thunderbird13

[quote name='Maverick' post='1297262' date='Jul 8 2011, 02:51 PM']Sorry to tell you this mate, and forgive me if I'm wrong, but I think you may have been the one who was out. Sweet Child is in E flat tuning on record, so if you've learnt it by ear with your bass in standard tuning, and then down tuned and just played the same fret positions, you've gone a half step out. [b]The guitarist was in fact playing it correctly[/b] I'd guess.[/quote] Oi- your not allowed to say that - bass players have to stick together Seriously I know that Slash would have detuned for the recording but if I'm working it out and the intro is D# to G# say, then surely it doesnt matter what the tunings are it should just be a case of finding the notes and playing it where we feel most comfortable . My point is that the guitarist has changed the key by detuning and then shifting one fret up the fretboard thus going back to standard tuning and therefore making me play G and A but they dont think they are changing the key

[quote name='Truckstop' post='1297047' date='Jul 8 2011, 12:25 PM']I think the band were making things much more complicated than they had to be. Why detune a semi-tone, and then play a semi-tone up from that? I'd be confused also. If I'd learnt Sweet Child O' Mine in Open E tuning I think I'd find it tricky to play it a fret up on the fly, I think anyone would! But can I ask why you didnt just leave your bass in standard tuning if, in effect, that's what the guitarist was doing? Truckstop[/quote] because half the time he was shifting his fingers up half a fret and other times he was playing in " correct " postion so he wasnt being consistent which made it double difficult to adapt !

I received an urgent phone call from a band I know on Wednesday asking me if could help them out on a gig that they have next Saturday since their original bass player was on holiday. We agreed that I would only learn half the set and they would get another bassplayer to play the other half of the set ,I agreed since I knew most of the songs anyway . Had the first practice last night and it was a total disaster sine they insist on detuning to E flat. I didn’t think this would be a problem so I just detuned and played the songs in the “correct “ position but I was still half a step out on half of the songs. I then realised that in these songs the guitarist had detuned but had then shifted his fingers up one fret so effectively he was playing in standard tuning – does this make sense ? Anyway I’m absolutely gutted since I put a lot of work into learning the songs , even took a day off work in order learn the 4 songs I wasn’t that familiar with - but the detuning/.shifting fret thing completely confused me and at the end of 2 hours I felt so useless that I couldn’t get out the door quick enough. I doubt it I’ll get to play the gig now which is a bit annoying but not the end of the world BUT what I’d like to know is how would you guys handle it if say you learnt Sweet Child O’ Mine by ear along with the studio recording and then had to shift it up one fret playing live , Am I too inflexible as a bass player and relying too much on learning by muscle memory and what do I do about it ? Cheers

OK I'll bite - what does ERB mean ?

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1292009' date='Jul 4 2011, 11:53 AM']However, on a related matter, I was rather surprised to receive a 'Nigerian scam'-type letter [u]though the post[/u] last week. Never had that before. Anyone else?[/quote] I got one a few years ago -it freaked me out a bit but nothing else seems to have happened

I think you can hire Peter Parker's at 4 Denmark Street - certainly "rock till you drop" put on showcase gigs there.

how about saving some money and buying a Jam Hub and a heater [url="http://www.jamhub.com/what/index.html"]jamhub ( in case you dont know)[/url]

[quote name='BottomE' post='1222289' date='May 6 2011, 04:01 PM']Maybe this should be another thread called "Do i have to like my fellow band members?" - I am with mcnach though. I don't believe you have to love your fellow musos to be in a good band. In fact, the better the musos that i get to play with the more socially inept and strange they seem to be. But thats not important. I don't want to sleep with them and already have a nice group of friends outside of the band thing.[/quote] Thats fair enough - BUT I've been at the stage where I just hate going to rehearsals because I know I'll be locked in a room with 4 other people who I dislike. Thats when it stops being fun - so for me their needs to be some social interation otherwise it becomes just hard work.

[quote name='mcnach' post='1222028' date='May 6 2011, 10:36 AM']exactly. I view bandmates as someone I share a fun activity with. Like it could be playing football on Sundays or something. Yes, tehre is some kind of bond developing usually, but it does not need to be strong, and sometimes there isn't one and our relationship is restricted to the times we rehearse and gig together. One of the bands I'm in now, we've been together for over 2 years, except the drummer who's a recent addition. We get along great. I truly rate them all as players and as persons, but we very rarely do anything together outside the band. We chat and joke together, our trips for gigs are fun... if any of them needed anything I'd do my best to help... but I don't consider them close friends. With other bands, the bond was much less. And there's one band I joined last summer where things just "clicked" and we're already a bunch of friends who play together... Sometimes you become friends, sometimes you don't. Bottomline is: it's not necessary to have a good band going. It's great if it happens, and you do need a certain degree of "affinity" (unless you're a real mercenary and just view the band as a job, full stop, which is fine too... it depends what you're after... it's not the way I earn a living, so I'm only looking for it to be fun and hopefully pay for itself)... but it's not necessary to be friends.[/quote] This is really interesting, since when I started to get back into bands 3 years ago it was primarily a social thing to meet people who shared my interests, just as I join an astronomy group because I like looking at stars. I had forgotten that this isnt everyone else's motivation and some people, even at the amateur level, are in bands purely to play music or to satisfy their ego. Whenever I look at things this way, my experience of bands makes a lot more sense. Bottom line is for some people its all just business.

