EliasMooseblaster

How hard did you find it to get such a string set in a 34" scale? It's a whim, rather than anything more serious, but I've often thought that if I were to dip my toe into ERB territory, I'd be more interested in extending the range up rather than down - an E-C 5-string was the first to pique my curiousity, but an E-E 6er could be fun...

Funnily enough, I've met some very adept kit players who have freely admitted that they barely know where to begin with hand drums! Perhaps it's like the difference between bass guitar and upright - being a virtuoso on one doesn't necessarily translate to the other (with the exception of some talented bar stewards).

We'll have to agree to disagree on Carlos' guitar tone! But yes, funnily enough I've had an inkling for a while that most rock music has been rhythmically quite uninspired ever since "rock drumming" became an idiom in its own right - circa the time most young drummers decided they wanted to play like John Bonham - and it seems to have been dominated by variants on "kick - snare - kick - snare - emphasise - every - beat - think - like - a - metronome" ever since. I feel like there was a lot more freedom and invention when drummers basically learnt to play jazz and then joined rock bands. He says, having been born decades after the event, with only the recordings to go on...it's hard to put my finger on exactly what it is, but maybe some of these modern rock drummers just need to learn to swing.

There was a definite gulf in ability between the many harmonica players at one of my old regular jam nights...every so often one guy would get up who really knew how to get a tune of the thing. Unfortunately those guys were much less regular than the guys who had learned three blues licks and thought they could get away with playing them in a loop. A bit like the Bernard Black approach to the accordion ("...well, I can't play the guitar either, but I thought this would be less obvious...") Mind you, this was also the same jam where one singer would get up carrying a guitar that he never plugged in, let alone played - it was literally just hanging off him for show...

I know there was more emphasis on congas and bongos than maracas/tambourines, but the two percussionists in the original Santana lineup were pretty impressive - on those early albums you almost feel like the drummer had to rein in his playing to keep out of their way.

Of course, it was Marr's departure that precipitated the breakup of the band - originally reported in error, which led fans of the band to wonder why he'd left. French fans, however, saw it coming all along, as they thought the clue was in his name. /coat

Yeah, I'm certainly no stranger to "audience outside, band inside" - I think just made this case particularly strange was the disembodied applause that could be heard from outside between songs!

I had a weird version of this a few years ago. My colleagues at my old job were very excited about the fact I played in a band, and booked us to play at their summer party. We set up in the venue, but it was a hot day...and everyone gradually buggered off to the terrace outside. The way the building was arranged meant that we couldn't see the terrace, and therefore couldn't see the audience. We could hear a bit of applause from outside, so we soldiered on for a bit, and people drifted in and out - they had to walk past us to get to the bar, after all. We ended the first set a bit earlier than planned, and I had a quick chat with the organisers. Did they want us to keep playing? Only, people don't seem especially interested... "Oh, I think people are enjoying it. We can still hear you outside. It sounds great, but it's a bit hot in there." We were getting paid either way, and to be fair a few more people did filter in and get a bit more involved during the second set. Now, I've done my fair share of "background / cocktail music" with assorted jazz bands, so I'm used to being ignored by an audience I could see. The inverse - being enjoyed by an audience I couldn't see - was certainly a new and peculiar experience.

All you need now is a Pentangle tribute band to play it in! Joking aside, I like it. The rest of the guitar is kept relatively understated, so I think it makes a good focal point - it could have been very easy to overdo it and end up with some kind of Celtic Bootsy, so nicely done on keeping it tasteful.

Christ alive, that's a lovely-looking instrument.

I feel like the drummer might be the weakest link of the three. He's almost playing as if it's a rock number in 6/8. Sheehan's playing is impressive, but the overplaying in the wrong places, combined with the drumming, just makes it feel like the whole thing's desperately trying to race past the beat. I rather like what the guitarist is doing, mind.

It's either that or you bite the bullet and invest in an 8-string...though your left hand's tendons may hate you for it.

I'm not sure I want to see Ringo's sex tape...

