• 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 free Log in
    Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.

Virginia Bassists

#23
VTSlim said:
Norfolk here. Anyone ever go to any of those bass club events at Alpha Music? I wanted to go this past Saturday because they were going to be demo-ing some effects but I had another obligation.

I wouldn't mind getting up with some other local bassists to jam a little bit or just play through some different instruments/amps/effects etc.
Click to expand...


Last time i was in Alpha the guy working there asked me if i wanted to come to the bass club meeting, but 1. he was kind of an ass to me before that (i asked to play a thunderbird and before he handed it to me he said "you know this is a seventeen hundred dollar bass" didnt sit well with me, and 2. I am awful at playing still
 
#29
Tom84d said:
Last time i was in Alpha the guy working there asked me if i wanted to come to the bass club meeting, but 1. he was kind of an ass to me before that...
Click to expand...

This can't be Dave H....right?
(He's off on Fridays...so that covers neurotic Tim's post).

I have yet to make any of the Bass Club events...my Saturdays are spent out of town (Man does not live by bass alone).
 
#33
neurotictim said:
...but I've never had a good experience in the bass dept there. Always treated like I was a second-class customer.
Click to expand...

...you are aware of the 'No "Smoke On The Water" (or "Higher Ground")' understanding, right?
;)

Anyways, sorry about how you're treated. For some reason, they like me...but I could give you a story about the time (1978) when Eddie the owner (worked at AL&M at the time)sold me my StingRay bass.
;)
 
#34
Yeah, and the "Anesthesia" and a few others. I honestly haven't gone in there to try out a bass in forever. Someone suggested talking to him for opinions about gear, and each time it's basically a sales pitch for Berg and Eden that demeans me at the same time. I can't get an honest opinion out of him to save my life.

The only good suggestion I've gotten from him involved coming here, and now I don't need his advice, so it's a moot point. I have spent over a grand this month on gear, and he didn't get a single sale from me. *shrug* His loss, not mine.
 
#35
Can't say I've dealt with him on a regular basis. I usually go to Rich, Eddie, or Walter for repair work. Here's a rundown of others I've met over the past 17 years:

David P. (formerly of MARS and AL&M) - no nonsense and a little gruff in the eyes of some but he always gave me the best deals. Don't know where he is at the moment but I owe him a beer.

Wendell Johnson (AL&M) - also gone but a great guy and a helluva guitar player. His father, TJ, has been in several bands with your's truly.

Russ Scarborough (AL&M) - left and opened his own shop.

Kenny Marshall (AL&M) - one of the best techs out there. Does all my fret work. Loves to teach and will provide a 30 minute on-the-spot tutorial with little prompting.

Chuck (Moe's Music) - doesn't carry the high-end stuff like he used to but its still nice to drop by and nose around.

Guitar Center - I don't deal with them unless I need strings. Can you say "claustrophobia"? Too loud, too cramped, too many wankers. I do better on TalkBass.

Jim Winter (Winters Sound / Gloucester) - little shop in a podunk county but he has some gear (and prices) that make it one of my favorite stops while seeing patients.

I'm sure I've forgotten countless others.

Riis
 
#39
I defected to from Northern VA to MD about 4 years ago but I still gig in VA pretty often.
But I guess I can't be in the club. I suppose we'll just have to start a MD club. We could have Scott Ambush, Gary Grainger, and Anthony Wellington to start things off.
 

Latest posts

Top Bottom
Back