Alembic Guitars Club
Alembic products => Owning an Alembic => Fun Stories => Topic started by: bassplaynmatt on October 09, 2004, 10:59:57 PM
-
I just got back from a gig where the sound man basically said I was crazy to be gigging with my Alembic. He ran a line about there?s no point in playing an instrument that costs that much basically his argument was that at most gigs, I could be playing a 500 dollar bass and the end result sound wise would be virtually the same (which doesn't say much for his ability as a sound man.) Obviously, this was a rock gig so he was coming from the perspective that all gigs are smokey, dirty, and loud. I tend to play a large variety of gigs (as most freelance players do) and I think the respect for high quality instruments seems to be more of a standard among other players. And to be quite honest, my bass would look better longer if I didn't put my grimy hands on it every day and sweat all over it at gigs.
Basically my question to you guys is this: Do most Alembic owners gig hard and heavy with there Alembics or do they collect them. I'm not trying to ruffle any feathers but IMHO a bass that sounds a plays like my Alembic should be the first piece of gear out the door no mater how big or small the gig. I know a lot of classical players and suggesting to a professional clarinetist that playing a plastic horn works just as well will get you laughed at!
Anyhow, I just wanted to see what kind of opinions are lurking in this crazy crowd and basically vent in a place where my beloved bass isn't insulted for being what it is, a truly professional level instrument and a work of art.
Matt
-
When I first started playing in the 70s, I waxed and primped and pampered my basses like they were show horses. I even bought a Peavey T40 (built as if it came from solid oak!) to play the rowdy Texas beer joints so as not to 'mess up' my NICE basses. (Yes, I HAVE played on stages behind chicken wire!).
This just got tiring after a while, once it dawned on me that barflies usually pick fights with the guitar player or the front man, and virtually ignored me.
I've since learned to approach them the way you'd treat fine tools: I take care of them, but I USE them. I've never been bad about really scratching up an instrument, and the occasional very small dink or dent isn't gonna keep me up nights. And admittedly as I slide off into my 50s I don't do many 'swing from the chandelier' gigs anymore. Haven't shot the bottles off the bar in quite a while . . .
Why would you buy a Ducati but ride your Suzuki to work?
Get used to pricks like the soundman. To most other musicians, bass is a misunderstood, black art. A band will kill to get a hot guitar player or a terrific front man, then get the first drummer and bassist that can walk and chew gum and drive the van. They NEVER understand that they've got it backwards: ALL great bands roll atop a terrific rhythm section. John and Keith. Bill and Charlie. Al Jackson and Duck Dunn. And on and on.
That soundman irks me, but when asked why I never get stage fright, I point out into the house and say, Well, if they were any good, they'd be up here instead of me. I think that covers him.
J o e y
-
You paid for the instrument, so as long as it sounds good, play it. I paid less than $500 for my PRS, which I've never heard a complaint about from any engineer or musician; haven't run sound with my Series 2 yet.
As far as the general public is concerned, bass is bass, but the discerning listener is always a discerning listener. Your sound man is not. Step away from the moron because he's blowing smoke.
After all, you're the bass player, and that other guy is the sound man. As long as your bass is healthy he doesn't have a damned thing to worry about. The Wickersham family has spent 30 years worrying about tone, and how long has he been running sound?
-
For me it's that 'new car first scratch' feeling. My Orion (my first Alembic, bought it brand new) is the one one I'm most careful with while my EVH Sig and Elan had some minor scratches and dents already when I purchased them secondhand. I wouldn't doubt about gigging with those two, but the Orion... (hmmm)
Although I'm not a gigging musician (yet) I consider myself a player, and not a collector anymore. I was until I realised it isn't what I really want. My rig now consists of 3 Alembic basses and two amps, and if I want something new, one of them has to make place. Nostalgia is all that remains of my collecting days. IMHO there's nothing wrong about being collector, but I personally couldn't justify the money and space it took anymore.
Wilfred
-
I've gigged with all but one of my 10 Alembics. I've used them since I bought my first in 83. I play hard and beat the daylights out of them. Mica and company did a refinish in black for my first Spoiler that I was beating on ala Mark Mendoza and forgot to take off my watch! Upper horn had dozens of little dings! I now only wear watches on my left hand. I do sound for club bands every week in addition to gigging with my own band Doomtree. The guy you spoke to is FOS about their not being a difference. My Alembic sounds killer when I bring them to a gig and let another guy use them while I mix. Most guys are not used to the Alembic sound and eq you like a P bass in the house system. Most won't take the DI out of the F1X. Most hate being there and have to deal with extreme butthead rock star types who in turn infect the soundman with the same attitude virus. I once tried out for a band and their old player had a POS bass and played badly. They were used to that sound . To recreate that sound on a recording, I had to hold a pick sideways and slash at the strings! Passed on that one. I have The collecting bug and I'm asking Mica for another custom Excel to keep Kay company. That will give me 4 Alembic basses for the road when I start touring in earnest in 05. I'm an Alembaholic. I admit my addiction and deal with it one day at a time. No wife and no kids make Danno get more basses (and guitars).
