Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: GUEST,BanjoRay
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 07:35 AM

Janice Birchfield plays a washtub bass beautifully with the Roan Mountain Hilltoppers, a stompin' Old Time string band, with Bill Birchfield on fiddle. Her rhythm and pitch are both spot on.
Ray

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Rasener
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 06:38 AM

* Not the style of music.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Rasener
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 06:38 AM

Not the style of muisc I like Geg, but that guy certainly plays the tea chest very well.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: greg stephens
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 06:23 AM

Here is some tea-chest playing(plus some very nifty ukulele) from the Old Spice Boys. They are the standout artists in the genre of ukulele/tea chest/snare drum bands playing Miles Davis numbers.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Rasener
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 04:50 AM

>>It is of course because Tea Chests, Bhodrans, shakers, Bones, spoons, tambourines etc. look easy to play. <<

Well it certainly does when you have had a lot to drink.

I can't play any instrument, but I would agree, that the above are not easy to play. They certainly are easy to play badly and thats the unfortunate part about it.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Andy Jackson
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 04:47 AM

That proves it is a musical instrument...if it can be noticibly played badly then it must be possible to play it well. I rest my case, well chest really.
I am often amazed how many people have no sense whatever of rhythm or even basic timing. But these same people insist on playing percussion of various sorts. It is of course because Tea Chests, Bhodrans, shakers, Bones, spoons, tambourines etc. look easy to play.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: nickp
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 04:08 AM

Sadly, our local old-time session has someone who plays one of these and he does them a great dis-service. He plays one note - regardless of key - and generally only vaguely in the same rhythm and not usually on the expected beat.

All of this seems strange because he used to teach 'real' bass and still plays electric bass with some success.

Unfortunately he is one of the session founders so we're stuck with him...

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Rowan
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 03:48 AM

Tea-bag bass. Now, that'd be something!

A bit counter-tenor, though.

My brother and I used to (separately) play bush bass, the Oz version of what the Brits above call their tea chest bass. We both preferred whacking the lagerphone or fondling the leather ferret though, in our respective bush bands. When I discovered tea was no longer being shipped in the big chests I made sure I collared one and stored it away so that I could revive the tradition. My shed has a lot of stuff like that.

Cheers, Rowan

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 15 Oct 09 - 02:52 AM

Tea-bag bass. Now, that'd be something!

Seamus

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 06:23 PM

"Tea-chests often can be obtained at shops selling tea.

I don't think you'd have much luck at Sainsburys.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Leadfingers
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 06:18 PM

Robbie - Wonder if thats the same guy I met at Bracknell in the seventies ! Joined a Blues Session in the bar with a Melodeon sized box ! Had a Pool cue inside and Low and behold , we had a bass !

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Rasener
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 05:23 PM

Jet Skiffle and Blues come from Lincolnshire Greg and have appeared at Faldingworth on numerous occasions. They are very popular with the Faldingworthers.

I put them on at my mothers Nursing Home as a rembrance of my father when he passed away. They loved em.

http://www.myspace.com/jetskiffleandblues

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Seamus Kennedy
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 03:31 PM

A teachest teacher teaches teachest, of course.

Seamus

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Ernest
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 02:16 PM

Who tea-ches tea-chests? ;0)

Tea-chests often can be obtained at shops selling tea.

For bucket bass I can recommend the California Honey Drops

They played on the Bergmannstrassenfest in Berlin this year: did an excellent bass solo on their onestring-broomstick-bucket thingie...

Best
Ernest

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: RobbieWilson
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 02:13 PM

At Bromyard there was a guy with a modern variant on a tea chest bass; a case made of plywood an a pole which was a 4 piece pool cue so that the whole thing packed up into a very portable box. decent player he was too.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 01:33 PM

Only thing wrong with it is findiong a teachest these days.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Leadfingers
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 01:24 PM

Hugh McNulty (Tight Like That , and later in a duo with Dave Peabody) seemed to play tunes on his tea chest bass !

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Andy Jackson
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:37 AM

Sorry no video, a number of stills around the web though.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: greg stephens
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:32 AM

Miskin Man: any video?

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: greg stephens
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:31 AM

Well here's a good bit of neo-skiffle. Don't know anything about the group. Singing the old Wabash Ca\nnonball, a group I am unfamiliar with Jet Skiffle and Blues

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: Andy Jackson
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:29 AM

Hm...Skiffle....As a teachester myself I ought to point out that it plays Bass notes, not a musical style.
I actually prefer Blues, slow and smooth. Of course it will play anything you like. I have modified mine with a sliding Capo around the pole and string to set the range without breaking the fingers. I once saw a 4 string version with each string tunes to a different note. The player was quite surprised that over an octave and a half can be got from only one string.

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: greg stephens
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:18 AM

Excedllent. Now, any skiffle? Let's have a look

Subject: RE: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: John MacKenzie
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:16 AM

Here's a good example.
We have a good player amongst us, called Gutbucketeer.

JM

Subject: Tea Chest bass(what's wrong with that)
From: greg stephens
Date: 14 Oct 09 - 10:10 AM

Well, I don't play it myself but I love the instrument. Here is the legendary Jez Dolan giving it some with the Boat Band last week. The recording is a bit brass dominated, you can't hear much tea-chest, or not on my computer speakers, but it gives the idea. Jez wears his working glove very elegantly too, I think.
Anybody else got any samples? I'd particularly like to see some wash-tub bass, which I gather is the American equivalent to the British tea-chest. Were all the chests thrown in Boston harbour, thus creating a shortage? Anyway, clips please. There must be some old skiffle footage around.