mikel

I have no problem with difficult venues, its not possible sometimes to get a good sound everywhere. My problem is with sound guys making the BD the overwhelming sound in the whole mix, for every band on the bill, and making it sound like a sub explosion. That is deliberate.

Two things. Firstly, If the backline is too loud for the venue then why pray is the backline being mic'd up? If a band cant find a stage balance that suits the music, through many hours spent rehearsing, then they cant call themselves competent musicians. Secondly, unless its an instrumentals band the vocals are the most important part of the sound. With or without a full on FOH rig, get the vocal volume right and work the rest of the instruments from there. If you pay for a rig and a sound engineer then if he/she says one of the instruments stage volumes is too loud then accept it. Its a band, and the overall sound is what matters.

Not at all. Him droning on and on, usually sticking to one note, was always enough to make me turn them off after about 30 seconds. The rest of the band were band though.

Depends what you have eaten, but fair point.

Yep, so many gigs ruined by by the BD that sounds nothing like a bass drum. Its odd that pro drummers go to extreme lengths to get the drum sounds they want. Un drilled Bass drums, chosing just the right batter and rezo heads, choice of pedal beater material, fine tuning. Then the sound guy makes it go OOOM OOOM OOOM. Cant think of another instrument where the musician would put up with having his signature sound ruined by a third party. Dance music fair enough, but for almost every other genre it simply spoils the music.

Ian Anderson, of Tull fame. Soundtrack to my life since 1968. He has written songs in so many genres I sometimes found it difficult to keep up. Before that, the Beatles. Again for the diversity and quality of their material. No one pushed the boundaries of popular music so far in such a short space of time. Not great musicians but more importantly, super creative musicians. Taught me that creativity trumps chops every time.

True, and I loved Canned Heat. Bob Hite had a great Blues voice so he is the exception that proves the rule. Having said that, he was young and long haired back then so he was not an old fat man. And lets be honest, Bob, and indeed a few others, would have been even more famous had they been slim and pretty. Mark Knopfler and Phil Collins to name but two. Popular music is a fickle world.

I think nail on head. Sad but true. Image in Rock and Roll means a great deal. For me, as bands from the 60s and 70s start to tour, or continue to tour, it always helps if none of the band members have gone to fat. The Stones may be older than dirt but because they are small and still super slim they still look ok on stage. Even pub bands look better if its not a bunch of fat old blokes. I can forgive less than perfect music if the band members look like rock musicians rather than a bunch of ageing farmers who have dressed up like the Wurzels in waistcoats and hats.

Great rhythm section. Glen's take on bass playing and Clive's jazzy rock drumming were a great mix of styles.

Don't get me started. I saw Brian Ferry at the City Hall, Newcastle a week past Sunday. The couple two seats along from and one row in front of us, spent the whole gig taking photos, including flash, and videos of the gig. The guy directly in front of us continued blocking my view, every couple of minutes, by leaning into his partner to say something in her ear, then lighting up his phone to take pics of Brian and the band. Why not simply stay at home and put a DVD on? Its an event, live in the moment, suspend reality, enjoy the spectacle. Why spend all the time trying to capture a "Live" concert on a phone, so you can impress the mates in the pub next weekend? Give me strength.

Happy birthday Glen, one of my top three bassists of all time. Lovely melodic lines and great phrasing.

Not sure about that. Imagine The Police without Stewart Copeland? For me his quirky off beat drumming and harmonies brought Sting's songs to life.

My 5th wheel vote. Liam Gallagher with Oasis. He was lucky enough to be in his brothers band.

Nice try but It was John who said that, and it was a typical Beatles p**s take. Ringo was the one drummer the Beatles chased to join them, and put the final piece in the jigsaw. Ringo was the one they begged to come back when he walked out and said he was leaving the band. Same goes for Charlie Watts. The Stones chased him for ages to get him to join. Kieth has said many times "Charlie is the musical bed I lie on" They bribe him with gifts and platitudes to Tour as he is not keen on life on the road. Listen to pop drumming before Ringo and Charlie, then what they brought to the party will become obvious, unless you play drums then you will be blindingly aware of what they brought to the respective bands.

