Sunday, February 8, 2009

Has it beent that long?


Yes, I think it has.

Above is a Trussart Steelcaster Pink Paisley. Throw in a B-Bender and the spat of drooling will make me die of dehydration. This is my Gratuitous Tele Pic of the ... quarter? I would guess it has been three months since my last gear shot. I have been kinda busy. Including....

Playing Bass My musician friends and I have had a regular Tuesday jam, and as they're keys and guitar, I'm on bass. This is an interesting roll, because I think I can have more power over song direction on bass than as a second-chair guitarist. Not every bassist uses that power — for every Pastorius, Entwistle, Jamerson, Collins or Sheehan, there's a hundred folks who are holding the position because the guitarist is their brother/cousin/boyfriend/father/child and asked them to — but it is there, and the fewer people in the band, the more clear it is. Here's John Entwistle's bass part for "Won't Get Fooled Again". With the chaos that are Pete Townshend and Keith Moon taken out, you can hear that this is the song, and because Entwistle had it, they could go and and be the wonderful chaos they were.

Considering Taxes I am not sure on this, but I might be able to get a #2 guitar with the tax money. My preference would be a Les Paul copy from Rondo, but I'm thinging a Strat copy, at less than half as much, is much more likely. I'm planning to string it up with ropes and make it my slide guitar. I have country-bending .009s on my Tele, with the lowest action I know how to set. Wish me luck.

Playing Guitar I've been playing every Wednesday. Mostly acoustic. We have someone sitting at the Hammond now. So that's vocals guitar guitar bass drums piano and organ. I was playing acoustic, but I might be bringing my Tele (or, later, the Stratocopy). If everyone else has power, I might as well bring the power, too.

Wanting To Play Guitar I've been tapped to play Sunday. They want to have click-tracks set up so that the choir can practice to their tracks and sing to the band. So the leader's setting up Band A and Band B, so the unpaid band doesn't get burned out. And he wants me to play on Band B. Next Tuesday is the first practice.

Working As a temporary programmer/admin/helpdesk guy. Until Monday. When I become the permanent programmer/admin/helpdesk guy. Benefits and everything. Boo-yah!

5 comments:

MooPig said...

Throw in a B-Bender and the spat of drooling will make me die of dehydration. This is my Gratuitous Tele Pic"
Certainly have a flair for description, Mr Sans

that is so true about Bass players.. nothing like humbling oneself as the authoritarian of the band... eh? Game face all night?

I have already gotten refund back, $3500... +\- what would that buy?

I might get me one of those Estabans.
Great article\links for me this AM... booyah, thanks : Yours, pdandf

Dave Jacob said...

Jack Pribek:
I’ve often heard Lou say; “If a pretty girl walks up to you at the end of a set and says, ‘You are a great bass player’, you’re doing it wrong.”

Todd Snider:
You know the eyes in the room they all lookin' at the star
The butts are all shakin' to the bass guitar

That's the reason for the game face.

You can buy a lot of music for $3500. If I had that, I would start out spending a little over $1K getting a Nord Electro 2 keyboard. It can sound like a Rhodes, it can sound like a Clavinet, it can sound like a Wurlitzer, it can sound like a Hammond. If you need to sound like something else, go to the stratosphere with a Moog, OK?

Beyond that, I'd get something like a Fender Deluxe Reverb Reissue. A DRRI gets you that Fender tone while being something you can turn up and still want to be in the same building, unlike the Twin Reverb.

If I was just talking a plank, I'd get a Creston, probably with a B bender, with Sarah Ryan paint job. Look here. Even if you never play it, it'll be a work of art that will look fine on any wall. There are other choices. You can get yourself a Kirn or a Hahn or a Crook with that money, too, or likely a really sparkly Dikkers. Or about 3/4 of that Trussart I pictured.

Furtheron said...

Not a tele fan myself - although that looks v interesting.

Congrats on the job front btw.

MooPig said...

Daughter is in need of her first an "heirloom" instrument, and now I am looking at Creston Elec, and Dikkers, unknown to me until now. Also Killer Vintage... how can anyone be a Tele man and not know these sites? Even good prices... she is a mid range alto... likes cello... tough cookie.... hmmmm
Need to take her down to the local guitar shops... she might be... a bass player. I'll keep you posted.

Dave Jacob said...

Pat: Get her a Bari. Down to B, or A if you string it right!

Furtheron: I'm hyped up about it. Thanks!

They also have LP-style metal guitars at Trussart, if that's more to your liking.