Barking Spiders

I'd definitely join a band that was mixing up Grunge era stuff proper (including not quite grunge but kinda grungy stuff e.g. STP and Filter) and post punk. But not if it included hand-me-down, grunge-lite pap by US bands and Bush that mercifully didn't infect the UK.

but why ? if I may be so bold to ask 😁

Mostly 'I've Got No Chicken But I've Got Five Wooden Chairs' by Edwards Barton

But sometimes, the most interesting lines are made by people who don't know what the f3ck they're doing and in doing so they not only break the rules but don't even know what the rules are.

..and it's missing two strings so it can't be that much cop

Hah, that was my first ever bass, I bought for £15 off a bloke at school in 1985. It was a big deal for a 14 year old. For 12 years it was my only bass and I probably used it in more gigs than any subsequent ones. As I recall I got a mate's brother to lower the action and I used it with one of those old chunky metal Boss distortion units and a wah pedal. Several times I was asked by bands I was in to get a better bass but I was very attached to it. They were somewhat embarrassed to have me on stage with it.

I'm all for keeping it simple when the song requires it and I know when overplaying would ruin the vibe. IMO Ball of Confusion is a classic example when simplicity is more effective than a busy line would've been. It's just that in a lot of rock and particularly among those examples I gave, from song to song most of the lines are 8ths or 16ths on the root even though there's often not much going on with the guitar either other than power chords with an intermittent solo.

I know exactly what I like, Jazzes and Stingrays and good quality copies thereof. Most of this comes down to styles I play and fave players associated with them eg Marcus Miller and Louis Johnson. Conversely I'd never get a Ricky. Sure they look cool and distinctive but I forever associate them with some of my least fave bands.

Only 4 showed up for me, including the sole nom for Fela Kuti. He was way more than just a musician but a revolutionary figure against corrupt governments in his native Nigeria. He got arrested more than once. Also in his band was the ace Tony Allen on drums who died a couple years ago. BTW, the whole 'rock n roll hall of fame' is so long outdated, it should've been changed to a more all-encompassing name aeons ago. Who uses the phase 'rock n roll' anymore anyway?

I hear what you're saying but I'm interested to know if the guys in AC/DC, Quo etc could really let rip with some complex jazzy stuff if so demanded. One of my fave players is Derek Forbes who is a class case of someone who knew how to keep it dead simple if needed. I mean, the one note line in Waterfront is so effective.

When I was in my 20s I played in several bands where the main songwriter usually just wanted me to keep it simple, sometimes just 8ths and 16ths on the root. It was pretty frustrating as in my head I'd come up with more inventive lines that would have done the job just fine. So I'm wondering whether the bassists in bands like Quo, AC/DC, The Cult, Judas Priest, U2 etc are capable of much more but have been held back by others in the band. I've heard it said Eddie van Halen was a bit of a tyrant and dictated how Michael Anthony played the lines. Maybe some of you guys know the players in those bands mentioned and have inside knowledge?

I'm guessing you'd want to keep things on the upbeat side and mostly recognisable to most punters though that depends on the average age of the audience. If mostly in their 50s and 60s then it's 70s and 80s - That's The Way I Like it (KC and the Sunshine Band), Boogie Nights (Heatwave), Play That Funky Music (Wild Cherry), Hot Love (T Rex), She Bangs The Drums (Stone Roses), Rip It Up (Orange Juice), Pull Up To The Bumper (Grace Jones). Sure these lean towards the disco/funk side of things but the bass is quite prominent. The opening to Boogie Nights has a tasty bass riff and a really nice line throughout.

Been entertaining the neighbours with some Dreadzone from their best era when they were more like Leftfield than Madness

Ay caramba. I checked out quite a number of tunes on YT where I suspected the bass might be a tad shyt3. But no, this is the worst. I suspect the 'player' might've been listening to stuff by 80s synth/new romantic combo Fashion.

I think some BCers would rather throw themselves in front of a scooter than listen to a hooter sounding like slap bass

Mr Loaf was an outspoken anti-vaxxer, anti-masker and admitted he'd knowingly hugged people with covid. Not surprised he got the disease. He also made some very unkind and un-called for comments about Greta Thunberg.

I only have one approach. I've made a list of all my fave basslines. It's around 250. One by one i've taught myself how to play them just from listening and watching Talking Bass and other YT vids. They're mostly funk, disco and new wave/post punk. As I'm not a pro I've zero interest in playing music I don't like listening to so I couldn't care less about learning high speed double thumbing, double handed finger tapping. I've leave that to Charles Berthoud and co.

In a way, it's actually quite helpful to me if a band is called Eric Derek and the Evil Weevils or some such. It says to me they probably play the blues/blues rock which will say to me 'next'.

If I was joining an established band that was formed by the lead singer who was the main writer and they had some pedigree then not problem. If it was just some local mob put together through Joinmyband then it says to me the singer might be a bit of an egotistical berk.

Extended version of this. Still an absolute blinder of a debut. Greatest band from Liverpool!!! 😁

All my gear is natural finish but I do like that type of red and the way it highlights the grain. The blue is what someone in Starsailor or Travis would play

Driving back down to Glos I played The Eminem Show, my fave album of his, and here's one of my fave tracks

Yep, both of them and F**k Buttons were formed in Brizzle. One of FB's tunes was used in the 2012 Olympic Games. There's also dance/electronica combo Kosheen, Pop Group and Pigbag contemporaries Rip Rig & Panic, The Korgis (of Everybody Has To Learn Sometime fame), the seriously underrated Blue Aeroplanes, trancey duo Way Out West (featuring DJs Nick Warren and Jody Wisterhoff), Will Gregory of Goldfrapp, Kimberley Rew of Katrina and The Waves (he wrote Walking on Sunshine), producer Nellee Hooper (most famously behind Soul II Soul), Paul Potts (tenor who won series 1 of Britain's Got Talent), Up Bustle & Out (excellent former Ninja Tune world/electronica experimentalists), experimental drum n' bass dude Third Eye Foundation. Brizzle is where I mostly go to gigs and get my music gear) so I have quite a nerdy knowledge of the music scene there.

In the social environment of the 80s when I was a teen, such language was not widely considered offensive like it is nowadays. I've never used such language as an adult and I don't like hearing it from others. Also I've never ever used racially offensive language, partly because I've been on the end of it. I'm of Italian and Austrian parentage so you might be able to guess the type of words directed at me...almost daily throughout my schooldays.

I am a dad and so it's a right of passage to declare modern music as rubbish. Actually, IMO the much better pop music is coming from women e.g. Sigrid's fantastic Sucker Punch album and Dua Lipa's excellent Future Nostalgia