peteb

[quote name='polyrythmmm' timestamp='1367934592' post='2071171'] Firstly the car thing. Many of us Londoners have cars, that's why there are so many cars in London. admittedly there is a fairly high amount of commuter traffic but that doesn;t explain the 24/7 vastness of traffic in London. AND we get to 'steer' clear of the rush hours it's actually kind of fun driving in London after Gig down time. I play in bands in London and somtimes I'm the only bloke with wheels, is this frustrating? YES because no-one else is equipped to accomplish ANYTHING. They can't even move around. I have solved the over-reliance issue by moving from VW hatch-back to a proper old time mini "Sorry guys only room for me and my rig, and even that is creatively packed". The bands in London who can at least get there are by far the more promising 'gig wise' too, but in those cases, invariably, I'm the only one without a permanent day job. It's rare to find everything rolled into one batch of folks so yeah I guess, ask for everything. That's all in support of the wishlist & dream-building, but now.. Telebass. You ought to be be really nice and accommodating.. Build the plan call it a pro gig, build it and they will come. But recognise that you too have a bruisable-ego.. Your responses are as defensive as those who felt attacked, so I think you had better accept that with ego comes the will to succeed. Strip away the ego and you strip away the ambition. (generally speaking) I like to think many of us have the social skills to balance the two, but just leave it out entirely from the wishlist. If you mention it, it probably means it's a problem, and if it's a problem, it's your problem. In general though YES take the essential matters into your own hands, and build the gig (job done) amp power, ego's these are not gig issues these are your issues. If a guy who you have offerred the gig to on the grounds that he's perfect seems to turn up with a stupid looking stack to a jazz covers club gig well you have to make the call should you have allowed this guy into the band if the answer is yes even with his rig the rig stays until you can convince him it's silly. if the answer is no then why did you choose him?.. you know. distill it all distill it to the essential gig concerns and go to work end of. [/quote] Excellent post!

The Xotic jazz bass would be my choice - superb bass

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1367757242' post='2069082'] Your best bet might just be getting a Jazz pickup put on a post - 2008 American Standard . The 1.625 nut width and modern "C" profile on those basses is perfect for what you want . Why Fender don't make one like that , I have no idea . I'm sure plenty of people would buy them . [/quote] The trouble is I already have an Am Std Jazz and it's not that great. I got it s/h on here and spent a fair bit on a fret dress to make it playable and putting a new bridge on it. It's also a touch on the heavy side, unlike SOME 70s fenders that I've played / owned. You're second point is exactly what I'm trying to say - I'm sure that loads of people would actually buy a bass like that if they sold at the right pricepoint!

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1367692701' post='2068526'] Did you see the 2011/ 12 Precision Pro ? It was beautiful , which is why these latest ones are such a bad joke : [/quote] Yea, if you had a slim P neck (as opposed to a narrow J one) with a maple fingerboard, then that is exactly what I'm talking about! I wouldn't want to be paying custom shop prices though, but how about a series in between the American Special & Standard ranges? I think that would be interesting...

The one thing that this thread seems to show is that people want Fenders to look like Fenders! The one thing you can say about such an iconic brand is that there is not a lot wrong with the styling of P or J basses! What I would like to see is something like a ‘70s Player’ series, which would include a lightweight PJ bass with a Badass bridge and a not too chunky maple neck with a skunk stripe. Basically, the best that you would hope to find from a modded 70s fender P bass. I might even buy one myself if they got the build quality and price right…

If you are playing 120 gigs a year with guys at a high level, you are going to be improving dramatically without even realising it! You must be doing something right to get the work in the first place...

[quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1367569979' post='2066938'] I'm not comparing JJ to Jaco - I'm comparing what I perceive as their differing approaches to playing music. To be defensive when hearing brilliant musicians... first you would have to accept the musician in question's 'brilliance'. In Jaco's case - I'm not sure I do totally. I also , generally , find that those who stand gaping in awe of another players technical skills are the average , jealous players rather than those who feel competent enough not to (seek to) need to prove themselves to anyone , but would rather put themselves second to the work they're contributing to. [/quote] Really? IME good musicians are confident enough to recognise talent in others and maybe learn from them...

[quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1367536001' post='2066769'] Some people get defensive when other people are less keen on something they love. [/quote] Maybe, but bear in mind that Jaco is not one of my main musical heroes - I'm just saying that people should recognise what he did and not come out with spurious comparisons to James Jamerson! He was always going to have more of an effect on someone like Bilbo because be likes that kind of music. My point about people getting defensive when they hear brilliant musicians was way more general than just talking about Jaco...

