meterman

Top tip - Use an SM57, you'll save a few quid on the event. Plus it'll still be working afterwards 👍

Super bargain at that price! Having said that, I’ll be selling mine in the new year due to it being surplus to requirements.

Well, I worked as a diplomat in Argentina for 20 years. Things would occasionally get a bit stabby or shooty but the corned beef was to die for. Viva Fray Bentos!

Kick his head in and give him a pair of bongos to play. No microphone either. And if he doesn't like it, shoot him. It's the only way forward.

⬆️ This. Percussion and drums have been my main instrument since my pre-teen years and I'm in my mid 50's now, and IMHO you should be able to gauge what's acceptable volume-wise in just about any situation. Theatres, bars, clubs, cafes, museums, rock festivals, pub gigs... There's not a 'one-style-one volume fits-all' type of playing, I learned that pretty early on. Your drummer should be able, and willing, to rein it in a bit ( or be prepared to use a smaller sized kit, or use electronic sample triggers on a mesh headed kit ) or something. Personally I wouldn't tolerate what you're having to do, just to accommodate one loud player who either can't or won't pull it in a bit. I wish you the best of luck! 👍

I still have a slightly battered original Talkin' Loud sticker on the back of one of my synths. Would love an original Acid Jazz one to go with it 😎 I just know someone one here will be hoarding them! Come on, own up!

Me during my 'Mexican drug runner that also does cheap pornos as a side hustle' phase... My wife really, really hated the 'tache 😂

Oh no, I didn't know that about Mark, far too young for him to go Rest In Peace. Oddly enough I have Mark to thank for a session gig that lasted 12 years because when he quit Shawn Lee's band, I took his place. I think Shawn had just left Talkin' Loud, but we often would have Ernie on bass, and Spry from Galliano sometimes too. Mark was a great guitar player, streets ahead of me and I didn't mind admitting it to Shawn's band. But they put up with my caveman guitar and Hammond playing for ages. But Mark was on another level. Huge respect for him 👍 Makes sense about the bass / guitar swap now too, thank you man. Actually, you must have played with Shawn at some point, no? Loads of the Acid Jazzers and a lot of folks with a Gilles / Talkin' Loud connection did stints with him and he did a ton of sessions for the same crowd. Possible?

Re: Galliano, I saw recent footage from Ernie at a comeback gig and he was playing guitar and they had a different bassist. Not sure why, or if Ernie plans to switch back to bass with them but I thought it was a bit weird that he wasn't on bass duties? It's not like he can't play!

I still buy things occasionally on ebay but I'd never sell on there again. Too hit and miss with flaky buyers.

Colin Moulding from XTC used one in the video for "The Mayor Of Simpleton" And yes, I'd have one if I could find one 😎 Tat is my bag, baby!

Getting the ex-Higsons (and PJ Harvey / Nick Cave / JAMC / Spiritualized etc) multi instrumentalist Terry Edwards to play Hammond organ in my live band, albeit briefly, about 20 years ago. I’d already been playing Hammond on and off for about 10 years, but standing next to him and watching as he did all the tricks that make for great Hammond playing - proper palm slides, grace notes, two-finger trills on one note, the volume swells during the solos, etc - it was a series of lightbulb moments, like “Ah, that’s how you do that!”. I’d previously been playing Hammond like a caveman because I’m self taught and I always came away from keyboard gigs with bleeding fingers or loads of skin missing from my knuckles. Seeing someone close up doing it all properly was the best lesson in technique I ever had. I learned (well, nicked really) so much from him that I still use today. And he’s a top geezer 👍

Yep, he also has another Peavey in black, and an Aria 'lawsuit' Precision copy with a cheeky Fender logo on the headstock. He's used Peaveys with The Pretenders on every video I've seen when he's been with them. Not sure what he used on the recent Foo Fighters gigs, but I've not seen any pics or videos, just heard from him that he was doing the gigs. Really decent guy and a brilliant all rounder - bass, guitar, vocals, keys, drums as well if I remember right?

Oh, no! I hope he doesn't regret it 😂 I lived in Newcastle for about a year and half and never really got the hang of the place, despite growing up in County Durham, which isn't far away, or culturally that much different. Having said that, my Dad's from Leith and we had a lot of family there and in Edinburgh. I way prefer it up there. As a kid I spent a lot of time with family in Leith and Fife, and Pittenweem, Anstruther, etc. Love it 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

I've got one of those too, they're great basses for the money. Used it on studio sessions plenty of times and it always does the job 👍 Welcome to the club!

