Franticsmurf

As I recall, the specific incident was after a gig in one of the working men's clubs in Bedlinog. But in the duo days we regularly used to get lost trying to find these tiny venues. 😀

"On a dark, lonely mountain, With the wind in my hair I could see the street lights Several miles over there Then a voice in the distance Said 'turn left by the trees You can drive off any time you like But you can never leave' Welcome to the Rhondda Cynon Valley Such a lonely place, such a lonely place Playing a gig in the Rhondda Cynon Valley No bars on the phone, and no way home"

My mate Simon, the drummer in the first few bands I was in, was an excellent drummer. He had the technique for our music (prog/rock/heavy/indie) and in the studio he was able to focus to nail the drum tracks every time. He didn't play to a click and wasn't metronome perfect but he had the feel of the songs (maybe because he wrote or co-wrote many of them) and it was rare for him to be more than a few seconds over or under the time for each take. It was a rare day that he wouldn't get his drum parts done within two play-throughs and they never had to drop in to correct him. I would offer to play a guide guitar part with him and more often than not I'd be making mistakes while he carried on with the correct part despite my distractions. Later I started recording the band myself and I think I was spoilt with him as a drummer as I assumed that was how all drummers were. The reality was that with the few other bands I went on to record, the drummers never matched up to his standard. They were pretty loose and hard to work with, often didn't know how to tune their kit (I didn't either but I knew that they usually needed to be tuned), relied heavily on their bandmates to play along so they knew where they were in the song and inevitably they'd take the longest to get their parts right.

I'm days away from turning 60. 1. Done that. In darkest South Wales, where many of the valley villages have yet to experience electricity* 2. Similar, relying on directions from locals and ending up on top of a lonely mountain looking down on the lights of the road I'm meant to be on, several miles away and with no clue of how to reach it. 3. Introducing the wife of the guitarist I'd been playing with for more than 10 years to a friend, and at the crucial naming moment, finding out that I'd forgotten her name. 4. For variety, I also use 'pardon', 'what' and occasionally just nod and smile in the hope it will satisfy the individual. 5. Done this, with the added horror of having asked the FOH sound guy what he'd done to my amp when plugging in the DI cable to make it die on me before checking the volume controls. I did apologise. It was awful. I deny flashing anyone, but see #3 for a possible explanation. (*may not be true)

Tier 2 yes - it's kit but not bass specific kit.

One of the bands I'm in does this, although I am friendly with the BL as we've gigged for years in duos (and he runs a music shop and does mates rates). The other band (The Hulla) started as a social event rather than a band so it's the polar opposite. The drummer and I are outsiders in that we live 30 minutes away from the village in which the rest reside. Last year we had a pre-festival gig set up/soudcheck breakfast at a local eatery (we set up the stage, went for a late brekkie, then did the soundcheck), a Pie 'n' Mash night, several wine and cake events (some coinciding with rehearsals) and there's usually a carol concert on the beach (its a seaside village). Several members are also RNLI volunteers so there's often fundraisers for them which involve cake and wine. The rehearsals are very much social events at which we play music. And occasionally we do play a gig. 😀

My question would be who are these xxxx more people? If they're local to the venue, interested in the genre of live music and there is a realistic chance they could attend the gig, then perhaps the £xx is worth investing. But if they're a bunch of randoms across the country then it seems to me to be pointless. As a general rule I would not pay for FB advertising.

After my tier 2 fail earlier, I have managed to resist anything bass related. In fact, although I regularly visit the gear orientated threads on here, there is nothing remotely tickling my GAS fancy at the moment, which is unusual. It either means I'm cured of GAS (I know - "My name is Dave and I am a GASaholic - Its been 158 days since my last bass related purchase.") or a long dormant sensibility gene has been activated. 😃 Edit: I have another 28 days to go to beat last year's record.

I used to think I hated Mustang Sally, mainly through endlessly playing it in bands/duos and the inevitable 'mom dancing' (is that a thing?) that would accompany it. We ended up vetoing it in the band. Then after about 5 years of not playing it. It was requested at a function and we had to do it. And I enjoyed playing it! What I actually hated was the baggage surrounding it. I feel the same dislike of Wonderwall and I haven't played that one for a few years either. It's not one I would ever suggest but I am open to that possibility that coming back to it with fresh fingers might change that opinion. So I guess my answer to the OP is no, nothing I hate with a passion.

