Misdee

If that new Doug Wimbish bass is only available in that relic finish then I won't be buying one after all. The relic finish they offered on the old new Doug Wimbish last year cost an extra thousand quid, and I don't like relic finishes anyway. I'm certainly not going to pay a premium for one. I don't mind the aged white colour, but the rest they can keep.

I saw the Scorpions live on the Lovedrive tour. I remember Francis was playing a P Bass through an SVT rig and you could feel it hitting you in the chest. RIP Francis, no more pain now.

That SB1 looks a lot better in real life than in photos. I bet it's a great rock bass. That Frank Bello bass looks killer in the new finish.

I remember those AC DJ basses. It might have been where I first got the idea of having ChiSonics put on mine. After Lakland first moved production to Indonesia a lot of the basses got lighter. I've got a Skyline 44-02 Deluxe fretless weighs about 8 pounds. My USA DJ is genuine swamp ash and weighs in a bit under 8 pounds. Sounds great with those pickups, like a beefed-up Jazz Bass but not like an active Jazz, which is exactly what I wanted. Haven't used it in a long time, but I will get round to it again. I wonder what Lakland are showing at NAMM this year? Can't find much yet.

I know ESP thought about buying Lakland when Dan Lakin decided to move on. I always wanted a black DJ4. Finally got round to ordering one only to be told Lakland no longer offered that model due to Darryl taking his patent elsewhere. I was quite miffed, but to make up for it I got them to make me a one-off custom USA-made version with ChiSonic pickups ect. It's quite a bass. The Skyline versions are back now, but only in crap colours.

I think you might be confusing Lakland with Sadowsky. Lakland Shoreline Series ( for the Japanese market) were made by ESP.

I know exactly what you mean. When I first heard about the Warwick/Sadowsky collaboration I was more than sceptical. However, the quality of the basses coming out of the German factory has completely changed my views. I bought a Metroline Will Lee 4 string and it was so impressive I ordered a 5 string version, turned out to be another good one. Paradoxically, it's that terrific build quality that puts me off buying a Masterbuilt German-made Sadowsky. The Masterbuilt basses are more fancy, but the Metrolines I have couldn't really be made any better. I've had a lot of high-quality basses over the years, I know what I'm talking about, and these German Metrolines are on par with the very best in terms of how well they are made. For a Fender-style bass, you couldn't show me a more meticulously crafted instrument. Fancy wood tops and brushed chrome pickup covers ect on the Masterbuilt are very nice, but they don't make a better instrument in terms of actual use. In terms of the execution of things that make a bass play well and sound good, I don't see how Masterbuilt could be that much better than the Metroline.

The German Masterbuilt Sadowsky basses are lush, I'm tempted, but it's just too much money to make good sense. As you rightly point out, you can get a nice Fodera for that. I would also point out that a Fodera will have a better resale value than a German-made Sadowsky, generally speaking. The thing about a Masterbuilt, though, is that you can cash and carry it rather than have to wait a year (Spector)or two (Fodera) to have a custom order built. Sei, Overwater, Shuker make very good quality instruments, for sure, but none of them have anything like the cache or romantic appeal of a Sadowsky, whether it's made in Germany or NYC. Most people who buy high-end basses are not looking to make a practical purchase. They are looking to fulfil their longing for something they've always wanted. And a lot of bassists want Sadowsky's, even if they've never actually played one. So many builders try to make what is obviously a Sadowsky-inspired design. The people that buy them would have probably rather had a Sadowsky, given the choice. Roger has created an aspirational brand, and for the kind of basses he offers, no one can get close to him. That's just how it is.

Big frilly bloomers.

That is a lot of money for a bass that has a bit of a school woodwork project vibe about it.

New Sadowsky Special Editions for 2026: The Masterbuilt for 2025 was £8000+ and the Metroline Special Edition about £4300. These are not likely to be any less expensive. I'm not at all keen on a satin finish on any of the Metroline basses, let alone a Special Edition model. Gloss looks more finished and is much more durable in the long term. The Masterbuilt looks very nice to me. It's an awful lot of money, though.

From what I can make out, the aging is just about the colour of the white finish rather than relicing.