Danno
-
Bonnie has been with me from 1996. In the beginning there was no band I could play with and the paople from the old-style big-band didn't like the Amembic sound at all (afterwards I discovered they meant: we don't like YOUR sound on the Alembic, on a Series II you can get the sound you want).
Since 4 years now playing with Blue Stuff and last 2 years with Drive Bonnie has been on every stage I play. I play the size of bars and stages that 90% of the time I am gratting behind our guitarplayers ears with Bonnies peghead, can sit on the bassdrum or get some beating from our ladysinger when my fingers are plucking the wrong string.
Anyway ....I can imagine that IN EUROPE Bonnie is a 12000$ bass. I know I am taking a risk but I never heard a complain. 1 soundengineer insisted in using a DI box with my old SWR SM 400 (although the line out is very good on that amp). In another situation there was a complain about a constant hum from my bass. In the end it turned out that I stood too close to the light-mixing console and some parblazers and as you know: that IS something Series electronics HATES.
Because we play as you understand in small venues we set up our sound as in rehaersal situation with FULL OWN CONTROL of what we want. Last night I had ? bass-players co,ing up to me and just asking: how do you do that how do you do that ... nah ...not the playing ...just how do I get that sound. As you know Series (and ALL Alembics I guess)combined with F1-X, SF-2 and poweramp is a POWERFULL combination ...in every meaning of that word.
I cannot afford to collect Alembics so it will just be that only one. I surely will buy more basses in the future when live is more shining on me but even THAN it will not be a collection, just for the sound or the beauty of that peticular instrument.
Beware ...I can complete UNDERSTAND that someone collect Alembics -I know a guy who collects Ferrari's- but I conider them as to play on!
Some idea's.
Paul the bad one
-
My father played a 1940s Gibson Large hollowbody as a bar player and sideman for 40 years. What I learned from him is that ultimately, the instrument is a TOOL to be used. I try to avoid dangerous situations (I never had to play behind chicken wire), but my own comfort level on stage is based on having MY instruments up there with me.
Mike
-
I own ten basses of different makes, to include my Spyder and my Europa. I like all of them for different reasons, and I didn't buy them to keep them in a closet. I play them.
Am I more careful with my Alembics? Absolutely. Who wouldn't be given the cost? Does this stop me from gigging with them? Nope. I bought them to play them, like I said. Same goes for my other basses (two Fender Jazz Basses, a Rick 4001, a Gibson Thunderbird, a Gibson Ripper, a Musicman Stingray, a Pedulla MVP, and an Ovation Acoustic Electric). If they were dinged or banged up, sure, I'd be upset. But I'd get over it and keep using them. That's what the Wickershams and the good folks at Alembic made these instruments for. They're both a finely crafted tool and work of art - they should be treated and played as such.
I don't consider myself a collector, even given what I own. They're all basses I've always wanted, but couldn't afford until now. Some I got fairly cheaply (the Ripper and Ovation), others not (the Alembics, the MVP), and the rest somewhere in the middle (Thunderbird, Jazz basses, Musicman, Rick). All of them were meant to be played, and that's what I do with them.
The days of the bass guitar being nothing more than a backing instrument are long gone. It started with guys like Chris Squire, John Paul Jones, Stanley Clarke, Jaco, etc., and now we have guys like Stu Hamm, Les Claypool, and Flea carrying the torch. Those who don't understand that are, IMHO, missing the boat. Back when I first started playing in the mid 70's, slapping and popping wasn't something most guys did. Now it's a required technique for many players. Same goes for sound. The P-Bass and SVT sound isn't the only one out there anymore. The soundman you refer to needs to wake up and smell the coffee.
Anyway, my two cents.
