As the ultimate act of self-indulgence, I present the following pictures from the past. I recently ran through my cache of old photos and these emerged, which I found at the very least, amusing, albeit somewhat embarrassing. Regardless, it's fun (for me, anyway) to reminisce. There are some other musical experiences for which I wish I had photos or tapes, but then again, perhaps memory is better than reality.

No lie. I've been at the bass a long time (photo is Summer 1963, age 12). I started at age eleven after four years of violin, and as a green, thirteen year old freshman, I was lucky enough to have four seniors take an interest in my joining their band (piano, bass, sax, trumpet, and drums). Back then it was the custom to go to a local cleaners/rental shop, where a guy would sell you a (slightly yellowed) white tux jacket for $5-10. Add black dress pants, white shirt and bowtie, and you were in business! Even more fun, as I joined the union and played a variety of gigs, and the leaders who owned their own colored or patterned jackets, so you got to wear a slightly smelly, very tacky ill-fitting jacket. But $22/nite for a sideman (union minimum) in the mid-60's was pretty good for a teenager! This photo cracks me up, especially the 50's-60's look of the house, as well as reinforcing my decision to not shave since I first learned I could grow a beard.

Skip ahead over ten years, after many "standard" gigs, teen and semi-pro rock bands, wedding and club gigs, to "Maze," and my first fretless, a Fender P-bass w/maple neck. I am reaching for the "tune" knob to improve my intonation. Oh, you mean it was "tone"?? ;-)> I went to fretless bass around 1972 and only recently returned to the dark side; I didn't own or play a fretted bass for 27 years! -- who needs those hunks of metal that get in the way all the time, anyway?

Unfortunately, the neck on the Fender went bad, so I replaced it with the Gibson Ripper fretless I still have (I have since regained possession of a Fender maple-necked fretless; see my main bass page). This is a good example of the horrible club conditions in 1975 -- yep, tacky stages, and look at those ugly shirts they made us wear. (ha!). Note the monster bass amp behind me: a pair of JBL 18" drivers in their own folded horn cabinets, mounted inversely, driven by a Peavey head. I built the cabinets from scratch- they were killer. I later biamped them along with a 2x12 cabinet and Acoustic heads, and wrote an article on the topic for Guitar Player Magazine that was published in 1980.
Sadly, all the equipment you see above, and more (PA, columns, a vintage Bassman head driving the monitors, etc.) was roasted in a club fire a few months later. Everything was contemporary, and could be replaced, with the exception of that very special Ludwig set. Too bad the shirts were saved. Do you have insurance on your equipment?? We were a couple weeks away from getting all our receipts together to seal our policy. Too bad... we spent many hours scraping cabinets and recovering them, replacing speakers (burnt beyond recovery) and roasted amps. And never got a dime from the club owner, who never even had the courtesy to call us... we showed up on Sat. nite to play, and found the place burned down. Yeah, I've had insurance on my stuff since the incident. Do it - it isn't that expensive and the peace of mind and security well worth it.

Here's another striking argument to those who want to bring back the 70's and disco. I wish I'd never sold this bass -- this odd duck was a hollow body Ovation Tyhoon III electric with a short scale, lined fretless neck (this was around 1978) that was German-made according to a Kaman source. He also said the "Electric Storm" series was Ovation's first attempt at electric instruments. I only had it for a couple years, but it played very nice, very thick, bassy Gibson vintage-sounding, though it had a big-time dead spot at the B-C area on the G string. This shot was at a party; I did weddings and other commercial gigs with a very good band for a few years -- all trained musicians that played heads-up, never rehearsed, and had a lot of fun. Great versatility, too -- my favorite was playing an Eastern Star dinner for septuagenarians on a Friday night followed by a Saturday night gig at a college club.

Well, I'm happy to say that I did fine one very close to it, an Ovation Typhoon IV (below) - though I've since sold it. See a photo and info below.

 

But now...

