super al

We got asked to play at Salisbury's big fireworks do on Saturday. No money offered (apart from expenses) but we agreed to do it as a promotional opportunity apart from our keyboard player who flatly refuses to get out his Rolands for less than £200! It was only for 30 mins anyway so we got a mate of the drummer in to dep. He had to drive from devizes for 3 rehearsals and the gig, bless him, so we paid him out of expenses (sounds daft but we now have a keys dep in reserve). Also we had flyers printed and 2 banners for the side of the stage, drummer's wife and daughter handing out flyers while we played. A good opportunity to get our name out there as about 3000 punters turn up to watch the fireworks. We had to share the bill with a band called Total Recall who were great, let us use their gear (they headlined). Apart from both drummers wanting their own kit on stage which caused a bit of a squeeze. The stage btw is a lorry trailer so just long and thin. Showtime was good, we were all suited and booted and the first 3 tunes are segued together, very slick! Another half a dozen cheesy tunes and it was all over! Back to the dressing room for m&s sandwiches and beer, pat each other on the back and get back into civvies to watch the other band. The fireworks were pretty good but I was loading me car at that point. Back home by ten past eight for the sh!tstorm called getting the kids to bed! Hopefully we'll get asked back for next year.

I see the Tony Levin funk fingers are £117! Our drummer keeps threatening to make me a pair from his old sticks, I made a rude hand gesture in response :0)

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1509270682' post='3397645'] Dweezle and Moon Unit have fallen out? Oh no! How I wished I had been there during the name-calling phase of the argument. [/quote] Lol, no. Dweezil and Moon Unit have fallen out with their moderately named brother, Ahmet. I'm sure I read a top 10 of worse celeb kids' names and Dweezil only came 7th!

I wonder what Frank would make of the current family feud between his kids? I'm not a Zappa completest but a fan who does own nearly all the 2012 reissues. Some of the older CDs have mixes that sound terrible so I was glad they remixed the whole back catalogue!

I now have 2 one10s, had just the one but it didn't cut through with our keyboard player (big prog fan, lovely bloke but thinks 'more is more'!). Great sound now at volume with a bh550. I use an octave and flange toneprint and it's all good. Our Mickey taking drummer asked if I'd brought my hi-fi speakers when I got them both out (I think I've mentioned that before, my wife keeps telling me I repeat myself, it must be an age thing!) No more struggling with big, heavy speakers and a great sound, no brainer!

I watched that TOTP and wondered the exact same thing! I also wondered how the hell Adam Ant got into the top 40 with that terrible song!!!

[quote name='roceci' timestamp='1508103404' post='3389822'] In my soul/funk functions band we started out with the intention of playing songs we wanted to hear played that weren't necessarily regular fare. Fast forward four years & with the exception of maybe two songs we're playing pretty much what every soul/funk function plays & it's difficult to add new stuff outside of that, cos that's what people seem to want. We even broke our no Mustang Sally & Superstition rule after a while...you can't ignore the classics when people are paying you a decent fee to hear em. [/quote] We've just started out with the same maxim, let's play stuff that's not the same ol' stuff every function band churns out. Turns out that's a tall order! 1st gig, the party host requested 5 tunes, 5 tunes we had to learn because we strayed from the function band norm. Not complaining though, part of the fun is learning new tunes. Picking new material seems to be a bit fraught at times, I'm on a similar wavelength to the keyboard player with our 80s choices but drummer and singer can be a bit harsh if they don't like what you pick. We try a few tunes out and then see what sticks really, some start out as good ideas but might not work (dancing in the street springs to mind, we sounded terrible!)

I've been ill recently so not ideal prep for a Saturday night gig in lovely Bramdean (village near Winchester). It was the keyboard player's sister-in-law's 50th and we were playing in a large marquee with a stage and dancefloor. Load in and soundcheck was 10am and the venue is an hour+ (once I've picked up the guitarist)) from Salisbury so early start and then back home about 2pm! Back to Bramdean for 9pm (with guitarist) and the nerves + anxiety about playing ill kick in so didn't join in with beer sampling and food that was on offer (lovely, apparently). Band members showing concern by now so guitarist said I could sit on his cab during the gig as I've got one10s and they're not great to sit on! 10pm comes around and we start with 'everybody needs somebody' and it's funny how music can just lift you up, maybe it's Duck Dunn's bassline but from the first note until the last (a low E, 500 miles!) 2 hours later, I felt the best I'd been all week! Dancefloor was busy with young and old, keyboard player's mother-in-law is 82 and had a boogie! Our singer put his mic down and had a bop too. I even managed to stand up for the last 5 or 6 tunes myself! Everyone had a great time, dismantle, load out and back home for 2am. I'm enjoying the function band life, bonfire night next with a dep keyboard player. Bring it on!

Sorry, hat, waistcoat and a squier katana? On yer bike sonny!

