Alembic Guitars Club

Connecting => Miscellaneous => Topic started by: jbybj on September 20, 2007, 10:27:51 PM

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jbybj on September 20, 2007, 10:27:51 PM

After having one and only one bass from age 16 til I was 45, I suddenly awakened and recognized my limited time on this plane, so I started acquiring instruments. Now, two guitars and 8 basses in, I think I'm ready to slow down. I have run out of space. This, my Viola bass is the latest, about a year in the making. The neck was made for me by USA custom guitars, size and shape like my 69 Jazz neck, but with an ebony fretboard. The body I found on ebay, from a couple in Indiana called Unorthodox Guitars. Cherry on the back, maple on the front, with Alder inbetween, mostly hollow, but the walls are thick. The bridge is a brass Hipshot, with Hipshot ultralight tuners, and the electronics are EMG running at 18 volts. A TW pickup, push vol, it's a humbucker, pull vol, it's a single coil. Three band active EQ. I finished it with a Tung oil/poly blend. Just put it together last night, weighs 7 lbs. Sits nicely on the upper portion of my belly, nice balance, no neck dive, I'm infatuated. Went to the luthier today for a nut and setup. I will finally get to hear it this Saturday. What an odd experience to imagine all the components and how they might sound together, but in reality, I have no idea what will happen. I hope it's not a fart bucket ;-)
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/449/44243.jpg)
 
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/449/44244.jpg)
 
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/449/44245.jpg)
 
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/449/44246.jpg)
  (Message edited by davehouck on September 25, 2007)

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: grooveman on September 21, 2007, 12:21:06 AM

Sounds interresting ... but with all that ... didn't you left money enough to buy some strings for this one ... ;>0

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: gare on September 21, 2007, 09:51:25 AM

Nice bass James, interested in hearing how it comes out.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jbybj on September 22, 2007, 08:13:42 PM

Well I finally played it today, and it meets my wildest expectations. It rides very comfortably, the neck is easy and quick, and the tone, well the tone is a bit woofier than any of my other basses, not a bad thing, just different. The EMG pups are, dare I say it? like a poor man's Alembic. If I had to quantify it, I'd say the EMG's give me about 70% of what I love so much about my Alembic pups. Aside from being very nice to play, I like the uniqueness factor, I think she's purty.  
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/449/44319.jpg)

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: terryc on September 23, 2007, 07:02:02 AM

An upmarket version of Macca's bass!!
Looks very retro but with a modern stance, why don't you stick a AXY in it with vol & filter + Q switch, bet it would sound the biz then.
You are right about EMG's, I knew someone who thought by putting EMG's in his jazz bass that it would sound like an Alembic..err no, it still has the passive vol & tone..silly man..he still owns a jazz and always slags my Alembic off...jealousy or stupidity or both on his behalf

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jbybj on September 23, 2007, 10:02:37 AM

I love the sound of my Jazz bass, but it's nothing like my Epic. I can't imagine having only one of the other. EMG does make a passive line of pups that, to my ear, are mediocre. Even the active EMG's would never replace the sound of my Epic, just another hue in the pallette. BTW, what, where, who is Macca's bass?

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: David Houck on September 25, 2007, 06:44:58 PM

James; a picture of Macca's bass is here (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Image:Cavpub_maccabass.jpg).

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jacko on September 26, 2007, 04:31:37 AM

James. Macca - short for paul McCartney.
 
graeme

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: 811952 on September 26, 2007, 06:08:10 AM

Short hijack here..
 
Macca's people have bought up much of the older Hofner bass inventory.  It seems he likes to distribute autographed copies to his friends and acquaintances...
 
John

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jbybj on September 26, 2007, 10:29:53 AM

A Beatles fan all my life, and a McCartney fan for, well... at least Ram, and I have never seen or heard the Macca reference til now.  
 
I just don't see it, Macca's Hofner is a violin bass, even a child can tell mine's a Viola! :-) Luckily for me, it sounds nothing like a Hofner. Jamming this Saturday, I'm all a-twitter.......

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 07, 2007, 11:48:39 AM

that bass sounds like its awesome.  
 
