LeftyP

I ordered a set of LaBella flat wounds from BD and they came the next day at £10 cheaper than Amazon!

I think I may have posted about this before, but if you need ideas for a band name pop into B&Q and go to the Valspar paint counter. They have colour cards covering the full spectrum of shades (there's a name for you!) with all sorts of creative names. Our bathroom is painted "Harp Strings"!

A local country music act was called Ken and Doug but they were a trio! I'm still trying to work out which one was called And.

Funny that Ewan Maccoll, who wrote "The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face" hated every version of it! He wrote it for Peggy Seeger who became his third wife and she told me the tale which is confirmed on Wikipedia. MacColl made no secret of the fact that he disliked all of the cover versions of the song. His daughter-in-law wrote: "He hated all of them. He had a special section in his record collection for them, entitled 'The Chamber of Horrors'. He said that the Elvis version was like Romeo at the bottom of the Post Office Tower singing up to Juliet. The other versions, he thought, were travesties: bludgeoning, histrionic, and lacking in grace."[6]

It varies from band to band but generally; keyboard, acoustic/electric guitar, drums, violin, mandolin, flute, oboe, bass and vocals of course. We didn't have drums as our drummer was on his honeymoon in the Philippines (he's from there). Not all the instruments are available every week so it can be mix and match.

My church cannot accommodate the number of people who attend every Sunday so we are planning to move to a larger building. In the meantime we have gone to two morning services - 9.15 and 11.15am. Both services are getting pretty full! We now have four bands to cater for the increase in services. There are two bands who take turns to play at the early meeting and two more at the later gathering. I now play every other week at the 11.15 service and we need to have a mid-week rehearsal because it is impossible on a Sunday morning as the people of the first meeting mingle with the later arrivals and chat over tea and cake! I must say I'm enjoying playing more often and can already feel my ability increasing. Our band does not have a drummer at the moment (he is on honeymoon) so it is up to me to keep everyone in time. That means hitting the root notes and providing a good foundation for the other band members to build on. The mid-week rehearsal (Friday evening) is also a good time to socialise with the rest of the band and try out new arrangements. The only problem with playing at the second meeting is that I can enjoy some tea and cake at the start and the end - not good for the figure!

It's funny, when I started reading this subject I couldn't remember whether my bass had side dots or not! I had to check. It does have them but they are very small and black. I suppose I must use them for reference without really noticing them!

Apologies if this has been covered before but, is there such a thing as a short scale, lightweight, 5 string bass? I play a short scale 4 string which does the job very well but we do some songs at church where I need to drop down to Eb. I normally just play up the octave but would like to try a 5 string. One of the other bass players was using a full scale 5 string this weekend and I struggled to pick it up! Why are these things so heavy? Any suggestions would be welcomed.

I don't normally receive or expect compliments for playing in the church band but this morning I received one! A very attractive young lady, who has been coming to our church over the last few weeks, came and told me how much she enjoyed my bass playing. I thanked her but said that no-one really notices the bass but she was insistent that I had done a good job. She was in the early to mid 20s and was working at a local veterinary practise. This 74 year old grandad now feels very encouraged!

Hope this link works!

It's a bit long and wordy but highlights what playing in church is all about. Have a brew and enjoy.

I was at a local village hall on Saturday night to see the Haley Sisters from Yorkshire. I first met Jo-Ann and Becky in the early 90s when they were in their late teens but Becky has just become a grandmother! They have been a fixture on the British country music scene since they hit the road and provide close sibling harmonies with some good guitar work. Becky married Brian Smith who has played in Nashville and recorded and toured with Crystal Gayle. He is an amazing guitarist and adds a lot to the overall sound. Becky plays semi acoustic guitar and Jo-Ann the Hofner violin bass. I love Jo-Ann's playing as it is perfect for the songs they do and the harmonies they produce are so natural. Their sound system is also excellent and consists of a Yamaha powered mixer feeding a Bose tower set up with small woofer to handle the bass. The sound is clear and loud enough to not be uncomfortable. As I play their songs on my radio programme I was asked to compare the show before sitting back to enjoy the evening. To add to the event we enjoyed pie and peas before hand! The photos and video were taken on mobile phones and the stage lighting played havoc with the focussing but I hope they give some idea of how the evening went. They do have videos on their YouTube channel which will give you more of an idea of what they sound like and their song selection. received_531472272572035[1].mp4

I was playing bass this morning to a packed church - it was standing room only which is why we are looking for a larger building. We only did four songs; "Praise To The Lord The Almighty", Our God Is A Great Big God", "All People That On Earth Do Dwell" and "O God Beyond All Praising". The last one is to a tune by Gustaf Holst from his Planet Suite. There really wasn't much I could do with the tunes so I just stuck to root notes. The result was very affective and the congregation responded with gusto! I usually try to put in some fills and approach notes but today proved that less can be more. I enjoy playing the bass and always try to be innovative without going over the top but just sticking to the root notes for every chord change let the songs breathe. The band sounded tight and it was a pleasure to be part of it. To top it off our pastor gave a great message before we all had tea and cake! Roll on next time.

I'm left handed but play right handed. When I was learning my teacher said that, as I hadn't played before, it would be wise to adapt to playing right handed. I'm glad I took his advice. He also said that you don't find any left handed pianos etc! I now find it very awkward to even hold the bass in the lefty position! Enjoy the instrument and the memories it contains and don't fret about being just like your dad.

Is Chowny still on the go? Their website does not appear to have been updated for some time and their last blog was May 2018. Can't find anyone who has hem in stock.