It's a long story, but Thursday was a stressful and upsetting day for me. So when I arrived at the gig that evening, an hour from my house, I discovered I had forgotten my bass!

The Thurs. gig is a jam we host, so the gtr. player had a 5-string J-Bass with him. Only problem - it's a righty, and I play lefty.

But not Thursday night, because I'm a trouper. I played that righty bad boy upside down all evening long. I muddled through, but thank heavens we didn't play "Whipping Post..." And by the end of the evening my brain hurt quite a bit...

Wow, amazing.
What a trouper.

To say the least. Well done. I would have bravely run away.

HOW bad does your day have to be to forget your axe?

"When danger reared it's ugly head, he turned his tail and bravely fled!"
Sir Robin's Minstrel
Monty Python & The Holy Grail

Well done!

I've played upsdie down righty's a few times, but it requires all of my concentration, and I wouldn't try "Whipping Post" either.

This is what I was thinking....

Cool job though .

Maybe its a good thing I lived in a small town when I started playing bass, and didn't know there was such a thing as a left-hand bass (I am left-handed, but play a standard "righty" not turned upside down). I don't think either of my basses was ever made in a lefty version.

Besides, I don't think they EVER made pianos or keyboards in "lefty" versions, I just have to play the high notes on the right and low notes on the left.

Still, I do admire both your perseverance and ability to turn things "bottom upward" for the evening.

I was out mowing one of my back fields in the morning. I came up to the house at lunchtime to discover that my 6-month-old Border Collie, Fionn, had somehow gotten out and been killed on the road. (No, nobody stopped.)

I drove him down back to bury him. Afterward, I tried to drive out and my truck got stuck. In the process of getting it out I burned the clutch out. It's still sitting there.

So my attention was a bit divided, mostly from the grief of losing Fionn.

That sucks about your dog, and your clutch, but it doesn't answer how you could forget your axe! Priorities, man! j/k

Seriously, losing a pet like that does suck, sorry for your loss.

Okay, I've done that almost.

Was halfway there when I had to turn around and go back for it.

Really sorry to hear about your puppy, bro -- that's really sad.

My daughter (a softball catcher) showed up at tryouts for a high level team without her catcher's mitt. She wasn't even having a bad day...

Hey, at least you had you pants.

Sorry about the dog.

I haven't showed up for a gig without my instrument, but I have showed up for work without my work clothes... and where I work that is not a good thing (as you might guess from my pic <--)... so I can kind of relate.
I have also lost a dog in a similar manner, so I can relate there, too... truly sorry to hear about that part.
Hopefully you'll get your truck out soon... sounds like a good time, repairing a clutch in axle deep mud... I don't envy you.

DX

Wow!

I am very sorry to hear about your puppy! I know how devestating that is.

As for playing a gig with a righty, congrats! I might have been able to pull that off back in the day due to trying out so many righty basses and playing a few songs 'upside-down" at jams.

But I've played only lefties for so long I'm sure I'd be a total trainwreck now!

He was a great dog.

I play Whipping Post upside down.



<allsmugandshitesmilie>

Man I'm sorry to hear about your dog!! Fair play to you for managing the gig it really could not have been easy!!

+1 For sure... I'm sure I couldn't have done that... I had to play my parts on an acoustic 12 string when the backstage power grid went out at a county fair once, but my hands would have been all over themselves if I'd a had to try playing the gig left handed or upside down like that... especially after the day you had.

That was a great looking puppy, too, FWIW. Border Collies are about the smartest dogs out there...

DX

That's quite a feat Chad. I couldn't imagine trying to play a lefty upside down. That's a fine looking pup. Sorry about your loss, and your truck too.