Beedster

I hope you directed him to bassnotchat.com Ped

There've been a few threads on here recently relating to what people believe justifies returning a bass. All I can say given the pics here and elsewhere is that the buyers in question should see what we had to put up with in the 70's and 80's, and at far higher price points relatively speaking. Try and return a bass back then - and boy by today's standards there was serious cause - and the shop would likely say "We don't know when we'll see another bass guitar, and when we do, there's a good chance it'll be worse than this one"

Exactly, Beatles fan here also, not a hug fan of GH's (or RS's) contribution to either recordings or songwriting to be honest, recognise they both probably made significant contributions to Lennon & McCartney's songs. Worth noting I have a rare neurological condition as the result of which my brain sees George Harrison and Bill Wyman as the same person, which might explain the bias a little

I wouldn't start with a cheap copy if you're going to sink some money into this, I'd start with either a 70's/80's Jap copy - eBay let many more slip through these days than used to be the case - or buy one of the genuine Ric bodies that eBay seller gibsondependable sell, which I did a few years back for around £400 although prices recently have gone through the roof, probably a lot of projects being started during Covid https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Rickenbacker-2002-Fireglo-4003-Bass-Body-amp-Neck-/203078075038?hash=item2f4865829e%3Ag%3AcFYAAOSw~ANfOBaG&nma=true&si=n6t8NiO1TPGO9NALNPlHoLsjI%2Bw%3D&orig_cvip=true&nordt=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

Ha ha, I was being polite wasn't I, the likes of Clapton and Harrison criticising NY's guitar playing strikes me as further proof of their mediocrity, technically and emotionally. I'm pretty sure Clapton has done nothing on much value since the late 60's - writing or recording - and whilst I'd be a little more charitable towards Harrison and suspect that the cut-off date might be a few years later, much the same is true of him.

Shh, or someone will come along and remind us of the futility of rankings

The intro to the 'Greatest Guitar Solos' link was pretty much my thinking. And I would certainly put Clapton in the high technique low emotion bracket, and possibly Harrison to be honest

Reason I'm interested in this is that I find that nearly all guitarists I play with these days are pitch and technique perfect - with one key exception who whilst he wouldn't be flattered as to why, is still my favourite guitarist to play music with - but lacking in perhaps the thing that players like NY and Richards bring to a recording? But with NY's stuff it's not just his playing, it's the difference between the Crazy Horse recordings and those with the Nashville session players, the former had a feel but less technique, the latter had technique but less feel?

Likewise, seems a very long time ago and a distant land now doesn't it mate

Mate, having started by saying I agreed with what you’d said, I asked a totally honest question about the importance of technique, how do you get to toys out of cot from there?

I remember being in a London gear shop with our then guitarist and seeing an early electronic guitar tuner. He didn't understand why anyone would ever need one. I asked if that's because he can tune by ear. He said, no, he just didn't see the need to tune

Start a different thread

Can't disagree with any of that, but let's get into the guitar technique thing a bit, because you suggested it was pretty ordinary, fair enough, but I wonder why that matters? From a position of ignorance perhaps I'd say the same of Keith Richards, but for me, like NY's playing, his in many ways defined the sound of the recordings? Goes back perhaps to the old 'Not the best drummer in the the Beatles but the best drummer for the Beatles' thing? If it's a case of, 'I just don't like his playing', that's fine, but 'ordinary' suggests a lack of expertise that I think misses the point of a discussion of recordings?

That's the reality, this came up in another thread, a 100% honest seller does not mean that s/he is sufficiently expert to know what they're selling. There are some very dishonest and sometimes simply careless dealers out there selling some very honest payers some very dodgy basses. When I was looking for my '64 - Jack, you were there the day i found it you may remember - I went into a lot of the big name shops. Even those guys would say things like "I'm not taking the neck off, it came from ....... who used to play in ........ so I know it's kosher". On this basis I was assured by a very well known dealer in SW London that a lovely Precision they had was June '64. I showed them my card and said that I would take it away that day if they're prepared to take off the neck and pickguard and prove it to me, because I didn't think it was, but of course there's enough wiggle room around various indicators for me to not be 100% sure. Neck was '67 Bottom line, as Jack said, if the only evidence is 'what the previous owner told me', you are essentially gambling. You might get lucky and buy a '67 and find it's really a '62. But by the same token, Trump might concede defeat and the UK Government might get track and trace working.....

Well said, I played in a band a few years back with a guy who'd spent most of his life trying to emulate NY's guitar tone and said that it was just impossible as it was all about that; feel and emotion, not technique and equipment. i think you're right re his songs, now I think of it, and perhaps unlike TW, most of the cover versions are not as good as the originals, Helpless being a great example

Even if his legacy was only his songs, that's a pretty decent legacy. Lot of people can play guitar or sing a whole lot better than NY, how many people can write songs of the quality and consistency (I don't mean consistency in style but in quality) of those by NY? I've always felt he's a bit like Tom Waits in this respect, some of TW's versions of his own songs are pretty poor compared to some of the cover versions. As is also the case with TW, there's so many of NY's songs that i listen and think "it would be so much better if.......", but I suspect that's one of the reasons he has the status he does, he walks to the beat of his own drum, not that of popularity or commerciality.

I guess by ‘original’ he means not a reissue? It’s not a poor listing to my mind, but price is probably optimistic

That's not cheap for a non-original instrument in pretty poor condition?

Unusually in this case the J-PUP appears aligned with the strings, I’ve seen plenty that aren’t

Exactly what I was thinking when I saw it

Yep, I love his habit of using first takes of tracks having told the band they were rehearsing. As you say, sloppy and loose in the best way. Almost the Crazy Horse arhythm section

I was referring to the time of his move from Canada to the US

Stealing from his bandmates and friends to further his career whilst apparently leaving them high and dry meets my definition of selfish in the extreme! But having said that, I'm going on the account in 'Shakey', and whilst it certainly appears to be a very well researched biography, there's two sides to every story. He's not alone; I've worked with a lot of very successful people, and there's no doubt that the early trajectory of many of them is - even has to be - one of selfishness and of hard decisions. I certainly get the impression from the book that he had a strong sense of destiny at the time - certainly justified by what he went on to achieve - and I'm guessing that would explain a lot of his actions. There's also no doubt from the book that he has a strong sense of karma in relation to a lot of things that have happened in his life, good and bad.