• TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
    Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
    Join freeLog in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

A night where everything goes wrong.

I had one on Saturday. Flat tire on the way to soundcheck. The lug nuts were so tight I could not bust them. Ended up stripping one. Pulled it off the road and into a parking lot and called someone (my baby sitter and kid) to pick me up. Make it to the gig with 2 extra roadies in tow. Plug in fan (first thing to set up) and it will not turn on. Broken. Grrrr. Finish setting up and start getting levels checked on one song. Great. During 2nd song to get aux instrument levels my amp craps out. Ended up having to go DI. Thank God I had my Sansamp and FX pedals. Had to run my "roadies" home and grab a quick shower. Suit up. Exceeded the speed limit back to the gig - 30 minutes late. We go onstage and had a great show. Talk about stressful.
 
Yea I did my best. My band was sweating it though. I had 2 missed calls a few txts when I was in the shower. Told the singer I was leaving the house and it was already ten minutes past time to hit the stage. We have gone on late before at this venue so I figured we were going to be alright. Most nights we have to adjust our schedule and we played to contract. Pretty normal night after we hit the stage. Good show.
 
5 minutes before time to take the stage, i went up to tune up, and the E string would not tune. I kept turning the key, and it wouldn't raise in pitch. The string wasn't broken, but the tuning key was! Stupid thing came off in my hand, broken shaft. Our band photographer is just starting out on bass, and had a Jazz Bass at home, about a half hour away. She immediately left to get it, and I played the first set with a 3 string bass with no low E....trying to transpose certain notes up an octave, while singing and playing is a real challenge. She got back, and I finished the night with an unfamiliar Jazz bass that wasn't set up too well. I later replaced all of the tuning keys on my bass, figuring if one went bad, the others might, too, and I didn't want to ever have to deal with that again. Now, I carry 2 basses with me.
 
skidrawk- I learned the hard way, too. Now I always carry a 3' hollow metal pipe that I can slide over the lug nut wrench for extra leverage. That, or get AAA...
 
skidrawk- I learned the hard way, too. Now I always carry a 3' hollow metal pipe that I can slide over the lug nut wrench for extra leverage. That, or get AAA...

But you usually have to wait for AAA and when you are on a schedule...
The cheater bar is an excellent idea. Or you could be like me and learn how to step on a lug wrench to get the job done. I'm 6'2", the only lug nut I ever couldn't undo was on a 60 something Plymouth Sport Fury and it turned out the damned thing had lugs that were threaded the opposite way on each side. The logic was that the momentum of the wheels turning would make them self tighten so they could never work their way loose. When I ever saw that thread pitch I almost screamed.
 

Latest posts