Bummer! Didn't mean to end that chapter on a such a depressing note, but reality sometimes bites, as they say. However, the good news is that the damn stuff didn't kill me, and I can still enjoy my bass. And hey, while my singing may be in the past, the way I try to look at it is that a lot of folks never could sing, and have only fantasized about being up on any stage in any situation, and while it was never the "big time," it sure was fun, and continues to be so. So, if you don't mind, I'll consider myself lucky.

I got a lot of joy out of watching my three sons perform; Mark, as a second generation bassist, who works with me in Gollihur Music and performs and records in various entities, and Geoff and Evan who have both been very active in musical theatre. And while grandson Drew hasn't demonstrated his musical genes yet, I did bring him a harmonica the other day, if only to annoy his parents -- that's what grandparents do, right?

And in the first picture, I'm back out there again, this shot (with the 5-string Gibson V) is with Blame It On The Dawg in March 2006 (not a gig, but an outdoor party/jam). Lots of fun with a couple great guitarists and guys, and as I recall, that's what got me started in music. The second photo is with King Eider, a very entertaining ragtime blues guy, with whom I sat in occasionally a couple years ago. Then there are other unphotographed thangs with other old and new friends, and I'm always on the lookout for other good players from whom to learn and share music. Gotta play!

Epiphone EBM-5 Fretless - I sold this bass in March 1999, but it remains on my page as an unsolicited endorsement to what Epiphone can do. I broke down and bought this five string electric bass in the late nineties, to see how I would like such an animal, and it was a real surprise for a lower-end five. This instrument has a very solid, well-integrated B string, and is very well constructed; indeed a bargain and highly recommended as an inexpensive fretless five. The Epi was retired in favor of the new Hoyt custom five string so I could buy new toys -- but it will always be a fond remembrance. I have two of the Epiphone Expert 6 string basses (defretting one) which are very much the same except neck-through; they are on my main bass page. 1994 Applause AE40 fretless acoustic bass guitar. This short scale version is no longer being made (the current ones are 34" scale, which I haven't played), but this bass was a nice player with a great live sound and wonderful mwah/growl. The addition of Thomastik's new Acoustic ABG strings put the accent on BASS rather than guitar. The nylon core, light gauge phosphor-bronze wrapped strings are more musical than any I've tried. I played it live, sweetening it up with a K&K Power pack preamp (it has no internal preamp) when I switched off from the Hoyt 5 string bass for slower songs, and it has a wonderful voice. However, since luthier Karl Hoyt, who made my electric five string fretless graced me with a five string fretless acoustic bass guitar, and I hope this bass will enjoy its new Texas home in July 1999.

I owned this '96 Les Paul Standard bass for about a year and a half. It was a beautiful instrument, with a very distinct voice-- not muddy, thick, but clear, big, and bold right down to the E, and it cut through and complimented the mix very well. I really loved it for classic and Southern rock - incredible when doubling guitar licks! Huge tone and fabulous sustain, with the Standard's massive bridge assembly, and interestingly enough, the same strings that are more flexible on other basses feel quite tight. I liked this bass' personality a great deal. I guess what I've been told is true... "once a Gibson man..." -- however, its weight and my back were incompatible, and when I had the opportunity to get a fretted Ripper (exactly like my fretless), it had to go. I'll miss it. This '97 G&L L-2500 was one of the newer, lighter (but still heavy), reshaped body models, with swamp ash over tilia. The maple fretboard and three color sunburst finish looked really sharp. This was an really great bass with an extraordinary range of sounds, with its series/parallel and passive/active/active + treble boost settings. The longer I played it, the more I appreciated the wide range of sounds it can deliver. Its neck width and depth is much closer to my Hoyt fretless five electric than the Fender Jazz five string, which was a bit wide for me. When I anticipated a new custom five string fretted bass from Karl Hoyt, I reluctantly had to put the G&L up for sale. I was sorry to see it go. If you're considering one, take the plunge!