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1507296359' post='3384597'] Did someone say something about waistcoats and hats together?? [attachment=255082:DSC_0562.jpg] [/quote] You seem to pull it off though FinnDave, the hair, the beard & the shades go well with the hat n waistcoat look. I used to have the hair but it slipped off the back of my head!

[quote name='alyctes' timestamp='1507245539' post='3384293'] Then you're allowed to have a mullet instead. [/quote] Three fish in the same post, is that a hat-trick? 😁

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1507241455' post='3384256'] If you play double bass it's compulsory to wear a hat! [/quote] What if it's an electric double bass? Can I get away without the hat?

Vernon Reid of Living Colour. I'm not massively into metal but his playing always stands out in that genre for me.

I've been waiting... ...and waiting... ...for our drummer to finish our website so I could post on here! He put it together, like a lot of folks in this thread, using Wix. We had a vote over 2 domain names and www.goldband.rocks won the vote 3 to 2 (close, like brexit!). When I was asked to audition I had no desire to join a function band, I just thought I'd 'fill in' until they got hold of a proper bassist! I started to enjoy learning the songs they threw at me though and before I knew it, I was in. Just in case you missed it www.goldband.rocks (Is there a fine for mentioning it twice?)

[quote name='TJ Spicer' timestamp='1506443603' post='3378799'] Basses for sale or amps for sale... Very dangerous really! [/quote] Me too! Luckily I'm very specific about what I want next and I don't want to travel too far to pick it up (are there any Salisbury Basschatters with a spare Stingray for sale? Are there any Salisbury Basschatters for that matter?) Then onto GD

[quote name='T-Bay' timestamp='1505325565' post='3371099'] The smiths - take away Morissey and they are great, with him they range from passable to terrible. [/quote] I never got the Smiths either but think Johnny Marr post Smiths did some good work

The Who. Fantastic bassist, one of a kind drummer, guitar legend and a really strong singer. All the right ingredients for a rock band, right? I just don't get it, about 2 or 3 of their tunes I think are ok but I can't get excited about The Who.

There's probably a few of us BF users looking at this thread and thinking 'WTF?'. I've already made arrangements to be buried with my one 10s!

[quote name='dannybuoy' timestamp='1504211761' post='3363489'] Freudian slip? [/quote] Both hard and head had me giggling like Beavis n Butthead Sorry Shafty

[quote name='TCsBass' timestamp='1504545880' post='3365596'] I'm sure they all sound like basses at the end of the day. What counts is the setup and the player. [/quote] It's all in the fingers surely 😀

[quote name='Nicko' timestamp='1504269135' post='3363799'] I went to a youth club with Cait O'Riordon's (bass in the Pogues, now ex-wife of Elvis Costello ) brother. Coincidentally my now brother in law used to deliver papers to Elvis Costello. I was once held up getting into a practice room in Streatham by the drummer from Razorlight who was parked at the entrance to the car park while he packed up to go. Typical for a drummer to be in the way I suppose, although IME they're normally late coming in . [/quote] Andy Burrows (razorlights' drummer and we are scientists too!) was backing his car out of his parents' drive which was opposite to where I was working. Being sharp of mind I could see my wheelbarrow might be in his way and get flattened by his Vauxhall Astra. I promptly moved it to a safe place, drummers and cars don't mix well. That's it

I drive past Roger Waters' house on the river Test quite a bit but recently noticed the teepee (or is it wigwam?) has gone. I read a David Gilmour interview where it mentioned DG having a teepee, maybe he bought it off RW and secretly everything is alright between them. Also Sting's country pad is local and very nice too.

[quote name='Dad3353' timestamp='1503662717' post='3360079'] Ordered (of course...).If it's half as good as the preceding novel, it'll be brilliant. I needed new reading matter for the 'little room' in any case, so well done on timing. [/quote] Wouldn't it be better to have a spare loo roll 😁

[quote name='No lust in Jazz' timestamp='1503584526' post='3359400'] I asked Scott Thunes to bless my marriage - he did and we're now divorced. [/quote] That's my favourite right there! I used to work with the bass player from the Nite People (this is pretty obscure) from Bournemouth. He had loads of stories from the late 60s/early 70s and a photo of himself with Keith Moon. He didn't have a bass at the time I worked with him so I lent him my Marlin Slammer. Put through an old 60s Vox and played by an old pro, it sounded quite good! When I got it back (he gigged it loads) the knobs had been replaced with 'chicken head' knobs and it had been relic'd slightly. Didn't mind though, a Marlin is not a bass you want to keep pristine.

[quote name='PaulGibsonBass' timestamp='1503433289' post='3358263'] I quite often sing 'alternative' words of an adult nature in my backing vocals. No one's ever noticed and it keeps me amused when playing that bloody awful Kasbian song we've been doing since time immemorial. [/quote] Mark King quite often changed L42 lyrics to an adult nature. I think 'sun goes down' on Physical Presence has had a cleverly placed sound effect over "I'm gonna f%@# her till the sun goes down". Great slapper he might be but he's got a potty mouth too you know!