That's weird about Earlpilanz because he's in Scotland and as far as I remember he posts worldwide. I got a pickguard from him last year and I'm in France. You must have been unlucky to have had an eBay glitch or something? Glad you're sorted though 👍

Earlpilanz on ebay does replacement Bronco pickguards in all manner of colours. Plenty of folk on here will vouch for his work, and I’ve had a few custom pickguards made by him and he’s spot on 👍

I had one of these too, on loan from a mate, and he’d set it up really well, it played great. I later had a matching Sunn Mustang Strat copy that was decent too. They were both Fender affiliated? Or am I thinking of something else?

Eddie Piller managed my mate's band Torino for a while and got them to record an album, but only one of the tracks saw the light of day on one of the many "Totally Wired" compilations. I played with Ernie from Push and Galliano a bunch of times, doing session gigs, it was amazing to see him let loose onstage when he thought nobody was paying attention 👍 Did some sessions for an album last year featuring guys from Mother Earth, Galliano, Push, and a few others. Sadly, I had to do my parts remotely as they were all in a studio in London and I'm based in France and couldn't make it over. Would have loved to have been there in person. My only other Acid Jazz (well, Talkin' Loud really) connection is I've still got some bits of RAK recording gear from Marco from the Young Disciples. He was big into DJ-ing and production but he was another great bass player on the sly. I think he was Paul Weller's bassist before Ernie McKone replaced him? I'm generally not nostalgic but the early Acid Jazz club scene was great and some of the early gigs were belters 👍

The term “Acid Jazz” is said to come from a post Acid House club night where DJ’s Chris Bangs and Gilles Peterson were playing uptempo jazz to a crowd largely made up of people dancing. As the night wore on, an inebriated Chris Bangs reached across the turntables and started flicking the pitch control up and down, thus warping the tempo of the record wildly, which confused the people dancing and he shouted into the mic, “This is Acid Jazz!” as a drunken jape. But bands like James Taylor Quartet, Corduroy, The Sandals, Mother Earth, and others, were all into jazz and were definitely familiar with acid, so a scene was formed around that phrase. But a lot of what’s passed off as Acid Jazz now (and what was passed off as it back then) is just formulaic funky soul, where maybe the guitar player owns a wah-wah pedal (late period Brand New Heavies, JTQ etc) and it’s not as diverse as the first wave of bands were.

I loved all the first wave Acid Jazz bands, and I was lucky enough to work with a couple 😎 When it split off into Talking Loud and Acid Jazz as two separate labels, some of the smoother stuff went with Gilles Peterson to Talking Loud, but I still bought from both labels. I do reckon the very early James Taylor Quartet (pre-Acid Jazz period) was my favourite. Also there was a band called The Sandals who were part of the same early scene who were great, although I’m not sure if they ever signed to Acid Jazz. But they played with a lot of the Acid Jazz bands. Great stuff, and bonus points to anyone who remembers the ‘Tongue Kung Fu’ club in London’s Covent Garden that all the bands used to frequent. 👍

Yes, he’s the bassist in the band. The drummer is Nick Mason of course, and so there’s the Pink Floyd connection. The keys player is Dom Beken, and the rhythm guitarist is Gary Kemp, of all people! The lead guitarist is Lee Harris who’s played with The Blockheads and Wilko Johnson as far as I remember. Cracking band, live 👍 One of my friends was the support act on their first tour. She was absolutely in awe of them, and also blown away by getting to play in all the beautiful old European theatres and outdoor performance spaces.

Nick Mason’s Saucerful Of Secrets only have one original Pink Floyd member (well, two if you include Guy Pratt who played bass with the post-Roger Waters incarnation of the band) and they restrict their set to the Syd Barrett era, and stop the repertoire to just before “Dark Side Of The Moon”. They might only have one original Pink Floyd member in the band but I’d still go and see them playing all the 1967-72 Pink Floyd material. 👍

I rarely buy bass gear so this year was unusual for me, in that I bought a used Squier Sonic Precision bass. I swapped the neck for the one on my Squier Jazz, and bought some La Bella flats for it and for around £150 all in, I'm probably done for electric basses now. I don't need to go any higher or more expensive or fancier than that. That was my best. Obligatory pic: Worst? A Harley Benton fretless uke bass that had finish issues and a neck twist. Sent it back, got a refund, no problem. Might be looking for a 30" scale fretless acoustic bass at some point but it's not a "super-urgent-must-have-right-now-OMG-GAS-is-all-consuming" thing by any means. Probably start doing some research next year though.