drTStingray

Fabulous - that must have been interesting - those singles have nice bass parts. I remember Bringing on back the Good Times as well.

If you page down to around post 40-60 Herbie Flowers, Steve Ellis, Russ Stableford's son and other family members appear. Very very interesting and goes to show that there's nothing like getting proper info - even Herbie says he hasn't a clue how anyone came up with the idea he played on it - and also interesting he credits Russ with helping him into the business with deps with people like Ray McVay (an orchestra amongst others regularly appearing on the Light Programme (precursor to Radio 2 and pre Radio 1). This also reminds me there was a major soul circuit in the Uk in the mid 60s, often doing Motown and Stax covers - there was also a blues/rock thing developing (Yardbirds, Cream, John Mayall, Alexis Korner) - the latter developed into album culture and 'progressive' of the 67 onwards period which I think created an entire different element of the industry - songs like Everlasting Love continued to populate the singles chart but were joined by Deep Purple and Jethro Tull for instance.

Ah well found - I think that's the one I'm thinking - I think mine must have an even darker piece than that!! One of the major cost cutting elements was not doing the hand sanding and finishing of the necks - I don't think the edges are rolled either - that said they feel quite adequate, indeed fine. It was suggested at the time that they were that good that they were affecting sales of full fat Stingrays.

Interesting - I know in 1973 the Precision I had my eyes on was £252 new (it was natural finish) - that represented around 30% of my annual salary.......equivant to about £4500 now (based on 30% of minimum wage at 40 hrs per week)!

Aren't the hot pick up/pre amp ones made in China whereas the newer ones are made in Indonesia - the newer ones have been about for quite a while? You are right, the headstock logos are a giveaway (without the big SUB logo are the newer ones). I think SBMM published a fix for the hot ones anyway?

Ever wondered why they were so rare (till the early/mid 60s)? This article covers it well - nice to see someone using the Melody Maker for research 😏 👍 https://reverb.com/uk/news/the-british-guitar-embargo-when-brits-were-banned-from-buying-american Apparently although there were import restrictions, when they were lifted distributors tended to import from Europe and elsewhere initially. Jet Harris's first Precision appears to have been bought by him sometime later in 1959 after his Besson Star (by Framus) was damaged in a theatre dressing room. The fiesta red bass came about subsequently with the Shadows matching look - later replaced by white instruments and later still, white Burns instruments.

These now have a different pre amp and no longer have that issue - apparently like the Ray 24, the pre amp has some elements of similarity with/have some derivation from the Old Smoothie design (though that one has the period correct epoxy covering). They sound and play pretty well for an entry level bass.

I think you should keep it if you can - you'll kick yourself afterwards if you've bonded that much with it.

Nope - and basswood is used on the Bongo - the US Subs were poplar - the bodies in the pic (which I've not been able to find) had multiple sections of wood ranging from very dark brown to lighter brown - so a harlequin effect - my US Sub 5 must have had a collision with a Hammond or drummer's metal accoutrements in a band van before I had it - I think the answer is don't do it unless you're going to refinish it in a solid colour - the wood on this is dark brown - I think the textured paint (and checker plate pickguard) are cool and different from my other Rays to be nice in its own right.

Fabulous - and well done. What did you think of the feel of the neck - I'm blown away by mine. And the EQ? The mid control to my ears is completely revoiced - with perhaps full blast being closer to centre detent on the previous 3 band. The treble and bass have more than the previous 3 band. I'm really liking it but to me it is different rather than likely to replace my SR4HH.

Well I'm still waiting for word on my 5HH Cruz teal - on order since 14/4/18 - so they haven't got them all - there was clearly a build up of stock since June but only those ordered as stock - neither of mine figured in the order which was being placed and were added to Andertons' order. So don't expect too much from stock.