Regards,
Alan
-
Matt; I can certainly understand why there are those who are collectors of Alembics, just as I can understand why people collect other works of art. For me personally, my Alembics are for playing. I want the quality of my sound to be as good as I can get it; just as I want the other players I play with to care about their sound as well. I tend to think that having a quality sound heightens the overall experience of the listeners as well as the players. But that's just me. Everyone has different situations, different bands, different styles, etc. I can certainly understand why someone would not want to take a custom one-of-a-kind instrument on the type of tour where wear and tear are unavoidable; and I can understand why someone would not want to take their beloved instrument into a room full of drunks. As for the soundman; yes, there are going to be times where your wonderful tone will not make it past the board. Unfortunately, that happens to even the best players. I've heard Victor Wooten's sound mangled when he was fronting his own band. I guess we can feel compassion for the soundman as he is being a soundman at his level of ability just we are being players at our own level of ability. So perhaps treating the soundman with respect and patience is the best course of action.
-
Alan; as to your comment about the soundman needing to wake up. I used to frequent this rather famous blues club to see the many touring bands that came through. Of all the bands I saw there, I only saw one Alembic. I think it could be somewhat difficult to smell the coffee when night after night the soundman is primarily only getting to hear P-basses.
-
ALL great bands roll atop a terrific rhythm section.
Hear,hear.You got it right Joey.I've told people for years that you have to have a great drummer to make a great band.It will make or break your band.Plus the bass player too.You can take so-so players and make them sound like a million bucks with a great rhythm section.
As far as collecting/playing is concerned,I've never had a bunch of basses laying around since I've always wanted them to be played.My two Alembics are the most basses I've owned at one time.I'll never part with them.I've always wanted to see intruments played and not stored.Thats why I don't have all of the basses I have purchased over the span of my life which would have been pretty numerous by now.
-
Dave (houck),
Yeah, I can see your point. If that's all they hear, then anything new that is introduced might throw them for a loop. But it also goes along with what I said - P Bass and SVT isn't the only thing out there, but too many folks (IMHO) have come to believe that's what a bass should sound like. And it's unfortunate. Don't get me wrong - there are times that I like that P-Bass type sound. But it isn't the only one. That's why I love my Alembics - I can make them sound like just about anything, P-Bass included.
Where I live, there is a very large blues scene. They (meaning guitar players, mostly) want the P Bass, stay in the background kind of sound and style. This is one of the reasons I'm not really gigging with anyone right now. Nothing against that way of thinking, but it's not what I like to do. That and the fact that I-IV-V progressions, over and over, 4 sets a night, and endless guitar solos bore the snot out of me. But different strokes and all that. Doesn't make it bad, just makes it not for me.
Blues, to most folks I guess, calls for that P-Bass style sound (think Duck Dunn, James Jamerson, etc.), so it doesn't surprise me in that idiom that soundmen like that - it's safe, traditional. Anything that isn't probably doesn't appeal to most folks. That being said, I'd still play my Alembics in that situation since they're so versatile, soundman be damned!
Best Regards,
Alan
-
Matt:
I have been playing guitar for 40 years, electric for 36 years, and in bands for 30+. I long ago figured out that music, for me, was a wonderful hobby from which I derive immense pleasure and cheap therapy. As an occupation, (I played both solo acoustic and in bands), I learned that I hated the business side and didn't want to exist on Mickey D's and pizza. So off to law school I went at the age of 28. Over the years I collected a few guitars, not as art objects or investments, but rather because here and there I'd run into an axe that was fun to play and the $ worked out. Currently I rehearse with my band every week and we play out when we can, usually every couple of months. (I'd like to do that a little more, but everyone has families and jobs and not much time to hunt up places to play).
Given that backgound, here is my 2 sense:
From an economic standpoint, strictly business, your soundman was right. But is that why you play? I play because it makes me feel good to create simultaneously with four other people who are great friends and accomplished musicians. The better my instrument feels to play, and the better it sounds to me, translates into my playing better and, thus, the band playing better. I have lusted for an Alembic since around '75 when I played in a band, Cripple Finger, with a rich kid whose parents had suppplied him with one of the first series 1 guitars. Last July my lust was finally satisfied (at least temporarily) when I found an '83 Electrum in excellent shape. It is now my number one guitar. Of course I gig with it (& of course a back up which changes according to whim). If you are a struggling erstwhile pro on the road from dive to dive, I can understand that you might want to save the Alembic for future, bigger gigs. (Though I probably wouldn't). But if you are like me, and I suspect like a lot of people in this club, and you have a real job (who else besides Clapton, Santana, Springsteen, Dylan and Simon really makes enough money playing music to afford an Alembic? - alright, admittedly a slight exageration, but you get my point), our Alembics are pleasure giving diversion machines. Play it! Enjoy it! Soundman be damned! And start saving for another - (I know I am).
