Old Man Riva

I got this at the weekend that I absolutely love to bits, and just wanted to share. A huge thank you to @walshy for his patience and good nature over the past weeks, as I’ve bombarded him with various questions, requests for excruciatingly detailed dimensions and pics galore. “Walshy, if the neck was an 80s pop act, who would it be? Which discontinued item of confectionery is the bass most like?” Prefab Sprout, and a Texan Bar, since you ask! I’ve been after a ‘68 to ‘73 period P Bass for a while now. I tried some lovely basses, but they weren’t quite for me, as I was after a specific neck profile. As soon as I picked this up I knew it was what I was after. Virginia Plain, Metal Guru, In a Broken Dream, All The Young Dudes, Ernie (the fastest milkman in the west), and this bass: 1972 was a good year…

Aw, stop it, you old softie! And you’re not too bad yourself! Really enjoyed the show overall (though I did have a “Hello Cleveland” moment when trying to find my way out of the guitar hall. In the end a security guard took pity and escorted me all of twenty yards to the clearly marked exit!). It was especially lovely to spend some quality time with yourself and Walshy. It’s little wonder you and Walshy were so busy/popular - the way you were engaging with everyone that approached Vintage Bass Room, whatever the query, was fantastic. Encouraging people to dive and play whatever they wanted to, in their own sweet way, is not always something that is done these days. There was a young lad there with his dad. He was a bit shy/reluctant, but after a bit of encouragement picked up one of the Stingrays and brilliantly put it through its paces. Lovely to see. It’s the quiet ones you have to keep your eye on! Same time next year, then…

I went to that, it was a great evening. Walthamstow Trades Hall host some really good events - check out their website. It’s like a lovely step back in time to a typical old WMC (for those of a certain age!) - very Phoenix Nights! Anyway… Derek Forbes was on excellent form. He covered the early days of him playing guitar in a covers band in Lloret de Mar in the 70s, to his sacking from Simple Minds and career afterwards. The interview was bookended by a terrific DJ set (can’t recall who it was), with a lovely smattering of early Roxy Music, The Associates, early Simple Minds, and Can, to name but a few. If I’m being totally honest, I found the book to be a bit of a let down, but the event itself was wonderful…

Personally speaking, I think that’s a real shame. I have found your contributions, experience and insight to be incredibly helpful and always interesting. Be great if you were to reconsider at some point!!

Excellent topic! Two of my current favourite (fun) lines to play are: Son of a Preacher Man by Dusty Springfield, with bass by Tommy Cogbill (Fallin’ Like) Dominoes by Donald Byrd, with bass by Chuck Rainey A nice mix of straightforward and tricky; there’s plenty to get your teeth into. Easy to lose yourself for hours in both of those!

It’s apparently now a requirement of the professional YouTubers to present their content in this way. I watched a Rhett Schull video recently, who explained how it all works, and that those dopey/angry/bewildered looks in the thumbnails, along with easy-to-digest, simplistic titles (“Is this the WORST pedal EVER for a Libran to use IN THE SHOWER?!?!!!!) are all there to ensure Mr/Mrs YouTube treats the videos kindly, and in a way that the money flows in more readily for the creator… I’m not particularly a fan of his (and aware that I’ve fallen into the cunning trap set by Mr Schull!), but here goes…

Perfectly described, though sounding like a nearby village in Midsomer Murders!

The lollipops ‘fitted from factory’ on the Bass Bros bass are the Mustang type - presumably smaller than the lollipops fitted to Precision or Jazz basses of the era? @dodgnofski I’ve got serious bass envy after seeing that ‘68!

From Spotify. Roxy Music David Bowie Rolling Stones XTC The Sensational Alex Harvey Band Not sure whether to feel reassured, or appalled, that I’m still listening to the same stuff I did 40+ years ago…

… and with Spectre basses.

Really enjoyable, thanks for sharing!

Might not fall into the lesser known category, but Muscle Shoals is well worth watching…