Saw Nile at the Weekend...

JerkMoans

...at the really rather jolly Cambridge Club Festival.  

Blasts from the past a go-go.  Highlights included Mica Paris, the Brand New Heavies (their guitar player is shit hot), a couple of surviving Jacksons, Gabrielle, a local dude named Danny Toeman who'd won a competition to be there, 'Put Your Records On' (sound advice) Corinne Bailey Rae...  Sadly had to leave before Diana Ross for all sortsa complicated family reasons.

But head and shoulders above the rest was the irrepressible Nile Rodgers.  70 years old and the man is a machine.  No fucking about with lengthy set-ups and intros - just wandered on stage and started playing before his singers had shown up, and pretty much didn't stop as he bombarded the audience with hit after hit after hit for 90 mins or so.

SO GOOD I'm going to see him again at the weekend  

Philly_Q

Honestly, I clicked on the thread expecting to see these guys.

Which would've been very unusual on the FretBoard, but... oh well, as you were.

JerkMoans

Philly_Q said:

Honestly, I clicked on the thread expecting to see these guys.

Which would've been very unusual on the FretBoard, but... oh well, as you were.

Yes: they look exactly the sortsa disco-funk pioneers the denizens of the Cambridge Club Festival would be diggin'  

DefaultM

Did he play Sacrifice Unto Sebec?

Philly_Q

DefaultM said:

Did he play Sacrifice Unto Sebec?

Yep, the extended dance mix.

EricTheWeary

I saw Nile and Chic a few years ago. Stunningly good band. Went out and bought a greatest hits the next day. I'm still mostly meh about those songs TBH. But in terms of the art of live playing wow. 

roberty

I've got tickets to see Nile Rodgers in Bristol this summer. The man is a living legend

roberty

In the Chic days they would score the string parts in advance and then get the string players in to do all the songs in one day to save money. Proper old school discipline. I find it incredible that they would make 7-8 minute disco tracks with live instruments and no digital editing. Must have taken an awful lot of planning

This is a good read: https://www.soundonsound.com/techniques/classic-tracks-chic-le-freak

monquixote

Also with reference for the thread about upgrading an HRD as a pedal platform with a funky clean.

The king of funk uses a DeVille, HRD, or Peavey Classic 50 and a couple of Boss / Ibanez pedals.

What more do I need to say... 

JerkMoans

monquixote said:

Also with reference for the thread about upgrading an HRD as a pedal platform with a funky clean.

The king of funk uses a DeVille, HRD, or Peavey Classic 50 and a couple of Boss / Ibanez pedals.

What more do I need to say... 

Yeah - if you look closely at the picture above, you can see 2 Devilles in front of the drummer.

Surprising contrast, where the Brand New Heavies' start was delayed by 15-20 mins as they couldn't get their monitors working (transpired to be an unplugged cable), while Nile and his crew appeared to have at most 2 monitors for the whole band.

I am inspired to renew my studies of juiced-up, funky strumming with vigour and application.

roberty

You can hire a HRD anywhere in the world no fuss :-) 

PolarityMan

Philly_Q said:

Honestly, I clicked on the thread expecting to see these guys.

Which would've been very unusual on the FretBoard, but... oh well, as you were.

Same here....should have known better really

Philly_Q

EricTheWeary said:

I saw Nile and Chic a few years ago. Stunningly good band. Went out and bought a greatest hits the next day. I'm still mostly meh about those songs TBH. But in terms of the art of live playing wow. 

I bought a best of (The Definitive Groove Collection, I think).  It's a double CD and it includes quite a few extended mixes.  It's good stuff, and I like the better-known tracks, but after a while it all gets very samey.  I've had the same reaction when I've seen their live sets on the TV - good for a while, but then fatigue sets in.

(I know many people would say the same for punk, or ska, or metal or whatever, but y'know, horses for courses.)

CaseOfAce

Not surprised to see him using the Devilles (| assume one's in use the other's a spare?).
He just needs big cleans with no coloration of tone - it's almost like Fender make Hot rod deluxe and devilles with him in mind!

I wonder if the speakers been upgraded or his tech has modded 'em but it wouldn't surprise me if they were straight from the factory floor in Mexico.

As regards pedals - any ideas what's on the floor - I saw a pic of an Korg tuner, Ibanez stereo chorus and that ubiquitous Boss DD-3 everybody and his dog have in one photo - I have no idea how recent...

EricTheWeary

CaseOfAce said:

Not surprised to see him using the Devilles (| assume one's in use the other's a spare?).
He just needs big cleans with no coloration of tone - it's almost like Fender make Hot rod deluxe and devilles with him in mind!

I wonder if the speakers been upgraded or his tech has modded 'em but it wouldn't surprise me if they were straight from the factory floor in Mexico.

As regards pedals - any ideas what's on the floor - I saw a pic of an Korg tuner, Ibanez stereo chorus and that ubiquitous Boss DD-3 everybody and his dog have in one photo - I have no idea how recent...

The only other pic I spotted was with those pedals plus a Jam Pedals wah and a couple of other boxes. Might be a tc Spark, might not, and something small. When I saw him he used delay on something (one of the Bowie tracks isn't it) and something mild overdrivey for a short solo. May have been the HRD OD channel I guess. 

mudslide73

There's a guy on one of my football forums who's done Nile's FOH sound in the past. He says the Hitmaker has a massively high action but sounds incredible.

RocknRollDave

Fairly sure Nile could play an Encore Strat through a carboard box and make it sound funky AF.

fretmeister

Jerry Barnes is a monster bassist. Such a great player. 

roberty

RocknRollDave said:

Fairly sure Nile could play an Encore Strat through a carboard box and make it sound funky AF.

Or an upgraded Harley Benton

Kittyfrisk

JerkMoans said:

...at the really rather jolly Cambridge Club Festival.  

Blasts from the past a go-go.  Highlights included Mica Paris, the Brand New Heavies (their guitar player is shit hot), a couple of surviving Jacksons, Gabrielle, a local dude named Danny Toeman who'd won a competition to be there, 'Put Your Records On' (sound advice) Corinne Bailey Rae...  Sadly had to leave before Diana Ross for all sortsa complicated family reasons.

But head and shoulders above the rest was the irrepressible Nile Rodgers.  70 years old and the man is a machine.  No fucking about with lengthy set-ups and intros - just wandered on stage and started playing before his singers had shown up, and pretty much didn't stop as he bombarded the audience with hit after hit after hit for 90 mins or so.

SO GOOD I'm going to see him again at the weekend  

Nile Rogers is soooo very effortlessly cool. 
Apart from having the price tag dangling out of his suit...

Also great that you had your nails done for the occasion, nice shade  

guitars4you

Chic are on Sky Arts Friday night - 9pm - live from IOW gig