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[quote name='crag42' timestamp='1432294834' post='2780096'] I saw that myself. Surely it's not mixed up with that is it? It's all over Twitter. People paying respects including famous musicians. But still can't find any official word??? [/quote] I understand his brother George has confirmed this great loss. Blue

Mine is always getting stuck on something. You bring that thing into a pub,if you sit it on a chair, that strap is going to somehow mysteriously find it's way around the chair back. However, when your carrying multiple items back to your car using it as a shoulder strap is a good thing. Blue

[quote name='BurritoBass' timestamp='1432367339' post='2780808'] I had one around 2004. It looked the biz but the pickups were so lacklustre it was pathetic. The choice was either upgrade the pups or sell it on. I opted for the later. A shame because it looked great. That was during my massive Epiphone GAS phase and I was a fan on most of the range. A disappointment. Try before you buy. Hopefully they've got better since then. [/quote] I remember back in the 60s and Epiphone was not a second tier brand. I am not sure where they really stand now in the market. I know a lot of pros and stars use Epis, especially their Jack Casidy and their Thunderbirds. Thing is for a lot of people there will always be that "[i]it's not a Gibson"[/i] factor. When I went from an Epi Thunderbird to my 1991 Gibson Thunderbird the difference was worth the money to me. To the sharp eye a Gibson looks like a Gibson and an Epi looks like an Epi. The PUs on my Gibson Thunderbird blow away whatever was on my Epi. Blue

$400.00 will almost get you into something good used. Look at some of the basses that sell new in the $1,000.00 range as a bench mark. Blue

Ok guys, Mission Accomplished! The Dr. J Soloman Overdrive worked fine at last nights gig. You have to adjust your volume on your bass when you engage, other that it's fine. Now it's a matter of learning when I want to use it. It's a simple inexpensive true by-pass overdrive, $69.00 I give it 4 stars out of 5. I'm glad I pulled out that Boss OB-3, I have no idea what good that thing could be to anyone. Blue

[quote name='Skybone' timestamp='1431690543' post='2773997'] I've always used the "dick-head test" when meeting a potential band. If I think one or all of them are dick-heads, then I'll not join the band. Been in too many situations in the past where the band goes nowhere because of the dick-heads involved, and annoyingly, you knew they were dick-heads the instant you met them. [/quote] Agreed, and the more experience you have in the business the easier it is to spot and ask questions that will expose these undesirables. Blue

[quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1431860286' post='2775603'] Actually this wasn't a paid gig offer. I did join a paying band through a drunken phonecall at 2am though... Stayed in that band for a few years and did some really awesome shows [/quote] Cool, my thoughts we're, if your a complete outsider paying gigs are rarely offered on the spot. For me paying gigs usually involve at least 2 auditions and several weeks for a band to make a decision. Blue

[quote name='bassman7755' timestamp='1431858574' post='2775564'] Well "love" is a strong word but in my case programming is probably my main interest and also happens to be my day job. Music ranks in at probably 3 or 4 down my interest lists and yes it would probably be fun to do it for a living but I imagine some of the novelty would wear off after a while. [/quote] Understood, however I really talking about the few of us with a narrow interest scope which would be music and playing bass guitar. Blue

We played a private event, good pay. However, the ceiling was high and the sound was booming. I was not happy with how I played last night, Blue

I have an EBS Mult-Comp on at all times. It evens out my sound and gives me sustain when I turn up the gain. Blue

[quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1431634048' post='2773540'] However, I went to my first jam night a couple of months ago and I was offered a spot playing in a band that very evening... [/quote] If you were offered a paying gig on the spot, that is awesome! Blue

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1431767856' post='2774721'] Well, depends what the gig pays and what the committment is. I'm not up for schlepping around Europe or whereever crashing in dives and playing tiny stages. Everynow and then I might get invited to a 'nice' gig but I'll need the money and the whole deal to be ok. IF I was to do it full time, I'd want considerably more p.a than my current jobs pays, and I'd want it to be pretty steady for a good few years. Earning good money at music isn't so hard, it is doing it day-in, day-out, week-in, week-out, that is the trick. I'll wager than many of my friends struggle to earn £25k a year doing what they love..?? and I mean struggle..!! Me, I have bills and a life style to pay for... so no, I would have to have a LOT of questioned answered.. What price/salary I would have to be in with a very good chance of earning, every year..I'd have to think, and I also don't think it is going to happen either. [/quote] It's different for everyone. Me,I'm retired with no dept except for a very low mortgage payment. Heck if I could clear 12K I would be fine. I don't have a lifestyle. Blue

I'm happy, you know I rarely gig with my P Basses. Blue

[quote name='mike257' timestamp='1431732037' post='2774553'] Absolutely - it can totally destroy a gig. On the occasion I mentioned above, the bar was literally downstairs in a completely separate room that also had its own music playing. Killed the main room stone dead, nobody was going to trek up and down the stairs all night every time they wanted a fresh beer. [/quote] Or not trek and just stay at the bar, that what I have seen. You got to wonder what owners expect when your set up like that. Blue