My Bro has an all carbon Status he bought in 1987. I believe he has had to tune it 4 times . probably when he was replacing the strings. I dont think it looks particularly nice but that's subjective. It sounds good to me, is ultra reliable and seems impervious to temperature and humidity. I have a Masonite? bodied Danelectro guitar. Its super light and I love the quirky tone.

Neither have I, but I have been sh*t on stage many times to make up for it.

Listening to the whole Roxy Music back catalog. Saw Ferry at the City Hall in Newcastle on Sunday and it fired up my latent "Roxy" gene. The music is still quirky, surprising, weird and relevant 45 years on.

Bass and amp for me. The tuner is built into the amp so no pedal needed. I bought the bass because I love its sound, the same goes for the amp and cab. I have a compressor but only used it a couple of times, now its gathering dust.

Bryan Ferry at the City Hall Newcastle last night. He is a great performer despite being 72 and has lost none of his vocal range. The band were great as he always seems to come up with excellent musicians. The sax player in particular was spot on. The old Roxy Music stuff still sends shivers down my spine, it still sounds as off the wall and somehow a bit weird as it did back in the early 70s. "In every dream home a heartache" is as disturbing, fresh and relevant as its always been. Nice one Brian, good to see you back home. One thing though, the sound was good but sadly the drums were over loud in the mix. Not the usual boomy BD sound but the whole kit and cymbals to too far forward.

Possibly, but what is anatomically perfect for one person may be murder for another. Whatever gets you through the night as John Lennon said. If we always did what was supposedly "Correct" music, and indeed most things, would have stagnated. I have small hands, for a man, so I use fingering for the fretting hand that suits me, and a pick, fingers or finger nail to play the notes, whatever I like the sound of at the time. Its rock and roll so there is no right and wrong.

The Sleaze Sisters in Blyth last night. A free pub gig so I cant complain about the ticket price. They are a 70s glam rock band and they dress in that style. Great musicians who do it properly, and play with enthusiasm and dynamics. The front man/singer worked the audience like a pro and had us in the palm of his hand. Glam rock was not my thing back in the 70s, I was into Prog and heavy rock but the Sleaze Sisters put on a great show and I was surprised to learn that I knew the words to most of the songs, as did the rest of the crowd. I do love a sweaty intimate bub gig, so If you want a great night out go and see a good local band, the Sleaze Sisters.

I always wanted to be a drummer but back in the day they were expensive, to noisy for a semi on a housing estate, and without transport a none starter. So I learned to play guitar and sing. I was in bands from the age of 14 singing and playing guitar, but I was always a drummer at heart. I play bass now, in one band, and drums in another. I have always had a guitar and have a strum sometimes but my heart is in drumming, and bass.

Made my day that one. I was in a start up band that was still starting up 19 months later......due to vocalists. First one could not learn lyrics or grasp when to come in so after many rehearsals nursing him along, we had to get rid of. 2nd, auditioned well, as she was female we changed the songs we were working on to suit her....after 5 rehearsals she decided she was too ill to do anymore and packed? 3d one, auditioned well, asked us to work up 4 songs of her choice for the next rehearsal, then sent a message saying her partner was not pleased about her joining a band, and packed. That was it for the guitarist so he walked. 5th one, was such a diva, and so far up his own rectum, that I walked. Doh. 19 months wasted. A shame as the rest of the band were good guys and great musicians.

We like what we like. I love all sorts of music and tend to go for songs that move me somehow rather than genres. "If the music doesn't make you want to either dance, cry, fight or fu*k, then don't listen to it". Someone much cleverer than me said that. I see it has, no surprise, descended into "Serious" Jazz, and the rest. "That's not proper jazz", etc etc. I have a good American friend who has been drumming in Jazz music for 40+ years. His view is that Jazz is anything you want it to be, and that's why it has evolved and morphed and never stood still.