From: Level42-request @ worldmachine.com (Level42 Digest) Subject: Level42 Digest V2000 #159 _ ____ _ ____ _ _ ___ // //__ // / //__ // /__// __// //__ //__ \\_/ //__ //__ // /__ D I G E S T Level42 Digest Volume 2000 : Issue 159 1329 subscribers Today's topics: Strings Again Pete Devlin Unreachable in the UK ?? Steve Henty re: Don Z. Norman van den Wildenberg Re: Level42 Digest V2000 #158 Mike Brooks Re: Level42 Digest V2000 #158 Mike Brooks string theory William Burnett MORE re-issue info Winston Walker flash vs. substance DonZipf Re-Issues Questions Mark Perrella Ice Magazine (August 2000) Jason & Sherry Nuckels ------------------------------ Subject: Strings Again From: "Pete Devlin" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 12:24:43 +0100 Sorry to be another person but.... Yeah Strings are down to personal preference. You don't only get to do 'flashy' stuff with light strings, there are many players out there that don't & still stick in some ripping lines & solos. As a bass player myself I whole heartedly agree with Brian 'wolfbard',in being worried by yet another bass player agreeing with everyone else telling him what his job is (as well as been tired of the short sighted idiots that come out with that stuff). If that is how you want to play then that is V. cool but to play the way you are told, do guitarists do it ? I've not been in a band yet where any other instrument has been told how it should sound. Guitar solos, drum breaks etc are never seen as 'flashy' but good, so why can't bass parts be seen that way? Jaco was adamant that it is a bass GUITAR. The limits of what it can do are only restricted by the ability & preference of the player. If our own are shouting down the instruments potential then what chance do we have of ever moving forward & building on what other players have created ? Jaco & Stanley's first solo stuff came out in 76 don't we owe it to them & every other pioneering bass player (or the ones who really believed in what they were playing) to at least play what WE beleive in not be good boys & girls & do as we are told. Maybe the guitar should only be Rythym, maybe you should never have a fretless guitar. Do you get my drift ? Of course you can & why shouln't you ? Imagine the uproar if everyone started telling the guitarist how they should sound! Hey stay off the lower notes chap they are mine, turn your bass response down the bottom end is mine! Somehow I don't think that would work & it shouldn't either. Be free - do what you FEEL music is about expression not suppression!! Cheers ------------------------------ Subject: Unreachable in the UK ?? From: "Steve Henty" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 12:50:46 +0100 Hi All, Is there anybody in the UK that I could obtian the Unreached Levels set from ? Many Thanks Steve My flies wide open I feel a breeze....... ------------------------------ Subject: re: Don Z. From: "Norman van den Wildenberg" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 12:18:48 +0200 >Let me echo Win's comments about how great BB King's was. It's a good, >old-fashioned jazz club, like in the 40's. Leather booths all around the >perimeter, tables right up to the stage (which is located on the long wall, >rather than at the end of the room). You sit, have dinner, and listen to >jazz - the way it ought to be! And the food is excellent; I think we all >enjoyed our meals (the Maryland crab cakes were slendid). > >Cheers - Z > DAMN, you were there?? in the 40's???? Wow, you look young for your age Don!!! Norman ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Level42 Digest V2000 #158 From: "Mike Brooks" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 13:31:49 +0100 >Nick (currently playing in a covers band where a fat tone is a must AND >using 30's AND not one slap amongst it all!) And a bank balance as fat as his tone!!!!!!! Buy me a bass, Nick!!! Mike ------------------------------ Subject: Re: Level42 Digest V2000 #158 From: "Mike Brooks" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 13:45:49 +0100 Regarding Brians point...... >The role of the bassist is changing and the "Flashy stuff" can be accomplished as either a solo or a well place riff in the regular bassline. I totally agree. The well placed riff is definitely an art as far as I'm concerned, something Mark does so well. In no way was I demeaning what us bass players do....I mean we should be so grateful that guitarists let us play in their bands...... The point I was making, and I suppose Mark emphasised it in the Bassist interview in 98 and particularly by his complete change in the gear he used, is that bass is bass. Without sounding like a cretin, it can be basic stuff or flashy stuff. I love both sorts. A simple riff from a James Brown track can boil my egg just as much as the most resounding version of '88 or Handsome Rugged Man but we do tend to have a pivotal role when we play. Sting has said many times that the reason he went back to playing bass was that he could lead the band much better as opposed to when he played guitar. Doesn't matter whether you use light strings or heavy gauges but when it comes down to it a 30 string sounds like a percussive click as opposed to a reasonable sounding note. Now, there are many factors that can change your sound and something I've noticed lately is how the stage, what it's made of and density (i.e. hollow or otherwise) can drastically affect what I hear and feel onstage. I've just done two gigs over two days and I had a different sound for both. Same gear, same monitors but one night felt great and the other felt awful. One night I had bags of sustain, the other night nothing. If I had been using 30-90's, I would have really suffered on the worse of the two nights from a lack of depth and bass response. Most bands take you on to play bass and if you're lucky, you get to