A Weird Blues Brothers "Funky Nassau" Josephs BassView June 7th 202...

I can say a lot about this song.

I don’t hate this song.

It’s a dexterity challenge. The bass music is specific. It’s very repetitive, but it has very slight changes as the arrangement progresses. I could probably change the part to give my hand a break, but I try not to because I am a hero and I will save the world and go to bass player or cat heaven.

This bass part hurts to play. I have tried several different positions on the neck. The one you see me using in the video is the best for me. Chicken grease would probably help, but I hate bugs. The little slide (glissando) in the bass part uses up a lot of strength in a short t amout of time and over and over and over and over again.

Dynamics save me. Heavy heavy dynamics help me survive this song. Big volume changes between song sections sounds better anyway. Sounds more pro to be dynamic.

I’ve never heard this song before the Jazz Derelicts. Our band leader likes to sing it. I like to see him singing also. Variety is great. I don’t thing people know this song very well. It’s from a reboot Blues Brothers movie that I have not seen. It seem like the song is part of the movie where they so to the islands near Trinidad and Jamaica. I hear french accented characters in the original recording. I don’t hear steel drums so it’s probably not a soca inspiration. I don’t hear guitar skank and all that usually reggae timbale fill kinda stuff from Jamaica… not sure, but my experience tells me to pretend like it’s a calypsonian type tune. Bass part is repetitive and the song could potentially endure a long long long lasting vocalist add-lib and dance section. (Our version doesn’t.)

Gear:

Amp:

The venue has an amp that I like to use. I plug into a direct box and also the amp. I finally took pictures and I can say that it’s an Ampeg B2-RE head. 450 watts at 4 ohms or 250 at ???

The amp head is on top of a speaker cabinet with 4 ten-inch speakers. I like that for my boomy Fender Jazz bass tendency. 4 tens should be more punch and less big low boomy speaker sub type sound. So far, band mates have no complaints.
I also plug into a direct box so that the sound guy can get a clean feed directly from my instrument.
He told me later that it sounds good and he runs the bass signal though a compressor. He also plays bass. I ask him if it gets too clicks and he says all good.
I like all of that. I have the freedom to accidentally play too loud a little.

Bass:

Fender Jazz Bass Deluxe 4 String… also known as “Bread and Butter.” I use this bass for long periods of time. I modified it for longevity. Light strings, heavy-mass bridge, low action, grenade launcher with cup holders, thick strap, MAC-10s, toilet seat cover dispenser, and very useful tone knob controls.

I’ve been obsessed with quarter ever since arcades existed. I’ll probably add a quarter machine to my bass soon. :)

Music Stand AND Lights:

I purchased the stand lights for these Gaslamp performances. I don’t remember the brand name. The lights are rechargeable and they come with a long long long charging cable. It’s amazing how long it is. Black and long. Very, very long and black. Hard… to see. I don’t know what you were thinking, but the music stand has been with me for a long time. It’s very portable because it breaks down into a small manageable shape. It’s long and fits well into a former telescope bag. I recently fixed the zippers with a busted keychain. I’m surprised the stand is not broken yet.

The venue:

A locally world famous type of spot that loves to have our band, Jazz Derelicts. We bring in an audience that likes to buy drinks and can afford to eat also. Our fans have disposable income. We make them lots of money on an early Sunday afternoon.
I hear the burgers are good and I still haven’t purchased one. The staff always looks different. They look slightly abused. I bet the music is too much. Not just this band, but all of it. All this loud music all the time while you are trying to be a good bar tender is probably very annoying. I know with out a dout that it’s all bad for their ears and passively exhausting. I don’t want to spend my money there. I think Disney employees who spend their money on Disney products are weird. It’s all the same. I won’t participate.
Venue beer is good enough and a “drink ticket” is nice. They have lots of seating and the room is large. People say the sound is good. There are many good places to hide our equipment. No wind because we are indoors. Parking is awesome, so please don’t tell anyone.