Doctor J

Some sage advice for David and Pink Floyd

Everyone goes nuts for the blunt force trauma these days but, if you want to make a point, use a point!

Cera flew the flag in the fantastic Scott Pilgrim Vs the World. Is there another movie out there with a Bass Battle?

Eddie Van Halen is an accomplished and tasteful guitarist, an innovator like Larry Graham. The problem is not the innovator nor the technique, but those who follow and think more=better... Tap isn’t the problem, it’s tappers. And slap isn’t the problem either, it’s slappers (the other kind 😁)

I'm enjoying these. He's playing to Duran Duran fans rather than bass players which makes it quite charming.

You did it again?

If you want to see grown men cry you play the guitar intro to Sweet Child O’ Mine but popped and slapped on a bass.

I hate that it is automatically associated with funk. Slap is not funk. Funk is about space. Slap is, unfortunately, used by many as an opportunity to play more notes than they should and, therefore, is the opposite of real funk. Used sparingly, slap is fine. Abused as it is by seemingly 95% of those with twitchy thumbs, it is an aural abomination.

I also had to order a one-off pearloid tuner button specislly made by Gotoh to replace the broken one as there wasn’t a single spare one on this planet 😂

Tough but fair, I reckon 😂 I was able to source a correct replacement part from Deviser. The order of the universe will be restored.

This could be interesting, especially if he has a custom t-shirt for each vid 🙂

This is the Ray-type. I can’t remember the model name... Anyway, it has been abused, note the bbot bridge atrocity, but it sounds and plays like a total beast and I am in the process of restoring it. I’m gonna fix it real good 😁

Yes, a Duke Master. I used to have a PRS McCarty soapbar until the Duke arrived 😂

Another Bacchus fan here. Actually, Ead’s former Woodline P Classic above started life with me, sold very reluctantly. I have a 24 and a 04 Standard 5. I love them both. The 24 is scaled down body, light and really comfortable. Their pickups, particularly the ones with the Handmade logo, are excellent. I have a Stingray type I’m in the middle of restoring too, plus some nice 6 strings. I love them all. I got most of mine second hand from Japan, but bought the P and the LP new. Keep an eye on Ishibashi u-box, sometimes there are deals there which negate the shipping and import duty woe.

I am quite partial to Ultrasound’s version of Big Ship

Some great albums in there. Rhythmeen is a particular favourite of mine.

It’s great apart from the way it misses the last 35 years.

Niiiiiiice!

If you like what Wong does, you’ll enjoy this. If you don’t like what Wong does, you might still enjoy this. Give it a go. Wonderful stuff. Seth Tackaberry doing a fine job on bass.

This. To get as far as they have under their own steam, with no biz support, is testament to them doing something right. I have been into their music since someone posted a video of It Gets Funkier here, what, eight years ago? They’re just regular guys who have made a success of doing what they love on their own terms. More power to them.

E.S.T. remain one of the finest live acts I have ever seen. Sublime. I’d recommend anyone who likes them to check out the E.S.T. Symphony album, Berglund and Ostrom with the Stockholm Philharmonic orchestra, it’s simply incredible.

It's only a $150,000 bass if somebody pays that much. Otherwise it's just another seller who has lost touch with reality 😉

I was supposed to fly to Desertfest in London tomorrow and to see Cory Wong with Metropole Orkest in Amsterdam at the end of the month.

Yep, and that was my point. Is greatness technical accomplishment to a specialised audience or someone whose music and playing resonated worldwide? I feel they couldn’t decide and their list is deeply uneven as a result. There are players in the list who even a lot of bassists will never have heard, never mind the public. Is greatness having the milkman whistle your bassline or some jazz dudes snapping their fingers in appreciation? At what point does technical virtuosity overcome the gift to communicate with non-musicians? The list doesn’t come close to clarifying this and just comes across as a mess as a result 🙂 Don’t worry, I didn’t for one second, expect to find Tony Choy or Sean Malone or Doug Keyser or Dan Berglund or Colin Hodgkinson in there. I do understand the difference between my personal favourites and bass greatness, thanks for checking 😉