do what you want within the context of the band. From my limited experience, I have always had problems justifying the use of light strings within a band context. They just don't work me. There endeth the tale. Mike ------------------------------ Subject: string theory From: William Burnett Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 14:24:43 +0100 Greetings folks. >Subject: Heh heh - strings! >From: "Nick Smith" >PS - my bass rig is 1000 watts and has 4 cabs!!!! > >Nick (currently playing in a covers band where a fat tone is a must AND using >30's >AND not one slap amongst it all!) Perhaps this explains why you need 1000 watt bass rig. (As I also use 1000 watts, I am aware of how well aquatinted my pot & kettle are becoming at this point.) But it does perplex me somewhat this "I slap therefore I have to use 30-90 gauge strings" mindset. When I started playing, I read all the MK interviews, and reached the same conclusion. I used 30-90's out of principle until I got a six string. Now , more out of necessity than choice, I had 30-130's put on it. (With the 4 string equivalent being 40-100's) and was amazed at how much sharper and deeper my slap (along with any other technique) sound had become, and slapping on a six is hard enough anyway. While I agree that 30-90's allow a degree of extra string flex, it's all a matter of strength and technique, there is no physical law that prevents you from doing on heavy strings that which you can do on light ones. (Up to their elastic limit anyway, which is way beyond their practical usable one.) And, in addition to the richer tone that heavier strings generally have, I found the other benefit was in the feel of them. To explain: Heavier strings usually put up more resistance than bendier, light ones. Now, try tapping a fast, strong and consistent rhythm with two fingers on a bench, then try it on a sponge! (I know this is a slightly extreme metaphor.) and you can feel the difference. So, maybe it's just me and my bad technique, but I find that heavier strings help give me a more solid and even sense of groove, at least when finger picking. You can all wake up now - Will. -- ======================================================================== William Burnett http://www.sphere3.co.uk/ ======================================================================== ------------------------------ Subject: MORE re-issue info From: "Winston Walker" Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 13:05:12 -0400 This info comes courtesy of Simon Carson, who has been having trouble posting it to the digest - Win DEAR DIGESTERS THOUGHT YOU MIGHT LIKE TO KNOW DETAILS OF SOME FORTHCOMING MAGAZINE REVIEWS/INTERVIEWS FOR THE REISSUES: MOST OF THESE INTERVIEWS WILL BE IN THE OCTOBER DATED EDITIONS. GUITARIST MAGAZINE: NEXT ISSUE (DUE IN A COUPLE OF WEEKS) WILL HAVE REVIEWS OF THE ALBUMS AND THE FOLLOWING ISSUE WILL HAVE AN INTERVIEW WITH MARK. RECORD BUYER:MARK IS SCHEDULED TO DO AN INTERVIEW WITH THE MAGAZINE NEXT WEDNESDAY WHICH WILL BE PART OF A FEATURE ON LEVEL 42 WHICH WILL ALSO INCLUDE REVIEWS OF THE ALBUMS. ALSO LOOK OUT FOR REVIEWS IN Q, RECORD COLLECTOR AND MOJO MAGAZINES WITH MORE TO BE CONFIRMED. THERE ALSO MAYBE SOME RADIO INTERVIEWS FOR CAPITAL AND ILR (INDEPENDENT LONDON RADIO) ALONG WITH SOMETHING FOR VH-1 (I SHOULD HOPEFULLY HAVE MORE INFO ON ALL THIS AND ANY MORE PROMO STUFF IN THE NEXT FEW DAYS. THIS INFO IS ALL CORRECT AT THE MOMENT BUT AS WE FANS KNOW SOME OF IT BOUND TO CHANGE! FINALLY THE REISSUES ARE DEFINETLY COMING OUT ON AUGUST 21st! SO IGNORE ALL OTHER DATES ANYWAY THAT' S ALL FOR NOW HAPPY MAGAZINE HUNTING! SIMON CARSON ------------------------------ Subject: flash vs. substance From: DonZipf @ aol.com Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 13:21:34 EDT > The role of the bassist is changing and the "Flashy stuff" can be > accomplished as either a solo or a well place riff in the regular bassline. Ooh, I sense a "role of the bass-player" debate a-brewing! :o) This speaks directly to why Mark King is my favorite bassist of all time, instead of Victor Wooten or one these other many "noodly" players. It's very impressive what some of these guys do, endlessly noodling up and down the neck, showing off their knowledge of bizarre scales and obscure jazz chords. But MK manages to be even more impressive while staying within the traditional role of the bass-player. I think he's pretty unique in that regard, while all other players seem to fall into either the "too noodly" or "too basic" categories. Even though I'm a bassist, I'm also a songwriter and I'm more interested in a great song than in flashy musicianship. But when the two are successfully combined...well, then you have Level 42. :o) Cheers - Z. ------------------------------ Subject: Re-Issues Questions From: Mark Perrella Organization: Key Services Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 22:47:59 -0400 I am posting these questions from my friend Chris Lawford, an ex-member of the Digest. Since he has been unable to regularly participate in the Digest, he has asked me to post the following questions to the group: "Do me a favor? The next time you post to the L42 list, could you ask if the re-issues are coming out in the U.S. as well? If not, see if anyone has a contact phone number/e-mail address for Polydor UK. I'd definitely like to do a feature on these for my review column." I appreciate any help you can give Chris. Thanks everyone! TCOY, Mark "... love in a peaceful world.... " ------------------------------ Subject: Ice Magazine (August 2000) From: JandSNuckels @ webtv.net (Jason & Sherry Nuckels) Date: Sat, 29 Jul 2000 22:23:30 -0700 (PDT) Hey y'all, Just got the August 2000 issue of Ice Magazine. Again (unfortunately) no mention of the re-issues, not even in the "From The Vaults" section. Oh well... LIAPW, Jason (and Sherry) Nuckels