autographs

[hieronymous]

So this time instead of meeting a famous bassist, I got to meet a famous bass!



The double neck in front is my '75 Series I - behind it to the left is John McVie's steel-fretboard '76 Series 1.5 (Series I electronics with master volume), or as Susan Wickersham calls it, "continuously fretted" It was in for repair - the LEDs weren't working, turns out it wasn't the bass at all, it was the ancient power supply.

This bass was used perhaps most famously on "The Chain" - the solo bass riff starts at 3:03, the third time you can hear him slide up to the note. I never knew it was fretless until I heard about the steel fingerboard.

[mc2NY]

I've actually removed a few autographs that were on axes when I bought them.

Unless it is someone iconic, who is dead, I'm not into their sig on my bass.

That said, I own/have owned many "rock star/endorser" axes.  I never buy them because of the actual rock star pedigree. I usually buy them because they are a one-off that the company will not do for a regular buyer...or because they were better made and had more attention to detail.

[hieronymous]

I've actually removed a few autographs that were on axes when I bought them.

I can understand that actually - Bootsy Collins signed a pedal of mine - personalized, with my name - which is awesome, but I don't use the pedal that much anymore so I kind of feel like I'm stuck with it! 

[Denis]

I met Graham Chapman once and he signed a Canadian $2 bill I had in my wallet. He wrote across Queen Elizabeth's image, "Graham Chapman signed but did not sit on her face."

[wellREDman]

I always made a point of getting a signed cd from the bands I toured with, but most of them were given to a charity auction recently,
I did hang on to the Tesla "Five man acoustical Jam" cos that was the first Album my wife and I went halvesies on.

I've also got a copy of the book "SAHB Story" signed by both Author and the whole band (except Alex obv).

I also have a fold up make up/wash bag   that I used to keep adapters and such in that has "to Red, your pal, Alice Cooper" on one side and "Red! rock on, Joan Jett" on the other. I usually just ignored celebrities that would wander into the video area sidestage but those two were too much of an influence on me as a kid for me to be able to play it cool, and my adaptor pouch  was the only thing I could reach while I was mixing. when I quit touring I wasn't  sure what to do with it, it's too personalised to be worth selling and I hate the idea of just chucking it in the loft.
I've ended up using it to keep my medications in

[amptech]

I went to see Deep Purple with a friend when I was 16, he was a huge fan, but I went along just to hear Roger Glover.
Before the show we had to find a parking lot or something to consume our sixpacks, being under age. So we strolled away
from the city center, through a posh shopping street where we normally would not go. At the end of the street we saw an elderly man and his wife - and it turned out to be Roger Glover. The funny thing was, Roger had a black pen - and he signed my white t shirt, but my poor friend was all dressed in black. I think he tried to sign the print on his black DP t shirt, but it would not stick to it. Roger probably noticed he was uncomfortable, an signed his hand or something. He was really nice, calm I remember. I probably asked him about his favourite bass, what strings he used etc. I remember trembling with excitement while we drank our beer.

Anyway, the show was not very good, and my friend got angry because I had the autograph on my tee. He never got over it, but I told him that someday I'd buy a Rickenbacker and wipe it's strings with it. I did buy a Rick some years later, and the tee is in it's case.
It's about 20 years since I saw this guy, but I hope he eventually washed his signed hand.......

[maxschrek]

I've got Jon Anderson, Chris Squire, Bill Bruford, Roger Dean, Jeff Berlin, Kasim Sulton and Rufus and Martha Wainwright. None of the sigs are on a guitar though.

[Pilgrim]

I have a Dick Dale shadowbox on the wall in my music room with a half-dozen items he has signed for me at various appearances.

[hieronymous]

When I think about it, I have been able to meet several of my bass idols - when I was playing in a (jam) band back in the early '90s I was able to meet Mike Gordon (Phish), Oteil Burbridge (Aquarium Rescue Unit at the time), David Schools (Widespread Panic), Kenny Gradney (Little Feat) - more recently I've met Stanley Clarke & Victor Wooten. A few weeks ago I got to meet another long-time idol: Billy Sheehan!



I saw him once with Mr. Big back in the late '80s, opening for Rush (the Presto tour), but this time got to see him at a very small venue - Yoshi's Oakland, same place I met Stanley and Victor - so I know the drill: hang out after the show, look like you belong there, and pounce on them when they come out! My friend and I met a woman who came all the way from Japan to see three Winery Dogs shows, in LA, SF & Oakland. In Japan you would be lucky to get tickets for an arena show, Mr. Big is still HUGE over there, so she was blown away to see them play from so close and get to talk to the whole band afterwards. It was a great show, Billy Sheehan was very laid back and natural to talk to. Here's a pic that shows how close we were:

[tore00]

I have autograph and pictures with me of Mr. Robert Plant. I have met him in 2005 at Malpensa Airport in Milano. I was traveling to Poland for work while he was going from a concert in France to Germany. Very nice man. I went to his concert to Alcatraz in Milan a week later.
Then I have the autograph of Tony Levin on his King Crimson photo book.

[Highlander]

I have several but faves stick out...
Authors - Arthur C Clarke, Frank Herbert, Bob Sheckley - eventually I'd like to source a Heinlein and an Asimov but they are out of my reach at present...

I've had several muso ones that have come and gone but the faves are Bruce Palmer, SRV and California that I still have...

[Pilgrim]

I have several but faves stick out...
Authors - Arthur C Clarke, Frank Herbert, Bob Sheckley - eventually I'd like to source a Heinlein and an Asimov but they are out of my reach at present...

I've had several muso ones that have come and gone but the faves are Bruce Palmer, SRV and California that I still have...

You and I have spent much time reading the same SF.  You have excellent taste, sir!

[Rob]

You and I have spent much time reading the same SF.  You have excellent taste, sir!

Touche' 

[Highlander]

Ah... fans of the alternate written form...

My own work is a combination of Sheckley and Adams, dark-humor wise... I once posted an edited short here and have a "joke" item I have customised to suit almost any person... I want to go back to full-time writing once I've completed the WWII Burma project so I can concentrate on the SciFi...

I used to exchange emails with Bob Sheckley - I'll get the complete shorts set one of these days and have most of his works, including his fiction material and a number of firsts... from an art perspective I have his very limited book "In A Land Of Clear Colours" - a "multi-media" release which comes with an LP with original music by Brian Eno (noodling) and narration by Pete Sinfield, and some luscious art... mine is an early Roman numerals release... 1000 copies exist with the first 50 in Romans...

Another autograph I would like to get is the much forgotten and overlooked Alfred Elton van Vogt, whom I have a shelf (capable) collection of books...
I should have got Iain Banks before he passed...

The move will hopefully enable me to build a library, as well as a music room...

[Pilgrim]

Van Vogt was a very interesting writer!

And so was the offbeat Harlan Ellison.  If anyone here has his story collection Deathbird Stories, don't read it when you're feeling depressed!  Ellison probably had as many stories adapted for TV as any SF writer.

And I used the excellent Blade Runner taken from one of the minor plots in Philip K. Dick's Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep as one of the works in my online graduate course about technology's impact on society.  The book is a much more complete story, but the movie is compelling and popular.