Fender Mark King Jazz??

[Stacker]

Sorry if this has been brought up before but this is news to me. That said, haven't followed MK for rather a long time now.

[url="http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Fender-Mark-King-limited-level-42-Blue-Jazz-bass-36-of-42-OHC-EC-/140917547079?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item20cf572047"]MK Jazz[/url]

[crez5150]

Happened years ago....

[White Cloud]

[quote name='crez5150' timestamp='1363531756' post='2013692']
Happened years ago....
[/quote]
Indeed. I believe only 200 or so were produced. Very very rare.

[Big_Stu]

I was at a Music Live in Brum in '01 & was introduced to a guy who "did Mark King's basses". Since I already knew JD & it wasn't him & I saw a stand with Fenders on it I presume it was around that time?

[wateroftyne]

I seem to recall these weren't 'proper' Fender signature editions. They were put together by a third party (SIMMS, possibly?)

I

[Dingus]

I remember these , I've played one at the time , let me see what I can remember !

If I recall correctly , these were a special run of blue American Deluxe Jazz Basses that Fender U.K arranged to have customised to the same spec as Mark King's basses by SIMS , who added LEDs and shaved down the neck a bit . MK had just relaunched his solo career ( Bitter Moon ? ) and was sporting a more back-to-basics setup with a blue Fender as his main bass and Ashdown amps . There was some dissatisfaction from some people who bought them at the time over the usual Fender quality control foibles , but the one I played was just a perfectly decent but ordinary American Deluxe Jazz Bass , but nothing special except for the skinnier neck and the LEDs , which myself personally I couldn't care less about , and the same for any association with Mark King . I got offered this one I played at a hefty discount from a friend in the trade about a year or so after the initial release , and I remeber one or two others cropping up with money off them around that time after the initial rush of interest . Presumably not all of the limited run were snapped up by eager punters , and after MK moved on to his next bass ( GB? ) public interest will have waned even further . I wouldn't pay any premium for one of these as a collectors item myself .

Edited March 17, 2013 by Dingus

[Dingus]

Just had a look at the Ebay link - HOW MUCH ?!!!! Someone is taking the piss . I would give you maybe £750 for it ( and that's over the odds because of the rarity value ) for one if I wanted one , which I don't .

[drTStingray]

There were 42 made I think, and those should have appropriate paperwork/certificate. They look quite nice with the blue LEDs.

They are referred to in 'The Mark King Bass Book' - transcription book by Stuart Clayton under the section dealing with Mark's bass equipment. It just says the Jazz didn't meet his requirements.

They're pretty exclusive at 42 made. Many of the Fender 'signature' basses are surely very little different from the stock versions so I don't see why this one wouldn't be 'undesirable' - it has one or two other mods I believe, though I do get the 'Hendrix's Les Paul signature' syndrome. The Fender Jazz is hardly renowned as a bass used by Mark King.

Edited March 17, 2013 by drTStingray

[wateroftyne]

How much???

Jaysus - they're not even Custom Shop. It even has the American Deluxe sticker on the pickguard..!

[drTStingray]

The Bass Gallery had one recently for £1750 IIRC. It was #36 of 42 or something similar IIRC.

Considering the cost of a new Pino signature (v nice Custom Shop with a quarter sawn neck) but still a P bass - and the sound difference possibly as much to do with standard fitment of Thomastik Icore flats as anything, £1750 seems OK to me. But then I am an aging Level 42 fan!!!! (And Pino fan).

Edited March 17, 2013 by drTStingray

[Dingus]

In the early 2000s the ones Fender U.K had left over that hadn't sold were offered to dealers at a knock -down price to get rid of them . Anyone who pays £4075 of your English pounds ( yes , that's £4075 ! ) or anything close to that for one of these either doesn't know much or needs their head examining

Edited March 17, 2013 by Dingus

[drTStingray]

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1363540879' post='2013833']
In the early 2000s the ones Fender U.K had left over that hadn't sold were offered to dealers at a knock -down price to get rid of them . Anyone who pays £4075 of your English pounds ( yes , that's £4075 ! ) or anything close to that for one of these either doesn't know much or needs their head examining
[/quote]

Agreed!!! Insanity.

Mind you there's another thread where Fender values one of their own creations at $28000!!

Edited March 17, 2013 by drTStingray

[BassPimp66]

This looks like any jazz bass deluxe with extra leds by Sims.
It does not look anything special, and I bet it does not sound anything special.
Pure rip off, trying to squeeze something off MK's talent.

[Dingus]

[quote name='BassPimp66' timestamp='1363542360' post='2013863']
This looks like any jazz bass deluxe with extra leds by Sims.
It does not look anything special, and I bet it does not sound anything special.
Pure rip off, trying to squeeze something off MK's talent.
[/quote]

I seem to remember Mark King afficionado and authority Nick Smith AKA. Doctor Of The Bass saying around that time that MK had abandoned the Fenders because they were literally falling to bits by the time he had finished playing them . Admittedly , MK looks to be pretty hard on his basses , but nevertheless , it doesn't bode well . I can personally confirm that there is absolutely nothing special about the sound of these basses .

