peteb

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1346364443' post='1788523'] Five bands!? Sounds like a great wedding! [/quote] It was indeed...! We set up a stage and a PA in a working brewery, had a big indian buffet set out, cheap beer and got all out mates to play short sets then had a bit of a jam session to finish off. No way that I could have afforded that if I was paying all of the bands! The only problem was that I was in two of the five bands playing at my own wedding.....

[color=#222222]I have played at several mate's parties or weddings (or mates of someone in the band) for no more than a few beers. If they are genuinely mates, I am more than happy to help out![/color] [color=#222222][font="Times New Roman"][size="3"] [/size][/font][/color] [color=#222222]What goes around comes around. When I got married I had five good bands playing at the party. All it cost me was a tenner towards a taxi fare home for each of the main band (a three piece and I had to force the money on them) and I gave the two lads who were doing the sound £40 and a couple of pints each…....[/color]

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1345637686' post='1779771'] The later I would say, ballads do tend to show up dodgy singers though [/quote] Very true! IME, the occasional ballad can work on pub gigs but you do have to be careful to choose the right one.....

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1345619162' post='1779414'] [/quote] [color=#222222]But is that down to the band not being able to perform the ballad well or the audience’s natural preference for faster, more groove based songs that they can dance to or sing along to??[/color]

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1345556271' post='1778765'] Most bands can't play a slow song which is the reason why they stay away from them. If you are going to pick one..make sure you do it well [/quote] Dunno why a band that can nail a fast or even a mid-paced track shouldn't be able to pull off a slower song? The main problem seems to me to get an audience to listen and not rush en masseto the loo or bar...! [quote name='Graham56' timestamp='1345554528' post='1778752'] It's not a ballad but why not Bad Company - "Bad Company" [/quote] Good call - great song

[quote name='Jam' timestamp='1345581041' post='1779170'] For example, A major scale: A, Bm, Cm, D, E, Fm, Gdim, A Is that correct? How on earth am I going to remember that when I'm playing?! [/quote] Not quite - for A major it should C#m, F#m & G#dim in place of Cm, Fm & Gdim. If you are playing the dominant 7th scale (can never remember the correct names of the modes), it would be the same except that it would be (I think) Gmaj7 instead of G#dim (I am sure someone who has studied more theory will correct me if that is not quite right). I have never been taught this stuff (don't really read, etc) but you do pick up a working understanding of it all as you go along - it will start to make sense the more that you play!

You can only play a part that works with the song You both agree that the new guy is very good but he is giving you WTF glances when deviate from the original part. Either the new guy is overly anal about reproducing the exact performance on the record or you need to listen very carefully to what you are playing that causes such a reaction! Personally, I would do the latter before I tackled the guitarist about the former......

Nice one - he who dares, etc........ Never doubted you for a minute!

[quote name='AndyBob09' timestamp='1343907178' post='1757092'] Thanks for the words of encouragement guys - And for the words of discouragement. I say thanks to the words of discouragement because it is you guys that have the nut screwed on and realise that this task isn't truly possible and have tried to make me aware of that and to steer clear of the gig. Anyway, that aside, and my total ignorance of the words of discouragement; Day 3 in the shed - I got all my charts sorted which is always a massive bug bare of mine. A friend helped me out with charts as I always utterly lose the rag. Now with chords in front of me, I can kind of see what I'm doing and where I'm meant to be going and what not, and it's coming together nicely. After day 3, I've not played the set in it's entirety. I hope to get that done in day 4. The drummer did call me late last night though to tell me that there IS indeed a rehearsal today. Drummers, eh?!?! It's nice to be informed of rehearsals but with 17 hours notice, it's hardly ideal. Anyway, I'm pleased to be getting a rehearsal - Is it too late to be sacked at the rehearsal if they really think I'm not up to it? Oh! And another plus point, at the rehearsal I took the db to yesterday, the guitarist - huge jazzer - didn't think I was awful on db. He just hopes that Cherokee or something hard swinging won't be called on the night to fill time. Ha! Today I hope to be competent on all tunes by the rehearsal at half 5. Wish me luck! Did I ever mention that the first big band gig I took, I couldn't really read at all? I'm now playing in three big bands and none of them are looking to replace me. Ropey "first times" seem to be my forte! [/quote] I think that we have a new Basschat hero! Good luck dude......

