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I Ain't Feelin' It
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
I don't understand always mentioning the "interest free loan" to the government line. The way we do it works fine for us, thank you.
I'm an accountant by trade, which sometimes can be more of a curse than a blessing 
not to continue the OT, but my wife is an artist and her expenses and income from selling pieces varies a lot from year to year. After one year where we had to write an $8K check to the Fed, I have more taken out and don't have to worry come tax time. Last year got $8K back, this year only $1K (she sold some pieces). Doesn't bother me that much to use uncle sam as a buffer/bank. One less thing to think about. Or one less bell to answer - which reminds me, better get back to shedding tunes for tomorrow's show (that is one of them).
[QUOTE="bassbenj, post: 19766687, member:But when I was younger and more of a newb, the world of bass was one huge mystery to be explored. What is it about more than 4 strings. fretless, graphite neck, active basses, 7 strings, Fenders, G&Ls and on and on. But now I've been there and done all that. So I go to GC and cry because there are no more basses left to buy. I look at the wall of basses and I'm thinking "I've got one of those and I've got one of those and mine is better than that one!". But in music it's never over. Sure there is a world of playing to learn as well as gear. It's all valid. It's all a matter of what your current interests are. So sure GAS has settled down a lot since the early days, but GAS is never over. I'm still wondering if a Dingwall is something or not and occasionally I do take a dreamy visit to the Ritter website. But being now into fretless you know that takes a lot of practice to get right so there is that to. It all works together.[/QUOTE]
Good point. I am working with a keyboard player in my combo (replacing an electric guitarist) who (merciful heaven!) stays out of the way of the bass. I find that my "Thumper" works very well. With the guitarist I had to be very precise with my note durations. With the keys I can just play to feel.
This is the point I have reached: the bass becomes almost invisible, something to keep my hands busy while we're making a song happen. I have stopped thinking about "basses." I have walked into a GC to buy a flat pick or a set of guitar strings and walked up to the counter, picked out what I wanted, paid for and gone on my way -- all those shiny guitars and basses no longer have an appeal.
Another gratuitous photo:
For what it's worth, we play pop music from the '30s-'50s with percussion instead of drums and 2-3 lady singers. We just started working up Whatever Lola Wants this afternoon.
Good point. I am working with a keyboard player in my combo (replacing an electric guitarist) who (merciful heaven!) stays out of the way of the bass. I find that my "Thumper" works very well. With the guitarist I had to be very precise with my note durations. With the keys I can just play to feel.
This is the point I have reached: the bass becomes almost invisible, something to keep my hands busy while we're making a song happen. I have stopped thinking about "basses." I have walked into a GC to buy a flat pick or a set of guitar strings and walked up to the counter, picked out what I wanted, paid for and gone on my way -- all those shiny guitars and basses no longer have an appeal.
Another gratuitous photo:
For what it's worth, we play pop music from the '30s-'50s with percussion instead of drums and 2-3 lady singers. We just started working up Whatever Lola Wants this afternoon.
American Songbook! Oh man I LOVE all that old crap from 30's to 50's!
And I do play drums and percussion as well as bass. Played blues conga for a while. I thought all the blues Nazis would have a fit, but it was just the opposite. The band just loved it. The percussion seemed to give more force to the band than just drums alone. Whodda thunk it?
Old Man GAS ain't quite dead yet. I had some after playing this bass last night. If I got it, it would mean the Kala U-bass and probably something else would be gone because the PJ Mustang would make a nice travel bass. I couldn't play it unplugged, but an unplugged U-bass is not exactly booming.
On the subject of a refund, for many it is simply a margin of error. I don't want a big refund, but I don't want a tax bill of any size.
As for the original topic, @Dr. Cheese I find your lack of GAS disturbing.
In all seriousness though, there is something to be said for having a small but versatile collection of basses that are above the lower end of the market. Not because they are superior. But because the thought of adding one to the group only makes sense if it can stand tall with the others. In other words, psychologically you may tend to become more selective. If on the other hand you have a handful of budget basses, then it opens the door for buying many more budgets basses, because they fit right in, and the affordability makes it more a question of "why not" than of "why".
I think it is liberating having a bar set higher leading to less frequent GAS and less churn in the collection. It is also more rewarding having sights on the next bass for a longer period of time before pulling the trigger.
As for the original topic, @Dr. Cheese I find your lack of GAS disturbing.
In all seriousness though, there is something to be said for having a small but versatile collection of basses that are above the lower end of the market. Not because they are superior. But because the thought of adding one to the group only makes sense if it can stand tall with the others. In other words, psychologically you may tend to become more selective. If on the other hand you have a handful of budget basses, then it opens the door for buying many more budgets basses, because they fit right in, and the affordability makes it more a question of "why not" than of "why".
I think it is liberating having a bar set higher leading to less frequent GAS and less churn in the collection. It is also more rewarding having sights on the next bass for a longer period of time before pulling the trigger.
American Songbook! Oh man I LOVE all that old crap from 30's to 50's!
And I do play drums and percussion as well as bass. Played blues conga for a while. I thought all the blues Nazis would have a fit, but it was just the opposite. The band just loved it. The percussion seemed to give more force to the band than just drums alone. Whodda thunk it?
Having had it both ways -- playing in a dance hall band with a drum kit (and an excellent, schooled drummer) and with my combo, I think either setup works...but in our context of backing up 2-3 ladies on vocals, a drum kit (unless we found an unusual drummer of a sort that doesn't seem to exist around here) would be overkill. And the challenge of developing percussion/bass/keyboards patterns that express the songs is, frankly, a lot of fun!
Yeah, it's the Great American Songbook: lots of piano chords, rhythmic patterns and harmonies that don't always go where you expect. I started the group five years ago with a dear friend, singer and guitarist, who passed away last year at 84. These were the songs he grew up with. It was a challenge to get the feel right (my longest-lived gigging band was a top-40 C&W group). YouTube is our friend!
And, finally, no one else is doing it. We have our own niche.
Only one more pic.Here we're doing Pennies From Heaven. The congas stayed home due to the nature of the job, but we played three crowded sets.
I' ll bet you have it!
(and you' ve got the looks " you can leave your hat on"!!! 
)Thanx a lot for giving us an inside look
that's pretty cool!!!may the bass be with you
Wise(b)ass
These days my GAS have moved on from MI stuff to old stuff, like Arts & Crafts furniture and lighting. 
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