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Re: John Rostill Bass

PostPosted: Sat Aug 18, 2018 1:23 pm
by Kawarthabass
bassboogie wrote:Thanks Ivo.
I have a green burst (number12), bought at Shadowmania from Barry many years ago. Recently bought a white Shads bass from Barry, but it has silver tuners, otherwise the same as green. I do prefer the green machine.
Earlier picture of green burst with signatures, I think one is Bruce and the other is Alan Jones.
Enjoy, you must do Zambesi and John's version of Nivram and post for us all to see !

Cheers, Luigi



Luigi: I have never seen or played a Burns bass...so I don't know much about their sound.
I have listened on YouTube to Jon Rostill playing a Burns (with a pick) and also Mark Griffiths (no pick-using his fingers) and the sound on both seems very trebly. Is that because of poor recording quality? Or by choice?
Can you get solid, beefy lows out of the Burns basses?

Martin.

Re: John Rostill Bass

PostPosted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 4:38 pm
by Iain Purdon
Kawarthabass wrote:Can you get solid, beefy lows out of the Burns basses?

Oh yes! With three pickups in various combinations you can get any sound you want. Although I bought my Burns specifically to reproduce the Rostill sound as closely as I could, I also used it regularly as one of my gigging basses for general rock’n’roll. It’s a versatile instrument.
The down side is its weight — a full 5 lbs heavier than a Fender Precision — and after a 4-hour gig you really know about it!

Re: John Rostill Bass

PostPosted: Sun Aug 19, 2018 9:51 pm
by bassboogie
There you have it Martin. I agree with Iain that the Burns has a lot of tonal choice. But as with the Burns and Fender basses it's horses for courses, John Rostill had a unique style and sound. Not sure if John used the same bass sound when he played with Tom Jones

I see you have a proper bass, no treble there, wish I could play one.

Regards, Luigi

Re: John Rostill Bass

PostPosted: Mon Aug 20, 2018 2:12 am
by Kawarthabass
bassboogie wrote:There you have it Martin. I agree with Iain that the Burns has a lot of tonal choice. But as with the Burns and Fender basses it's horses for courses, John Rostill had a unique style and sound. Not sure if John used the same bass sound when he played with Tom Jones

I see you have a proper bass, no treble there, wish I could play one.

Regards, Luigi


Thanks Luigi.
Yup.... the upright bass is my main instrument. It kind of defines how I view the role and sound of the bass in the types of music I play.
My P Bass has Seymour Duncan Quarter-Pounders in it...which cut through what other instruments are doing without sacrificing the big low end I am used to.
That's why I love the authoritative sound Alan Jones got out of his bass with the Shadows. Except he uses a pick and I don't. :)
When it comes to touch, taste and tone, I find Alan Jones and Bob Moore ( who played on three of the songs Cliff Richard recorded in Nashville back in 1964 including "The Minute You're Gone") have a lot in common.

Re: John Rostill Bass

PostPosted: Mon Aug 20, 2018 11:28 am
by Iain Purdon
bassboogie wrote:Not sure if John used the same bass sound when he played with Tom Jones

I found this YouTube clip which suggests John was in the same ball park. His solo bit comes just after 2 minutes in.

Hope this helps - Iain