Nicko

We use a vinyl banner which rolls up for transport. The banner is fitted with brass eyeleys, and we have made some poles which are fitted with hooks. The poles fit to the lighting stand and we hand the banner from them. If we are putting up lights the banner takes seconds to put up. The only issue is when we get squeezed into a corner rather than against a flat wall.

I've never really understood giving people honours for doing stuff that benefits them more than society. Most senior civil servants get gongs just for doing their job. There are some people who deserve honours for changing our world (eg Sir Tim Berners-Lee), and those that do an extraordinary amount for charity (David Walliams OBE), but most politicians, civil servants and industrialists achieve results on the back of other peoples efforts. As for Ringo, right place right time and a huge dollop of luck.

I don't think is unsual to get a refund on the cost of the product excl postage, and in most cases its the buyers responsibiity to pay for return postage. I'm not 100% sure what the law says, but TBH if you want a better customer experience go to a shop.

Hope you get better soon. This should be a warning to all of us. I had to attend occuational therapy to recover movement in my hand after a motorbike accident, but most of the people there were dealing with sliced tendons caused by glasses breaking during washing up. Using a dishwasher is much safer.

Back to the op, yes, he fitted some seymour duncans to my telecaster. Nice guy and seemed to know his stuff even if he was from the wrong side of the pond. EDIT: I should say that when he did the work for me he was actually based in Wunjo, upstairs and hence the stairway to bit.

We did one last year which was £500 for a two hour set (double our usual fee), but none of us are particularly bothered about doing the usual NYE thing so we were happy enough with it..

Sad news. A true legend, of riffery - all played on a that nasty old gretsch all those years.

I play No One Knows in this tuning, the correct tuning is way too floppy

Anyone here have experience of running a small low power valve amp such as a Blackstar HT5 direct to the desk in a live situation. The both the combo and head have a speaker emulated output and the sales bumpf suggests this can go straight to the desk, which would suggest I could use the combo and get assistance from the desk if it turned out to be underpowered in a live situation. On slightly higher powered amps like the Peavey 20W valve amps they describe the output as a mic simulated DI , but I'm not sure whether the output Blackstar is equivalent. I guess the alternative would be to use something like a Vox AC4 and somehow DI via the extension cab output but I'm assuming that this will be way above line level?

Yeah, no one but other bass players notice anyway.

Surely Deep Purple and Rainbow were just mainstream rock, and are only "classic" when viewed from today's perspective?

[quote name='Jimothey' timestamp='1510329712' post='3405682'] Sorry but I disagree if you are born in Britain you are British irrelevant of where you are raised, if a dog is born in a kennel but then lives ina stable does that make it a horse? [/quote] If a dog is born in a kennel and lives in a a stable with horses he's likely to start acting like a horse.

There's a few songs I have tried to learn over the years that were beyond my basic skill level, and when the band first suggested them I tried and tried but just couldn't do it. Some occasionally come back as a suggestion and I give it a another go. I didn't think that I had improved that much in the last 2 or 3 years but I can now play these things that were previously impossible for me. Examples When I come Around - Greenday - just couldn't move my fingers quickly enough I predict a Riot - Kaiser Chiefs - really struggled with the structure, the individual phrases were easy enough No One Knows - QOTSA - Where do I even start, structure, fills, panic Somebody Told Me - Killers - I was all over the place. Maybe being taken out of my comfort zone is a necessary learning experience. This is why I play covers.

[quote name='tinyd' timestamp='1510328304' post='3405662'] Yep, and I think the term British Isles is still (just about) valid if used in a purely geographic context because apparently the convention for archipelagos is to name them after the biggest island.....But like you say, given the history it's probably best to steer clear Anyway, arguing about whether bands are rock bands or not and then whether they deserve a place in a list is more fun anyway [/quote] In the days of the empire half the world was British, and there's not really a strong rock presence in the places that weren't pink on the map originally. Therefore all rock bands are British. Except maybe Sepultra, and a few death metal bands from Scandinavia. And the Sugarcubes. I'll get my coat.

[quote name='No. 8 Wire' timestamp='1510323661' post='3405605'] British in the sense of British Isles? AC/DC are fair dinkum aussies though, someone mentioned them above. Surprised no one has mentioned Fleetwood Mac? [/quote] I think a British band would be defined as one where the members grew up and formed the band in the UK. Although AC/DC wouldn't qualify as British by virtue of the fact the Youngs were born in Glasgow and they have a Geordie singer. U2 don't count as all the members were raised in Ireland, and The Jimi Hendrix Experience don't count 'cos really it was Jimi who was raised with American influences and a couple of hired hands.

