Thunderbird Club

[GonePlaid]

This is cuz you’re really good.

I actually have this kinda thing happening with the Talk Talk song “It’s My Life”. Mostly easy bassline but the pre-chorus has always been the part that made me want to learn it. No plans to cover it, as much as I’d love to get my band mates in RSR to do a heavy/dark version. Just learning it for the fun of it, which is mostly the only reason I know any covers.

The pre-chorus into the chorus is (to me) brilliant. I know how to do it but still in the “have to think about it” stage and can only do it slow as of today. Buy, like @JIO said, I catch myself getting through it at the right tempo and finding I didn’t have to think about it.

That when I start to feel like I’m reaching “good” status.

I think I'm gonna try to learn to sing-and play-"I'll Never Let You Go" by Steelheart.
(I can actually hit all those notes, but not like he does)

 

[Rickplaysbass]

Slow, focused and repetitive always works for me. After a good session of doing the part/song/line over and over again - I walk away. Then, later I come back to it fresh which usually pushes it over the hump. Once I get to that point - I can do it w/o thinking. I amaze myself sometime letting my fingers 'do the walking' when I haven't played something for a while and am put on the spot. Singing along depending on the bass-line can be tricky - but the same format helps overcome that.

I used to have to play harmonica for one of the songs in a band. Any time I tried thinking about what I was doing both lines would wander off on their own to same strange place. But as long as I would let my fingers do the walking and my lips do the "talking" everything would magically work itself out. Every night I did it was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do musically.

 

[JIO]

I really dig those, one of the very few non Thunderbird basses I kinda Jones for.

Like you with your relationship with Mike Lull - I'm a devotee/advocate having owned a few since the mid-'90s, having spoken with Phil on the phone a number of times and currently have Kubicki-laced basses... nothing sounds like a Kubicki (preamp- 9 or 18v). It has a unique sound/tone that I can pick out w/o seeing the bass. This happened once - a mid '90s Fender Jazz Deluxe - the 2nd 24-fret Fender bass (since the '85 Performer) at a live outdoor performance. "...that sounds like a Factor!" before I saw what the bass-player was playing. That specific bass had the Fender/Kubicki 9v pre that began with the '90-'93 Fender/Kubicki Ex-Factor - a short-lived collaborative production of Phil's Factors with the Fender Custom Shop. After that until his untimely passing - he went back to producing a limited number of completely hand-made 18v Factors at his Santa Barbara shop, many with exotic wood veneers.

I last talked with Phil on the phone when I first met Beth over 10yrs ago. Her older sister lives in Carpinteria, just south of Santa Barbara. I called Phil and said, "hey - I'm in Carpiteria and want to drive up and treat you to lunch"... he said, "we'll.., that would be a long drive because I live on the East Coast now." (New Hampshire IIRC...) At that point he had been diagnosed w/cancer and wanted to be with family there his last days. I wish I could have met him in person - he was a good man and like Mike Lull, a historically innovative American master-luthier. Long Live Phil Kubicki.

 

[JJR58]

Look for a band with wounded animal vocals that needs a moose!

 

[JJR58]

Jeff playing with my Carvin. We both concluded that the stock pickups are great and should be left as-is.

View attachment 5459925

That Carvin kills!
I was super impressed with it Ken.

 

[JIO]

I used to have to play harmonica for one of the songs in a band. Any time I tried thinking about what I was doing both lines would wander off on their own to same strange place. But as long as I would let my fingers do the walking and my lips do the "talking" everything would magically work itself out. Every night I did it was one of the most difficult things I've ever had to do musically.

yep - I've mentioned this before here - both bands I play with do "The Spy - In the House of Love" by the Doors, which is essentially a blues. It's the only 'blues' themed song either band plays - only linked by the songs' title. ("The Spy"...) As most blues songs - it has an instrumental 'break' which Paul (guitar) & I share. I cover the root notes while extrapolating melodically and do it differently every time we play it in rehearsal and live. I deliberately do not 'think' how I will play it - I just listen to Pauls playing and react accordingly to that moment in time.

Everything else we play is completely scripted - so it's a total release/freedom moment I look forward to. Bass players usually "serve the song" which I do willingly, but there's always been a "lead-player" part of me that was early-on inspired by the bass-players of my generation; Jack Bruce, Jack Cassidy, John Entwistle, and for me most importantly - Tim Bogart. (before anyone my age knew of Jameson etc) Dynamic, forceful, masterful steerers of their 'late '60s rock' ships. (John Paul Jones also - I liked Noel Redding, but wouldn't consider him an "innovator") Playing in bands w/o a rhythm guitar allows me to stretch out as a bass-player.

 

[JIO]

Two cars from the past I'd like to own: Studebaker Hawk, Volvo P1800.