I'll say this and this will apply to the younger guys more than the over 50 crowd. If your looking to be a true headliner you have to want to then you have to be prepared to take a risk. You don't take the risk then be prepared to tell people you have been playing bars and parties for the rest of your life. And you will have a million excuses just like me, why you didn't take the risk. And I'll catch hell for this , but nobody will ever convince me they love their office job. And understand we have a bunch of folks over here that hate their jobs but it's the only way they can get health insurance. Blue

[quote name='Weststarx' timestamp='1431699609' post='2774113'] If I could be in an orginals band and tour I would drop my job in an instant. [/quote] I don't know of any cover bands that can tour the country and sell 500-2,000 seats anywhere. Blue

[quote name='mike257' timestamp='1431623497' post='2773364'] Smaller crowds are definitely harder work. One of the function bands I sound engineer for also has me 'DJ' (as in, deploy a generic Spotify playlist and hope nobody asks for anything else) and at a recent wedding the bar was in another room on a different floor of the venue and everyone except one loved-up couple got off down there. DJing to just two people for an hour and knowing they could potentially hate the next song was surprisingly stressful. On this occasion, David Bowie, Chic and some obscure soul cuts saved my life and it was hugs and high fives all round when I finally got to shut it off. Give me a few hundred drunks any day! [/quote] I'm glad you brought up this topic. For bands playing new venues, I'm talking pubs and bars. When the bar is in a separate room from where the band performs, that can and tends to be problematic. Blue

[quote name='chrismuzz' timestamp='1431634048' post='2773540'] To be honest, as much as the internet can be a good place to find a band, when I think about it I have never actually joined a band from it. It's always been through friends or at least friends of friends. However, I went to my first jam night a couple of months ago and I was offered a spot playing in a band that very evening... Even if you're not, they are great fun and you might find yourself playing stuff you'd never have tried on your own. It's good to get thrown out of your comfort zone once in a while! I say try every option available and be open minded, because you never know what might come along! [/quote] Any bands I have discovered through the internet were start ups by wannabes that never went anywhere. I had seen my band perform and I knew they gigged a lot, so I persued them. It turned out they we're looking to go a different direction for bass guitar and backing vocals. I auditioned a few times and they finally offered me the job. That was 4 years ago,were still going strong and it was one of the few good things that has come my way in music. Blue

We haven't said much about how you get there. I would say getting a local band there would be the equivalent of hitting the lottery. Joining an established headlining band,you probably have to know someone or someone with a lot of pull will vouge for you. Blue

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1431599259' post='2772945'] AFAIAC being a headliner means being able to sell out the venue (or at least sell enough tickets to make the gig a profitable for all concerned) irrespective of who else in on the bill. Everything else is simply playing last. [/quote] Exactly, and to do that you have to have pretty good name recognition or branding. The bands that are in that market can sell 500 seats in Florida and then sell 500 seats in Virginia the next night. Blue

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1431632832' post='2773522'] That`s it really. Headlining is drawing in the people, I`ve quite often seen the headline act playing halfway through the evening - usually if public transport is rotten in the area concerned. [/quote] Agreed, playing last at double billed gig at the local level usually means,you play after everyone except your friends have left. In some cases your friend's will leave too.😀 Blue

[quote name='LayDownThaFunk' timestamp='1431630165' post='2773471'] Who here headlines gigs to 5,000 people? *tumbleweed* [/quote] 1,200 is the biggest crowd I've ever played to. Blue

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1431602033' post='2772990'] when you're setting the levels on pedals so that they don't jump up or down when you engage them, you have to do it at full gigging volume. If you're deciding on settings at home, then I doubt you'll be as loud as you are at gigs? Which will lead to problems [/quote] Ok, I will have set everything back up and test at full gig volume. Blue

[quote name='Marc S' timestamp='1431592273' post='2772823'] Yes indeed Bradwell I answered one ad, where the band cited the Kinks, The Beatles and Rolling Stones as their influneces the ad also stated "Age not important" I messaged them, and they asked how old I was I firstly ignored this, thinking "if they're the bands' influences - why would that matter?" We then exchanged phone numbers, and I was asked immmediately "How old are you?" - I replied that the ad said it didn't matter And the guy said "Well, it doesn't, but we don't want no 16 year old, nor a pensioner, like someone over 40" So I replied "So if Paul McCartney or Bill Wymann turned up for the audition - you'd tell them to f*** off, would you?" The phone went silent, apart from the whirring of cogs - so I hung up! The flip side lately is, I've worked with some great musicians some of them much younger than me, and who have no problem working with musos of any age The folk band I'm in now range from early 60's to late 20's ... and it's all the better for it Perhaps the example I mentioned first, has put me off meeting bands via online methods? [/quote] I have seen many cool young contemporary bands on The David Letterman Show and often they will have older guys on keys or bass.I am talking about guys well over 50. . If the guy was so narrow as to exclude a pensioner,sight unseen the band is probably on it's way to [i]"nowheresville"[/i] Blue

[quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1431598011' post='2772917'] In the kind of gigs we tend to play "Being a headliner" simply equates to "playing last" as far as I'm concerned. [/quote] When I say headliner, it more to do with the level of tour, the price tag on the ticket. Again I'm talking about bands that are filling 200 to 5,000 seaters. Here is an example look at the size of the crowd, It my friend Albert from the Wailers, they also play smaller 300 seaters. [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0_rQjEn6SlU"]https://www.youtube....h?v=0_rQjEn6SlU[/url] Blue