The original reason for playing in Eb was so that guitarists (Hendrix, etc) could use heravy guage strings and still be able to bend strings! Then a lot of bands started de-tuning to help singers live and then others to try and sound heavier......

[quote name='TheRev' timestamp='1343725899' post='1754085'] Dude, you must have cojones of steel.... [/quote] [quote name='silddx' timestamp='1343750966' post='1754627'] I too was thinking pre-gig nerves might be a problem for him. [/quote] I guessing that our man here probably doesn't have too much of a problem with pre-gig nerves! To the OP - good luck if you go ahead with the gig.....

[quote name='Low End Bee' timestamp='1343729221' post='1754155'] We are three very different looking people in my band. Up until March this year that's what we looked like on stage too. Someone I know who has sold lots and lots of records in his career saw us and said to me "I like what you're doing but you don't look like a band" So we had a think and came up with the cheap shirt and suits idea. What I noticed was. We felt like a band. We got extra confidence on stage and played better. And the best bit. People came up to us after gigs and bought lots more CDs than we usually sell. I think it's because we were instantly identifiable and had a level of sepration from looking like an audience member. Very little cost outlay. My machine washable suit cost £49! One of the best decisions we've made. [/quote] I think that pretty much proves the point! Not that I think that everyone should go on stage wearing suits or dressing up like BRX's band, but it is a massive advantage to have an identitiy as a band and you have to put on some sort of a show and entertain people if you want any level of success (even at the most basic pub gig level)......

[quote name='Gust0o' timestamp='1343470045' post='1751160'] Is that the one I now have? If so, I blame PeteB. I picked up a bonus at work - banked the bulk of it and left myself some money for treats; ended up with a Stingray. Then sold large chunks of the rest of the collection to fund some more [/quote] Yep, it's the one that I sold to you! I was never that sure about it when I had it and it was never my main gigging bass, but even then I said to you that I might well get another at some point. Will look for a s/h one later in the year, most likely with a rosewood neck......

If you have the money, the second hand market is pretty good at the moment. I was looking at a nice one that went for £550 on eBay this week! I had one for a while before moving it on to fund another bass. I do miss it actually and will probably get another when I have more cash.....

Don't! You won't get anything like the right sound for the music you're playing and you will find that the damage to your frets won't get any worse, certainly not to the point that they need any work for many years! I've been regularly gigging a bass with roundwounds for more than ten years and the frets will still be good for many years to come.....

[quote name='Paul S' timestamp='1343230802' post='1747463'] Taking of Hendrix covers, this a great version of what I consider to be a really weak original - Freedom, covered by Steve Lukather [media]http://youtu.be/jOmgg-1B85A[/media] [/quote] Yea, good one...!

To the OP - here is a half decent video comparing the sounds of various Jazz and Precision basses as well as a Stingray: [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG-xma83D9k&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yG-xma83D9k&feature=related[/url] TBH - makes me think about getting another Stingray!

Does anyone else think that Stevie Ray Vaughan's versions of Hendrix tunes (most notably Voodoo Child) are better than the originals?? I think that it's more to do with the rhythm section than anything......

Like everyone else here, I use Obbm for speaker cables - top spec & great value I use Monster Cables for instrument leads, a bit pricey but really good....

