lojo Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 Saw them live in the early days and thought he was great, and whenever Ive had to cover them, the lines never bore me. Think he was an important ingredient in the Blur sound, unlike Oasis at the time, Blur where very bass driven, which made them exciting to me. Need to try some of his cheese Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chriswareham Posted December 22, 2014 Share Posted December 22, 2014 I'm sure I read somewhere that he played "incognito" with Zodiac Mindwarp a few years ago. They are both contributors to the Idler magazine, although Alex didn't realise at first that the mild looking Mark Manning was really priapic rock god Zodiac :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcnach Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 [quote name='Roland Rock' timestamp='1419179264' post='2637277'] I also remember reading an interview where he was asked what bass he played, and in a rhetorical gesture shrugged and asked the tech, who informed him that it was a Stingray. He went on to state that to a bassist, the choice of bass was no more important than the choice of pen is to an author. I was a bit outraged at this at the time, but am coming round to that viewpoint more and more. [/quote] But in those times in the 90s it was "cool" to pretend to not know anything technical at all, remember? I used to buy Guitarist magazine at the time and I would dispair... all the BS "oh, I don't know what I'm playing"... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roland Rock Posted December 23, 2014 Share Posted December 23, 2014 [quote name='mcnach' timestamp='1419363022' post='2639210'] But in those times in the 90s it was "cool" to pretend to not know anything technical at all, remember? I used to buy Guitarist magazine at the time and I would dispair... all the BS "oh, I don't know what I'm playing"... [/quote] Yeah, like I say, asking the tech was a rhetorical gesture - not genuine, just done to make a point. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
interpol52 Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 My little boy who is 4 loves Blur! We had the Best of Blur album on in the car today and that prompted me to learn Boys and Girls and Charmless Man this evening. Great bass lines, really good fun to play too. Boys and Girls has that disco type line that we all know but Charmless Man is pretty good too, the feel of it took a while for me to get right. Good P bass tone too, solid as a rock. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ticktock Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 With regards to the "What do I play?" question and the statement about authors and pens- I have read the same about photographers, they are obsessed with gear when they start out then become so blasé and state that equipment doesn't matter. Finally, when they become proficient at their craft, they get obsessed by gear to see what will give them and edge and make their job easier......... I think this is true of any profession. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spectoremg Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 There were loads of bass players in bands in the 90's with this 'oh really, is it a Fender I'm holding in front of this Ampeg stack' attitude. It was all about image and their bass techs were probably working their asses off. Noel Gallagher once said the Oasis bass player turned up with a 5-string and he told him to get rid of it. Listen to the first album and there's a detune on 'Up In The Sky'. Regardless, I like Alex's stuff and he seems a decent guy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbass4k Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 I don't get Blur, and by extension, Alex James. I just don't get it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ambient Posted March 28, 2015 Share Posted March 28, 2015 Never been a particular fan of blur, or similar bands. Off topic slightly, Alex does do a good show on Classic FM - [url="http://www.classicfm.com/radio/shows/alex-jamess-date-night/"]http://www.classicfm.com/radio/shows/alex-jamess-date-night/[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ahpook Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Fantastic bassplayer - listen to 'Tracy Jacks' and tell me otherwise ! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyrene Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Entertain Me's bass line is magnificent. I like him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grassie Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 Had to learn "Parklife" recently, not too taxing, quite boring on it's own in fact. But when we all play it the punters usually go nuts for it. I like Alex's playing, the perfect antidote to Graham Coxon's punk/hardcore leanings. Graham once said it was his job to "f**k up Alex's funk" but they work well together. Blur have just been announced for the Isle of Wight festival so I'll get to experience them live for the first time. Looking forward to it. 