Stub Mandrel

Indeed, it's a sort of 'better knob' 🙂

Lordy! I'm not the only person who uses a forcefield with a bass 🙂

Companies House returns can be up to a year out of date, even if updated. Lots of small 'businesses' aren't companies. You could try searching the register of Limited Liability Partnerships, for example.

Not the hardest of songs but I'm relearning loads of songs by Ten Years After like Think About the Times and Stoned Woman. I love playing this stuff again. Delighted to find that Leo Lyons is still going and hopefully gigging after covid.

https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/jan/07/customers-europe-hit-by-post-brexit-charges-buying-from-uk

ooerr....

Looks like it's a double-edged sword: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2021/jan/07/customers-europe-hit-by-post-brexit-charges-buying-from-uk

I spoke to one shop owner, some of the bulk importers (I recall Normans & PMT but could be wrong) sell on at trade prices that allow them to match or compete with online prices (still small margins). I suspect its high end sales and accessories that are bread and butter for most music shops - selling mid-range and entry level instruments is really about gaining loyal customers

Abbey Road in Nottingham do lessons and were doing their Abbey Road Army gigs - I did the last one but I don't think it made any money despite being successful. I think they were hoping it would sell more gear (it worked on me, but ...)

One thing I would do is insert a jack lead and then see how far I can trace continuity from the tip and ring (separately) back into the electrics.

Their bass player does bear an uncanny resemblance...

The music shop where my brothers live survives by being at the heart of the local musical community, they do PA hire and that means they know everyone. Plus they teach which helps bring more people into the community. It helps they are really nice guys and happy to talk music forever! They are doing deliveries during lockdown.

Great stuff Blue. I'll watch more later. For others - they come on at about 38 minutes until about the hour.

Lovely (muchly improvised I am sure) bluesy bass wombling on this one:

There's a guy in Leicester who has stockpiled Sansamps...

Don't forget how personal 'that' sound is -and how much it can depends on the instrument as well as the amp.

It's not as simple as that for VAT registered businesses.

When I bought my jazz, I tried it out on a Markbass, then a Rumble. Nothing wrong with the Markbass, but the Rumble was easier to get the sound I wanted from.

Heroes. Stay with Me Sunny Afternoon (actually descending, they are usually ascending...) Fool for Your Lovin' The Real Me Can't Get Enough And most famously, Hey Joe Is that enough for a start? Very often, but not always, as a part of a walking link. Also often in pairs going up a fifth or down a fourth.

Brilliant, no excuses now...

Why do four-note chromatic runs work so well (at least in some genres - blues and rock especially)? And why do they tend work best in certain parts of the scale (e.g.up to the fifth or the root of a major scale)?

As basses don't (usually) have tremelo bridges, I think string pull angles are aesthetic rather than a real issue (in fact the geometry is such that a sideways pull can be used to make up for a low break angle. I always use a finger poke beyond the nut before being happy with my tuning anyway. That said, parallel strings do look nicer, although it's not a killer issue for me. I really, really struggle with droopy tuners though - I like them ideally all parallel to each other, or 90 degrees to the sides of the headstock. If a convex edge means they angle in, they can look a bit crowded, but better than a random angle with no relation to the other aesthetic elements.

If you make a guide using masking tape or card, it's surprisingly easy to cut neatly with a hand saw.

Try some music you enjoy listening to but wouldn't normally play along to. Funk classics are a good choice I find, something like Ball of Confusion or I Feel Good is a joy to play but challenges you to get in the groove.