And the other 43.2% are based on inaccurate or false data. 😃 I have a 5 string Sterling. I keep thinking I should sell as I rarely play it - and then a song comes up that 'needs' it. That said, it's currently resting, as are my small (for a 5 string bassist) hands. 😃

I've been using a cheap picnic table from Go Outdoors for the last year or so. I like having the speakers raised and for gigs where I use backline, the picnic table raises them about 18"/50cm of the ground. It folds up flat and if necessary I can drape a black cloth over it to make it more inconspicuous.

Yes, definitely. When I'm learning a new song I start by getting the basic structure right so that I can play through the song at a rehearsal, and then go back to pick up the fills and twiddles. More often than not I will make up my own fills that suit my ability and style and the arrangement we settle on. I'm not a purist and I'm more interested in adding something different than slavishly following the original. But it's quite educational to go back to a song that I know and have played for years to find out what was originally being played and I've learnt some new techniques by doing that. Every day is, indeed, a school day. 😃 I recently had an offer of an audition and one of the pieces they asked me to learn was 'Fool For Your Lovin'. I'd played that many times so no problem, but the band asked me to learn it note for note as this was the way they did all their covers. I decided (for the reasons above) that the band wasn't for me and they appreciated that. But as an exercise I decided to learn the original bass part myself. What a revelation! The song I thought I knew had far more happening on bass that I had ever realised.

I rehearse with the Hulla band most Sundays. For most of them, it's the only time they play and the night is as much a social gathering as a practice. Beer flows (they're all within walking distance of the hall we use) and for me and the drummer (30 minutes drive away) there's tea! If a birthday has been celebrated that week, there's always cake and we've had 'Pie 'n' Mash' nights, wine tasting etc as well. Last night was a regular rehearsal (our next gig is at the end of April so we're working on new stuff rather than working up a set) but for some reason it clicked and it was one of the best sessions playing as a band I've had with them. The sound was good (it usually is but last night was better), the song mix was all up tempo and mostly the rockier stuff we do and we sailed through the new songs with little or no pauses for clarification. Edit: We played Whole of the Moon and Come Up and See Me as a little tribute to Karl Wallinger and Steve Harley. Both songs are regulars in the set anyway but it seemed a nice thing to do. I used my Sire Marcus Miller V5, which has been resting for a few months, through the Zoom B6 directly into the desk with a mix out to my in-ears. I tend to use two main patches on the B6 at the moment, both tweaked to my liking. One is based on a clean SVT4 andf I have the option to bring in chorus, flange and overdrive. The other is based on a clean Trace Elliot and that has the option to add chorus, flange and echo. Last night I tried out a fretless patch (nice but didn't add to the song) and an untouched patch ('Progressive') which gave me a nice clanky Ricky sound that will be staying on the board.

So it was quite quiet and poorly attended but the bass solo was great? 😂

I think, from my experience and from comments made on this site, that the standard UK bar/pub gig is moving towards 2hrs+. When I started playing live, we were using an agent and the contracts were mostly on the working men's club circuit. Usually there were two acts (most of the time I played it was a band and a solo singer) and they'd share the bill with the bingo. Each act would have 2x45 minutes and often it would be Act 1, Act 2, break, Act 1, Act 2. The mid set break was to allow several games of bingo to be played. I don't know what the equivalent venue in the US would be, but in South Wales these places were clubs for the coal miners and other industrial workers set up as mini theatres. A village might have grown up around a mine and the only entertainment to be had would be in the club. As a result, some of these places were really well equipped with a proper stage, decent dressing rooms and subsidised bars. In the early 90s when I started, there were even rules that banned women from the bar (!) and that no one could dance during the first half of the act.