Bill the guitar one.
-
Brother Dave,
Got drums?
People will move!
Got a voice (read melody)?
People will sing!
Got a bass?
People will dance!!!!!
what I say alwyas
PTBO
-
Alembics are the DIAMONDS* of guitars, so when you go out to play, wear your shit man!,,, the only thing one should be collecting is beer cans!
-
Hey, ever notice how many of these threads, taking many convoluted paths, wind up at beer?
Bill, the guitar one.
-
I have 5 basses. Two Alembics and three other very nice small luthier customs. I have gigged with all but my newest custom. And I will gig with that when the situation calls for it. Most gigs I take my Series II 5 string and another bass (usually my fretless).
The fact that I have 2 Alembics and 3 other small luthier basses is evidence of a collector gene in my DNA, but I play everything that I collect.
It may be true that in many of the venues I play, the crowd would not be able to freely discern whether I was playing an Alembic or a P-Bass, as long as they like the sound. But if I switched mid-gig from my Series II to a P-Bass, I think most people WOULD notice a difference. Most people think Wendy's hamburgers are pretty good, but if they took a bite of a Wendy's, then a bite of a Fuddrucker's, they'd recognize a significant shift in quality levels. Most people only deal with the burger that's on their plate at the time.
Peace,
James
-
I have 12 gigging basses including three Alembics and one or two others in various modes of modification/construction,( I like to build my own when get a little spare time now and then), but I find that unless I'm doing a gig that someone has requested something very specific, I find that I cannot stop myself from using my Alembics ALL THE TIME! My basses all sound great sitting around the living room,but once you get used to the way the Alembics sound and respond live, you begin to realize just how superior these basses really are and that they are worth every penny that you've invested in them. For me, once I've been spoiled, there's no going back! The sound in my head is now in my hands.... What could be better? Mike
-
Funny,
If the guitar player showed up with a '59 goldtop Les Paul (worth about $60,000), the sound man would say, cool. If the drummer showed up with Ringo Starr's original Ludwig drumset, the sound man would say, cool. If the keyboard player came in with... you get the idea. Why is it that bass players are told what's cool to play, let alone prejudged by what we pull out of the case?
Play your Alembic, it DOES make a difference, and louts like that sound man are losers that are doing sound because they can't play bass.
Alemboid
-
Bill,
It is possible to make a living playing you just have to deal with the ebb and flow of work. There are times when one or two gigs will bring in enough to pay all the bills and put strings on both my basses (with two 6 strings that's saying something) and then there are times when I make enough to eat until the next good gigs. Of course things like steady weekly gigs and a few students help keep the balance. In fact if you read well and are willing to play many styles of music you can work and save enogh to put an Alembic into your bag of tricks. Granted my first was an Epic and my current Elan/Europe is second hand. But considering my Alembic and my Roscoe cost as much as a decent used car I'm quite proud that playing bass paid for those basses. You do have to make sacrifices to play music and have killer gear. Some players sacrifice and get a real job, others like myself sacrifce and take the gigs your given even if the sound man is an asshole
I am only 25 so no kids yet to support. However, my wife is a classical clarinetist so helping pay for her Masters degree (not to mention a $6000 Bass Clarinet) counts for something. In the end we all do what we can to be happy so I guess I'm just saying that if anybody else out there is trying to do this crazy music thing for a living I solute you!
Later, Matt
-
Bass clarinet - cool. The world needs more of them, thanks for helping her out.
Your devotion to music is truly admirable, wish you the best. The fact that you found someone who shares your interest is auspicious.
-
Matt:
I wish you luck and truly hope you find your dream, whatever it may be. You are obviously serious and determined, (or very lucky), to have acquired the funds necessary to obtain your equipment at your age. My experience is that most rock musicians are stretched to get $500 together for a decent mid-level Fender. It has always amazed me how relatively cheap guitar players can be. For example, as a clarinet and sax player from long ago (grade school and Jr. High - I gave it up when I discovered electric guitar and girls. My misfortune, I have since come to realize that sax is the sexist instrument there is, but I digress), I suspect that the $6000 you spent was not even a lot for a good Bass Clarinet, yet most guitar players would laugh hysterically at the thought of spending that much on a guitar.