Still waaayyy too much gold for my liking. Each to their own, but it would have been nice to have an anniversary model that was something a bit different in terms of construction and sonics rather than just cosmetics. The Thirtieth Anniversary Stingray with a mahogany body ect is still just about the best Stingray I've ever heard. I was expecting something like that but with the added advantages of the Stingray Special revamp that has happened inbetween times. That's why I'm a bit disappointed.

I've just found out these are two different shades of gold. The "Donald Trump" bass is Liquid Gold ( on the right), the other bass is Molten Gold, which doesn't look quite as bad to me. It's hard to tell with such scant images. You would think if EBMM wanted to show these basses off they would supply some better pictures, i.e so we could see what these basses actually look like on the cold light of day rather than treating us as if they are doing us a favour letting us look.

So much better than the purple one.

That looks like a nice Spector ruined by art students.

It's only lightly aged apparently, not unlike myself. Anyway, I'm gonna get me one asap. That's the problem with the NAMM show, there's lots of new stuff on show but it's usually at least six months until you can actually get your hands on it.

If Donald Trump was a bass player and ordered a custom Stingray it would look exactly like that 50th Anniversary model. All that gold! It's horrendous. I'm sure it will be very popular. I wonder if they are offering any other colours for bass players who aren't megalomaniacs and don't aspire to be Liberace? I'm not keen on any of the new Stingray Special colours either. It's a shame because I'm in the market for another Stingray. That Tech21 Geddy Lee Retirement Fund chorus pedal looks good, though. A bit surprising though, because you don't necessarily associate Geddy Lee with that effect. I know he's used it, but not much. Tech21;are such a great company. I'm sure it will sound very good.

It's funny you say that, because the other day I watching some footage of MK/Level 42 where he was playing a King bass with what looked like the Parametrix EQ on it and it sounded like an Alembic. It had that extended, glassy top-end and super-deep punch you associate with a full-spec Alembic. It made me wish Status were still making graphite basses so I could buy another one. For me, MK's first solo album, Influences, is his best work. I remember when it came out in the summer of 1984 and what an impact it made. It really shows what he can do, and that his talents go well beyond the slap show pony tricks that really don't appeal to me. Tracks like Clocks Go Forward and the title track show the depth and subtleties of his style, and the slapping is super,-tight and appropriate where he uses it. Everything on that album sounds good to me.

I can never fathom why so many folks set both bass and treble on full on that two band Stingray preamp. It's too much boom and clank for my taste

I suppose one question is what constitutes a charity? I've never been asked to do a gig for a charity as such, but looking back I've been asked to do a couple of gigs where the money went to a supposedly worthy cause. A benefit concert for the Miners Strike of 1984/5 springs to mind, and I played an AIDS benefit gig in the early 1990's. In both cases it didn't cost us to play. Regarding the first instance though, I still remember the arguments between members of the band over it.

You're at it again aren't you? Lecturing me on how to be an adult and telling me off for not fitting in with your world-view. Value system? I don't have one. Not least of all because neither know or care what one is. I'm not pedalling stereotypes, I'm telling you what happened. Evidence to support my assertions? Should I have filmed it on my phone and then conducted interviews with those concerned? I was doing my shopping, not making a feature for Newsnight. And as for Northern stereotypes, I am a Northerner, born and bred. I come from generations of Northerners. That's why I know what I'm looking at when I see it. I don't take lectures from the likes of you on being Northern.

I've known plenty of people for whom eating fruit is something between taking an unpleasant medicine and a punishment. What I will say is that fruit is expensive. Good quality fruit is very expensive.

I agree with a lot of what you have to say, but in my instance I would venture that people weren't wandering past free fruit to preserve their pride or dignity. It was more because they didn't equate fresh fruit with something they would want to eat as a snack. Distinct groups in society have different priorities and preferences when it comes to food. It doesn't necessarily come down to money and what people can afford, either, although that's part of it. It's more about what people think is important, and why. And on the subject of charity and food banks, yes they shouldn't exist. The fact that they are increasingly necessary and have become an accepted part of normal life in this country is a phenomena I never expected to see in this day and age. It's part of a wider trend to blame poor and unfortunate people for their own predicament, and the revival of Victorian ideas distinguishing between the deserving and undeserving poor.