lozkerr

Bang on. That's perfect - slightly out of the ordinary and a nice local reference. There's a group of us on Facebook called the Bow Belles, as we all live in a street with 'Bow' in the name, we're all women and we're all musicians. Even though we're in four different bands.

Let's see... there are plenty of soul / funk / jazz bands out there, so maybe a name that's a little closer to home would work? You could go for something that describes your local area, or references one of your main influences, perhaps? If I knew roughly where you are, I might come up with something witty (or dumb - hard to tell 'em apart sometimes, knowing me). It would be easy to come up with something silly like 'Funk U' but that's a tad cheesy and unoriginal. Why not tell us your main influences and your approximate area? That might give something more to go on. It might help with a logo too, if you're anywhere near a recognisable landmark. FWIW, we're having a similar problem. Our singist fancies D.A.R.E. (for Danceable Alternative Rock in Edinburgh) but I'm inclining towards this:

Hm, I didn't either! We'll need to decide pronto. Good spot!

Good advice, thanks 🙂 I tried both last night, and it's a bit easier in D. I think I'll stick with that until we get into the studio.

Me too 🙂 There's quite a lot of eighties stuff on our list, with a few slightly earlier and later. Our first set is: Don't Get Me Wrong Hanging On The Telephone Union City Blue Pretty In Pink Teenage Kicks You've Got My Number (Why Don't You Use It) Bad Reputation Best Of Friends Psycho Killer I Feel You Sweet Dreams (Are Made Of This) Stupid Girl (the Garbage one, not the Stones) Panic Gimme Danger We had to whittle that down from a list of 60+. We're going to be busy! And we also have to find a drummist and someone who plays one of those screechy things with too many strings.

Thanks - I appreciate the offer! I'll take you up on that if we can't reach a decision between us.

I've had a quick confab with my friend, who's the singist, and we're going to run through it and then decide on the key. You might be right about the original being slightly out of tune - both Eb and D sound close but no cigar. The phrasing and rhythm's OK, which is the main thing, so going up or down a fret shouldn't be too much of a problem. Thanks also for the sheet music - I hadn't come across that site before!

Hi everyone, After some more less-than-impressive encounters with the world of JMB and wannabe Simon Cowells, a friend and I have decided to form our own band. First rehearsal is on the 16th June, and we have fourteen songs to learn. One of them is Pretty In Pink. And it's doing my heid in. The phrasing isn't difficult - I've cracked that OK - but I just cannot seem to get the right key. I've found some bass covers on YouTube, but it doesn't help that there appear to be several versions of the song out there and they all sound subtly different. At the moment I'm playing it in E flat major, and it sounds right-ish. The ish is what's irritating. Mr Google suggests it's in D major, which again sounds slightly odd. Or it could be senility setting in. Does anyone cover this song, and if so, what key do you play it in? I know we might have to alter it to fit our singer's voice, but I would really like to know what key the original is in. Many thanks, Laura

Sorry, n00b question - what is this 'plectrum' of which you speak? 😉

For E's and wizz?

Nice! I enjoyed that. Out of interest, how many cameras did you use?

The only one that lives there constantly is Snap's Welcome to Tomorrow. It's cheesy Euro electro pop, but it has a nice chilled feel to it.

Indeed. I was going to post the Dead Rock Stars Top Twenty to lighten the mood, but after looking at it, maybe I won't. I'm just running my eye over part of my vinyl collection - lots of singles in an ex-shop display revolving carousel - and I can see a dozen records made by people who have gone. At least we can still enjoy their music.

This thread's got me thinking about musicians who are still with us but whom I'll be gutted to see precede me. I know I'll mourn Vangelis (76) and Jennifer Warnes (72) in a big way when their numbers are up.

True. But the boat shouldn't have been there in the first place, AIUI.

Kirsty MacColl. Awful way to go.

I'm thinking about doing that myself. My Eden combo and cab weigh a ton - I'm sure the drivers are cast from depleted uranium. At the moment, I have a dolly I bought from Machine Mart, but even with ratchet straps holding the gear on, things have a tendency to slide about. I'm thinking about a dolly with raised sides to keep things in place, with decent-sized wheels. At least until I can afford roadies 🙂

What @Staggering on said. You've got what it takes. Very well done!

I'm sure it'll reopen as yet another tartan tat shop before long.

Sadly no more - it shut down a few months ago.

Guitar Guitar at Corstorphine is worth a look. Nice selection of basses. The 26 bus goes past the door if you don't fancy driving. Closer in, there's Rae Mackintosh on Shandwick Place, but it's a Musicroom branch. Loads of books, beginners' instruments, no basses. There's also Scayles on Nicholson Street. Much smaller than GG, but might be worth sticking your head in the door if you're passing.

Very cool. I enjoyed that! Thanks for posting it.

Good point. That's another reason to circulate them in advance.

Sounds like you've really thought this through, and hopefully it'll be a winner. I'd deffo rock up if I wasn't 500 miles away. One suggestion though - you could make the set list and chord charts available in advance, rather than hand them out on the night. That would give people the chance to have a noodle in private before turning up to play. Best of luck with it!

The Eden EC8 might be worth considering. It's got quite a punch for a 20 watt amp, and the low end sounds nice and full. There aren't many bells and whistles on it - aux in, cans out, plus controls for gain, tone and enhance is yer lot - but it does the job very well. It wipes the floor with the Fly 3, IMHO.