The fasting showman

Totally agree, he's playing with amazing soloists on that album yet his character really comes through boldly and the production puts him in a great place in the mix. It's my favourite showcase of Herbie's playing and sound. Much as Bowie used the obviously brilliant Willie Weeks / Andy Newmark rhythm section on Young Americans, I think he struggled with a few different live band lineups after David Live until he recruited Murray / Davis and Alomar. Tony Newman and Herbie Flowers were a hard act to follow. RIP

Nice to meet you Rob, doubtless I'll kick myself for selling it...I'm currently in the where are they now file so glad it'll get used in anger. My 700rb will suffice. As I was saying, the Backline 600 shares a lot of circuitry and parts with the mk3 and 4, because of their price point they're often neglected and treated as a utility item. If you get a good one they're great amps, often dirt cheap.

True. I guess the obstacles to me obtaining thump, punch or definition have ( in my case) usually been external factors away from gear choice or settings.

To me, thump is what happens when you play with a drummer that listens to your part and locks in sympathetically. It's a percussive quality and definition as opposed to a foggy vague rumble. Good band members can elevate mediocre equipment; suddenly you find yourself locked into a grid and it's all easy. Again, a definition in the sound rather than instruments bleeding into one another. The relationship of sound quality to playing in a good musical environment and arrangement are experiences I look back on fondly: the exception not the rule! So often I have had great sounding gear yet I've been playing with musicians who don't see the big picture, it's very hard to sound good in a volume war or with players that don't replicate parts from gig to gig, rehearsal to rehearsal, or are oblivious to the interplay between sounds and parts, chord voicing etc. So with eq and choice of bass / amp and cab I strive for thump, as in definition and the note length and diction I intend to put across. As to whether it comes off is down to the musical situation I'm in. Won't be the case for everyone I'm sure but true for me.

https://www.muzines.co.uk/articles/the-rhythm-section/8696 I'll reattach this one from the '70s

I think with Bowie's EMI deal, and it being an era of aspiration, as I said before the intention from '83 would have been for a backing band mentality; less creative but more of a churn out the hits, play stadiums etc. I don't think George, Carlos, Dennis, Tony Visconti and Co would have fit into that. I think Bowie publicly stated that he took the wrong route many times. It's horrible feeling like you've been chewed up and spat out though. I'm still sulking about the bands I was in last year ( one that I left through choice) and they were rubbish in comparison! Leaves you unsure of whether to bother still playing at all.

I'm really glad someone from the Basschat collective managed to attend and meet him, we were on holiday. I'd have to say he's my favourite living bass player. To me, the era of Bowie's music he played on, prior to the 'Let's Dance' star and a backing band dynamic ( to my ears anyway) was a team effort where everyone from Tony Visconti, the musicians and Bowie himself interacted so well. From a recent interview where he mentioned the BC Rich, was that the bass on 'Ashes to ashes' I wonder? There's an interview I once read where Andy Newmark was discussing playing on 'Double Fantasy ' and he mentioned that there was an awareness that whatever went to tape was going to be heard by a lot of people for a long time, but also you were playing with an artist that worked very quickly. I can imagine the late '70s Bowie band must have felt like that. Trying to be creative, to put your art and identity across but within the confines of popular music. That's as good as it gets for me. I hope he stays in the public eye more, he's a greatly appreciated musician.

Is it as a result of the festival type earthquake kick drum sound that's become the norm? My taste in production ( everything really!) is rooted in the past, I prefer a toppier, punchier kick that allows for the fullness of the bass eq to sit lower in the spectrum; the cut of the kick quantises the bass when they play together almost. I'm thinking late'70s Bowie, Blockheads, costello and the disco / RnB of that era. Tastes in sound change though. The age old struggle to get the bass heard.

The version Trevor Horn got the Blockheads to record. I'd have released this one

Steve bought some tuners from me, a completely positive, speedy transaction throughout. Deal with confidence. I'll be interested to see the finished bass, keep me posted! All the best, Martin

https://www.guitarworld.com/news/george-murray-david-bowie-call-up Hopefully that attached OK. It looks like George Murray will be at the Bowie convention in Liverpool in July

The distant ice cream van style Mr Brightside intro

Much as I'm not really into Northern Soul there's some songs within that style that I think are great uplifting pop songs. I cannot bear ' The Snake' though, those terrible Benny Hill ' Ernie ' key changes. Truly the Mustang Sally of Northern Soul. I've successfully avoided ever having to gig that song, always managed to have enough of a tantrum to prevent it happening.

ZX80s