Shaggy

There’s always this project from our German eBay friend, which has been listed for approximately the last 100 years https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/1967-RICKENBACKER-4005-BASS-USA/124536281019?hash=item1cfef0d7bb:g:abwAAOSwwyVf4coW

Take good care of my baby - Bobby Vee (and others)

There was one of those Jedson Tele basses for sale last year in a local secondhand shop for £50. It was normal short scale, not 25”. Nobody touched it (including me).

View from a bridge - Kim Wilde

When I started playing in the late ‘70’s I remember the local secondhand music shop usually had a few 1960’s Fenders in, sub £200. Needless to say, I only wanted an Ibanez the same as Sting’s. If only....

Values almost seem meaningless at the moment, and bottom line of course is that something is worth exactly what someone else is prepared to pay for it. It’s not just instruments; if you go into any “antique” shop you’ll see tat that a few years ago would have been considered only fit for a skip described as “vintage kitsch”, and in the car world of course any shonky old 1970’s rustbucket is a “rare and desirable classic” The trick is of course to buy something that appeals to you that is also deeply unfashionable at the time (so salt away a few Warwicks now.....). I’m lucky enough to have acquired most of my vintage gear that way. Nostalgia ain’t what it used to be........

Old red eyes is back - Beautiful South

I think the pictured tailpiece harks back to the older Capri series semis, though I could be wrong. Wouldn't be a Ric without a few eccentricities would it? God knows what the pickguard is hiding....

Whenever Mrs Shaggy has a go at me about the number of basses cluttering up the house, I usually show her cetera’s list to show her there are bassists with a worse problem than me...... (I’ll now include Hellzero’s list) Mine; in roughly chronological order, so starting back in 1977, those still with me in bold: mid-‘60’s Kalamazoo KB1, black/white pg / rosewood (cost me all of £25, paired with home-built amp) Columbus Jazz bass copy, 3TSB/ tort / rosewood (urgh......) 1979 Ibanez MC900 Musician, natural stained ash / ebony (the only one on list bought new) bitsa fretless P, natural ash/maple (only bass for the next 16 or so years......) 1980’s Graham Crook custom neck- thru fretless, natural sapele / ebony 1980 MusicMan Sabre, natural alder/ black pg / maple 1977 Ovation Magnum 1 fretless, natural mahogany / ebony A couple of self-build bitsa P’s OLP MM5, natural quilt maple / maple 1973 Rickenbacker 4001 (Jetglo) 1990’s Listerud Totem 7-string, natural wenge / maple 1972 Fender P (modded P/J & fretless conversion, 3TSB/tort/ebony) 1978 Gibson RD Artist (modded passive, natural maple / maple) 1980’s Gordon Smith Galaxy bass (semi), cherry sunburst / rosewood 1990’s USA BC Rich Eagle NT Custom, tobacco sunburst / ebony 1997 Rickenbacker 4003 fretless, mapleglo 1980’s Steve Smith long-scale “EB-2” (semi), Cherry sunburst / rosewood 1978 Gibson RD Artist, Fireburst / ebony 1965 Fender Precision (L-series), 3TSB / tort / rosewood Paulman Custom 5 string, natural quilt maple, rosewood 1985 Wal Mk 1 Custom fretless, American walnut / ebony 1969 Gibson EB-2DC, cherry / rosewood 1976 Alembic Series 1 (long scale), birdseye maple, ebony 1975 Travis Bean TB2000, natural koa / alu neck 1965 Gibson Thunderbird IV, sunburst, rosewood 1972 Rickenbacker 4001, flameglo 1958 Gibson EB-2, tobaccoburst, rosewood Custom Warmoth Fenderbird, cocobolo, rosewood 1977 Kramer 650B, American black walnut / alu neck 2000 USA Fender Jazz ‘75 AVRI, natural ash / maple 1985 Gibson Explorer bass, Ferrari red / rosewood 1983 Wal Mk 1 Custom, wenge / rosewood (acquired in modded state and restored by Wal to original spec) 1966 Vox Wyman bass (made in England), tobaccoburst / rosewood 1957 Fender Precision, tobaccoburst / white pg/ maple 1982 Wal mk1 Custom, amber flame sycamore / rosewood 1979 CF Martin EB-18, natural maple / rosewood 1977 Kramer 450B fretless, American black walnut / alu neck 1981 Gibson RD Artist CMT, vintage sunburst / ebony Bitsa P (“Sid Vicious” tribute), Oly White / tort / maple 1998 Warwick FNA (MIG), amber flame maple / wenge 2001 Warwick LX Streamer Jazzman (MIG), French violet flame maple / wenge Two things apparent to me when making the list- 1. I’ve kept too many of them, and 2. how many basses I’ve traded with a certain Mr Chris Beedster (there were a few amps and acoustic guitars too....)

Squeeze box - The Who

It’d be nicer with the “R” tailpiece, but otherwise.......thumbs up However, I’m sure it’ll be unaffordable to mere mortals A 4005 was about the only bass I’ve any GAS left for.

Emotional rescue - Stones

The diary of Horace Wimp - ELO

Sparrowfall - Brian Eno

To illustrate the point - pic of my first bass rig put together after a couple of bass-less decades raising kids, moving between jobs etc. Fender Bassman 135 with no-name 1x15 PA cab. More overhang than a Bingo Granny's muffin-top.......

Day Tripper - Les Beatles

Tangerine - Led Zep

Give me everything - Magazine

Einstein a go-go - Landscape

I think everyone on here belongs to the Peavey BW115 ex-owners club! Mine fell out of a moving van and still worked fine. Mesa RR 115 EV is still my go-to cab, along with matching RR 210 EV. Heavy yes, but pretty compact even by modern standards.

Smooth - Santana

Ignoring my bitsas (as the missus tries to....), my longest keeper bass was also my cheapest - I think I paid £200 around 20 years ago. Factory fretless Ovation Magnum 1. It probably wouldn't be seen as a budget bass now, but nobody wanted them then. I'm lucky enough to also own a Wal mk 1 custom fretless and Kramer 450B fretless, but if I had to go down to one - it would be the Ovation staying.

Wasn’t she the hottie in the fabulous “Faster pussycat, kill, kill!” ? Anyway - ‘Twas on the good ship Venus - anon. rugby song

Mesa’s are lovely; either the Powerhouse or (my choice) the older EV-loaded Diesels. Not light though.