peteb

I think that this sums it up. He's not being offered the gig in Deep Purple, he's trying to break into a close knit local music scene where everybody is likely to have played with each other in the past and have long term, rather convoluted friendships. Stealing another muso's gig after depping for them is generally considered to be bad form - would you want him to dep for you going foward?? To then demand that the band sacks their singer is just going to make too many enemies. It doesn't matter how good you are if no one wants to play with you because you've got a reputation for being a ruthless d1ck...! However, nothing to stop you suggesting trying out a side project with guys who you've been gigging with...

Hey Daryl As someone who has recently joined a tribute band, I think the point is that you avoid the 4 hour bar (or 2 hour pub) gigs and play less frequently as part of bigger and better shows. Exactly how less frequently and how much money you make depends on the act you are doing a tribute to. Personally I would want a band to run alongside to keep gigging / earning regularly.

1) I probably wouldn't be the right fit for them but sounds an interesting project. I might go and see them if they start gigging. 2) I would certainly fit their criteria but their songlist is way too diverse and the 'summer got in the way' thing isn't promising. I might give them a ring if I was new to an area and didn't have anything better on the go. 3) Can't really see myself in an Eagles tribute but sounds like it might be good if you like that sort of thing. 4) Not for me, but if I had a lid then probably something they might be interested in. So none of the above for me, but nothing suggests that they wouldn't work for the right bass player...

Quite a few years ago I used to play in a rock covers band (think loads of Van Halen and a few daft stuff done in the same style) who played pubs, but also a load of motorcycle rallies. We did one in Scarborough and got there early on the Friday (we were the headline on the Saturday) and got talking to a group of lads who said that their mate had decided not to come but would be disappointed to miss us as we were his favourite band on the circuit. Apparently they rang him on Saturday morning and told him we were playing. He immediately packed a bag, put his tent on the back of his bike and rode about four hours just to come and see us. We had a bit of a beer rider backstage, which we ended up sharing with him as we were amazed that he would drop everything and ride that far just to see a cover band.

Thanks for posting that - just reminded me that I needed another kettle lead...

The thing is that you can’t physically play the guitar riff for Alright Now without the open strings. I think that you would agree that the main riff is rather an important part of the song?? There’s a reason why many old bands that recorded their biggest hits in concert pitch are now playing live tuned down a half step, or often more. I once played in a band with a (female) singer who tried to do a Beth Hart song, but kept wanting to change the key (original in C). In the end she had tried five different versions, each time a further half step down. I pulled the plug at G# and said that it wasn’t going to work and to look for an alternative. Sometimes you have to accept that a singer can’t pull off a particular song and play something that they can sing instead…

It's one thing changing keys to accommodate singers, but there is a line you have draw. If they want to change the key that drastically it means that they just can't do it! Not to mention that there are many signature guitar parts that are important to performing certain songs that can only be played in a particular key...

FIVE steps down...!! Did you have a Barry White's big brother singing for you??

The thing is that you don't need to over complicate it. Essentially he walks between the I and the IV (sometimes up, sometimes down) for six bars before going to the V in the seventh bar and then finishing each line off, rinse and repeat. It's got a bit of a swing feel and he throws in the odd triplet to give it a bit of movement. I doubt that he would have played the song the same way twice live, so there's no need for you to worry too much about replicating every bar exactly. Funnily enough, I've just found a live CD today of an early Bad Co gig from just before the first album came out. It's got a six and a half minute version of Can't Get Enough, so perhaps I will have a better idea of what he actually did play live! Boz was always one of my favourite bass players.

Whilst that is true generally about the arrangements, both bass players could be quite busy at times. As far as CGE goes, just remember that on the single version, Boz is generally just walking from the I to the IV and back again at the beginning of each line in the solo. On the album version / live he plays a bit more (ie. he plays a riff that goes up to the 6th if I remember correctly), but it's all pretty simple really.

I really don't think that anyone wants to hear an unknown band play two hours of original material...! If I was the OP, the first thing I would do is to check.

I should just point out that the vast majority of guitar players I have played with have never had any formal training (like myself). Of course that doesn't mean that they don't know scales, modes, etc or don't have a working knowledge of harmony.

Surely the answer to this is that it depends on the gig. I've been playing live for over 40 years and I have yet to see anyone produce a music score in a band situation, even when playing with guys who are capable sight readers. I have never found communicating musical ideas without using music notation to be a problem.when dealing with decent guitar player players.

I don't live anywhere near you, but I did own one of those MB 310 combos at one time. It was a great amp! I did loads of gigs all over the place with it and it never let me down. If you can get it repaired for £200 (and it doesn't have any other major issues) then I would suggest you go ahead. If you want a bass combo then that is one I would definitely recommend.

I think that the fist thing you need to understand is that a pub will pay for a band as a whole, not per member...! It is about how many people you can pull in and how much they will spend behind the bar behind the bar. it doesn't matter if it is a 3 piece or a 7 piece band - the fee will be the same. Around here (the West Yorkshire area) most pubs will pay between £200 and £300, depending on what crowd you can pull in that particular area and the size of the pub, with an average of £250

That’s a little unfair. One thing that PROS (capitalisation or not) particularly like to do is to get well paid for doing gigs. It is generally accepted that one of the tried & tested ways of doing this is to play a mixture of well known covers of indie, classic rock, Motown and other sixties tunes along with the odd 40 year old punk classic to wedding parties. To the OP – you’ve done your first dep and got through it with only the odd mishap. You will know more and be better prepared next time. For a start, you will know to ask for a setlist with all the keys that they play the songs in (these can vary unexpectedly from band to band). You seem to have the right attitude (if possibly a little on the overly modest side) and I’m sure you will find a suitable band / more dep gigs in due course.

Best to check with them, but usually 20% of the selling price.

That's true, but they will advise what they think they is a realistic price. They have just sold my bass for more than I would have got for it in less than a week...

I part ex'd a bass at BD last week and it seems to have sold already

I had a similar issue when I had a Mesa Subway amp - a non-slip rubber grip map worked a treat...

It can be a challenge, but you do get used to it and it becomes easier. Of course playing standards can be an issue as everyone's idea of what is a standard is different. This is probably why blues jam sessions are such a thing - there are only a limited number of formats / chord progressions available and it becomes a matter of interpreting what the leader is playing.

I've just paid £590 for the amp plus £30 delivery plus the cost of the bank charges - about £650 in total. That was three weeks or so ago. Pretty good value for a hand made hybrid amp. Of course prices may have changed again with what the pound is doing.

Actually, I've just bought one...! I've just done the one gig with it so far. It's a great sounding amp, but I just need to get to grips with the eq!

I use an active jazz - so no good for me then??

When I used to be in the house band for blues jams, we always provided backline, drums, etc and I provided a house bass (under close supervision if we didn't know them or they didn't seem too experienced). Whenever there were any issues, it was players who were unfamiliar with the preamp in an active bass (especially one that had an East circuit). I usually brought a Stingray (relatively hard to abuse) and then a passive jazz. These days I have a cheaper passive jap Fender Jazz for jam sessions or where there may be issues with transporting it to the gig.