P.S. did u guys know that when the Beatles made records, they made up a story that McCartney was dead, and they recorded clues on the songs, and played them backwards, so if u played the record backwards, u could hear the clues. u guys probably didn't understand any of that

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: lbpesq on October 07, 2007, 01:06:50 PM

WOW!  And I thought Paul was really dead!  Actually, the backwards messages were mostly figments of the imagination.  But if you want Beatles trivia, who composed the original rhythm section, bass & drums (no, it wasn't Paul & Ringo).
 
Bill, tgo
 
(Message edited by lbpesq on October 07, 2007)

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: paulman on October 08, 2007, 08:22:02 AM

): ssaB aloiV eht ekil I dna...uoy rof egassem sdrawkcab a si ereH.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jbybj on October 08, 2007, 10:45:43 AM

If you listen carefully, you will hear that I buried Paul is actually, cranberry sauce. BTW, remember Twin Peaks? There were scenes where David Lynch had the actors recite their lines backwards, then he would reverse the film, resulting in a backwards envelope type of sound but with forward speech. Very cool effect. With my new boss looper, I can do the same thing! too much time on my hands I guess.........

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: cozmik_cowboy on October 09, 2007, 09:10:47 AM

Anarchyx; I think anyone between 50 & 70 knows that - but the alleged backwards lyrics were only a small part (myself, I could never find a turntable that would play backwards...).  There were hidden meanings found in pictures, lyrics, promo stuff (e.g. a widely publized P. McC. look-alike contest with the winner - allegedly Billy Shears - never annouced) - there was almost a cottage industry that developed around ferreting out the truth about the original Paul's decapitation in an auto accident in 1967 (He blew his mind out in a car....).  
 
James; Cranberry sauce?  Never heard that one. If I listen very closely, I can almost hear John's official explanation of I'm very bored, but I buried Paul goes a long way to explaining Mr. McCartney's career since Billy Shears assumed the role...
 
Bill; Stu Sutcliffe & Pete Best, of course.
 
Peter

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: lbpesq on October 09, 2007, 09:49:52 AM

Peter:  You got it!  And don't forget the cover of Abbey Road where Paul is barefoot and out of step with the other three, while in the background is a VW Beetle with the license plate 28 if, as in Paul would be 28 if he were alive.
 
Bill, tgo

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: cozmik_cowboy on October 09, 2007, 10:00:38 AM

And the OPD (Officialy Pronounced Dead) patch on his Sgt Pepper uniform, and the left handed bass in flowers on the grave in the Sgt P cover, and the black (for death) walrus suit on MMT(Here's another clue for you all - the Walrus was Paul) and on and on.
 
Peter

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: terryc on October 09, 2007, 11:09:52 AM

Must be a rock thing..Led Zeppelin and Metallica have allegedly put secret messages on albums..guess it must have all stopped with the advent of CD 25 years ago!

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: adriaan on October 09, 2007, 11:50:44 AM

You see, if you cannot play the reverse messages forward on a CD player, then they will travel across so much better, since the listener is unaware that there are messages that should not be heard, and hears them anyway. - Remember in your schooldays when you tried putting a book under your pillow? As the saying goes, wollip s'lived eht si sseneldI.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 09, 2007, 02:17:06 PM

jbybj, you're right. My dad told me about that whole backwards thing with Twin Peaks. it sounded weird, but it was cool

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: hydrargyrum on October 09, 2007, 02:30:30 PM

James,
 
Radiohead does the same thing on the song Like Spinning Plates.  A cool effect.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 09, 2007, 04:19:12 PM

And on the SGT P cover, Paul was facing backwards while eveyone was facing forward, and a hand was above his head cuz he was marked for death. On Abbey Road, Paul was dressed in a burial suit, John was dressed as a minister, Ringo was dressed as a pall bearer, George was dressed as the grave digger. Oh, and on the MMT cover, everyone was wearing red roses, but paul was wearing black roses, and this figure resembling death was standing behind him.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 09, 2007, 04:27:55 PM

SGT P- John sang he blew his mind out in a car meaning Paul died in a car accident. Ringo sang in Don't Pass Me By, You were in a car crash and you lost your hair
White Album- in The Song Revolution No. 9 it repeatedly said No. 9 but if u play it backwards it will say Turn me on deadman

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: lbpesq on October 09, 2007, 05:30:55 PM

Mars Hotel:  Ugly Rumors.
 