This is a fretless '69 or '70 Ovation Typhoon IV, one of the basses in Ovation's Electric Storm series. I had one of the Model III's in the late 70's for a couple years and enjoyed, but sold it -- see the horrifying photo above. It's a short scale lined fretless bass with a gorgeous fingerboard that looks to be Brazilian rosewood. While it was fun to reacquire one, I wasn't playing it and sold it to a big Ovation fan for his collection. It was NOS and in great condition, though lacking a bridge cover. I picked up this irresistible mint '99 G&L SB-2 bass in June 2002. Is it just me, or is G&L essentially building Fender Custom Shop basses? The fit and finish of this instrument is extraordinary, as was the L-2500 I owned in the past. The neck on this SB-2 is nicely slim, but with a reasonable depth (still slim), and it allows very close action without buzz. It's a passive bass with the usual split p-bass pickup along with a single coil jazz in the bridge position. I seems to out-P a Precision with the split pickup soloed, with that classic warmth and big thickness, but with the top end that Fenders just don't offer. The jazz pickup is classic jazz, and with just the right amount of p brought in it does a great Jazz bass imitation. I wish you see the dark green finish with its beautiful bowling ball swirling finish in person - it is gorgeous. I only had this bass a short time, as a G&L orange semi-hollow ASAT became available; I just couldn't justify keeping both. Postscript: Turned out I didn't like the sound of that beautiful orange bass as much as I liked this green one. Oh well, live and learn (one hopes).

This is a Westone Rail Bass that I bought in early 2001. This unusual headless bass takes regular strings, thanks to the built-in clamp at the top. The single sliding pickup is an unusual feature (a concept I've only seen on a 70's Gibson Grabber), letting you move it to different positions for tone variations. I've had it out for a gig and liked its sound, and it was more comfortable than some other, similar headless basses. However, it didn't see much work and I'll finally eBayed it. The bizarre Lane Poor five string headless on my main bass page replaced it. Its small body made it a featherweight at 6lb. 8oz. This Dean Rhapsody model HB was a bargain eBay impulse buy in March 2001 (I'm a sucker for f-hole basses), and one that turned out to be a winner. It has a mahogany body, a semi-hollow body with cats eye f-holes in what looks like a maple top, and a passive soapbar pickup. It's very attractive and well-constructed, has an extremely nice neck, and is quite light but yet well-balanced. I have really taken to it and enjoyed on several gigs already. It has a sort of p-bass vibe, though with more clarity in the top end, and it simply a very inviting player with a nice voice and great sustain. It's not only wonderful on bad back nights, but all around quite a pleasing instrument. I kept fighting with myself about selling it -- and finally the subtle note on my site was noticed (darn!) and somebody gobbled it up. Nice bass fer the bucks.

This brand new 2002 G&L ASAT bass has the semi-hollow body but without the f-hole. As a result, it is a manageable 8.5 lbs., which my old back prefers. It has the same slim neck as the '99 SB-2 I had briefly in 2002, but with the versatile electronics and pickups as the L-2500 I once owned. I had always wanted an orange bass with a maple fingerboard, and when this became available it beckoned to me. It may be hollow, but it's still 8lb. 15oz. As I got to know it, I found I wasn't that fond of its somewhat rough, aggressive tone, so off to eBay it went. Nice bass but not my cup of tea.

Yeah, some more basses will be here soon - I've got too many basses syndrome, as you may see at my main bass page, and I'll be eBaying some soon.

Back to Bob's main Bass Page

	Gollihur Music Online Store Everything for Double Bass: Instruments, Pickups, Amplifiers, Accessories, Instructional Materials, Bows, Cases and MORE!			Double Bass Links Page Over NINE HUNDRED double bass-related links, categorized and updated regularly
Bob's Personal Bass Page Find out more about your host... eclectic bass survives!			Double Bass Luthier's Directory Listing of dozens of Double Bass Luthiers (for repairs) from all over the world