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Thunderbird Club

#56,122
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#56,127
Ok, I know when someone gets a new instrument, they often are prone to a bit of hyperbole, but I swear this happened. Played my normal Tuesday night set with Derek Hoke. Brought the ‘Bird again and can’t believe the amount of compliments I got on the sound. Seriously, two bass players ran up to the front after the gig to talk about the bass. 3 different bass players said they want to sell something to buy one. It really sounded that good. Like me, they pigeonholed thunderbirds as a hard rock only bass. But they really do work great in many situations. I guess the honeymoon is still on for awhile longer :)
 
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#56,128
Gringo Basso said:
Another bass great who played with Roxy was Johnny Gustaffson, the "Second Most Important Bassist" from the Merseyside Scene. He was a member of the very influential Cavern Club regulars "The Big Three" and played on "Love is the Drug" for Roxy, but was unceremoniously dumped after asking for a full band membership with Roxy (I don't think they've dome that for a bassist in over 40 years!). He died not too long ago. He was a great singer, and briefly co-fronted The Merseybeats in 1964. His name is rarely mentioned, which is a shame, as he was very influential on the Beatles and others, but never got the fame and fortune he probably deserved.
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kat888 said:
IIRC Gustaffson was the original Wal player.

The pedal steel is genius.
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Sorry for the non-TBird excursion but, yes. Johnny Gus was a great player and was inextricably linked with the early years of Wal basses. Love is the Drug (and all of Siren) was played on a P bass that Ian Waller built for Johnny Gus a couple of years before he set up Wal. The full story is here...

A HISTORY OF WAL BASSES: Special feature: Wal Basses - the early years

The first proper range of Wal basses was the JG bass, named after him. These featured the first of the multi coil pickups and distinctive leather tooled scratch plates. A feature on His JG Series bass is here...

A HISTORY OF WAL BASSES: JG Bass Special Pt 2: A tale of two basses
IMG_0005.jpg

Roxy had three great Wal JG players in Gustafson, Gary Tibbs and the late, great Alan Spenner.

And now back to T Bird loveliness!
 
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#56,129
dukeorock said:
Ok, I know when someone gets a new instrument, they often are prone to a bit of hyperbole, but I swear this happened. Played my normal Tuesday night set with Derek Hoke. Brought the ‘Bird again and can’t believe the amount of compliments I got on the sound. Seriously, two bass players ran up to the front after the gig to talk about the bass. 3 different bass players said they want to sell something to buy one. It really sounded that good. Like me, they pigeonholed thunderbirds as a hard rock only bass. But they really do work great in many situations. I guess the honeymoon is still on for awhile longer :)
Click to expand...

I used my Goth at a Carols event last year.
Use some care, and the ‘Bird can go anywhere
 
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#56,130
dukeorock said:
Ok, I know when someone gets a new instrument, they often are prone to a bit of hyperbole, but I swear this happened. Played my normal Tuesday night set with Derek Hoke. Brought the ‘Bird again and can’t believe the amount of compliments I got on the sound. Seriously, two bass players ran up to the front after the gig to talk about the bass. 3 different bass players said they want to sell something to buy one. It really sounded that good. Like me, they pigeonholed thunderbirds as a hard rock only bass. But they really do work great in many situations. I guess the honeymoon is still on for awhile longer :)
Click to expand...

Hard rock? I don't even know how to classify what I want to play ... 70s glam/goth/noir/dirt.
 
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#56,133
kat888 said:
Hard rock? I don't even know how to classify what I want to play ... 70s glam/goth/noir/dirt.
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That sounds like something I want to hear! I just mean the perception around here about T Birds is that they’re a hard rock type bass. In fact, they’re just great basses, period :)
 
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#56,134
dukeorock said:
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Seeing if this works...quick piece I did using only my 'Bird...no other instruments
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Weird. The first half is pretty much what it sounds like inside my head at any given moment. The second half is pretty much what it sounds like inside my head at any given moment... with rhythm
 
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#56,135
dukeorock said:
That sounds like something I want to hear! I just mean the perception around here about T Birds is that they’re a hard rock type bass. In fact, they’re just great basses, period :)
Click to expand...

I have had initial contact with a guitarist. I know nothing about this individual but we are supposed to be 'giving it a bash' in the new year.

What would be really cool, would be a Star Trek type replicator where you could fabricate guitarists and drummers ... 'gimme a guitarist with a P90 loaded Les Paul, AC30 and these':



 
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#56,138
theFixer said:
In the mid/latter '90s, I was in a band called "Planting Bombs with Nita". We were an "anti-retro post-neo-pseudo space opera" sorta thang...
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I'm the curious sort when it comes to music so when someone here mentions their band I go search it out to see what they're all about musically.

I wasn't able to find anything PBwN recorded but I did find a guy that says he's influenced by your work.

upload_2017-12-20_7-5-13.png


That's cool that you've influenced another musician. :thumbsup:

So, how soon should I expect the NSA to be knocking on my door having Googled, "Planting Bombs w/Nita", Mike?
__________________________________________

So far my favorite TBird club member doing originals has to be @hairypete1138. I spent some time on his SoundCloud awhile back and really liked what his band was laying down.

Pete's band, Tin Dog is worth a listen in case you missed it.

Tin Dog

So if you're SoundCloud or YouTube famous, post up a link, I'm in that sort of mood where new music is what I need!
 
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#56,139
kat888 said:
I have had initial contact with a guitarist. I know nothing about this individual but we are supposed to be 'giving it a bash' in the new year.

What would be really cool, would be a Star Trek type replicator where you could fabricate guitarists and drummers ... 'gimme a guitarist with a P90 loaded Les Paul, AC30 and these':



Click to expand...


P-90’s and an AC30 seems like an odd choice for glam rock, I woulda thought humbuckers and Marshall's. But I've seen metal bassists use fretless basses.

As a side note, during my searches to make sure I don't look like a complete idiot, I found out that both Slade and The Alice Cooper Band used ACC 360/361's with Gibson EB's back in the early 70's! Thought that was pretty cool.
 
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