petebassist

I think it's a great investment in time if you mean to perform, and I find it fun , completely absorbing, a bit like sitting down to enjoy reading a book. Also, you never know when you might need it. A few months back I arranged to try out/audition with a jazz orchestra, and I told them beforehand that I could read basic bass clef (i.e. not up the dusty end), if very slowly, but I mainly played from memory having first learnt the parts. No problem they said, just come along and do what you can. When I did turn up, someone plonked a music score on my lap and we were off. As the bass lines were relatively simple, I just about managed to keep up note wise, and also remember the notation symbols, having read a book years ago about how to read scores. It could have been a car-crash two hours, but I managed to leave at the end with at least some dignity...

@stewblack Thanks for sharing mate, loved RockSteady & hadn't heard of Chuck before. He's a bass master ....

@Dad3353, that's me on the double bass.

@Dad3353, hi mate, yes we play mainly to the local swing dance/lindy hop groups and it's great fun when everyone's up on the floor, they're a lovely bunch and great dancers. Pretty impressive to see some of these blokes doing the side splits in mid air, I wish I could do that. All the best, Pete

Heard a great story years ago that JJB was on stage during the early punk days, and someone wouldn't stop spitting at him from the front of the crowd (was quite common in those days), so eventually he just picked up his bass by the neck and whacked the spitting bloke over the head with it. True or not, great story. You can't do that these days, political correctness gone mad...

The Kill, great live band, I've seen them in Coundon working mens' club a few times and in the old Bishop Auckland Belvedere. Hope you have a great night.

There're no shortage of bands at the Download festival as far as I know, or loads of other festivals, and a lot of them seem to be in ever more niche genres like Math Rock, Deathcore, Nu metal etc etc. Maybe it's the niche aspect that makes it difficult at the local level, where tributes and covers seem to be predominant. I'd love to dust off my old black leather biker jacket, have a cigarette holder stuck on the end of my bass and turn it up to 11 just like in the old days...

Looks like he's still got his own hair, own teeth, and his voice is still as good as ever, so I reckon he's doing pretty good. Who says musicians have to age well anyway? That's why I took up bass and gave up a potential career as a fashion model ;-)

Definitely mate, I was playing Love Song on YT the other night, awesome bass lines & tone.

Hi mate, haven't tried those, but I got a Westbury bag (I think it was the 22mm) for my 3/4 bass from Bassbags and it'a great bag, well made, with handles in all the right places - it's pretty bulky but I can fold it in half. 3mm will keep the rain off but might not be much use at preventing knocks, but depends on where you plan to play I guess.

Hi, rent one if you can, you'd have to google it, or buy a good quality second bass that you won't lose much money on if you decide to sell on. tuition: Ed Friedland's Jazz double bass DVD is great for learning bass technique, from how to hold it right through to jamming with a band. All very practical stuff. I used that and of course the amazing videos and lessons that Geoff Chalmers creates. I think that can easily get you started, and you can maybe consider a teacher in the future to fine tune Your technique if required. good luck!

Coming up in March, the whole album played by Gary Crosby's sextet, haven't heard of him before, but looks good. https://www.stgeorgesbristol.co.uk/event/gary-crosby-kind-blue/

The shrieking of nothing is killing, justPictures of Jap girls in synthesis and IAin't got no money and I ain't got no hairBut I'm hoping to kick but the planet it's glowing

They had one of these in Hobgoblin music in Bristol the last time I was over there a month or two ago, and the build quality is stunning. I didn't get to try one amplified though, and that's where they shine according to the guys there.

@NJE I was there myself yesterday and popped in to this shop, & was drawn straight to the Mustang - definitely an eye-catcher. I'd been reading about the the Justin Meldal-Johnson Signature Series Mustang on bassplayer.com so was interested in how they sound. I play upright mainly but I've got a 3/4 size generic Fender P style that I use to compose or noodle on when I'm sitting on the couch, and one of these would be very nice.

In answer to the question, I'd say an unprofessional one. I always carry spare double bass strings for my acoustic upright plus an electric bass as emergency backup. Strings do break, and you look a right prat if you don't have a spare. I've seen a bass player with brand new strings on a rickie 4005, and a string broke second song into the set. 5 mins later the spare was on & they continued the set. Bonza!

Great singer & song writer & musician. Seems to take a lot of stick because he doesn't just play the old stuff he did from the 80s, and has dared to play different instruments, such as the lute etc and branch into other genres outside of 'new' wave. Inspirational bloke !!!

Like @Al Krow I love the look of the NS Designs, and I tried one at the LBGS earlier this year. The tripod thing doesn't do it for me, but I'd like to try out the end-pin stand on an instrument with the action max'd out. I play acoustic upright mostly, but if I had the spare cash I'd like to explore the cross-over electric upright sound rather than just trying to replicate the amplified acoustic sound. Maybe unleash my inner prog-rock bassist alter-ego ;-) BTW I saw Imelda May at the Croft in Bristol four or five years ago and yes the bass player's amazing, as she was !

I found Revolution in the Head a great read, couldn't put it down. Recently been listening to Macca's isolated bass tracks for songs like I Want You and Come Together... Awesome... Amazing band, always will be. So yes enjoying the thread. Thanks.

Interesting thread. Another couple of important attributes: tenacity and luck, though it's arguable that you make your own luck. I keep going and try to maintain a pro attitude to any performance whether I'm being paid or not. As to talent generally, I'm smart enough to know that I know know nothing (a la Socrates ;-). I guess turning pro might be great if you're lucky enough to be playing the music you love, but otherwise... On talent V passion, in TV talent shows that have become popular in recent years, the schtick being pushed is that passion trumps talent, especially if that passion involves a sad/difficult back story where the performer really really really wants to win. This unfortunately encourages the less than talented to delude themselves. By the finals, it's talent that wins out though.

@tinyd Thanks for this link and the link to the wider library. This Fundamental Patterns one's a great little summary - I'm gonna be working through these approaches this weekend. I've also got Walking Jazz Lines for Bass by Jay Hungerford, which has some great walking patterns for popular standards such as So What.

@tinyd - Yes agreed mate, I use the appeggio as the starting point and then try to link smoothly and satisfyingly from one to the other. I work by ear during this process, as I don't know the underlying jazz theory about why a particular dominant third is best to link to a V chord when in a II-VII-V progression and that type of thing, but I'm slowly learning more about this. So if it sounds right, it is right, at least to me ;-) Recently I have done more site reading of bass scores, which feels a bit like reading a book, and I enjoy concentrating on the reading rather than trying to remember what comes up next. But I also enjoy playing my own lines from memory, and it also means that I don't have to use a music stand and use my reading glasses LOL. Of course you can always do away with theory go free-improv, like the double bass solo at 2.15 here, that was in the Grauniad recently - gives me a headache I'm afraid so I'll stick with my amateur jazz method...