I'm afraid I have to disagree with you - the influence of these people is definitely there and especially Jamerson/Babbitt. BUT much of the bass output of the rock/blues people of the late 60s is based on development of an interpretation of old blues artists and this around the pentatonic scale. OK Lemon Song has very obvious Motown stylistic influence but that is one song off two LZ albums of that era. That Motown and Stax influenced subsequent soul and pop music is clear and undeniable, the British blues invasion of the US (amazingly exporting its own cultural history back to a more mixed race audience) has more to do with pentatonic box than you find in soul music. In turn that influenced soul and pop also - I mean Black Knight on TOTP??!! There's a tendency to overstate influences and whilst Motown, Memphis and Los Angeles studios were they weren't the sole or even an influence on much of what I'm talking about. If we want to talk studio output (sessions players) Herbie Flowers' part on Space Oddity is an interesting example - I don't hear any of those US studios in that.

Fabulous. And you are right these instruments are flawless.

Various joined pieces of poplar - often of wildly different colour. Somewhere deep in the EBMM site there is a photo of piles of body blanks for the Subs. Will be around 2003 I guess. Probably not a pretty sight under the paint. In comparison an SR5 in trans colour will have more attempt to match wood grain. Quite a lot of the solid colours in the 90s were also over poplar. Poplar doesn't have much grain (my early 90s trans blueburst certainly doesn't).

Yes, fantastic - he did bass solos live as well. The original thread was intended only to give a sample of what would have been listed in the Melody Maker in the Uk and my own recollections - I realised there are several important additions - AND remember I was talking late 60s:- John McVie - Fleetwood Mac John Entwhistle - whilst his playing in the mid 60s was undoubtedly influential, in 68/69 IMO he hadn't reached his 'typewriter style' peak - that I think occurred in the early 70s (Who's Next for example). Some of you clearly started playing earlier in the 60s by the influences mentioned - but I'm still surprised people in the late 60s (unless they were major soul fans) would be turned on by the orchestral pop of Motown, bass playing wise - that's not to put it down - I've learned all of those songs but generally going backwards from 70s soul/funk/jazz/disco influences. For instance, Ain't No Mountain High Enough in the late 60s - great fantastic bass part but really??? Unless you were in a function band or soul band? For me, Nutbush City Limits was a more likely thing to learn at that time (I still play that now in a band I dep with). If you are talking late 60s orchestral (and there were a lot of unsung fine bass players around) how about Alan Spenner on the original soundtrack of Jesus Christ Superstar? People have mentioned Jet Harris - he was very much early 60s but how about the subsequent Cliff and The Shadows bassists, Brian Locking and the phenomenally good John Rostill - he played on the Rise and Fall of Flingel Bunt - a very nice bass part which I always felt had Jack Bruce influence - but this was out of era (64 - thus mono usually, not 16 track, and pre Marshall, unduly twangy guitars). However Mr Rostill was part of Tom Jones' celebrated Las Vegas band which was said to have been s**t hot (by none other than Elvis) in - the late 60s - orchestral player by then!!

Me neither - there have been several calls between Andertons and me - their guy Mike has been v helpful though. I took another sparkly picture this morning as this bass glinted at me in the partial light - no flash - Cripes it is sparkly 😂

Yes definitely Blood Sweat and Tears - my first intro to in yer face walking bass lines!!

Correct - and corrected - don't know what came over me!! A band with one of the more bewildering set of line up changes!!

I suspect it depended where you were I guess - and older siblings would make a difference - my recollection of Motown (Tamla Motown in the Uk) and reggae was that white male teenagers listening to this would likely be latter day mods or skinheads - and more likely be into the finer points of football hooliganism and 'bovver' as it was known than doing such things as learning an instrument - Motown Chartbusters Vol 2 and 3 and Tighten Up Volume 3 were big albums for those guys at the time. I don't even recall Bernadette and only heard it more recently - although the bass was a little more audible on Motown it certainly wasn't very audible on transistor radio or even a Dansette player - and picking out a Motown bass part would be partially guesswork at the time. The first tracks of theirs which really made my ears prick up was Heard It Through The Grapevine - but that was quite different - and Tears of a Clown (Bob Babbitt on the Uk version).

