Paul S

I quite like this bunch - Pink Turtle. And especially Smoke On The Water.

I've played/owned/still own a lot of Precision basses - the best have been Japanese and, of these, the keeper is a JV Squier. I'd say you can't really go wrong with an early/mid 80s MIJ Fender or Squier and they are usually cheaper than the equivalent age USA one. Maybe I have been unlucky but I have yet to pick up a USA Precision and feel it was the perfect P. In terms of value for money I had a 'Silver Series' Squier P bass that was bloody amazing - lightweight, slim neck, tone to die for. Wish I'd never sold it. Had three Yamaha BB bases in the past - BB414, 425, 5000 - and think they are all terrific but wouldn't necessarily agree they sound exactly like a P bass. They don't have that organic quality about the tone - that woodiness that for me defines the P bass sound. For example the P pickup of the BB5000 I had, which is arguably one of the best basses Yamaha made, was a lot honkier and metallic than any of my 'better' Precision basses. The tone of the BB425 was nearer. Have to say, though, that my Maruszczyk Jake 5 is as good as any P bass I have played - I guess because I was able to spec it to my liking.

Shameless plug - I am selling this Mightysound PT-06 mini pedal tuner. Link

If you want short scale and lightweight, they won't come any lighter than a Danelectro Longhorn. If you can live with the styling of course - the quirky shape was part of the attraction for me.

Playing high up the neck? 😲

That seems to be the situation here, too. My pub band tends to play in small pubs in market towns, rather than busy hipster places in city centres, and we usually get £250-300 for the band. The only time we get more than that is for a private party.

Answering an ad in Gumtree got my foot on the ladder.

That is actually the nearest I have come to it. I saw Thin Lizzy on that tour at Wembley but I don't think anything from that night was recorded. If some quarters are to be believed, most of it was recorded in the studio afterwards anyway!

This. I think also if you are sending one to another country it can get very complicated if it goes wrong. Plus I won't send out a bass unless it is fully insured and some folks balk at paying for full insurance - hence arranging it and taking the risk - themselves.

One of the Lemmy signature series?

How many I have depends upon whether they are included in the tally or not. The basses I use at the moment are 5 strings - my main one, another main one, a back up, an office one. So four. I have two 4 string basses up for sale so they don't count. That leaves me with just one other 4 string I am keeping, but because I play 5 strings that doesn't count either, really. Other, 'niche' basses that I have but don't use routinely - so don't count - are a Stag EUB, uke bass, fretless 5er, so that's three more not included in the reckoning. But if you were being picky it could be ten. Which is actually less than it has been for many years - changing to 5 strings seems to have curbed my GAS to a degree. Although to be fair it is more about limited choices than any lack of desire on my part

I have absolutely no complaints about my Jake 5, either. It exceeded my expectations, which were already high. Fit and finish are perfect.

In case anyone else has one in 4 or 5 string and is looking for a gig bag to fit such an odd shape - a BSA rifle back pack 43", intended for a scoped rifle, fits almost exactly. Offers fairly good protection, too.

Me too. Back then he had one of the best and most distinctive voices of the generation. Recent years I have seen his little band Los Pacaminos several times and his voice is totally shot to bits. In the context of the Los Pacaminos band it actually works to his advantage that he does a gravelly talk and no singing (Jamie Moses is the star turn of the band, which are fantastic) but sadly I would think he would be cringeworthily embarrassing attempting all his earlier stuff nowdays.

The sci-fi looking Yamaha BX-5 I bought recently. I got it mainly to upgrade my Hohner B2V that I always take to gigs as a back up bass. I expected it to be good enough to be better than the Hohner but it turns out it is magnificent. It is probably going to be the main bass of choice for my little band, in fact - the quirky looks fitting in nicely.

New guy started up in Leigh-on-Sea, Essex. Leighton Jennings - Leighton's guitars: https://www.leightonsguitarshop.com/ He builds/repairs/mods guitars/basses and amps so can do anything pretty much from a quick set up to a custom build. I've had him do a couple of things for me and he has been friendly, efficient, cheap and- most importantly -good! He says he can do free local pickup and drop off, too.

Saw Steve Earle and the Dukes at Brighton Dome last week - they are dong a date in London which would have been nearer but I am away and couldn't have made it. Mrs S had seen them last time they were over - I was away again then! - and said if we ever got the chance to see them again it would be worth it. She was right - they were totally fabulous.

http://dannymstewart.com/the-bass-hunter/bass-hunter-service I used him once and found him to be a very efficient guy to deal with. There are the extra charges to factor in. Danny charges a very reasonable 'finder's fee' if it isn't one he has 'in stock' at the time. Then there is VAT and import duty on the declared value, although Danny has a trick for this which, if all goes well, saves quite a bit. What happens if it goes wrong I am not sure. Then ParcelForce charge a handling fee. It is usually still worth doing, financially, and if it is a bass you can't get here so much the better.

Took it to yesterday's gig - first time I have used it with the band. Sounded absolutely amazing and so comfy too. Result indeed!