Grassie

"Monuments And Melodies" by Incubus. Looking forward to the new album in July.

[quote name='Pete Academy' post='1226666' date='May 10 2011, 08:07 PM']Some years ago I was doing a private party in a marquee with a funk/soul covers band. We were due to go on at 9.30pm, but it was delayed until 11.30pm. During those two hours I drank copious amounts of a free and extremely potent cocktail called 'Spiny Norman'. By the time we were ready to go on, I was totally hammered. I had to be carried to the stage. I put on my bass and almost fell through the marquee wall. The band kicked in, and I joined them about four bars later, and in totally the wrong key. This continued throughout the set. After the gig a woman came up and congratulated us on a great performance. [/quote] "Spiny Norman" shall be the name of my new band...

[quote name='Gust0o' post='1224976' date='May 9 2011, 12:19 PM'][/quote] Ideal for Cock-Rock...

[quote name='JakeFoordBass' date='May 9 2011, 08:31 PM' post='1225526'] Hands up who's had gigs with reaaallllyyy sh*t drummers??? Guessing quite a common one. Our original drummer was definitely not sh*t, but we did a wedding reception as one of our early gigs, all of us except the drummer arrived at the agreed time and proceeded to set the gear up. 20 minutes before we're due to start, still no drummer. 10 minutes before we're due to start - still no drummer. Managed to get hold of him on his mobile - conversation goes something like this: "Andy, where the f*** are you? We're due to go on any minute!" "Smmurry, I wsss aslllpp" "Pardon?" "Sorry mate, I was asleep and I've just woken up, I'll be there in about 20 minutes." He turns up 30 mins later, takes another 30 minutes to set his kit up, and then halfway through the first set, disappears for a piss..... Great drummer and top bloke though...

Not really as bad as some mentioned on this thread so far but: 1). First gig with a replacement singer, he did well to learn 30+ songs in two weeks, but when it came to the gig he forgot about 70% of the words and arrangements. Then his mum and her boyfriend started playing "tonsil hockey" in front of us as we were playing - that might have put him off a bit... 2). Our last gig together was at the end of last month, an annual event for us called Over The Edge, a motorbike rally here on the Isle of Wight. Imagine if you will around 1000 pissed up bikers in a large marquee. Now this was our 5th year of playing this event, all the punters are of a good nature, well up for some loud, good-time music, and we've never had an incident during those 5 years. Until a rather drunk, large lady either tripped over something or just lost her balance and smashed her head on the front of the stage, knocking her out cold. We were about two thirds of the way through our set when the organiser came on to shut us down until the ambulance arrived for her. We went back on some 30 minutes later to a half full marquee and an atmosphere like she'd died. She didn't and she recovered well, I'm pleased to add. But not the best ending to 6 years of gigging and good times...

Maple...want one...

If it bothers you that much, and is causing you genuine discomfort with itchiness, go to the doc's. You never know - you might get your problem solved quicker that way. I would stay away from talc - that will get in all the nooks and crannies of your bass, and royally f*** it up.

+1 for the Warwick Reds - that's it for me now - can't see the point in buying other brands when these are well priced, last a long time too, a lot of "zing" for your "cha-ching".

No, I'm not talking about Alan-is-a-Marmoset, but the fact that my current band which I have been playing with for the past 6 years is coming to an end (final gig on Friday 29th April), and I've just discovered what [i]could[/i] be the perfect tone from my set-up. After playing a MIM Jazz through a Hartke HA4000 + VX 4x10 cab for the past 3 years, we had our last rehearsal last night, and as we all know the set list inside out, I thought I'd have a little play with the EQ on the head. Wound the "D-Bass" right back, knocked the top end on the amp back to flat, turned everything up on the bass and played most of the set with a .46 pick. Well, scratch my scrotum with a space shuttle! I finally managed to cut through 2 "git"-arists and our drummer, with a tone that remained "creamy". Never been much of a pick player, but, as we play a lot of modern rock (Foos, Green Day, KOL etc.) I've found it necessary to use one on occasion, but have always used a 1.52 pick. I've found that the .46 gives a clearer "bite" and has more give than a 1.52, making up-down strokes easier and more defined. I've always preferred to go fingerstyle since taking up the bass in 1994, as I'm a big fan of the FONK and players like Flea and Mark King to name but two, but have struggled in the past year or so to get a consistent tone using just fingers on songs that require constant eighths or sixteenths (I used to play along to a lot of Michael Anthony's later stuff with Van Halen as well), and I also started to get problems in my wrist from playing our material using fingers, so it looks like I might well be using a pick almost exclusively in the future, as I can get pretty FONKY with a pick as well! So I just thought I'd share that with ya! If you're struggling with your tone or fancy a change, just completely change your playing style! Works for me!