[quote name='Dr.Dave' timestamp='1367512464' post='2066267'] I think that all musicians should primarily support the song - not just bass players. It's the whole point. J J was superb at doing so. He never put himself before it - he used his skills to improve the song - not to over shadow it. He didn't give a monkeys how good people thought he was - he cared only for how much better the song was for his input. [/quote] There is nothing written in stone that all music [b]has[/b] to be performed in a four minute song format! That may, quite rightly, be the norm, but there has to be room for instrumental music and also for truly great players to do extraordinary things to take what can be done with an instrument forward. Assuming that you are not a die hard, old school punk rocker – if you dismiss this type of music out of hand you are probably missing a trick! Some people get very defensive when they hear someone who is better than they are. I get tired of all this talk of fret w@*kery whenever anyone mentions a guitarist who is actually any f@*kin good! And of course when you hear a genuine game changer like Jaco, suddenly people get threatened by the fact that their heroes are not in the same league, yet alone the fact that they will never be able to play like that. Therefore they start picking holes in his tone and accusing him of ‘widdling’ or whatever, which is kind of missing the point. The ironic thing is that out of all the monster jazz players, JP was (at times) a killer groove player – I’m sure that Jamerson (who I believe was originally a jazz player himself) would have approved! I have three or four Jaco records, which I rarely listen to – to be honest I’m more a Van Halen kinda guy! However, I have been indirectly influenced by him quite a bit in that I have copped plenty of licks from guys like Tony Franklin, who I know got them originally from JP and then put them in a rock context where I picked them up. I can’t see how it does any harm to at least be aware of they came from and to appreciate the artistry of the original, even if you are never going to be a big fan of the type of music that Jaco played…

[color=#222222]There seems to be always the same argument here about Jaco. I think that he was one of the all-time greats who transcended his instrument in the same way that Hendrix, Charlie Parker and a select group of others did.[/color] [color=#222222]I’m not a jazz fan at all and I find much of his stuff very heavy going (ok, unlistenable) but his first solo album and some of the Weather Report and Joni stuff are undeniably great. If nothing else, Teen Town and Portrait of Tracy are great tunes[/color] [color=#222222][quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1367323035' post='2064119'] I also think some people buy into that troubled genius backstory too. [/quote][/color] [color=#222222]Are you sure that you’re not falling into the same trap with Scot Thunes??[/color]

If you can get to Keighley, I use Tony at Aire Valley Guitars (tel: 01535 600202 / [url="http://www.airevalley-guitars.co.uk/"]http://www.airevalley-guitars.co.uk/[/url]) for stuff like that - top bloke, knows his stuff & very reasonable!

A Clean Boost pedal will only increase the signal from your bass to the amp - it won't magically make the amp louder! I’m afraid that it sounds like the amp is underpowered for what you need. Not much you can do about that except possibly use a more efficient cab…

[quote name='cocco' timestamp='1366832279' post='2057925'] I've upgraded or quickly sold every fender I've ever owned. [/quote] Same here - in fact I have modified (and IMHO vastly upgraded) every Fender type bass I have ever owned with one exception (as it is potentially worth a bit and I might want to sell)! In doing so I have undoubtedly lost quite a bit when I have sold on a few American Fenders, but I made them much better players and to my ears, sound better!

The shredding is great, but it helps that Kotzen has an ace voice and can write a bit as well...!

Can I be the first to post the new Winery Dogs clip, featuring Billy Sheehan, Mike Portnoy and the excellent Richie Kotzen. Obviously there is some shredding involved, but also very musical and a decent song! Well worth a listen... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8ZlPBuNNNw&feature=youtu.be"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X8ZlPBuNNNw&feature=youtu.be[/url]

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1366359320' post='2051344'] ha ha! And now you know why I don't teach... [/quote] No, seriously - you would be a far better teacher than some others on this thread...

[quote name='Dave Vader' timestamp='1366314933' post='2051061'] G F# E, F C D for ages, then just F C D for ages do that a couple of times then G Bb C for even longer. Try and throw some runs in when you get bored, and you will. You're welcome. [/quote] You really should give lessons - obviously you were born to be a top bass teacher...!

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1366313951' post='2051038'] Ronnie Van Zant: "Whut song izzit yew wanna hear?" Crowd: "Mustang Sally!" [/quote]

Punters want to be entertained, pure and simple! Generally this is easier if you play stuff that they know with a few surprises thrown in. If you play too many of the cliche 'crowd pleaders' you run the risk of boring them as you will just sound like every other band they have ever seen! However one or two will help break the ice of course.