[quote name='Jimothey' timestamp='1510321200' post='3405575'] what about Saxon, AC/DC, Stereophonics or Manic Street Preachers? I personally can't stand the band but surely U2 should be on the list [/quote] Last time I looked U2 were definitely not British.

[quote name='NancyJohnson' timestamp='1510315681' post='3405516'] I believe the uppercase/capitalisation usage of the word NOT is assertion of bands listed in the sentence that follows, rather than the ones he's already included (Pink Floyd/Roxy Music etc.). Also, I wouldn't go so far as to just put Yes, Supertramp, ELP etc. into the sh*te category either simply from a musical heritage perspective...these [i]sh*te[/i] bands are still major influences on a lot of current bands. Whether you like them or not, had Yes/ELP etc. not been about, we wouldn't have had Rush, Dream Theater or Muse. Likewise, without Yes or ELP there wouldn't have been punk kicking off. [/quote] Well the journalist is a youngster - probably no older than 30. One mans influential is another mans sh1te. Personally I can't stand the ELP/Yes type self indulgent thing. I'm not sure how they influenced punk, other than punk rebelling against the obvious excess and ridiculousness of it all, but then you could say that about most of the big 70s groups.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1510239704' post='3404925'] But for some (not all, but some...), that 's the fun part, or a large part of it. I build model aircraft from sticks of balsa. It's just as inexpensive to buy a ready-to-fly 'plane, and less tools to be obtained, but I like building 'em. Same with guitars etc. Our Eldest is currently learning 'hands on' about making his own guitar, from scratch. Will it rival his Nighthawk..? Maybe not, or at least, not at the first attempt, but he'll have the satisfaction of having made it himself, warts'n'all. A kit can bring pleasure, whether or not it rivals a bought instrument, new or used. Not for everyone, but some folks are like that.. [/quote] I completely get the building something from scratch idea. I just don't get the kit approach.

Thanks guys, I will put out some feelers and see where it goes

[quote name='NancyJohnson' timestamp='1510307659' post='3405421'] [font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]I suppose it brings into question what greatness is. Sales? Size of fan base? Releases? Innovation? Influence on others? It is pretty subjective and it's a nonsense. I know we're talking bands (so no Bowie/Elton John, Kate Bush etc.), but even so, Super Furry Animals?[/font] [font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]Looking at the list (see below), I do wonder about the obviousness of some of the includees and absentees. No Yes? No Fleetwood Mac? No Sex Pistols? The Police? I'd also throw in bands/artists like Japan, Duranduran, ELP, Genesis, Muse, Mott The fecking Hoople, Depeche Mode, Cream.[/font] [font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]To save you the bother of clicking the link, here's the list: 20. Joy Division 19. Super Furry Animals 18. The Jam 17. T. Rex 16. Roxy Music 15. The Who 14. Black Sabbath 13. Blur 12. Queen 11. The Kinks 10. The Stone Roses 9. The Clash 8. The Cure 7. Oasis 6. The Smiths 5. The Rolling Stones 4. Pink Floyd 3. Radiohead 2. Led Zeppelin[/font] [font=tahoma,geneva,sans-serif][size=3][size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]1. The Beatles[/font][/size][/size][/font] [font=tahoma,geneva,sans-serif][size=3][size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif][b][EDIT] [/b] I add for your deliberation two post comments by someone called petrometro1 on the ES webpage. Pretty succinct.[/font][/size][/size][/font] [font=tahoma,geneva,sans-serif][size=3][size=4][font=arial,helvetica,sans-serif]1)[/font][/size][/size][/font] [i] when will journalists and the media ever get a grip on the English Language? Firstly, the most overhyped word bar none is "Iconic". An Icon is an Orthodox Religious Painting for heavens sake. Secondly; If this list is of the most iconic bands how is that at all possible? Its either Iconic or it isn't. Journos have a problem with unique. Fairly unique, very unique. Get real; its either unique or it isn't. As Nigel [/i][another commentator] [i]states.. this list does NOT contain bands that were clearly playing before he [/i][the author of the piece, Harry Fletcher] [i]was born. It doesn't contain Jethro Tull, Eric Clapton, Hermans Hermits, Yes, ELP, The Nice, King Crimson, Supertramp Genesis... in essence the article is not worth the paper its written on. To compare Oasis with Pink Floyd and the Rolling Stones is pathetic.[/i] 2)[i] as thought. has been with The Standard since September 2017. Resume for linked in is written entirely in the first person singular. He was in 6th form in 2010 so suspect he was born around 1993. That's about as credible as this list gets.[/i] [/quote] Clearly another message board full of opinionated people who cant get their facts straight. It says "[i]this list does NOT contain bands that were clearly playing before he [/i][the author of the piece, Harry Fletcher] [i]was born." [/i]and then goes on to list a whol ebunch of late 60s and 70s sh1te. As far as I know the Beatlesand the Stones preceded all of the omissions listed. No real surprises in the list apart from Super Furry Animals and the assertion that releasing an album in the Welsh language is somehow a good thing. Th piece is badly headlined, it talks about great bands, and then describes how influential the selected bands are. On that basis how can you include Joy Division who would not have existed had the founders not been blown away by the Pistols and leave out the Pistols themselves. I understand people not liking Oasis, but they were successful and influential, although you could argue other less successful bands were forging that path before they came along.