We here, of course, know that people sometimes spend a lot more for the best. I am amazed at how many famous guitarists continue to play their Strat/Tele/Paul/SG when they can afford any guitar there is. The daring ones might play PRS or Parker. I know there is a significant difference between Alembic and these other instruments. Heck, I've been playing a '61 Strat for almost 30 years. I have several other classic guitars. They're all great instruments, but the first time I brought my Alembic into rehearsal, even the drummer commented on the great tone. I guess what I'm saying is that whoever you are, professional, weedend warrior, or bedroom rockstar, if you are fortunate enough to have an instrument as fine as an Alembic, and you don't use it, you should have your head examined.
Bill, the tired guitar one
-
Do you take your wife or girlfriend to a really bad place ???, i think the same way of my basses, i love to play them, but sometimes you have to pass in certain gigs where your axe is in danger.
Also about soundmans, ...damn!!!!, where we can find one ???, of 80% of the gigs i played, all the soundmens are friends of the dj's , or just people who doens't know how to handle a mixer, and never had read a book about mixing; so also that's a turn off, beacuse you take your beloved bass to the gig and this guy doesn't do justice to your sound; so i figure it out in this cases: The more we drink, the better we sound lol.
More beer!!!
-
Back to beer, again!!!!
Bill, the guitar one.
-
Matt
I have struggled with the issue you have raised -
I do not have accumulated wealth, and can't afford an arsenal of Alembics so that I can have the luxury of having a set of elite gig axes, as well as a set of workingman axes on an Alembic scale.... I only have one - and it took me so long to save for (notwithstanding the negotiating with my wife that a $4K+ expenditure on a bass was not a stupid thing to do) - that I don't have a choice but to use my one and only bass for all gigs.
Over time my outlook has changed - initially I would never have used my Rogue for most gigs - now I that I have had it for 5 almost 5 years, I would never settle for less. I suppose that if I had a larger budget, and a sufficient number of instruments - there may be those that I use more sparingly (along the lines that if I had a sedan, a sports car and a station wagon, the sports car would be used the least)...
Having been spoiled by the robust and ouststanding craftsmanship of Alembic I could not really go back to playing $1,000 instruments... they don't have the action, the quality, the beauty nor the sound to maintain my now ultra high standard for playability.
If you can live with the reality of perhaps getting a few more nicks on it than you would get if it never left home..... then I would suggest that as long as you are happy playing it and are not too paranoid leaving the house with it - that you indulge yourself liberally with playing your Alembic to your heart's content.
-
The Alembic goes to every gig. Period. Even if I don't play it because I'm playing my cheap Dean 12-string or Lakland or whatever. If it's safe enough for me, then it's safe enough for the Alembic. I've got a lovely wife, 2 kids, 4 cats, 1 dog, 2 goats, 1 pony and a mortgage, and I want to live to see them all another day, so I don't spend time in places where I might get stabbed or shot anymore. I took the Alembic to those scary gigs as well. I think folks would be more inclined to steal a Fender bass, though, because they know what it is. And as for beer, I try to only play bars that serve something dark and heavy on tap (like Black Toad or Champagne Velvet Bock), because they tend to have the happiest clientele... Just out of curiosity, how many of you guys have seen someone get stabbed, shot or murdered at a gig? It gives you a whole new perspective on booking gigs...
John
-
Wow...... I'm glad to say that I've never seen anyone killed on a gig. Although, I have wanted to kill a few people I've played with before (mostly singers for starting songs in different keys and neglecting to inform the rhythm section)
Matt
-
Matt,
We used to have a bar in Terre Haute called The Spinning Wheel, but which was lovingly referred to as The Stabbing Wheel. When the local economy goes steadily down the tubes for 50-plus years, people tend to become violent, especially when plied with cheap alcohol. I haven't played many bars in Indy, but used to play in Bloomington a bit back in the day..
John
-
Well, as long as the Bluebird has been around here in Bloomington I'm sure someone's been stabbed and/or shot. As far as Indy is concerned I play more jazz clubs then rock clubs up there so most of my experiences have been mild to say the least. Aside from drunk yuppies at The Chatter Box things are usually pretty calm. Hey, you didn't happen to catch the most resent Indy Battle of the bands on the local Fox news channel? Me and my Alembic were playing with a local song writer named Jenn Cristy. She toured as part of John Mellencamp's band and now she's doing her stuff.
Matt
-
One stabbing in a bar in 1979...a counrty bar, in fact. The victim was a patron, not a band member. My 62 jazz bass and I were out the door in a flash. Didn't own an Alembic until the late 80's. I'm a player.
