First gig played, where and when.

[Deedee]

5 minutes ago, ubit said:

Aria Pro II. That’s a name that conjures up the 80’s. are they still in business? You never hear about them nowadays 

Still going but seem to manufacture predominantly for the Japanese market. There's an interesting thread here:

https://www.basschat.co.uk/topic/335664-aria-making-a-comeback/

 

Edited January 24, 2019 by Deedee

[BigRedX]

N.Hayashi who designed all the iconic Aria Pro II guitars and basses in the late 70s and early 80s now runs Atlansia.

[tauzero]

1 hour ago, Paul S said:

Was yours a heavy one? Mine was, had to move it on when my back went from 'acute' to 'chronic'.  Lovely thing, though.

It's a long time ago - I was 18 and it was my first bass, so I didn't have anything to compare it with. I PXed it for a P which was a bit lighter, but I think the fretless P I had later was heavier.

[Leen2112]

December 1987 in Dalgety Bays local church (Fife Scotland).....not that we were regulars there but they had a stage. I played guitar then......we got payed in juice and crisps that didn't sell (we were all ages 16/17) and i think we were awful but i enjoyed it.  

[ubit]

19 minutes ago, Leen2112 said:

December 1987 in Dalgety Bays local church (Fife Scotland).....not that we were regulars there but they had a stage. I played guitar then......we got payed in juice and crisps that didn't sell (we were all ages 16/17) and i think we were awful but i enjoyed it.  

I’ve still got a poster for one of our first gigs. Tickets £1.50.  We hired a minibus to ferry people out to the village hall 15miles out of town. Sell out crowd, managed to hire a pa, the minibus and got a five way split too. Try getting kids to travel out of town to an amateur gig nowadays!

 

I should add that we were not as good as we thought. I think the youth of the day were starved of a good night out at a dance back then. 

Edited January 24, 2019 by ubit

[tauzero]

Mention of posters reminds me that I drew a logo for that first band, and then discovered that the rest of the band thought the name was spelt differently to what I thought. The band was called Cymex, the name of a vacuum cleaner brand, as one of the members had a single which was an advert for the brand which started "5, 4, 3, 2, 1 - the Cymex are coming" and we used this to introduce ourselves on "stage". However, the others hadn't noticed the spelling and went phonetically, spelling it "Simex". Probably just as well we only did two gigs 😁

[Marvin]

I was a late starter. My first gig was June 2011, so I was in my 30s. It was at pub in the middle of nowhere called The Pig On The Hill. It was a truly awful gig. The guitarist was a gear maniac and we had a massive PA which unfortunately he didn't know how to set up properly. Hence everything was going through the bass bin speakers and no one could hear the vocals. We ended up turning the monitors around to face the audience so they could hear something. The guitarist also made a howler of a mistake. He had a detuning pedal. The idiot forgot to switch it off for a song and it predictably sounded dreadful. I thought my bass had gone out of tune.

The band split 6 months later.

[ubit]

@Marvin   Reminds me of the time I played the first song with my Eflat tuned guitar when the song was in standard. I’m also the singer , so it was a horrible panic trying to play one fret out and sing 😩

[sammybee]

I've never had the balls to play bass or guitar live - I'm too much of a perfectionist and happy just playing for myself. But I'm particularly proud of my daughter who played her first gig in a pub at the age of 9 (just before xmas). She played bass and 6 string in the same gig. Proud dad. https://youtu.be/ikq0479EkM4

[ubit]

@sammybee  playing live is the ultimate goal of learning to play. There is no better feeling than performing and making people enjoy themselves. Getting a cheer after a song makes all the rehearsing, lugging of gear and sweat worthwhile!

[Leonard Smalls]

5 minutes ago, ubit said:

playing live is the ultimate goal of learning to play

Not necessarily!

Some folks just want the joy of making music, without having to perform.

I was listening to Desert Island Discs the other day, with Tracey Thorne; she said she sang for the 1st time with a band from inside a cupboard as she was so shy. As a result she doesn't appear live much at all, just does recording.

[knirirr]

10 minutes ago, Leonard Smalls said:

 

Some folks just want the joy of making music, without having to perform.

 

Generally, private rehearsals/jams seem to have been the most fun for me; all the enjoyment of playing with other musicians, but without any travel difficulties or hassle from the audience or venue staff.

[sammybee]

2 hours ago, ubit said:

@sammybee  playing live is the ultimate goal of learning to play. There is no better feeling than performing and making people enjoy themselves. Getting a cheer after a song makes all the rehearsing, lugging of gear and sweat worthwhile!

I'm happier jamming with others, without an audience - or recording. For me, the learning is about the journey rather than the destination.

[antnee]

I'm sad to have said that I've never played a gig in my life. I would like to change that but bands I've played/jammed with have never got that far.

Now struggling with the motivation to get to the point of gigging/practising.

Anyone got a violin? 🎻

[odysseus]

Wendron Cricket Club in darkest Cornwall, in 1989 when I was 19 years old.  We were called Cut Loose.  Played a metallic pink Charvel bass which I thought was great until I played a bog standard 2nd hand Ibanez Roadster that knocked spots off it and prompted a swift trade-in.  Songs included Bon Jovi's Runaway, All Right Now (of course), You Really Got Me (yeah, I know..), Waiting For an Alibi, Closer To The Heart (brave effort!), More Than A Feeling.... can't remember much else.  It was OK,... no disgrace...

[ubit]

On 23/01/2019 at 13:25, bassbiscuits said:

I played a white Westone Spectrum ST on my first gig! Yours looks like a DX....

Went up the loft and dug it out. It needs the neck straightened. I'll need to find a short reach Allan key. It a bit crackly too, maybe need to have a look inside and clean up the electrics. The bridge needs taken off and painted. Other than that, it still plays. It's a GT model according to the legend on the head.

[Stub Mandrel]

The gig in my avatar pic! Probably 1987 with Drastic Action 'high energy rock and roll from Kenfig Hill...' Mercifully it was a relative of a band members wedding reception. We had quite a long set list so I think everyone was glad when we ended and the disco started so they could dance. By then I probably had my Laney amp and an 18" cab that weighed about 200lbs. Bass looks like my Hohner jazz copy, now with my brother in Scotland. Sounded great but a really bland bit of wood for the body.

 

I used to think we were crap, but listening to echoey old practice tapes we got really tight by the end and the audience s seemed happy enough - usually working men's clubs and pubs. Once we did a rock club in maesteg and did smoke on the water. There was a lad writhing on the floor like Angus young... Aye those were the days.

 

 

Edited February 16, 2019 by Stub Mandrel

[darkandrew]

On 29/01/2019 at 12:08, ubit said:

Went up the loft and dug it out. It needs the neck straightened. I'll need to find a short reach Allan key. It a bit crackly too, maybe need to have a look inside and clean up the electrics. The bridge needs taken off and painted. Other than that, it still plays. It's a GT model according to the legend on the head.

And here's my Westone Spectrum GT too. I'm surprised how popular they appear to have been - they were great basses (typical Matsumoku) but I don't ever remember seeing anyone else playing one back in the day.

 

Edited February 19, 2019 by darkandrew

[ubit]

As I said before , I paid £200 back in 1984, so in today’s money that’s quite a sum. Fenders were round about the £500 back then if I remember correctly , so that gives a bit of a bench mark.