I fail to understand why anyone would want to build a bass from a kit. The price of the kit is so low that the components must be the poorest quality available and you won't know whether you like either the feel or the sound of it until you invested the time and effort in building it..

The only successful way I have booked gigs is to visit the pub at a quiet time with your diary and a laptop with footage of the band. Email approaches are hopeless. I was involved in sales a long time ago and the trick is to ask the right questions in the right way. First you need to establish what sort of bands they want. "Hi I'm the lead singer with a hard rock band" might put him off, even though he's looking for "mainly 70s classic rock" and your set list is right up his alley. Ask the question and discuss what he means by the response to see if you really are a god fit for the place, or check what other bands are playing there regularly (Lemonrock is great for this) and whether you set list is similar. A well researched knowledge of his boozer/club is likley to impress him in any case. "Would you be interested in us playing" gives the landlord a choice. "So you have a free slot on the 15th of Dec" when you know there's nothing in their diary or yours is a much better place to start.

[quote name='Lozz196' timestamp='1510232095' post='3404811'] Yep, 51 and in an originals street-punk band. Travel all over the country, and into Europe, released 3 albums, get to play with bands I`ve liked for years (some that I watched as a kid on Top of The Pops). Do it, it`s great fun. [/quote] Great if you enjoy it, but I think you missed my point. I want to do the creative stuff without the massive commitment.

[quote name='The Jaywalker' timestamp='1510227876' post='3404741'] Contrary to popular opinion, music is not actually a democracy where enjoyment of punters or performers is the qualitative benchmark. A band performing badly is just that. Rather than nitpicking about horn section phrasing; frequent vocal intonation issues, wildly fluctuating tempos (dragging mostly), seriously wrong chords and frequent timing car crashes after stops or fills equals ineptitude. Thats not musical snobbery, it's fact. Time and intonation, for example, are quantifiable - not opinion or snobbery. Many ears arent 'trained' enough to distinguish the quantifiable - and therefore factual. Too bad. To categorise some music as art and some as commercial isnt a value judgement or snobbery either. It's quantifiable. Music functions on many different levels, which is one of the beauties of it. Check out [url="https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/10/hit-charade/403192/"]https://www.theatlan...charade/403192/[/url] as an example. Continued insistence upon musicians "performing to an academic exercise for the money" however, IS musical snobbery of the (very) inverse variety, which I hope you realise. It's also deeply, deeply ignorant BS. I just think we should call it for what it is. [/quote] I disagree with your assessment that slightly off vocals or timing make a bad band and, in the context of this thread, a bad spectacle for the masses. There's plenty of great artists who actually weren't great technically and gave great performances. They might not be your cup of lapsang souchong but Neil Young, Billy Bragg, Dylan etc are all in this category. A cover that of a pop song, done well but not note for note is absolutely the essence of a good cover. If its note for note you want book a DJ.

At 50 I'm too old to be thinking an originals project will bring me either fame or fortune. Does anyone have experience of starting/joining a band that writes and records just for fun? I'd probably do this alongside my current covers band, but they don't seem interested and ideally I think I'd like to play guitar in the band anyway. I have a set up at home that would let me record my own stuff, but my vocals are weak and, frankly, I'm absolutely hopeless at programming a drum machine or managing to properly structure a complete song without bouncing ideas off other musicians.