Steve Browning

I presume you've seen the TV programme 'and on bass Tina Weymouth'. An interesting watch all about bass and her journey.

Black and tort is a lovely combination.

Glad you took that in the sprit it was meant. Glad to hear you're taking advice. Happy to help out on the VAT front if you have any questions. Bear in mind I can only tell you what you SHOULD do 😉

Frankly the man doesn't deserve to live.

Not related to your OP but a couple of things (ex VAT inspector and current EMEA VAT manager in a multi-national - for context). I assume you have taken advice but sometimes better to heart things twice rather than not at all. Is the formality of a company the best vehicle? If you want someone out, you'd still be stuck with a shareholder entitled to dividends. A company will incur the bank charges of a business, no more getting away with a personal account. Would a business get away with not being registered for VAT in the EU if selling merch etc. (you may be already but the implication is that you're not). Note trying to be difficult here, just raising a couple of things that struck me when reading your post. Good luck with all of it, of course. I may well be going back to music full time myself soon and cannot wait.

Thanks guys. They're both pretty comprehensive on the subject.

First off, I know the basic physics, movement in a magnetic field generating electricity. My question is 'how do you manipulate the sound?' Some pick-ups are hotter - more windings I would presume. What about those with tonal variation, enhanced mids, sparkling treble, all that sort of thing. How is that achieved?

Back when I was in a name band, the money (the net profit on tours) was split 7 ways, with the two original guys getting two shares each. All out in the open and perfectly fair. Later, when playing in a busy band based in Brighton, we put the money in an account and we all got a fixed amount for gigs and rehearsals. We split any profit 5 ways at the end of each month. Currently, there is an equal split after expenses. In my world, no-one gets more than anyone else. I wouldn't ever sign up to anything else.

Interestingly, I seem to recall seeing Huey Lewis on YouTube and it did appear Mario Cipollina was using Bose pa cabs.

Not completely sure the flak is entirely fair. I have merely pointed out that the video doesn't explain where British blues came from, as it says it does. There's no roasting. I was intending to educate as much as anything. It would seem likely to be more about how Chicago blues came to Britain. Nothing wrong with that at all.

They've changed the design but back in the day I toured with two basses, back to back, in a single Fender gig bag.

True, but it purports to show where British blues came from. Not a hanging offence but it doesn't do what it says on the tin.

I didn't watch the video. The mere fact that Chris Barber isn't mentioned must mean it starts at a point in time far later than real accuracy dictates. Apologies if that conclusion is incorrect.

... and the books by George Melly. Owning Up, particularly, charts how he first heard Bessie Smith at boarding school (before WW2) and sought out the small and growing band of aficionados and discovered the embryonic jazz and blues scene in London and the provinces. This is almost charted by the wonderful Lonnie Donegan album Puttin' On The Style where he plays his greatest hits with a cavalcade of contemporary players whom he influenced - Rory Gallagher, Brian May, Elton John and many others.

An addendum as I have remembered some more pre-Boogie stuff. I had a Fender Bassman 10 combo. Ampeg early 70s. portaflex and I used this at a gig, in conjunction with a Marshall mini stack - the head and 2 X 1x10 cabs, designed to look like a pair of 4x12s.

In my case, I started off with the stuff I could afford. The next stage was to emulate John Deacon's rig (it looked so impressive). I then discovered that I preferred the sound of 2x15 cabinets. The switch to Mesa gear came as I turned pro. I read a review of the Bass 400 and 2x15 in a magazine. It said it was the Rolls Royce of bass amplication. I wanted the best and this was it. Bought it on the basis of those 5 words. Never looked back.

Hmm. This'll be a test of the memory! Top 50 head + Impact 2x15 cab Marshall Lead and Bass 50 + 2 x Sound City 4x12s (I had started to build John Deacons Acoustic and Hiwatt rig - somewhat on a budget) Marshall Lead and Bass 50 + home made 1x15 Altec cab (only ever used this when I played bass at a trad jazz jam session on a Sunday lunchtime) Sound City 120 + 1 x SC 4x12 = Goodmans 18 in home made reflex cab (I remember a gig using the 2 4x12s and the 1x18 and fairly sure I used two Sound city heads) - getting there on the John Deacon front! Intermusic Bass 150 + HH 2x15 Intermusic Bass 150 + Ampeg V4 2x15 (this was when I realised that 15s were my sound) Peterson 150 + Ampeg V4 2x15 Acoustic 220 + Peavey 1810 cab (not for long the 1810 was awful - huge bottom end, clear top but I may as well have stopped playing the notes in between! Acoustic 220 or Orange 120 + Mesa Diesel 2x15 (I owned the 400 at this stage but struggled to make sense of the eq initially, so used the Oranges (I had 3 120s) - this would be about 1985, I reckon. The Mesa Boogie journey has started!! 2 X Orange 120 + 2 x Mesa Diesel 2x15 (about 3 months while I got to grips with the eq) Mesa Bass 400 + 2 x Mesa Diesel 2x15 (Mesa Walkabout bought during this rig - still have one) Mesa Bass 400 + Mesa Bass 400+ + 1 x Mesa Diesel 2x15 + Mesa Road Ready 2x18 Mesa M-Pulse 600 + Mesa Diesel 2x15 (very briefly used 2 x Barefaced Compact 1x15s) 2 x Mesa M-Pulse 600 + 2 x Mesa Subway 1x15 2 x Mesa TT800 + 2 x Mesa Subway 1x15 For complete clarity (as we're talking about gigging amps) I have done a semi acoustic ska gig with my GK MB150E but that was very much for convenience.

I am pretty sure only 25 were made. Still, gives me yet another opportunity to kick myself for selling mine (pre-internet days so I had no idea it was so rare).

There's also one via Allianz. I posted a link and will post it again.

For years I always removed anything between the cab and the floor. After getting a 2x18 that was immovable without I indeed found there was not the blindest bit of difference. Years of shifting utterly wasted. Get some decent 10cm casters with brakes and don't look back.