New Family Portrait

Every musician considers his instruments his family; and now that I moved to my new apartment, the family is now settled in the man cave.

From left to right (all Fender): and excuse the shitty phone picture :)

DC-10 acoustic, Jaguar Bass, US Precision Bass, Mexican Telecaster, US Precision Bass, Custom Japanese Precision Bass.

My Precision Bass 70's Design Mod

Although I usually like to keep my basses looking as stock as possible, there's always that little modding twitch that gets to me. 

So I decided to slightly modify my Sunburst Precision Bass from a 60's design to a 70's design.

Before / After

Basically I just changed the pickup covers from black to cream, which resemble the DiMarzio pickup replacements that became very popular in the 70's and many musicians often used. Also, I changed the pickguard (scratchplate) from tortoise shell to black, which was the standard color for Fenders in the 70's.

The pickups are still the same (American Vintage '62 pickups) so the sound remains a 60's sound. 

Hope you like it and can't wait to gig with this bass on the 27th (more on that later). 

Fender Rumor Mill: Classic Player Rascal Bass

Just last week I reported 2 rumored Fender basses, and here's another spotted in the wild (not confirmed officially by Fender).

ITS FUCKING AWESOME; retro and unusual for a Fender design:

The Fender Classic Player Rascal Bass (Ocean Turquoise)

Product description off of Dawsons UK:

"The new Fender Classic Player Rascal electric bass guitar has been a labour of love for Master Builder Jason Smith. Few could say that Fender runs through their veins like Smith, whose father is Dan Smith - a Fender legend in his own right. Drawing from his experience of the Fender family, and utilising his impeccable skill set, Smith has created a sublime model that is set to become a modern classic.

Short-Scale Body

The Classic Player Rascal bass features a curvy and perfectly proportioned short-scale body that revives the look and feel of vintage models. The body has been crafted using alder, a tonewood that has been favoured by Fender since the late 50s due to its delightfully balanced tonal output. Alder is capable of producing rumbling lows, punchy mids, and crisp highs, with the utmost articulation across the frequency spectrum. The stunning ocean turquoise finish is complimented exquisitely by the pearloid pickguard.

Supportive Maple Neck

Fitted to the body is a bolt-on maple neck, which offers a supportive and slender playing surface to navigate. Married to the neck is a sumptuous rosewood fingerboard, home to 21 eager frets that are adorned with white dot position inlays to guide you along in style. The neck plays very fast, allowing you to execute fingerboard gymnastics with the greatest of ease.

Classic Lipstick Pickups

In order to recreate the sound of vintage models, Jason Smith has fitted the Classic Player Rascal with three 'Lipstick' single-coil pickups in the neck, middle and bridge positions respectively. Control over the pickups comes in the form of master volume and master tone pots that are paired with a 5-way Strat-style pickup selector switch. The tonal versatility of this little beauty cannot be overstated, with a huge range of sounds waiting to be pulled out for you to play with.

Tough and Ready Hardware

The Rascal is fitted with a rugged and reliable hard tail bridge, which creates a seamless connection between the strings and body. Adjustment of each string is easy, which means that controlling intonation is straightforward. Vintage-style tuning machines maintain tuning integrity throughout each and every performance with the utmost precision. No matter how enthusiastically you play, the Rascal is more than a match for you.

As you'd expect from a guitar designed and built by a Master Builder, the Fender Classic Player Rascal electric bass guitar in ocean turquoise is one that both collectors and players can appreciate. The attention to detail shown by Jason Smith is remarkable, and as he's an accomplished musician himself, you just know the Rascal is a dream to perform with."

Here's a video demo by GAK UK:

Two New Fender Artist Basses All But Confirmed

I always post rumors and sneak peaks for upcoming Fender guitars and basses. And today is no exception!

Chicago Music Exchange has posted 2 pics on their Instagram, but Fender has still not officially announced them:

DEE DEE RAMONE (of The Ramones) PRECISION BASS 

ADAM CLAYTON (of U2) JAZZ BASS

Not particularly interesting on Dee Dee's bass; it's just a white Precision Bass which every punk bassist in existence used (Paul Simonon, Sid Vicious etc). One can easily mod a P-Bass to look exactly the same. However it will be made in Mexico and therefore will be cheaper.

As for Clayton's bass, I really hate U2 with a passion but the bass itself is sweet; Sherwood Green is an awesome vintage color and matching headstocks are always welcome! However there is no neck binding which is strange for a Jazz Bass with block inlays!

What do you think of these upcoming basses?

The Fender Custom Shop Muddy Waters Tribute Telecaster

Muddy Waters is mostly associated with his candy apple red Fender Telecaster (which he called "The Hoss"). It wasn't always red though; it started out as a 50's color white blonde, maple neck Telecaster. Later he got new neck from Fender, this time in rosewood, and got the color changed to a 60's candy apple red, and changed the standard knobs to amp knobs.

