite rare with the matching headstock ( Fender 50th Anniversary.....NOT Stratocaster 50th )

[url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=200300498546&_trksid=p3907.m32&_trkparms=tab%3DSelling"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...s=tab%3DSelling[/url]

Hope you like it ( and buy it ) but would also like to hear if anyone else has one like it ( or even seen one !! )

Tony

Surely on March the 1st you will all be busy collecting your new "09" plate cars doing your bit towards ending the credit crunch

[quote name='steantval' post='382795' date='Jan 16 2009, 08:31 PM']It's been a real pleasure learning the cool laid back basslines of Andy Fraser.[/quote]


We play Mr Big and I love playing the bass line

Good luck with the gig

I have no gig next weekend so if you get very desperate you can borrow my very under rated and unfashionable but done me well for two years Behringer amp and cab or cabs or I have a 150 watt Trace Elliot combo also if preferred.

Tony

[quote name='elom' post='373647' date='Jan 7 2009, 11:04 PM']Is it whoever played bass in Slade?[/quote]


Must admit that when I hear the Robin mentioned my thoughts turn to Jim Lea !!

Currently building a nice eclectic setlist with two other guys and we are looking to add a few extra sounds to the mix.

I have an Apple powerbook with garage band and quite happy to use this to play some occasional sounds but how can I trigger them with my feet whilst playing bass !!

Tony