Brother Jones

As a relative newcomer of 5s, I've been using DRs on my Sadowsky Metro 5. The low B is untapered. It fits everything fine, but something about the idea of a taper core B string appeals to common sense. What do others use and what are the benefits? Ta.

Can't believe no one's mentioned Doug Wimbish's killer 'White Lines' riff.... [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yGFn-Q_FN44"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yGFn-Q_FN44[/url] Lots of Stevie Wonder lines by Nathan Watts, but especially 'Do I Do' and 'I Wish' - both great fun to play and the line [i]is[/i] the song. [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=c6f6BOKXXxg&feature=related"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=c6f6BOKXXxg&...feature=related[/url] 'Hair' by Graham Central Station. [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6YO4rC3ZB7g"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6YO4rC3ZB7g[/url] Robbie Shakespeare's line from Grace Jones' 'Pull up to the Bumper', as well as her lesser known version of 'Nipple to the Bottle'. [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Lzk11I_Ikfg"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=Lzk11I_Ikfg[/url] [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=v7dN2xVPeTU&feature=related"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=v7dN2xVPeTU&...feature=related[/url] Oh, and 'Heaven' by Talking Heads. And their version of 'Take me to the River'. Go Tina! [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=19fOw17b58s"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=19fOw17b58s[/url] [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=25E0ACkA6uo&feature=related"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=25E0ACkA6uo&...feature=related[/url] That's enough for now... I think somone asked earlier who played on 'You can Call me Al'. Don't know if anyone's replied , but it was a South African named Baghiti Kumalo. The second half of that famous fill is (apparently) just the first half recorded backwards... Or, going by the video, it's Paul Simon playing a Precision.

[quote name='Oscar South' post='197161' date='May 12 2008, 01:59 PM']Personally as far as funk playing goes, I found 'the funk' when I gave up all the 'funk gimmicks' (slapping, auto wah etc.) and just started to groove with my fingers and let the music breathe. A noise gate can work well in funk I found for the quick cutoff, one of the paradigms in most young bass players learning is realising that the note cutoff i pretty much as important for the groove as the attack. I spent the first five years or so of playing practicing and messing around with slapping/tapping/effects etc, now I actually do music seriously I've got rid of the crutches and 99% of the times its just fingers and EQ, all you need.[/quote] Very true. 'Technique' just overwhelms people at a certain stage and think that genre X has to be played in Y way. Some ofthe greatest funk lines are plain solid fingerstyle with outstanding timing. What Mark King was doing in the 80s is a bit like double thumbing now. If you can't do it, people tend to think you're an inferior musician. (And no, I can't do it. But I'm happy... )

On stage at a pub in Leeds about 20 years ago, we were in a kind of thrash/funk band (much, much worse than you can possibly imagine). We were trying out some new 'songs' with that 'eights bars of this, then four of that' thing you do. The guitarist and I completely fluffed a middle eight/verse change but no one noticed and it went okay. Then at the end the singer made a massive thing of it and apologised to the audience 'on behalf of the bass player and guitarist'. FFS....

I use my WT400 with a pair of 8 ohm 210 XLTs. I bought one of them second hand from the Gallery before I got the head and plugged my old GK MB150 combo into it to see what it was like. I was completely blown away. Handle a five very well and are certainly the best 2x10 I've ever used. They are not lightweight though... Suspect the Eden 12 cabs are v good too. If you go for Eden cabs make sure you get the right impedance for the head, as they come in both 4 and 8 ohm versions.

I think is one of the most depressing you tube clips ever... [url="http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yOuXQgGamis&feature=related"]http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=yOuXQgGamis&...feature=related[/url]

[quote name='7string' post='131004' date='Jan 30 2008, 10:30 PM']Yup, I have to agree with that as well. Sadowsky are at the top of the tree if you want something more traditional looking. I remember many moons ago back at the Bass Centre in Wapping there was a beautiful Sadowsky on the wall. Superb quilt maple in caramel burst with a maple 'board. All I could do was just stare at it in wonder. Lottery-time, I'll have a Sadowsky as well [/quote] I remember that bass - or at least think I do - sometime in the mid to late nineties? Played it, fell in love with it. Just....couldn't...quite afford it.

I found that a few months ago and thought it was one of the best Marcus covers I've seen on YT. Always assumed though, that it was a US Jazz. Just goes to show - it's the player, not the bass...