Unfortunately I dont know he best answer to that - afraid I've never had to fiddle with the insides of a semi-hollow before. Anyone else on here have any ideas?

It's definitely a strong possibility, and I know I've been in that position more than once myself! But then in the settings where I've played, it's typically been in a pub where people haven't paid anything to see the band, or one of those six-bands-in-four-hours nights on the Camden toilet circuit, where most of the crowd are there for the better-known headline act anyway. What I find harder to relate to is those gigs where people have paid money in advance to go and see a particular artist, who they (presumably) already know and like...maybe I'm just being my usual, tight-fisted self but if I've forked out for the ticket I like to get my money's worth!

Yeah, I've had this a few times. First case was as early as 2001/2 - my sister and I went to see Mercury Rev and agreed it was a great show but the audience was an absolute pain in the proverbial. There was a bloke a few rows ahead of us who just put his feet up on the chairs in front and spent the night texting people. I guess this was still the era before cameras were so ubiquitous on phones, and approximately 50% of audiences felt compelled to film the entire gig on the damned things, so at that point the little backlight on a monochrome phone screen was still quite distracting! Ian Siegal was probably the first person I saw who challenged an audience. I think it was the Charlotte St Blues club, somewhere they had a sort of VIP area up on a balcony. It just seemed to be stuffed with people intent on talking over the band. "Sorry if the music's a bit loud for you, back there," he sniped in between songs, "you know, you come to a live music event, you expect a bit of peace and quiet, naturally..."

A few thoughts spring to mind: 1. Duff/no shielding - how easy are the controls to access? If you can get inside easily this can be fixed relatively easy. 2. Loose earth wire - typically in contact with the bridge, but can work loose. 3. Do you have separate tone controls for each pickup, or one master? I've had a capacitor fail on a P bass before, which led to a rather prominent buzz. Could be this problem if you've only got the one tone control...or both could have failed, but that's less likely!

One might even say they recorded some of them with[out] a little help from their friends... I'll get my coat.

Stacia? (Or "Lady Stacia" in some of the liner notes) The tale I've heard is that she approached Messrs Brock and Turner about joining the band, and just said "I dance." So at her first gig, both the band and audience were equally astonished when she took all her clothes off. I remain very glad that Bez didn't go that far with the Mondays...

I nearly chewed a finger off reading that one - what a missed opportunity! Perhaps the balance of available musicians was different back then, but drummers who can play with groove and taste seem to be like hen's teeth these days. Maybe I've just had to play with one too many drummers who aspired to play "just like Bonham," by which they essentially meant "going at the kit like a p***ed-off blacksmith," but I've come to find few things more satisfying than locking in with a genuinely good one.

I can see that being quite effective as a stage prop! (Which album would she have been touring then?) I can see that working for certain styles of music, but I can only imagine it would have a horrible effect on more "old-school" rock or blues groups...that said, I've definitely worked with a few drummers in those genres who would have benefitted from a bit more practice with a click! (Or from paying more attention to their bass player...)

I think you might have answered your own question there - I'm sure it'll generate a separate thread in and of itself, but the sight of a clip-on tuner visibly poking out of your guitar's headstock during a song seems to be about as polarising as having a music stand on-stage!

Not from the pedal, no. I tend to use the volume on the guitars for that!

...indeed, indeed, and that's assuming we can agree on what those signature sounds are! I know some people like a Jazz best when both pickups are matched, or with the balance skewed towards the bridge; personally I think they sound best with the neck on full and the bridge backed off a little. Ditto the 'bird. Even with the simplicity of a P, it's probably only a matter of time before the rounds/flats debate rears its head...!

I've been using a Pitchblack+ for a few years now: http://www.korg.com/us/products/tuners/pitchblack_plus/index.php Granted, it's about twice the size of a regular pitchblack, but having your A/B and tuner combined in the same pedal is really quite convenient! (Plus it has an option to daisy chain power out to other pedals - I only use an overdrive and a fuzz on stage, so it's more than adequate for these purposes.)