😁 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deedee Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 [quote name='40hz' timestamp='1419178798' post='2637261'] I know the term underrated is thrown about and clichéd but it really does apply to Alex massively. Great Stingray and Precison tones, inventive, melodic basslines. He's a really nice bloke in real life and cool as f*** to boot! [/quote] I agree 100% with this. A great bass player, a thoroughly nice chap AND I bought some of his rather lovely cheese 😜 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JoeEvans Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 A friend was at school with Alex James and told me that it's not actually his real name. I think he's called Dave really, but changed it because he felt uncomfortable having two Daves in the band. I wouldn't want to vouch for the truth of this in any way, I have to say, but there it is all the same. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KiOgon Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 [quote name='JoeEvans' timestamp='1427663319' post='2732866'] A friend was at school with Alex James and told me that it's not actually his real name. I think he's called Dave really, but changed it because he felt uncomfortable having two Daves in the band. I wouldn't want to vouch for the truth of this in any way, I have to say, but there it is all the same. [/quote]http://lmgtfy.com/?q=Alex+James Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hobbayne Posted March 29, 2015 Share Posted March 29, 2015 [b]Steven Alexander "Alex" James[/b] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alex_James_%28musician%29 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike f Posted June 19, 2015 Share Posted June 19, 2015 I'm enjoying The Magic Whip. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BrunoBass Posted November 20, 2015 Share Posted November 20, 2015 Interesting, inventive player. 'Girls and Boys' particularly is a great homage to the likes of John Taylor without descending into pastiche. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tonyquipment Posted November 20, 2015 Share Posted November 20, 2015 [quote name='PaulGibsonBass' timestamp='1448027310' post='2912452'] Interesting, inventive player. 'Girls and Boys' particularly is a great homage to the likes of John Taylor without descending into pastiche. [/quote] Yep. Really tight baseline It's that octave esque staccato playing Need to up my game ha Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cytania Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 [quote name='JoeEvans' timestamp='1427663319' post='2732866'] A friend was at school with Alex James and told me that it's not actually his real name. I think he's called Dave really, but changed it because he felt uncomfortable having two Daves in the band. I wouldn't want to vouch for the truth of this in any way, I have to say, but there it is all the same. [/quote] Alex is his middle name, first name Steven not Dave. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cytania Posted November 21, 2015 Share Posted November 21, 2015 (edited) [quote name='spectoremg' timestamp='1427584576' post='2732100'] There were loads of bass players in bands in the 90's with this 'oh really, is it a Fender I'm holding in front of this Ampeg stack' attitude. It was all about image and their bass techs were probably working their asses off. Noel Gallagher once said the Oasis bass player turned up with a 5-string and he told him to get rid of it. Listen to the first album and there's a detune on 'Up In The Sky'. Regardless, I like Alex's stuff and he seems a decent guy. [/quote] One of Oasis's secrets is that the bass parts are often played by Noel Gallagher in the studio. This is clearly so he can stamp the simplistic no-frills basslines he wants onto the recording leaving the Oasis bass player of the moment to follow on. Edited November 21, 2015 by cytania Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Admiral Posted November 22, 2015 Share Posted November 22, 2015 [quote name='40hz' timestamp='1419178798' post='2637261'] I know the term underrated is thrown about and clichéd but it really does apply to Alex massively. Great Stingray and Precison tones, inventive, melodic basslines. He's a really nice bloke in real life and cool as f*** to boot! [/quote] I also saw him featured on one of those house programmes, and not only does he have a beautiful farmhouse, complete with home studio and a library, but his wife is gorgeous, and seems a very nice woman too. Good luck to him! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 Thread resurrection time. Heard Girls & Boys on the radio earlier and thought would give it a go - man what a great bassline to play, though have to admit my fingers are tripping over each other much like a Laurel & Hardy film. I`ll get it, but for now have decided learning it on my Jazz bass is the way forward. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Reggaebass Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 4 minutes ago, Lozz196 said: Heard Girls & Boys on the radio earlier Is it this one Lozz 🙂 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubit Posted June 4, 2020 Share Posted June 4, 2020 13 minutes ago, Lozz196 said: Thread resurrection time. Heard Girls & Boys on the radio earlier and thought would give it a go - man what a great bassline to play, though have to admit my fingers are tripping over each other much like a Laurel & Hardy film. I`ll get it, but for now have decided learning it on my Jazz bass is the way forward. Always loved that bass line. I used to know it at the time but have forgotten it. Thanks for that I will re learn it now. Happy thread resurrection. I like to re invent old threads as they are still just as relevant now as they were. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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