RAY AGAINST THE MACHINE

Good points ! I don't gig anymore , but tbh if I did I'd get a 5 string and have done with it . ( I couldn't properly focus on 5 string at the time due to moving around enthusiastically on stage 😬) One thing I remenber being in a blues band that played obscure tracks, was when the guitarists put hair bands on the 3rd or 5th fret when they 'down tuned ' ..

I'd imagine playing in standard tuning would probably seem odd to you initially . For me , all of the classic rock covers were in standard tuning . From what I remember , thin Lizzy and quo tuned down a half step although I stand to be corrected . Avoid hotel California imho, as for me it was tough and I couldn't do it in my ltd capabilities . Paranoid is easy Peasy , and wishing well was easy enough . My fave to play was black night . Maybe put the list on here if you're unsure of some ?

I've played a few of the above . 🤔Does I will survive count ? We did a samba version of that , which finished on a randy Rhodes guitar solo ( mr Crowley ) Always went down well . Thankfully , we never played White Rabbit . The blood from punters slashing their wrists would have been too unsightly and offputting 😬

Mmm...maybe goi into modular gear ? Euroracks can be a very expensive rabbit hole . Some of those basses would soon be sold 🙂

For me , if you're playing in a tribute band then you should look visually as near as possible to the artist(s) you're covering. It wouldn't work in an Elvis tribute if you didn't look like him or made the effort to. Must admit , I'm surprised that there's a joy division tribute band . They didn't seem to be around for long , and I do wonder how they'd fare against other tribute bands on a Friday / Saturday night at the dog and duck . Not exactly something sozzled punters to sing along to imho. I know that you are very talented @BigRedX , but unfortunately your talented ear in this occasion is similar to the beard twitchers who spot the mistakes , which others wouldn't notice much in the scheme of things . Fwiw, ( and no offence meant obviously ) , the clips I've seen on mainstream tv over the years of joy division live have been about 3 tracks of them playing raw and looking miserable . Repeat . I'm obviously missing something here . 😬 one of the best cover bands I saw , was a tribute to the '80s . I can't remember their name unfirtunatelly , but they had quite a following . They looked like New Romantics , but played a cross section from that era, covered all basses . They made the effort , which counts .

Love the colour

I remember reading negative comments in the bass magazines pre internet, especially the fender music master . Original ones are sought after these days . Then again headless basses were getting the same comments more or less back then. My, how things have changed .. I often think about getting a short scale myself , and trading one of my basses for one . What put me off most of the time , was the '60s look.( That's me being an old metalhead 😬) . I still don't like hofners, and never will,but I'm warming to the completion mustang replicas these days . They do look small to me , as I am not . Getting used to 20 frets instead of 24 is a bit of a head spinner for me . i should have got the badtz maru bass just for the fun value . If something similar comes up I'll nab it if I have funds etc Thar bass looks good . Each to their own . If you like it play it ..lots .

Good point , it brings me back to the '90s when the bass really cut through on a lot of metal albums . One other thing I just thought of , is the boom in active preamps in basses in the late '80s onwards . Even my Washburn status has that "clang " to it . Having said that, it's a marmite sound .

Playing devils advocate : why not change the precision for an Ibanez or Warwick ,or Schecter ? You may not need a pedal .🤔🙂

Might as well mention EDF again ! They have updated their app , making a simple thing as giving a reading complicated . Plus , looking for the billing history is not as direct or straightforward as it was . They have stopped pestering me for a smart meter over the last ...2 weeks so I'll say no more not to jinx things 🤐

I don't know if I can say Royal Mail, as I still use them from time to time . Renewed my passport the day before Good Friday . Got replacement 7 days later , so that's excellent . However, trying ( and failing ) to get compensation when a couple of vinyl records I sold on fleabay were broken deliberately makes me detest them ! Plus a couple I ordered went missing o turned up way later . Thankfully mutual respect from myself and fellow fleabayers kept my 100% feedback intact .