Most of the gigs I play are booked as 2x45min but it's rare we play for less than 2hrs and I'm more than happy with that. With the Hulla band, the band leader is a Bruce Springsteen fan and when I first joined he had never considered a break (and the others in the band never challenged him) because 'The Man' plays long gigs. The first full gig I played with them was at the festival they organise every year. It's a multi act line up going on all day and we finish the event. I had an idea when I saw the set list of 35 songs it would be long, but with the some extended intros, chats with the audience, chorus repeats to let the crowd dance and sing along and a pause while the three memebers of the band who are RNLI volunteers had to ensure there was cover when the alarms went off (three RNLI volunteers in the audience were on call that night), it ended up just under 4 hrs. Last year's festival gig (my third with them) was 4.5hrs with a 15 minute break (one of the things I brought to the party). I remember flagging a bit during the 3rd hour before picking up again as the style of music changed to a more energetic style. I don't mind too much in that band as we have fun within the band (there are 13-14 on stage depending on the songs) but the reality is that having two acts to fill the same time would be better for the audience.

I find the same with auditions (not that I've had many) and depping. If you approach with that attitude it can also help take some of the stress and pressure away from the experience.

I did that for an audition a couple of years ago - I think I had five specific and the full setlist as an indicator of what the band did. Like you, I knew quite a few and I made sure I could busk through all of them (having nailed the specific 5 of course). Flew through the 5, then the second bassist due to audition didn't turn up and they had an hour left on the studio booking, so we played the rest of the set. I got the gig but even if I hadn't, being familiar with the other songs made it a fun evening rather than a quick in-and-out for all. Good luck with your audition.

The exchange rate fluctuates wildly depending on how hungry you are. 😃 In this case it was additional to the agreed fee so it was hard to tell what financial market they based their figures on. 😃

It's a lovely old building. Glad it was a good gig and gutted I couldn't make it. But... we got part payment for our gig in bacon. You can't beat that! 😃

Just the one broken ankle, Dave? Hardly worth mentioning. When I were a lad, I gigged with two broken ankles, a dislocated knee, a finger gaffa taped on after losing it to a lift door blah blah... 😂

It was a good night despite my last minute gear swapping. It was a well attended local version of the Caravan and Camper club, with about 50 people in a smallish rugby club lounge, which made the atmosphere good. We did a mix of oldies and rock n roll as the audience were largely of retirement age. I don't like playing to backing tracks but the ones we used last night were of good quality. The singer uses them for his solo act but I've only played to these once or twice, years ago so the endings were a bit hit or miss. But the atmosphere in the room was good and it didn't seem to spoil things. I had planned on using the Bass VI for some of the lively rock and roll but the backing tracks had a prominent bass to them so the VI sat largely unused. It did arouse the interest of one punter and we had a chat about it as he'd never heard of the model before. We did about a quarter of the set with just two guitars and no backing. I was pleased with my backing vocals - I could hear them through the PA without in-ears, which is a rarity, and I got complimented on them. I went with this pedal combo in the end which went into a BAM200 with the tone set as neutral as possible (thanks to info supplied from people of this parish). This drove my Basschat designed home made 12" cab. I took my Zoom B4 for the drum machine as an emergency back up (I've played with this singer when his laptop with all the backing tracks has just died) and we used it for one song. It was ok as a back up. By the end of the night we had picked up a garden party gig for the band, another duo gig for the Caravan club, a band gig for the Caravan club's Christmas bash and a booking (to be confirmed) at the rugby club. We were paid a little extra (which is always nice) and we had bacon! How many gigs pay in bacon? 😃 I tested it this morning:

That's very kind, thanks.

I'd try to get to that gig but I'm playing elsewhere tonight. It's windy but sunny here this morning. Have a good one. 😃

On Wednesday I had a call to ask if I was available for a duo gig on guitar tonight. Later that day it became a trio with me on bass (hoorah!) and my mate on drums in a line up that last played together two years ago (even bigger hoorah as it was a good line up). We met Wednesday evening to go through the set and it was clear the drummer wasn't well with some kind of bug. On Thursday, he told us he couldn't do the gig and it became a duo again. The singer said he had a dep drummer and it became a trio once more. This morning, after several phone calls it has finally been declared a duo gig. In the last three days I've been swapping guitars/bass/pedal boards and amp/cab combinations more often than a progressive rock musician. But I've decided to take my HB Bass VI along to give it an airing as well as the toy guitar. The gig is a semi regular event for the local Caravan and Camping club (I haven't played it for a couple of years but the singer does a couple a year for them) and we're hoping for band bookings. Rig for tonight: This or this and this or this or this etc 😂 And this: with this