Me too also - (isn't that how you would say it?)

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

yesterday’s winner…….green can look yummy..

 

[JIO]

yesterday’s winner…….green can look yummy..
View attachment 5460225 View attachment 5460226

...green? Are you sure you don't mean metallic grey?

 

[ectoflanger]

Slow, focused and repetitive always works for me. After a good session of doing the part/song/line over and over again - I walk away. Then, later I come back to it fresh which usually pushes it over the hump. Once I get to that point - I can do it w/o thinking. I amaze myself sometime letting my fingers 'do the walking' when I haven't played something for a while and am put on the spot. Singing along depending on the bass-line can be tricky - but the same format helps overcome that.

I was reflecting on your previous reply and it affirmed my initial thoughts on my own in that it’s not doing two separate things but one thing manifested in two different ways-

 

[Haji]

Did you go to Carter's yesterday?

Went by there but the only parking we could find was paid so we headed down to Corner Music.

 

[Chucky Stiletti]

yesterday’s winner…….green can look yummy..
View attachment 5460225 View attachment 5460226

I'm colorblind...no joke..

 

[JIO]

I was reflecting on your previous reply and it affirmed my initial thoughts on my own in that it’s not doing two separate things but one thing manifested in two different ways-

absativealy possolutly

 

[JIO]

I'm colorblind...no joke..

I hear you Chucky - statistics say many men are colour-blind on one level or the other. As a life-long Decorative Painter - I many times worked with a designer who was colour-blind. We worked together to make the outcome 'spectacular'.

 

[ectoflanger]

Two cars from the past I'd like to own: Studebaker Hawk, Volvo P1800.

I’m going to have to look those up but I have no doubt they are lovely choices-

For my self they would be a 1970 Dodge Hemi-Challenger R/T with four on the floor and a 1989 Lotus Esprit Turbo (black with charcoal grey interior).

 

[JIO]

So far ahead of the times. Prolly hurt them.

Probably - not savvy to Euro esthetics...

 

[Stealth57]

I hear you Chucky - statistics say many men are colour-blind on one level or the other. As a life-long Decorative Painter - I many times worked with a designer who was colour-blind. We worked together to make the outcome 'spectacular'.

Can someone help me with navy vs black dress socks?

 

[ectoflanger]

This is cuz you’re really good.

I actually have this kinda thing happening with the Talk Talk song “It’s My Life”. Mostly easy bassline but the pre-chorus has always been the part that made me want to learn it. No plans to cover it, as much as I’d love to get my band mates in RSR to do a heavy/dark version. Just learning it for the fun of it, which is mostly the only reason I know any covers.

The pre-chorus into the chorus is (to me) brilliant. I know how to do it but still in the “have to think about it” stage and can only do it slow as of today. Buy, like @JIO said, I catch myself getting through it at the right tempo and finding I didn’t have to think about it.

That when I start to feel like I’m reaching “good” status.

Since you mentioned it- it’s one of the cover songs I’ve been trying to sing bass and play - for me it’s the verses before the chorus that I found difficult as opposed to the chorus- something about that odd syncopation-

 

[MCF]

Me too also - (isn't that how you would say it?)

View attachment 5460220

Brilliant car. At the time, it was conceived as a nod the the Chevy Nomad. Killed by US bumper regs as the US was their biggest market. As it was, too few were built. Volvo made a ton of dough with the boxy 140/240 series, but didn’t want to spend the money for a redesign.

Ford had a similar theme in the works based on the ‘70 Mustang. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Instead they gave us Pinto wagon. One of the worst cars ever made.

Dodge tried to do a similar sport wagon with the Magnum. Nice car that looked cool. Unfortunately, no one wanted one.

In a way, my little Subie Crosstrek is similar. It’s no where near as beautiful, but carries on the spirit. A practical, right sized little wagon.

 

[JIO]

Brilliant car. At the time, it was conceived as a nod the the Chevy Nomad. Killed by US bumper regs as the US was their biggest market. As it was, too few were built. Volvo made a ton of dough with the boxy 140/240 series, but didn’t want to spend the money for a redesign.

Ford had a similar theme in the works based on the Mustang. Coulda, woulda, shoulda. Instead they gave us Pinto wagon. One of the worst cars ever made.

Dodge tried to do a similar sport wagon with the Magnum. Nice car that looked cool. Unfortunate, no one wanted one.

In a way, my little Subie Crosstrek is similar. It’s no where near as beautiful, but carries on the spirit. A practical, right sized little wagon.

Those 'boxy' 140/240 series were favored by double-bass players (like my friend's who played in the KC Symphony) as they could fit two full-sized double basses comfortably in the wagon version.