Jonesy

Gutted to hear that Lozz and hope you're back isn't giving you too much jip outside of playing. Sounds like you have a good plan lined up though and the JMJ is supposed to be a beast! Do you know what sort of weight you'd be comfortable with? Quite a few Fender Japan models have basswood bodies and are fairly light, so could be an option, although I doubt they'll be below 8.5lbs. On the plus side, there's a whole new world of short scale/light weight P GAS to go through!

It's really odd one to navigate this one - at which point is it OK to separate the art from the artist? There's probably some sort of formula that society subconsciously uses to work it out, where how much their art resonates with you is weighed up against the seriousness of their crime and impact it had on their victims. Jacko tends to 'get away' with lots because his music was so good. If he hadn't had been so popular, maybe just had a one hit wonder and spent 5 years in the limelight, then would people be so forgiving? Probably not. I wouldn't turn an MJ tune off, I really loved his tunes and still like them, but I wouldn't want to cover one in a band. I just don't think I'd be comfortable celebrating his music that way. Having said that, I don't have any issue with other people playing his songs - they're great tunes and if I heard someone else playing them I wouldn't pass any judgement on it.

They're great, aren't they?! I get what you mean about them not strictly being punk and they definitely have grime in their sound - just thought I'd mention them as they're not formulaic, they're an evolutionary offshoot of punk for me. Bobby Vylan takes on some guest vocals on an XL Life tune, they're worth checking out too. Although not straight forward punk themselves, but do have shades of 90s hardcore in their sound. I like The Chats and Amyl and The Sniffers for a more traditional approach to punk, but then it's hard to find a band that have a traditional punk sound without being formulaic I guess?

I think this is more of a problem with the media in general and festivals wanting to have headliners people have heard of and not wanting to risk new talent headlining with the chance they won't shift tickets. Punk had it's hay day in the 70s in terms of media coverage, so bands from that era will have more established names. There's certainly bands out there that aren't formulaic that play punk or have punk influences. They might not be so well known but that's because punk isn't front of mind in society and there's loads of other genres of music to compete with, so they're less well known. It's a shame because Download is pretty similar. A lot of the headliners are bands from 20+ years ago and they would rather get Kiss, Iron Maiden or Slipknot to headline than giving new talent a chance to shine on the big stages. Check out bands like Bob Vylan or XL Life if you want a new band that doesn't have a formulaic approach to punk - great stuff!

There is something really great about an SG in a blues 3 piece, especially if your guitarist is playing a strat. The huge low end really fills a space where the strat is so glassy. I really loved playing mine but then it didn't sit so well when we got keys in, then I found a P just cuts through and works a little better.

Original band playing grungey punky noise - f u c k Slurry Blues band - Bearers of Bad Blues

Ah, brill, I missed that and will give it a watch! My daughter likes to twang the strings of my bass and definitely has her favourite one to play with. She's been wanting to strum her hand across my guitar recently. I'm hoping she'll grow out of it 😂

Great idea for a series Greg! I have a one year old daughter and have been digging around to find some inspiration for her for when she's old enough to pick up a bass. Can't wait to see it!

DC's are lovely little things, nice to get around and they have quite a bright sounding pickup for a Gibson. The neck is a little chunky in the hand, not unmanageable, just rounder and more filling. I had both the DC and a SG for a while and ended up keeping the SG. There wasn't anything wrong with the DC, I just preferred what the SG did and wanted that big humbucker by the neck tone. The one thing I found slightly off putting with the DC was that the body is a slab and doesn't have any contouring. You can change your playing position to get around it and it wasn't a biggie for me, but it's just one thing to keep in mind.

They look like a Ric and Warwick bumped uglies. Not for me, but I've never played one tbh.

Thanks for the help 😃 I assumed the necks had a gloss finish and were then rubbed down or something to make them relic'd, but maybe they just start off as having no finish and are oiled as well as other relic'ing to add mojo. Thanks for that Dunk. I guess a modern Fender relic would feel something like your '59, so trying one out in a shop or even finding another original bass somewhere would be a good place to start. Sounds like I have an excuse to walk into a shop and pick up some very nice basses!