[Stacker]

The seller ain't cheap, eh? Neither are some of his acoustics. Still, it's his choice to set the pricing.....

[jezzaboy]

A quote from the man himself.

"I was flattered when Fender said they would make a Mark King Sig Deluxe Jazz bass. I spent some time with them designing the dead flat fingerboard profile. They sound fine, have Sims led`s in the neck and I love the transparent blue colour but they are so neck heavy and impractically weighted, you have to keep both hands on or the neck just heads south."

And Mark`s personal Jazz (he has 2 I believe), have gaffer tape on the pole pieces of the bridge pickup.

So, the man who helped design it doesn`t use them.

Edited March 18, 2013 by jezzaboy

[molan]

I was offered one of these for £800 and turned it down. It didn't even sound like a nice Fender

[Ashborygirl]

[quote name='drTStingray' timestamp='1363540356' post='2013818']
The Bass Gallery had one recently for £1750 IIRC. It was #36 of 42 or something similar IIRC.

Considering the cost of a new Pino signature (v nice Custom Shop with a quarter sawn neck) but still a P bass - and the sound difference possibly as much to do with standard fitment of Thomastik Icore flats as anything, £1750 seems OK to me. But then I am an aging Level 42 fan!!!! (And Pino fan).
[/quote]

If it was #36 then this is the same bass, albeit £2300 more now.

[Floyd Pepper]

I actually have one of these. (No. 39). It's an OK active Jazz which is finished in a nice Sapphire Blue finish.
The main difference is the flat fingerboard which is quite different from all my other jazz basses.
LED's can be fun at some gigs but I must admit that it's not my main gigging bass ('76 Jazz) and comes nowhere near it.
Jim

[chrismuzz]

[quote name='drTStingray' timestamp='1363540356' post='2013818']
The Bass Gallery had one recently for £1750 IIRC. It was #36 of 42 or something similar IIRC.
[/quote]

Seriously? The one in the OP is #36 and they want over 4 grand for it now

[jonno1981]

The seller does state it is a consignment instrument with price on request. I'm guessing there is a more reasonable price he has in mind and is trying to encourage an off ebay purchase once he engages in a dialogue with someone. I played one of these once and didn't think much of it either!

[doctor_of_the_bass]

Hi!

I had one of these at the time (#38) and have played a few of them over the years from the batch of 42 basses! They are all different shades of blue, some had plain white scratchplates, some white pearl and a couple have red tortie plates!! None of them were the actual blueburst colour that Mark has! They were originally £1999-00 retail, I think I got mine for around £600 in a long and drawn out trade!! As Dingus points out, I had heard that our man did not really get on with the pickups (hence the masking tape over the pole pieces!) and the bridges were not really up to his hammering!!! And they smelt of kids play doh! Doh!

[Chris2112]

[quote name='jezzaboy' timestamp='1363612349' post='2014677']

So, the man who helped design it doesn`t use them.
[/quote]

He didn't use them for very long, surely. One lame solo record (nowhere near as good as his first), where the bass was instantly forgettable. He also used it on a televised Prince's Trust gig. The sound was pretty lacklustre. I also recall reading that a lot of owners weren't impressed with the basses due to shoddy fretwork and woodwork.

Mark ended up switching to GB basses quite quickly. I think he was going through a bad time then, as the GB basses sounded absolutely shocking as well. The first Level 42 record/DVD I got was the [i]Ohne Filter [/i]show. Dear me, his bass sounded f***ing crap there. Flat as f*** tonally. Even the red bass he got out for Mr Pink sounded hopeless. He ended up going back to Status; a smart move as Level 42 took off again soon after and he had left those dire basses buried in the sands of time.

[EBS_freak]

[quote name='Chris2112' timestamp='1364455277' post='2026639']
Mark ended up switching to GB basses quite quickly. I think he was going through a bad time then, as the GB basses sounded absolutely shocking as well. The first Level 42 record/DVD I got was the [i]Ohne Filter [/i]show. Dear me, his bass sounded f***ing crap there. Flat as f*** tonally. Even the red bass he got out for Mr Pink sounded hopeless. He ended up going back to Status; a smart move as Level 42 took off again soon after and he had left those dire basses buried in the sands of time.
[/quote]

The GB basses were introduced to Mark via Boon who is a personal friend of Bernie's. Tonally, it's all subjective - to me, Mark had the best sound he has ever had through the GBs. Remember, he was going through Crashdown back then - more than a hurdle to overcome!

I believe Mark was actually a big fan of the GBs up to the point where Bernie took them back - Mark even said to Bernie, in front of me at the LBGS, "Maybe if you hadn't sold my favourite blue bass we'd still be in f*king business!"

Edited March 28, 2013 by EBS_freak

[crez5150]

I bet Bernie is kicking himself now...