Silvia Bluejay

Check out the Double Bass/EUB subforum on this very site too...

Sigh, don't get me started. My Amplug sounds even worse than my Rockit with my Warwicks (but it's the other way round with the uprights) and I'm currently waiting for Max of [sfx] to build me a Micro-H. More expensive than those, but hopefully much better quality. I don't know what your budget may be, though.

Welcome to Basschat, Urban Paranoia! It's not always you join a website with a moniker like yours and receive the first reply from someone rather aptly called Police Squad, dontcha think?

Please give me a shout when you come south to play! I've listened to your soundcloud. That version of Summertime is brilliant, with fantastic vocals, and I love Seven Waves, gorgeous double bass on that (re-listening to it right now!). Have you got a FB page I can like?

Argh, I would [b]love[/b] that. Pity you're too far...

Forgot to add that, besides obviously noticing the song's structure, repetition etc. and finding the correct key, it's important to listen for key changes and hear if they jump by a fourth or a fifth or just a semitone or two. Key changes aren't always the hackneyed repeated chorus at the end - there are lots of key changes in the middle of songs, or during guitar solos, or sometimes between one verse and another. I love it when I spot a key change, it's an added challenge

I make a point of working out the bassline by ear as precisely as possible, even if I only play along to the record and don't play live. In fact, it's more important to get the notes right if you need to be in unison with the record than if you're playing a cover version with your band As mentioned before, I listen to the song in question a number of times, sometimes sing along to it to tune myself to it, then grab my bass and make sure first of all to find what key it's in. That I do by playing a bit of the melody as I hear it, and checking whether it's correct. I often get it right first time, but sometimes it takes me several attempts. Then I begin at the beginning, so to speak, and jot down chord charts if the song is easy to remember or write down the notes one by one as letters if it's tricky (I can read music but I can't write it correctly). I tend to always play with my notes in front of me, which is something I would have to grow out of if I started to play live.

121 likes when I last checked the page! Well done! (What does your pseudo-OCD think of that number? )

[quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1342165894' post='1730504'] I'm washing my hair that night..... [/quote]

No, Dan, it's nothing to do with you, the name is fine, it's my friends who spend far too much time on FB taking the p*ss instead of working

LOL it shows on my profile as "Silvia likes [url="https://www.facebook.com/EastAnglianBassPlayers"]East Anglian Bass Players[/url]" and I almost immediately received the obligatory jokey quip by PM from one of my friends on FB - "Leaving London and moving to the countryside then?"

Oooo my head is exploding with potential witty replies, but I'll stop right here ...

I know it's a long way off still, but I'm thinking of going to see Europe at the Shepherd's Bush Empire on 1st December. You have been warned And if anyone's up for it, give me a shout. All those I've spoken to who have seen the band play live say they are excellent.

Er, no mention of Geezer Butler? I could listen to his bass work on Heaven and Hell (the album) for days on end...

[quote name='MacDaddy' timestamp='1342045577' post='1728828'] bass players in hats? [/quote] Not permitted, unless they are also guitarists, right?

[quote name='Johngh' timestamp='1342039117' post='1728685'] The Basschat team have just held their first conference in Grimsby Amoung the topics discussed was. Who buy's the doughnuts. Where is Tim and Mark King versus Flea. [/quote] What? No Fender vs Everything Else Being A Coffee Table debate? I think we should have a conference in London to rectify that omission.

HAHA, congratulations to you too, Deb - keep us posted!

I imagine they are similar to the one Jack is playing in this photo from last week?

Thank you Garey, I've entered (although I'm still not sure I can make it, but hey, I'm hopeful...). Also, thank you for making the competition totally independent from FB, which means we are not asked to allow access to our FB data and friends list. Respect

I didn't log on here for a few days and missed this! Yay!

[quote name='Hobbayne' timestamp='1341783051' post='1724189'] Was it a good turnout? seeing that the tennis was on? [/quote] When the guys started playing they had us friends as an audience, but soon after quite a number of punters walked in one by one from other rooms, or sat at the bar watching.

It's not the colour of the guitar, it's what you do with it that matters

OK, here's a few pics from today: Edit - LOL hadn't seen your post before uploading the photos - yes to the naughty email address, will send those shots over

And I'll let you have those photos we took after the gig asap, Sean

Aw, Sean, that bus (= large vehicle used for public transport) seems to follow and unfortunate route as far as traffic jams are concerned. Keep calm and surf t'internet... Discreet, er, yes, I was trying a lot of different settings, and I hope quite a few of the photos will be crap and have to be deleted before handing them on to Jack, who has the unenviable task of choosing them for the band's FB and web page