-
A stabbing that was fatal over a bad drug deal when I was playing in a go go bar in Paterson NJ in 82. The band just finished Judas Priest's version of Green Manalishi. At the end of the riff and final yeah! , a woman screamed and a man ran through the bar into the kitchen and was gone. I still had another 2 sets to play. No Alembic for another year but a Ripper L9S was by my side with a Scheduah fretless. Biker bars are also bastions of unusual behavior. Some Pagans were known to frequent some of the gigs in Clifton I played. We were often called upon to play a benefit for a fallen rider. Ah but the cat fights were wonders to behold! Something primal about 2 women thrashing eachother, clumps of hair flying and the promise of a torn bodice! Memories....
Danno
-
I?m usually the one pulling the thread way off course, but allow me to try my hand at restitching....
If I?m one of the few fortunate enough to own Alembics, I just gotta play ?em! That?s why I bought ?em. I owe it to myself, as well as the audience to be at the top of my game. Alembics are the best tools I own, therefore I really have no choice but to use them. Besides, I have a sneaking suspicion that?s what the folks at Alembic had in mind when they built them.
-
Green Manalishi??? At the risk of really seemimg old, wasn't that a Fleetwood Mac song back in the day of Peter Green on guitar?
Kenn R.
-
Does it go a little something like this?
Now, when the day goes to sleep and the full moon looks
The night is so black that the darkness cooks
Don't you come creepin' around
makin' me do things I don't want to
Can't believe that you need my love so bad
Come sneakin' around tryin' to drive me mad
Bustin' in on my dreams
making me see things I don't wanna see
'Cause you're da Green Manalishi with the two prong crown
All my tryin' is up
all your bringin' is down
Just taking my love then slippin' away
Leavin' me here just tryin' to keep from following you
I'm pretty sure that Peter Green wrote it.
You don't seem old to me Kenn!
-
Sounds like the one to me. I have not heard it in years. I had a bootleg version on my old reel to reel, it was a very different band back then.
Thanks for the lyrical flashback.
Kenn R.
-
OK, now to throw a wrench into the machine:
I played mostly Fenders for 20 years - nothing happens. Soundmen don't say a thing except turn down that Trace Elliot.
I buy two Alembics in 24 months - the more expensive one gets its peghead guillotined off after only 4 gigs. However, at least one soundman has said The Alembic blows out the Fender (I bring one of each to every gig) - play the Alembic, but will you PLEASE turn down that $%#@! Trace Elliot??? Some things never change.
Am I afraid to bring my Alembics out in public again after that? Well, frankly, yes I am. I seriously doubt I will use my Spyder with my Who tribute band again in very small stage situations. My medium-scale Exploiter, however, might make it out if I stand Stu Sutcliffe-style (i.e. back to the audience and peghead AWAY from the singer).
All comedy aside - I bought my Alembics to PLAY them. They're instruments, not furniture. I PLAY BETTER using them. You bought your Alembic and paid a pretty penny for it. You love it, you know it sounds great, you wanna show it off. Use it. Ignore soundmen who are uninterested in broadening their horizons. Drive your Maserati and be proud.
But beware of microphone-swinging lead singers.
Mike Bisch
-
I had Alembic make me a doubleneck for one reason: So I have to carry only one bass to gigs and to have all the musical freedom I'd ever need. So yes, my Alembic is my favorite work horse, not a museum piece. I would be a fool if I paid all the money and then not play it.
-
Hartmut,
I had forgotten what a beautiful instrument you own. Wow. And I'm with you. I sold something like a dozen nice basses to buy my Series I, and I bought it because I really, really, really wanted to play it!
John
-
I played a gig recently where the sound man took a look at my Rogue 5 and my rig and said he wasn't going to put me through the PA as he wanted to save it for vocals, guitar and kick. He said, Your set up and bass is going to come through just fine. Turn it up a hair, that's all. He was right. He is also actually a very good engineer, well respected in the area and has worked with some name people and is himself a former bass player.
Never had a fatality at a gig although I thought one should have died after taking a glass beer pitcher full in the face, which of course sparked a small scale riot. I just stood on stage with my Persuader, waited it out and figured it would make a very effective weapon had it come down to it before the police cleared things up.