I was given the chance to buy a (I think) a 75 P-bass back in 96. I had just bought a MIA Deluxe Jazz 5 'er, and didn't like the way P's sounded at the time - it seemed that a lot of the Britpop bands were keen on winding the treble up full whack, taking as much bottom end out as possible and playing with a pick, to give their basses a horrible, plastic-y type of sound. I thought all precisions sounded like that so I steered clear. The guy selling it wanted £400. I would now give my right testicle to own such a bass. Isn't hindsight always 20-20?

Sorry, just seen the related earlier thread...[b]RRP[/b][i][/i] £490 for a Squire???? Sheeeyet! Still want one though...

GAS...it's a terrible thing y'know? I like that a lot. How much did you pay, if you don't mind me asking? And did you say it was made from pine???

I bought a MIM Jazz after playing a MIA Deluxe 5'er for 8 years (sold the MIA to pay for a new amp), and beacause i wanted to go back to a 4 string. My MIM Jazz is a dream to play, looks good (all Jazzes do) and sounds great. I always struggled to get the sound I wanted out of the MIA, and now, after playing the mex for 3 years, I've realised that it's down to the mex being passive - no need for fiddling, both pickups on full, wind the tone back, turn the low end down on the amp and voila! FONK machine. I also have a VM Squire fretless Jazz - very nice, but feels a lot lighter than the mex, and for some reason, the Duncan Designed pickups are a lot quieter than the ones on my MIM....go figure...

Just the green LED dot markers to go then...?

I've never really been keen on the look of these basses, but that, my man, is one sexy instrument. Is that what they call a "pea"-bass...?

Tell you what - hope I look as good as Bowie does when I get to - what is he? 60 something? Whatever. He's a genius, and Gail Ann Dorsey sings her arse off on Under Pressure. Goosebumps I'm telling ya...

Of course it is...but only at weekends...

I like to use gaffa tape to secure my bottle of Grolsch to my hand, in case I drop it...

Here I am, sat at home, clock-watching before I start a late shift at the most depressing place it's ever been my misfortune to work at. I'm reading this topic and I shall now go to work with a smile on my face. Thank you to all the professional piss-takers, you are men after my own heart. By the way, I bought a VM Squire Jazz fretless on here last year, and I am now considering taking up fretless exclusively. So the For Sale section works for me. P.S. If it was a Schecter Model T(im) I might have been interested...

Hi everyone, Bought a VM Jazz fretless last year, and would like some advice on strings. I've been playing it with some stainless roundwounds on for a while, but have just taken them off as 1) they are as dead as a dodo, and 2) they have started to mark the ebanol fingerboard. Now, as I understand it, flatwounds won't make a mess of the fingerboard, but will I get the same sound as I do with rounds? I love the tone the late, great Mick Karn got from his bass and would be happy if I could get close to that sound, but I'm doubting I could do it with flats. Don't fancy ground/halfwounds as I don't want to bugger the fingerboard any more. I appreciate that this thread has probably been started before, but I would love to hear your opinions on this.... Cheers

Soundcloud and Hyped Sound are two others that spring to mind... : )

[quote name='ezbass' post='1082397' date='Jan 8 2011, 06:18 PM']A hugely underated player and a great harmony singer too. Van Halen's loss is Chickenfoot's gain.[/quote] Needs to ditch the Yammies and get back to the Stingrays IMO...

[quote name='Chris2112' post='1082280' date='Jan 8 2011, 04:37 PM']Funny, I was just listening to "RV" by Faith No More and thinking about how awesome Bill Gould is![/quote] The humour in FNM's stuff gets overlooked sometimes - RV is hilarious!

May I chuck my two pence worth in? 1. Mark King - When I was ten and discovered Level 42, then discovered MK is from the same place as me (the Isle of Wight), I realised anything is possible. 2. Flea - First song I learnt to play was "Give It Away" - then proceeded to absorb every note from "Blood Sugar Sex Magic". 3. Gary Beers (INXS) - Economy with added groove - the most underrated player ever. 4. Michael Anthony (Van Halen) - Constant sixteenths like MA plays will give your forearm a hernia! Holds it down like no-one else in a rock band - replaced by EVH's 16 year old son - bass playings biggest travesty. 5. Billy Gould - Killer tone, killer attitude, killer grooves (check out "King For A Day" from the album of the same name or "Stripsearch" from "Album Of The Year") Thangyewvermuch! Grant

"Adhan" by Michael Manring or "Standing On The Corner Of The Third World" by Tears For Fears - Mr. Palladino again. Total class, either of 'em.