Quote:
Originally Posted by Eduardo Barbosa
Wow, that is a lot of work!!!
Every now and then I meet a bassist that does all kinds of work. Electric bass, upright bass, all sort of styles of music etc. etc.
And then I see some cats that are very talented and they are famous. But they only sort of do one type of thing, and outside their comfort zone they can hardly function at all.
Instead of becoming bitter and resentful I would like to make this just an observation.
I do admire some of the famous musicians, but I do admire even more the working musicians that are always reaching out for something new and always growing.
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Well, you have phrases like 'Jack of all trades', 'Master of one', 'One trick pony', etc.. All them can be good names or be said in a condescending manner as well. For me, I have many interests musically depending on my mood and my period in life. Then, there are the Gigs I have done just to have a paying job.
Tonight's Concert was in my opinion 'good' but not great. It was a Pianist, elec. Keyboard, Drums, Trumpet/Flugel, regulars of this group and then the hired locals on Percussion including Vibes, Tymp, Elec Keys and everything else and myself on both DB and BG. On the math, that's 4 regulars and 2 subs. We rehearsed about 2 hours with a break in the middle and two sets on the stage. We were fed between Reh. and Show which for me is a major plus. After packing my gear on stage, I found some sandwiches still on the platter backstage..
.. One for the road..
.. Then, I packed the car and drove home.
I brought my German Neuner Bass, padded Stool, Bazin Bow, Pickup, cables, EBS 15 Drome Amp, Burner BSR B deluxe and a Guitar stand. I actually practiced switching basses between tunes as needed and went of the book before hand to let the leader know I need time to un-plug, put down and switch basses and re-plug as I used 2 cables, one for each bass. For the Smith bass I unplugged both ends each time to save the battery (just in case) and hung the end on the stand hook. For the Neuner DB, I leaned it on the rib on a chair.
I have played many gigs in my life doubling including one special gig back around 1985/6 in DC for President Regan. Switching basses logistics is part of the job and you have to keep your basses safe and secured as you move them around.
I would put myself in the class of 'Jack of all trades' but not at the head of the class, just in it..