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1366124719' post='2048645'] I don`t believe it was whining.If it did come over as whining then i am sorry, i must get better at expressing myself .I was Merely asking for a little help which most people seemed happy to do,which have been very helpful to me.Even your quote about it not getting any easier.I also never said i was going to give up, so not really sure where that came from.I still enjoy learning, just that sometimes it frustrates.But if you really want to say how it is, don`t attribute things to people that were never really said.I took on board your quote saying it doesn`t get any easier.But if want to come over with attitude, that is your choice. [/quote] I didn’t think that you were whining at all, just looking to benefit from the experience of people who have been doing it longer than you… You are learning the basic foundations of being a musician now – keep at it and in four years time you will be flying...!

[quote name='mike257' timestamp='1365775840' post='2044361'] There's very good reasons for both approaches to exist. When I'm mixing multi-band gigs where I don't know the bassist and the backline, I'll default to using a DI box and take the signal before the amp unless the player requests otherwise. For me as an engineer, that means I know that even if the amp is crap, unreliable, gets its settings fiddled with by less educated people sharing rigs or whatever, I've got a consistent and reliable signal coming to FOH anyway. If (for example) somebody like BRX rolled up who obviously knew his rig and his tones and had a setup that lent itself to me taking a post processing signal I'd be more than obliging - it only takes seconds to pull an XLR out of a DI box and throw it into somebody's rack/pedalboard/whatever. I think you'll find that most FOH guys would love to work with a band to create the perfect FOH mix but the realities of gigging rarely allow for that luxury. The quality of their work is their calling card just as your performance is for you and they'll be looking for the best mix they can achieve given the time and resources available to them. Sometimes that means compromises have to be made somewhere, but with a bit of communication everybody can have their input and end up (reasonably) happy! [/quote] Good post! As much as I prefer to send a post signal I can understand why sometimes it makes sense to take a DI straight from the bass on multi-band bills with little turnaround time between sets. Good engineers can generally work with the bass player to get the sound that they want if there is a little time available and both parties know what they are doing! I wish that all sound engineers had your attitude...

Jon Shuker

[quote name='Toddy' timestamp='1365691808' post='2043023'] [i]I think this is pretty interesting, and of course its not just musicians that are guilty of such things, certain brands seem to be "Holy" especially Harley Davidson, who make some very old fashioned agricultural machines, but with a massive loyal fan base, guess we pay extra for how certain things make us feel, which may be foolish, but hey it happens. other brand like Jack Daniels and Ferrari also inspire such feelings, weird init. [/i] [/quote] I think that the comparison between Fender and Harley Davidson is a particularly interesting one - both make rather outdated machines that have a loyal following mainly based on their historical significance! However, I can see the attraction of always owning at least one US Fender. Unfortunately there are always band leaders around (and punters of course) who need the comfort of the Fender badge! It's not in anyway logical, but that's how it goes...

Has anyone noticed that a lot of bass players who do club type tours (or play a lot in Europe, etc) often have a preamp / DI on their pedal board?? I assume that this is to maintain a certain amount of control over their sound when they're using unfamiliar rigs or dealing with engineers who want to DI straight from the bass!

[quote name='4 Strings' timestamp='1365437184' post='2039619'] Or it could mean they know a bit about sound and know that their system will make a better sound than the treble and bass controls on a bass amp. Some engineers receive such a ridiculously scooped sound from bass players' amps that there's nothing they can do to make the bass heard apart from elevating the level of stodge. Generic sounds? Now there's a can of worms best avoided by taking some time with said sound engineer and letting him know what you want. Good ones listen and know exactIy what to do. I get cross at the keyboards, bass guitar, kick drum and bottom strings on the guitar all muddying up the same bottom end frequencies as they are eq'd in isolation for impressive sounds. I have stopped playing once at this (in a church too!) as it was pointless carrying on making the sounds worse. Ok, off soap box. [/quote] When it comes down to it, bands have to take responsibility and make sure that they make life easier for the sound engineer to get the FOH sound right. If you have cr@p gear or can't EQ an amp, it's no wonder that they want a pre signal! However, there are a lot of them out there that couldn't mix concrete, yet alone a band in a less than ideal room. A mate of mine is a good pro sound engineer who runs a company that employs even better engineers. He says that if a band can get a good sound on stage then the engineer should be a able to reproduce that sound out front! He has a very jaundiced view of a lot of guys working quite big gigs, basically saying that many are incompetent. I have say that my own experience confirms this to a degree, not to mention (sometimes half decent) engineers who seem to think that the most important person on the show is them and seem to forget that it is about punters coming to see and hear a band...!