Hello there! I was hoping some of you lovely limelight owners could help me out with a quick question......... I've been chatting to Mark (who has been excellent!) about a potential build and am hoping one of you here could help me out - I think it's mentioned here that his J necks feel like the current J necks in use on the US model Fenders, but I'm trying to get an idea of what the finish on the back of a relic'd neck feels like. Would you say the Limelight necks felt similar to a Fender custom shop relic? Just wondering if there was something comparable out there I could try in a shop to get an idea. Mostly because I prefer glossy necks and have no idea of a glossy relic'd neck would feel like. Thanks in advance!

I used to think a P was pretty boring because everyone had one but, after picking one up and playing it for a while, you realise why everyone has one. They just fit in the mix really well. I've now got 2 and am thinking about picking up a 3rd, which I would have thought was crazy a few years ago. Speaking of Fender releasing new but old but new stuff.......they've added a few new colours to the player series. Candy apple red Jag and jazz, seafoam green and CAR precision and a few more left handed options in the player plus line too. The seafoam green looks pretty cool... https://www.gak.co.uk/en/fender-player-precision-bass-sea-foam-green/961833

Ohhhhhhh, this sounds like a reply I'm going to like..... Ah nice! With the 70s profile neck as well this ticks a lot of boxes for me....oh dear.

It'd be cool if there was no routing under the pickguard and you could take it off. A P with just a metal control plate would be sexy af! I really like this though, I wonder if there'll be a Squier version like he did for his Jag? Or if it can be played in passive mode?

You beat me to it 😃 I think the bass looks better with a more vintage styled tuner, but would look even better if those shafts weren't quite so long

Howdy folks, With a birthday on the way and GAS being GAS I'm thinking of picking up a Limelight (P with a J neck) and was wondering if anyone would be so kind as to let me have a go on theirs for 10 mins? Doesn't have to be a P with a J neck, but a P would be preferable over a J. I've heard nothing but good things and am sure it'll be great if I went ahead with the build, but I still wouldn't mind a go anyway. I'm based in Enfield, so anywhere north of London could be doable and was also thinking of visiting Andertons at some point, so down Guildford way could be possible 😃 Thanks!

According to the Reverb list of most popular basses sold in 2022........ https://www.notreble.com/buzz/2022/11/10/reverb-releases-list-of-best-selling-basses-of-2022/ Squier Classic Vibe Bass VI Fender Player Precision Bass Fender Offset Series Mustang Bass PJ / Gretsch Junior Jet II Squier Affinity Precision Bass PJ Rickenbacker 4003 Sterling StingRay Ray4 Fender American Professional II Precision Squier Affinity Bronco Bass Fender Player Jazz Bass / JB-62 Jazz Bass Ibanez GSRM20 Gio Mikro Squier Affinity Jazz Bass Ibanez SR300E Soundgear Standard Hofner Ignition Pro Violin Bass Fender Precision Bass (1970-83) Fender Standard Jazz Bass / American Professional II Jazz Bass / Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Jazz Bass Squier Classic Vibe ’70s Precision Squier Classic Vibe ’60s Jazz Bass Squier Classic Vibe ’60s Precision Bass Fender Player Mustang Bass PJ Squier Classic Vibe ’50s Precision Bass .........I don't think it's moved on as much as you think! There's a lot of classic designed passive basses there. Personally I'm not a big fan of active basses. I've never owned one and whenever I've toyed with buying one I just haven't gelled with the tone or looks. Still doesn't stop me wanting a Stingray though, but they're not exactly new or modern. But each to their own etc...

For me, the pick guard looks better than the bigger guard on the DC Jnr. Plus I dig the chrome pup cover and bridge. All in all, I like the look of it and thought it sounded good in the video with quite a wide range of tones. If I was after a shorty to play in a rock band then this'd be worth checking out.

There's an Am Pro 2 Jazz in roasted pine too, looks pretty sweet.

Very DC Jnr a-like. I can live with the headstock and bridge, it's the four dots they put on the body that I'm not a fan of. Still wouldn't put me off having one though, especially that green and maple, swoon!..........as long as it doesn't have a matching headstock.

If I'm playing with my heavier band I normally soundcheck with either gun by Soundgarden, bread cheese bow and arrow by future if the left or monkey trick by Jesus lizard.