Bill, tgo

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jacko on October 10, 2007, 01:12:34 AM

John always said the inspiration for the line 'he blew his mind out in a car' came when friend and heir to the guiness fortune Tara Brown drove through a red light at 110 miles an hour in his lotus elan and crashed into the back of a truck....
 
Lennon said:
 
? I didn't copy the accident. Tara didn't blow his mind out. But it was in my mind when I was writing that verse. The details of the accident in the song ? not noticing traffic lights and a crowd forming at the scene ? were similarly part of the fiction. ?  
 
Anarchyx.. I don't know if you have a different copy of Sgt peppers but on the original album, all 4 wax mannekins (from Mdme Tussauds) and all 4 live beatles are facing forwards As they are on the inner gatefold.
edit.. Just checked the back cover and he is indeed facing backwards. No hand of death above him though;-)
 
Graeme
 
(Message edited by jacko on October 10, 2007)

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: keith_h on October 10, 2007, 04:31:37 AM

Graeme,
The hand is just above Paul's head on the front cover of my album.  
 
Keith

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jacko on October 10, 2007, 04:34:19 AM

yeah but..
Anarchyx said Paul was facing backwards while eveyone was facing forward, and a hand was above his head cuz he was marked for death implying that the hand was over the image of paul facing backwards.
oh well. It was all tosh anyway. Superb music though ;-)
 
Graeme

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: keith_h on October 10, 2007, 06:34:58 AM

All tosh just like Elvis is dead when we all know he is alive and well living in Eerie, Indiana. :-D
 
Keith

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: jacko on October 10, 2007, 06:37:05 AM

Elvis isn't dead. he appears regularly on a bbc radio 2 afternoon programme in his own ask Elvis slot.
 
Graeme

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: Bradley Young on October 10, 2007, 01:01:55 PM

I saw Elvis at the Fry's in Las Vegas.  His girlfriend looked like Amy Winehouse.
 
Bradley

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 11, 2007, 02:04:27 PM

?????????? really??????????? I'm pretty sure that's just an impersonator

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: eligilam on October 11, 2007, 02:25:21 PM

Somewhere on the Sgt.Pepper's cover, there's a guitar made of flowers that reads PAUL? supposedly to signify all the promo-death stuff listed above.  Also, the album queues up perfectly with Clockwork Orange if you start it right when Beethoven's Fifth starts.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: keith_h on October 11, 2007, 04:48:02 PM

So Will,  
What you are saying is Roger Waters copped the idea of synchronizing Dark Side of the Moon to a  movie from Stanley Kubrick. I'll have to check it out.  
 
Keith

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: Bradley Young on October 11, 2007, 06:09:28 PM

This was no impersonator.  He was Elvis.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 12, 2007, 12:56:11 PM

I'll find out for sure

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 12, 2007, 01:15:03 PM

he's dead dude go to wikipedia it shows he was buried in Memphis and then his bodied was moved to Graceland there are a lot of people that look like Elvis in Vegas

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: darkstar01 on October 12, 2007, 01:34:57 PM

nah that was his brother. everybody knows that.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 12, 2007, 06:56:56 PM

see? at least someone agrees it wasn't Elvis

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: cozmik_cowboy on October 12, 2007, 07:42:23 PM

I think Austin means that it was Jesse Garon Presley who croaked on the King's throne in '77 and now lays at rest in the backyard of graceland.
 
Peter

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: darkstar01 on October 12, 2007, 08:35:15 PM

exactly.

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: anarchyx on October 13, 2007, 07:26:27 AM

oh wait were they, like, twins or something? cuz otherwise I don't think Elvis would've been mixed up with his brother

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: kimberly on October 13, 2007, 12:29:09 PM

Messin' with Sasquatch?  ;)
 
http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=messing%20with%20sasquatch&search=Search (http://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=messing%20with%20sasquatch&search=Search)

Title: The end of my midlife crisis
Post by: 811952 on October 13, 2007, 12:37:17 PM

My brother Pete's been gigging with his drummer a lot lately.  I'll have him ask some kind of trick question to get the real story...  ;)
 
I still say that's a fun looking bass you got there...
 
(Message edited by 811952 on October 13, 2007)