I haven't flown with Ryan Air . Might develop sore arm syndrome . Having said that , if I did I think they'd be on the list here as the boss comes across as an arrogant tw@t! He reminds me of Louis Walsh .

Not a fan myself , but Zander Zon does fantastic covers of her stuff on you tube .

Overkill, obituary, Celtic frost , death? , prong, sepultura , Korn , foo fighters ?

I was listening to a few vol beat albums a few years ago . Something was missing ...guitar solos ! I don't know if anyone would know their stuff in the dog and duck etc . Just a thought ..

Well I got to 3 mins 45 secs , and this imho is much better than the original . 🙂👍

I blame Lionel Richie

I had a skynard box set a long time ago . Dont bother with them now . I prefer Blackfoot .

I'm an Abba fan , and have the cd box set of all their albums 😬 However , I do see where you are coming from . Overplayed on radio, although I'd say Dancing Queen ( or Quentin as my chellspecker just told me ) is the one that's played the most. I got bored of very quickly but don't mind it now. As for Eurythmics , I agree with you . I don't get the big deal about them .

I must say , I totally agree with you 😂. I never got the big hype about them . Back on track , I think that 'Design for life ' is absolute drivel .

On the computer side of things , if this thread was started in the year 2000 then I would have put Apple first on the list . This is because when I decided it was time to ' lesrn computers' / catch-up eith everything etc , I decided to go for an Apple IMac in lime green . ( possibly the first iMac ?) I get the box delivered , plus a free printer as part of the package . Plus an idiot proof cd rom showing you how to connect to the Internet . All good ...except it took weeks to get on the Internet ! 😡 Most of my mates were graphic designers and art directors . They were telling me it was my fault ,and I'm not doing it right . It goes on . Then one of my friends visits me and solves the problem which should never have been . He contacted BT who informed him that Apple had changed their phone no. that connects me to the provider I wished to use . Plus of course that was the first year of osx from os9 which was a big deal at the time .That was another issue which I'll leave . Things got much better with the iPad ,it has to be said . I still hate them. The latest annoyance being after every endless update , Bluetooth is switched on ! Unfortunately they can't really be dead to me , as I still use a few Apple products 😮‍💨

**edited to say , I'm sick of those cd digipacks / booklets ** only because of the space they take up .

I was one of the ' suckers' who started to sell vinyl records when I replaced them with CDs . Having said that , I had way too much at the time , and in terms of moving into smaller accommodation to live I did the right thing ' 'downsizing ' the record collection . I was also getting pretty miffed at having to adjust the belt on my old turntable to play 7" singles . I'm glad they're gone . I do have a selection of 12" s though, which I play on my current turntable which doesn't need the platter removed to play them . I offloaded a hell of a lot of albums and 12" on fleabay over the last 2 years. However, I have made a decision to only have "the best "albums and 12" of my favourite artists and not everything on record as I have them on cd anyway. Much tidier inn my flat.I have roughly a handful that I want , but even they may get pressed again . ( Rush Counterparts for example) . I did purchase vinyl remasters of a couple of albums I sold in the past , so not all sad . That wasn't on RSD . I notice that certain record stores do invite people to contact them on the following Monday after RSD to see if there's anything left. It's a bit like trying to obtain a ticket for a gig . Can't be doing with that . Plus some of those RSD albums are still available . I went to our local record store pre covid 😷and that was good . Not too much of a queue , and a few ciders afterwards 🙂 If my local friend suggests it again , then I'd probably do it but I'm not bothered either way

A friend of mine queued up early in the morning for an album by Propagabda. ( not the great sparks album) He was telling me that the staff at the store gave him a ticket to write down the artists he was interested in . He then got to the till ,and the album was waiting for him at the counter awaiting paynent . All good . A bit like ordering breakfast from McDonalds I guess. nothing of interest for me this year . Maybe next year 🙂