purpleblob

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='606792' date='Sep 23 2009, 04:18 PM']I have always considered Ken Smith basses to be fundamentally ugly[/quote] +1, they sound good but look butt ugly IMO.

[quote name='walbassist' post='588664' date='Sep 3 2009, 02:31 PM'][/quote] WOW ! another absolute beauty.

I never understand why there seems to be a trend towards knocking slap bass playing (well I suspect I do understand, it's all those Mark King wannabe's that are all technique and no musicallity). At the end of the day it's what ever works for the music whether it be slap, finger style or tapping (but please no plectrums ! )

[quote name='leschirons' post='601949' date='Sep 18 2009, 08:18 AM']...ended up bending his right thumb backwards.[/quote] Okay physical assualt beats my embarrasing moments hands down

Met Ian Gillan and all I could think to say was "you had a guitar shaped swimming pool". What a total plonker I was, Ian Gillan for goodness sake ! I was fairly young at the time, but then I suppose at least the conversation was different EDIT: Hmm, seems I am always putting my foot in it even on this thread as it was mean't to be "bass hero" and I don't think Gillan played bass .

[quote name='Deep Thought' post='600791' date='Sep 16 2009, 10:01 PM']This is strange to me-the first things I ever played on bass were lines I'd come up with myself-mainly so nobody could tell me I was playing them wrong![/quote] I haven't got the patience to learn other people stuff note for note. So a little like you so I tended to write my own stuff from a very early time so nobody could say I didn't get a line spot on. Too be honest though I far prefer coming up with my own stuff or improvisation than copying somebody else too closely but hey we're all different

"Is this the nicest bass ever made ?" No

It's such a shame hearing some of the problems people have had with the basscentre.com. I remember them when they were the Bass Centre in Wapping and more recently near Liverpool St. Always a joy to deal with them in those days. EDIT: Assuming they are really the old bass centre and somebody didn't just buy the name Actually I hadn't realised they'd gone totally mail order so one day too a long trek out to find the "shop" only to find a sad little place. I suppose you call it a warehouse but really it's just a shabby little door to a storeroom (or so it seems, maybe a bass player's Narnia lived just behind the door). I hope they sort themselves out and get the web business running smoothly.

Welcome and couldn't agree more about Maruc Miller's groove.

Total respect to you for the gesture. But never done this myself. I always fear the "if only I still had that bass" syndrome

[quote name='Muriel' post='596849' date='Sep 12 2009, 09:42 PM']There are several reasons for not wanting a bass teacher, one being I don't have any spare cash for lessons and the other is I love working things out for myself and doing thing my way. But now I feel I can't progress without proper guidance. Is there any alternatives or is having a proper teacher the only way?[/quote] Straight answer to your question is [b]no[/b] you do not [i]need[/i] a teacher ! However learning either directly from somebody else, such as in a student/teacher relationship or from simply playing with others will ofcourse help you (as long as the teacher/others are good enough themselves). There are numerous musicians out there who are superb players who never used a teacher and there are equally superb players who probably swear by having a teacher. One could ofcourse argue the definition of a teacher, i.e. I was in a band where the guitarist was just an immense musician and he taught me loads by just playing music with him several nights a week. If your technique is good then personally I would say get out and play with as many other musicians as possible, keep practising your technique, harmony and theory and train your ears. On the other hand if you find it difficult to motivate yourself to practise then maybe a teacher would be good for you and as long as you find a good tutor then ofcourse learning directly from others should help you.

"Are you a GAS addict?" I never really thought I was was, although I have a few instruments they've been collected over time, but since joining this site my relationship with my credit card is getting a little tense, seeing Sei's, Fodera's, Jaydee's, Pangborn's etc. is giving me strange urges. Is this normal ?

I think that spray can said "Ford Fiesta yellow" as it looks the same colour as really crap car I had in my youth - bad memories are flooding back looking at it !

In all honesty I doubt I have anything to add to what's aleady been said. It ultimately is horses for courses... Most people tend to aspire to something whether it's a high end bass, fast cars, big house or whatever - in some cases it can difficult to justify why one thing is better to have at the price than another at a lower price. All that really matters at the end of the day is what you are happy with, whether it cost £150 or £4500. When it comes down to it, it is simply personal taste.

What's the tracking like with the ghost on a bass ? The demo on the Graphtec site is very impressive but ofcourse this is a guitar not a bass, but wondering if this matters with the design of this being in he saddles, it sounds like it should be more accurate than a Roland pickup.

One word - superb !

So a month or so back I was watching, what looks like a lovely 4 string Pedulla Buzz on ebay being sold by absolutemusic solutions, it had a buy it now price of £1495. But I decided to go and buy a Sei fretless instead as I thought the price was a little high on the Pedulla. Anyhow, I noticed it's back and was listed with a buy it now of £1595, but today it's buy it now price has been amended to £1995 ! [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pedulla-Buzz-AA-PJ-Green-Blue-Sunburst-Fretless-Bass_W0QQitemZ270451049092QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV?hash=item3ef8238284&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Pedulla-Buzz-AA-PJ-G...id=p3286.c0.m14[/url] Is there a shortage of Pedulla Buzz's. This instrument is appreciating in value faster than my shares. Maybe I should have bought it as an investment vehicle

Any thoughts on the 10,000 year old mammoth ivory nut ? Not an option I tend to see from other luthiers

[quote name='ironside1966' post='589913' date='Sep 4 2009, 05:29 PM']I have a good understanding of harmony, modes I know what they are but not really how to use them.[/quote] One excercise I do (not often enough if truth be told) is record (or if you have a loop pedal even better) a single chord and play different modes over it just to get an idea of the sound/tension and a feel for the notes that work. Once you're happy with that do the same with three chords, a II V I pattern for example and play the arpeggios and modes over the chords - one of the most useful things I've found (not that I prretend to be an expert on soloing) is to then record your soloing and listen back to it. At this point you can see what you think works. Remember we're all different, so it's about what you like to hear (unless you're trying to recreate a solo from a specific tune ). By doing this you can experiment.

From one beautfiul bass to another one - congrats. that's something special as well.

[quote name='ironside1966' post='589504' date='Sep 4 2009, 11:27 AM']What’s a good place to start with jazz solos Is it a 12 bar using the blues scale? Anybody know any chops to get started[/quote] I've been listening to the Janek Gwizdala podcasts of late and he mentions transcribing existing Jazz music to try to get a feel for what some of your preferred artists were doing melodically and harmonically etc. Also saw some Adam Nitti vids on youtube where he talks about some of the possibilites for soloing including the (mentioned by Doddy) use of arpeggios etc. also talks about using the modes to add different dimensions to your soloing. Sorry cannot recall the url's but I'm sure a quick search via your fav. search engine will find the info. if it's of interest.

[quote name='fretless bob' post='589508' date='Sep 4 2009, 11:27 AM']and heres Pino with it at the gallery, feel free to have a look if your down the gallery in the next week or so.[/quote] You traded it for Pino and a bass, nice trade !