John Paul
-
I'll never forget this gig at a Navy base, in which a sailor used a pitcher of beer from a Marine table to douse his lady friend with whom he had been arguing. The Marines jumped to their feet, and then this ripple affect happened, and they jumped on the sailor, and then the rest of the room rushed in and jumped on them. Just like a Looney Tunes cartoon, there was this big pile of humans on the floor and all you could see was this pile of flailing arms and legs! Then the Exit doors were flung open, and in rushed the Shore Patrol! What a hysterical scene, it was great and I'll never forget it! And what a study in the effects of violence upon the viewer. The band had been playing this slow spacey bluesy tune when the fracas started, and by the time we got it under control and ended it, we were doing near light speed! The tune was Bridge Of Sighs by Robin Trower, it actually makes for good Speed Metal, I know, I've lived though it! ;-)
-
I'll never forget this gig at a Navy base, in which a sailor used a pitcher of beer from a Marine table to douse his lady friend with whom he had been arguing. The Marines jumped to their feet, and then this ripple affect happened, and they jumped on the sailor, and then the rest of the room rushed in and jumped on them. Just like a Looney Tunes cartoon, there was this big pile of humans on the floor and all you could see was this pile of flailing arms and legs! Then the Exit doors were flung open, and in rushed the Shore Patrol! What a hysterical scene, it was great and I'll never forget it! And what a study in the effects of violence upon the viewer. The band had been playing this slow spacey bluesy tune when the fracas started, and by the time we got it under control and ended it, we were doing near light speed! The tune was Bridge Of Sighs by Robin Trower, it actually makes for good Speed Metal, I know, I've lived though it! ;-)
-
Whoops, double post! Mea culpa!
-
Hi Reid,
maybe I am not a serious musician but I never heard of those fighting things thias side of the pond. Well ...not the places/bars where I've played. OTOH we never play that late at night (or better: early morning) our gigs are mostlly between 22:00 and 01:00.
Now I am think off: the only head that have been wacked involving Bonnie ws the head of our singer/guitarplayer Luc in Blue Stuff ...well ..huh ...wacked ...it was a really bad bump into and Luc was really hurt. Bonnie ...cool as ever.
Paul the bad one
BTW Reid ...I reqlly liked your personal quote on your profile.
-
Bridge of Sighs is a great tune - was your guitarist able to pull off the Troweresque guitar tone?
-
I've always liked Trower's stuff, although I don't have any of his recordings. For a while now I've been thinking it would be interesting to try an instrumental jam version of Day Of The Eagle. I like the way he uses the unison line in both the fast and slow sections and as the transition between the two. Or at least that's how I remember it; I haven't actually heard the song in quite a while. I guess I need to get a copy of that song.
-
Hey Paul, from the amount of humor you throw around on the site here, I'd say you are a very non-serious musician - just the kind I like. Serious musicians are no fun! The quote in my profile is one of my favorite Frank Zappa bits. I've even got a T-shirt with that quote on it and I think you can still get them from the Zappa website. FZ was a guy that believed that Humor Does Belong in Music! That dovetails neatly into the Daves' questions about the Trower tune. Yeah, our guitarist pulled off the tone-thing masterfully. He still plays the '62 Strat and (I forgot the year) black-face Fender Super Reverb that a local repair shop hot-rodded with a Master volume. Beside Bridge of Sighs, we used to do Day of the Eagle, too. What a great high-energy tune that is - pedal-to-the-metal from start to finish. That particular guitar player holds a special place in my musical experience, because besides being one of the funniest people I've ever known, he's the only musician I've worked with who could play funny. I don't mean the stock little sound-bite riffs like you hear at a baseball, or hockey game, this guy can play the most inventive - and funny - stuff on guitar you ever heard. It's like having a musical stand-up comic in the band. We had this goof-off band back in the '80s in which we played our Tribute to Law Enforcement. This consisted of me playing - endlessly - the Peter Gunn bassline while the two guitarists tried outdoing each other by throwing every known TV or movie theme concerned with law enforcement, at each other. What a jam! Peter Gunn, Perry Mason, Mission Impossible, Andy Griffith, Car 54, Hawaii 5-0, Barney Miller, James Bond, etc, etc, etc. It was never boring for me 'cause I laughed so much!
BTW, Paul, I don't know if you are a Robben Ford fan, but his album Keep On Runnin' has a tune called Bonnie on it. The Bonnie in the song doesn't sound like a real nice lady. She breaks hearts, and maybe heads, as well!
Have fun, all, I've gotta go play the Peter Gunn theme and laugh a few minutes!
-
Hi David Burgess, I noticed in your profile that you play Acme cabinets. I have a B2 and a B4, but am wondering what are your thoughts on the little B1? Does it also pump out lots of bass and clean mids and highs? Coming from Acme, I'm guessing that it does!