[quote name='chris_b' post='1221786' date='May 5 2011, 11:50 PM']Like I said go for it, but I wouldn't join with any attitude or resentment about being second choice. That could be just shooting yourself in the foot. Be cool and blow them away with your playing.[/quote] You obviously havent heard me play

cheers guys - on balance it looks like proceed with caution , which is pretty much what I had thought I'd do anyway

[quote name='chris_b' post='1221301' date='May 5 2011, 05:25 PM']Four good points and only one bad point. What are you waiting for?[/quote] I suppose the question ss how much does one out weight four because if I get messed around again I'm be off bands for a very long time

If anyone who has been following my progress knows I havent had much luck with bands in fact after the last lot ditched me in Feb I havent touched my bass. Completely out of the blue I have just received an email from one of the bands who I audtioned for at Christmas time saying that they have been let down by their bass player and do I want the gig. Here's my dilema On the plus side, it gets me playing again with people of a good standard ( the guitarist is one of the best guitarists I've ever heard live) They are local to me They play 70 and 80's rock ( which I like) They have local well paid gigs On the negative side they mucked me about something rotten after the auditon , first they offered me the gig on the spot, then they refused to answer my telephone calls and emails and then went with someone else , so I'm not sure how much I trust them. Any thoughts ?

[quote name='ThomBassmonkey' post='1200533' date='Apr 15 2011, 12:12 PM']A lot seem to look at the lowest note in their chord then assume that that's the root note and chance a guess at the rest of the chord, that kind of thing.[/quote] Thats exactly what I do

Who cares if they know the chord names or not, if it sounds good and its fun then there's no problem. What do the other people in the band think of her ?

Cheers for the gig Clarky I really enjoyed it - next time I'd like to see you on a stage which the whole band can fit onto !

I think it comes down to several things - The listening at work thing ( although I do have headphones that I could use at lunchtime ) Not wishing to offend someone Not feeling confident enough in ones own ability to justify judging someone else Not liking the musical genre enough to give a fair opinion Not really having a strong opinion on the music Only coming onto basschat to look at gear and make knob jokes

"PRINCESS KNICKERS "

[quote name='Earbrass' post='1152429' date='Mar 7 2011, 01:04 PM']This is just silly. If the actors you saw were trying to reproduce, say, a well-known TV show, and slavishly copying the voices, mannerisms and actions of the more famous set of actors known for that show, then [b]that[/b] would be the theatrical equivalent to a tribute band.[/quote] Yeah it is silly but then again so is this whole argument. I think what your saying ( and I agree with ) is that as long as the artist puts something of themselves into it then it could be considered creative so creativity comes as much through the performance as it does through the creation of the work. Which I suppose is what classical musicans would use to argue that they are not just playing covers

[quote name='Bilbo' post='1152283' date='Mar 7 2011, 10:28 AM']I struggle to get past the idea that playing other people's stuff the way they played it is just pretending - one step up from a tennis racquet in front of the mirror. Tribute bands are just like taking the tennis racquet out in public - [/quote] I went to see a play last night and all the actors did was walk around the stage speaking words that they did nt write and pretending that there were things on the stage that I couldnt see. I wish that these people would keep their childish playacting to themselves - unless actors only speak words which they wrote themselves then their not real artists

[quote name='icastle' post='1149460' date='Mar 4 2011, 01:58 PM']Over here they're just belted as hard as possible in vague time with the tune... [/quote] sounds like I might be able to manage that then - things are looking up

[quote name='Truckstop' post='1149234' date='Mar 4 2011, 09:18 AM']I might be able to mosey on down. Anyone fancy meeting at the Intrepid Fox for a beerio and a cigarillo beforehand? Truckstop[/quote] Does that offer exclude non smokers

[quote name='Lozz196' post='1149219' date='Mar 4 2011, 09:05 AM']I also don`t learn very well when two people are pointing their guitars at my face saying "it goes like this" kindof annoys me.[/quote] I feckin hate it when they do that - it never ever helps and always makes things more confusing

rubbish- now I've just got home and found out that the tenants in my flat are refusing to pay the rent - some days its just not worth getting out of bed !! anyway thanks for your replies - I do feel more positive and perhaps a break might do me good . maybe I'll start taking an interest in that Bodhran I bought last summer

Actually this is the phrase which annoys me "Thanks very much for playing with us but we feel that due to our own fragility, we need a more solid foundation." I think their saying I'm rubbish