knirirr

From the other half, a bow clip so I can quickly switch between sounding bad and very bad.

It was a one-off 5-string custom job made by this company: https://starfishdesigns.co.uk/ Presumably they don't do basses any more. Five strings were too many for me, but I sold it to a colleague who's using it around Southampton (covid permitting).

I used to use side dots on my previous EUB (see below), but I've been able to adjust to not having any. In fact, the point of getting that particular model was so that I could see if I could manage without them. Some of the suggestions made by the fellows you mention should sort you out in any case.

I bought a Warwick Triumph second hand in March; I note also that there was one of a similar age (< 10 years old) for sale here recently. Overall I've been very pleased with it, but it required a bit of fiddling, including a setup from a DB luthier, and decent tuners fitting. This latter modification allows the use of proper DB strings, and the Evah Pirazzi gold/slap I have on it give a good tone. A copper pipe over the endpin has got it up to a reasonable height for me (I am 6'3"). N.B. there are no dots on side of the neck.

Yes; I saw him do a live solo performance in a theatre in Dundee a long time ago. Perhaps it was the early 1990s. The most astonishing guitar playing I'd ever heard/seen.

The proprietor of a nearby studio has said that he will keep it open as he was at work and the bands visiting were practicing for work. However, the number of bookings has apparently dropped to an unsustainable level.

I feel somewhat guilty in that my job involves writing research software; I can do 99% of this from home and doing so has been a lot more pleasant than spending 2 hours commuting each day. It has also saved quite a bit of fuel and parking money, so I have spent it on luthier's fees, more frequent bass lessons, live streamed gig tips etc.

In the end the drummer's persistence, powers of persuasion and "covid secure" organisational skills persuaded the landlord that we should go head with limited numbers. Our quintet thus played outside in a rather brisk breeze to a socially-distanced audience never exceeding our numbers. I suspect it made a notable increase in the pub's takings that night. Conveniently, I discovered that the scroll of my bass can be hooked over the gazebo frame for when I need to take a trip to the bar or bog.

To my complete lack of surprise it has been; the pub landlord is concerned about being fined, and I don't blame him.

The regular jam I attend moved out to the pub car park and we got a couple of sessions in, two weeks apart. It worked quite well, though running power cables out and arranging the horn players to blow in appropriate directions was tricky. There's one planned for next week but presumably it will be cancelled. Of course, we could always drive to the pub to test our eyesight and, whilst we are there anyway, jam in a very specific and limited way...

Some work by a luthier to replace the BG-style tuners and it's now possible to fit proper double bass strings on this instrument. Not cheap, but far better than paying £6000+ for the deluxe Triumph model.

As such a player, I did indeed go the other way. The French bow seemed more fatiguing on the hand and it was uncomfortable to use for a longer practice session; no such problem with the German. The hair on the Thomann £50 German bow isn't great but it works well enough for the purposes mentioned above.

I had one custom bass made, back in the 1990s. The reason was the usual problem; demands of the genre creates pressure to get an upright, but transport and storage is a bit of a hassle. I saw a Framus Triumph in use locally and so thought an EUB might suffice. The only one I was able to obtain I had to get made to order, and though it was a very good instrument it had the major disadvantage that it was still a total PITA to transport (not really much better than a DB) and only vaguely approached DB tone and feel. Also, I mistakenly ordered for a 5 string after initially thinking it would be useful, but it eventually turned out that I have no use for one. Now I have a Warwick Triumph Lite, which is still not perfect but a lot cheaper and closer to a DB.

Something like this, perhaps: https://shop.warwick.de/en/instruments/electric-basses/warwick-custom-shop/triumph-models/17266/warwick-custom-shop-triumph-4-string-orange-racing-stripe-design-18-3738?c=3734 ...far too expensive for any circumstance other than a lottery win (about £6-7k IIRC). I've got the amplification I need, but might also buy one of these. https://philjonesbass.net/cms/index.php/product_bg-200/

The drummer at my usual jam is attempting to organise an outdoor session at our normal venue, for the middle of August. Assuming we're having a good day, the audience normally sits down quietly at tables.

That is one way to get away with it which I will admit to having used on various occasions. Usually the general public don't seem to notice a thing and so it works quite well, but there's always a fear that there's someone in the audience who is better than me (quite a large pool from which to draw) who will spot it.

If this had an unlined fretless neck (pulling the frets out won't do) I would buy it immediately, despite having no need for it and needing the money for an MOT: https://shop.fender.com/en-GB/squier-electric-basses/jazz-bass/paranormal-jazz-bass-54/0377100501.html?rl=en_US As it stands, my local garage is safe.

$1520, plus dismissal, I think (includes fretless BG plus various upright offences).

How about this? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3n7ohJsUYKk&list=OLAK5uy_mqPo-qOGmHBkMb3DiPE6k3coJzyagH9oo It's much more at the jazz end of the scale but there's some funky stuff there (the title track is pretty good).

Not a bass, but as a Flying V got mentioned I thought I’d add that I used to play one in a swing big band (we did a few Glen Miller covers). It was a reddish orange with a mirrored plate on the front, had a red leather studded strap and was played through a Marshall Mercury amp. Sounded quite good, I thought, but got some odd looks. https://www.guitarchat.co.uk/topic/620-old-flying-v-in-poor-state/

Jazz pianists, piano or guitar trios etc. might be fair enough. Singing or horn playing could well be further than some venues would want to go: https://slippedisc.com/2020/06/a-full-assessment-of-the-covid-risk-of-playing-wind-instruments/ (TL;DR no-one seems to have any definitive information).

Correct. It's not just cheese - there's endless fun to be had with the highland bagpipe! Classical: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i8H2HHs6Iqg Jazz: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mFeMMXhTua-ZXjiy9qcwuzLDCPlIam80E