-
Reid(rraymond):
I completely relate to your comments about the guitar player who could play funny. That is a trait - the ability to make me chuckle with playing only - that I have rarely observed and always appreciated when I had the good fortune to see such a guitarist. Jerry G could do it.
A few years ago I was in NYC visiting family. Returning to our hotel, the doorman saw me pull my baby Taylor from the car and told us that Les Paul was playing in 45 minutes in a tiny club in the hotel basement. I think he was about 82 at the time. He probably wasn't as good as he used to be (I had never seen him live), but he still was incredible. And he played funny - a couple of times I actually laughed out loud! One of my most treasured musical memories.
Bill, the guitar one
-
Raymond - the B1 was my first encounter with Acme. The bottom end was so much better than my 15 EV T-line box that the latter was immediately listed on ebay and I created Green Square Music to sell Acme speakers in Australia.
The tonal balance of the B1 is very similar to the B2 and B4 - in fact the 3db and 6db down points are identical - pretty amazing for such a tiny box. The trade off is efficiency.
These are great boxes for practice or acoustic bass reinforcement or mellow, small group scenarios - but a single B1 doesn't really have enough grunt for louder electric bass applications - which is where the B2 is such a versatile box.
Interestingly, I have had my short scale S1 set up with picolo tuning for a while and have played through a TC Electroncs stereo chorus peddle into a stereo power amp and 2 B1s. With at least 3m separation between the speakers it produces beautiful liquid stereo sound.
Re Trower: One of the things that really impressed me about Bridge of Sighs was the tension that Trower created between his guitar and the rythm section.
-
Matt, I just joined the discussion forum and saw your question about collector or player. I just acquired a 1998 Custom Rogue and played it out on the first gig I could. Truthfully, my wife (singer in the band) the other band members, and some of the crowd which follows us REALLY noticed the difference. WE are a 5-piece classic rock band and only play in our tri-state area (DE, MD and VA) and know the places we are playing....so I definitely have no problem taking my Alembic out on gigs. We also run our own sound from stage...therefore no asshole soundmen to tell us what to play. I say...just play your bass man...show it off!!!
Take care,
Wayne
-
I buy my basses because they bring me pleasure, both because they appeal to me as instruments and as pieces of modern industrial art. The few gigs I play, I don't consider to be worthwhile risks to my Alembics (damage or loss, insurance is expensive) most of the time, so they stay home and I take others.
My SC is in perfect condition, so I can have it on a stand, and visitors invariably comment on it's appearance first because it's so pretty, muso's and non-muso's alike. My S1 is all beaten up, has poor finish and looks like it's been used all over the world (which it has), but it's still beautiful to me, in the same way Stevie Ray Vaughn's Strat or SC's original Brown Bass is beautiful from the wear they have from years of playing being used the way they were meant to.
I also usually do FOH and/or PA so I don't have issues with sound no matter what I'm playing and none of my other instruments are so poor as to compromise the sound that much compared to either of the Alembics. And sometimes they even sound better.
-
Boys and Girls ....
I AM BACK IN THE GAME!!!!!
'When it becomes clear that no one else shares your level of passion, you are where you belong
...
quite good huh!?!?!?!?!?!
Paul the bad one
-
Ok...ok ...
I admit ...I stole that quote from a Rolex advertisement.
But Rolex and Alembic ARE quite close.
IMHO of course.
Paul -still- the bad one
-
Bill,
Guitar that makes you laugh: I went to see the Dead at The Downs in Santa Fe, NM. It was Bob's birthday. Bobby was feeling particularly rock and roll that day and was really hamming it up complete with the arching back solos etc. I was surprised he didn't put his guitar behind his head to play it at least once. Garcia was playing his rythm stuff while Bobby played the Little Red Rooster slide solo. Jerry slowly transformed his playing into a rockabilly riff that had the entire band laughing, and me. I was up front and I was watching Jerry as usual so I laughed early...but not much earlier than Phil who threw his head back in hysterical laughter. I think the only band member than never heard it was Bob because he was so focused on his solo. Priceless.
-
I am more of a player than a collector, although I have quite a few basses....15 going on 16 once my new Alembic is built, and depending on the gig I'll bring up to 5 instruments to play, fretted, fretless, 5, 6 ,7 string etc. I cover a wide variety of music, so the bass fits the song.....not just for show.
If it was a choice between a Rolex or an Alembic.......I'd sell the Rolex and get another Alembic without a second thought.
Such beautiful instruments are meant to be seen, heard and played not sit in the case, under the bed or in the closet.
playing such an instrument is like being in heaven.