Love the basses - first time I've seen a Sub and noticed the compensated nut. Mine's a 2003 5 in white (standard nut)

Yeah agreed on Danny Thompson - also Ric Grech and Larry Taylor. In fact the band Renaissance had a phenomenal bass player.

They had one bass in each colour (except mine) on display last Friday - I think mostly 4H and maybe a 4HH and a 5H - I would ring around and ask but I'm sure they'd take an order for a specific colour/model - if you're willing to put up with the GAS and wait - that's what I did!

Back in the late 60s (well say post 67), I and a number of my mates had growing desires to become musicians - me and one other wanting to be bass players - we were about 15/16, broke and still at school. So what did we read and listen to - Melody Maker - was read by musicians and more serious non teeny bopper modern music lovers (NME and magazines like Jackie catered for them) - MM had ads for used instruments like Les Pauls etc, Amps, and seeking musicians - it also treated 'underground' or 'progressive' music (rock and blues) as an art form, alongside jazz, folk and other genres. Albums were beginning to be more significant than singles and there were lots of great players and groups. Melody Maker ran singles and album charts and also readers voted for the top ten of lots of categories of musicians annually - if you seriously want to know who were thought of as best bass players of the era, research the Melody Maker polls. We'd just started getting stereo vinyl albums with fantastic gate fold sleeves - and better still mum's and dads were investing in stereo record players to hear their Beethoven and Sound of Music soundtrack albums in all their glory - which could be appropriated when they went out for listening to newly recorded (on 16 track) rock music.....!!! So in 1968 and 69 who did the aspiring bass player look up to and want to emulate - one things for sure it wasn't Joe Osborme or Carol Kaye - even the Tamla bassists (though their style and interesting lines were noticed - fact is none of us were good enough to play it then). Seriously, these people were considered as orchestral style players and lacking the excitement created by the rock players. So who would be my top few of 68-69 in no specific order:- John Paul Jones - Led Zep - albums Led Zep 1 and 2 Leo Lyons - Ten Years After - Stonedhenge; Schhhh Glenn Cornick - Jethro Tull - This Was and Stand Up (plus the wonderful bass on the single Living in the Past) Greg Lake - King Crimson - In the Court of the Crimson King Andy Fraser - Free - Tons of Sobs; Free Paul McCartney - The Beatles - Abbey Road; Let It Be Jack Bruce - Cream - Wheels of Fire; Goodbye Shuggie Otis; Max Bennett - Frank Zappa - Hot Rats Nick Semper (and Roger Glover - Joined with Ian Gillan 1969 to become the classic line up) - Deep Purple - Shades of Deep Purple and Deep Purple (the single Black Night and albums like Fireball were very early 70s - heaviest single on TOTP of the time??!!) Geezer Butler - Black Sabbath - Black Sabbath (actually released Feb 70). Larry Taylor - Canned Heat - Canned Heat Louis Cennamo - Renassance Peter Cettera - Chicago Transit Authority Danny Thompson - Pentangle - Tge Pentangle Noel Redding; Billy Cox - Jimi Hendrix Experience and Band of Gypsies; Electric Ladyland; Band of Gypsies There are loads more!! In my view these guys are must listens for aspiring bass players - and most of the British one's wanted to emulate (I.e were influenced by) Jet Harris (he of The Shadows). Who would be your favourite rock players of that era??

I don't know how much it actually weighs - I'd say 8 to 8.5 lbs (based on it being significantly lighter than my existing two light MMs)

This is very true! Now this new EQ - the bass and treble boost is more powerful than the old 3 band - more in the direction of a Bongo and reminiscent of the 2 band EQ. The mid range is centred differently - seems to be on a par with the mid range cut on the previous 3 band - so you can cut mid range more - the whole EQ is very musical - and very powerful if required. A couple more pics to show the sparkle off - I'm extremely pleased with this bass 😎😀