[quote name='Stacker' timestamp='1343025655' post='1743811'] Yep, had Clarky/Cairobill's red fella and that was a beauty. The 2-tone I sold to Pete on here had a slimmer neck but identical sounds, prob cos of the DiMArzios and a good neck/body contact. Can't fault 'em myself, other than mabe the retail price. [/quote] Yep, I bought Donny’s sunburst JB63 and I can’t fault it either! It looks the part and sounds like you would hope an old passive jazz should. It is pretty light and is certainly better put together than any of the Fenders that I have owned. When it arrived I took it to Jon Shuker to give it a once over and he was impressed, despite his aversion to relic’d basses. In fact, he reckoned that it was better than many examples of the real thing! The reason that I bought it was because that I thought that it would be pretty cool for blues gigs! It certainly has received plenty of attention and many people are convinced that it’s the real thing! I used it as the house bass at a jam session at a recent blues festival and had quite a few decent players playing it, many of whom remarked on how good it sounded…..

[color=#222222]I've been in the house band for many, many jam sessions! Some have been brilliant (playing with an ace Texan guitarist in a packed club with 300 enthusiastic punters) and some not so brilliant (a kid getting up who has just learnt the guitar intro to ‘Sweet Child O’Mine’ with one of his mates who knows the words but couldn’t reach the high notes with a step ladder in a pub with 15 bored punters watching).[/color] [color=#222222][font="Times New Roman"][size="3"] [/size][/font][/color] [color=#222222]Most jam sessions tend to be blues based, partly because of the tradition of jamming in blues music, partly that the audience will be more prepared to listen and also because you can get a metal guitarist and a jazz sax player up together as both will be comfortable with the basic format. A lot of it is based on 12 bars, but there are also a lot of standards (Superstition, Hendrix tunes, etc) or songs with simple changes or grooves that people vaguely know.[/color] [color=#222222][font="Times New Roman"][size="3"] [/size][/font][/color] [color=#222222]A jam session will obviously be as good as the players who get up! It helps to have someone leading the session who knows what they are doing and a decent house rhythm section. I would disagree that jams are a refuge for poor players – you soon find out who the good natural musicians are at a decent jam session and it’s certainly is a great way of developing your ear and feel…![/color]

[quote name='3V17C' timestamp='1342532814' post='1736679'] cheers guys.. [url="http://www.ronsayer.co.uk"]www.ronsayer.co.uk [/url]is the band - nah, Paul Jones wasn't there when we did the session, just his producer and the engineer... although whispering Bob Harris popped in while we were mixing.. which was nice! [/quote] Very cool indeed! I met Ron recently at the Hebden Blues Festival - we played together at the jam session (I was in the house band that night) then had a quick beer and a chat later. He seemed to be a real nice fella and a cool guitar player. He certainly seems to be getting a bit of a buzz around him in the UK blues scene at the moment! Will hopefully try and catch you next time you gig up this way.....

Nice one - will try to listen to it tonight What is the name of your band??

Good videos on the bass player website if you want to have a go yourself (first on a series): [url="http://www.bassplayer.com/video.aspx?bctid=54313772001&bclid=27964998001&section=2"]http://www.bassplayer.com/video.aspx?bctid=54313772001&bclid=27964998001&section=2[/url] If you still can't get a decent action once you have tried to set it up, it may well need the frets dressed (best take it to a tech for that).......

[quote name='Rick's Fine '52' timestamp='1342002758' post='1727692'] I think the term [i]better[/i] is very subjective in this thread, and not a given, as implied. If it works perfectly, and you have the sound you want, why would you change any component on an instrument? [/quote] [quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1342002990' post='1727701'] From an engineering PoV it's hard to argue that the more modern designs aren't superior. From a tonal PoV it's completely subjective. [/quote] I take both of those points (and agree) but would suggest that the reason fender still use the BBOT bridge is because the market will not let them move away from the original design, even if it is now outdated! FWIW - I have still kept the BBOT on my Nash as it is actually pretty solid, works fine and to change it would devalue the instrument! However, I have changed the bridge on my 90s Fender, which is a massive improvement.....