Ever since the late 50's until his death in 1983, Muddy only used this guitar (with one major exception being when he played a Guild briefly for advertising purposes).

The Fender Custom Shop released a tribute to that guitar, in 2000:

MUDDY WATERS TRIBUTE TELE 2000 As a salute to the brilliant artistry of the godfather of the blues, Muddy Waters, and the lasting impact his music has had on guitar players around the world, the Fender Custom Shop is proud to unveil the Muddy Waters Tribute Telecaster 2000. If you've thrilled to the classic sounds of Chicago blues, the Fender Muddy Waters Tribute Tele is for you. The Muddy Waters Tribute Tele is an exact replica of the late '50s Telecaster that was Muddy's signature guitar for more than 30 years. Now hanging in the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, Muddy's Tele is as distinctive as the man himself, but also as simple and direct. The emphasis here is squarely on tone and vibe. The authentic specs give you the tone; the exact replication of 40 years of wear and tear give you the vibe. To recreate this classic artist's classic axe, Custom Shop R&D man George Blanda flew out to Cleveland and, with the permission of the Hall of Fame, took rulers, calipers and gauges to Muddy's Tele. Every ding, scratch and eccentricity, even the amp knobs, has been faithfully recreated by the people who craft our popular Relic guitars. But don't just hang it on the wall. With its girthy neck and its classic pickups and electronics, this Tele's tone and feel give you all the legendary mojo the name Muddy Waters implies. MOJO MAN ACCESSORY KIT As a premium bonus, each Muddy Waters Tribute Tele comes with an accessory kit that will remind you what the Mojo man was all about. The Mojo Accessory Kit includes slide, capo, fingerpicks, thumb-pick, Muddy Waters: The Lost Tapes CD and a signed and framed poster of Muddy by famed Chicago blues photographer Raeburn Flerlage.

After that, Fender released a standard version (Made in Mexico) for about over 10 years, and it was sadly discontinued sometime in 2008/2009.

Here's a video of Muddy playing his unique slide guitar on his Telecaster, (solo starts at 2:25)

60 Years of the Fender Stratocaster

Hard to believe 60 freakin' years have passed since Leo Fender created the number one guitar in history. The Stratocaster (or 'Strat' for short) revolutionized music as we know it dozens of times over. 

To commemorate this anniversary, Fender has launched a special webpage for this occasion, highlighting major events from 1954 till now, with pictures, videos (like the one below) and many more!

They have also released SIX new guitars for this exciting event, and here they are below:

60TH ANNIVERSARY AMERICAN VINTAGE 1954 STRATOCASTER

60TH ANNIVERSARY CLASSIC PLAYER '50S STRATOCASTER

60TH ANNIVERSARY COMMEMORATIVE STRATOCASTER

SQUIER® 60TH ANNIVERSARY CLASSIC VIBE '50S STRATOCASTER

DELUXE STRATOCASTER HSS PLUS TOP WITH IOS CONNECTIVITY

FENDER FISHMAN® TRIPLEPLAY STRATOCASTER HSS

2014 Fender Basses (and a Kick-ass Amp)

Some new models of Fender's basses have been posted on their website, with no official statement just yet. These models are from the Custom Shop; nothing from the regular production just yet.

Nothing too unusual.

However I LOVE the new Vaporizer amp they just posted... that retro 50's "Jetsons" look is awesome.

Check out the new models below:

Proto Precision Bass

Heavy Relic 1964 Precision Bass

Fender Vaporizer Amp

Fender Vintage Hot Rod Basses Unveiled!

Another new unveiling from Fender, this time American made 'Vintage Hot Rod' series, which are already available in the guitar variants years ago.

The 60's Precision and 70's Jazz basses feature vintage looks, pickups and necks, with modern appointments such as P/J pickup configurations and graphite support rods. You can check the specs of both [here] and [here].

Fender have been on a roll with the new models (check out my previous posts) and these are great for players who want the best of both worlds!! I already have 4 Fender basses but I can't stop wanting more!

Vintage Hot Rod 60's Precision Bass

Vintage Hot Rod 70's Jazz Bass

New Fender Bass Reissues: Coronado & Starcaster Basses!

Fender Coronado Bass

Fender Starcaster Bass

I'll admit, I didn't see this coming.

The Coronado and Starcaster basses are being reissued by Fender. The Coronado was released in the mid-60's and didn't last that long. The Starcaster was a prototype and only a few were made in the mid-70's, which makes any original very rare.

They aren't based on any "Fender" designs like the Precision or Jazz, rather more like Gibsons.

I honestly wouldn't buy one but it seems that they won't be very expensive, so for you bassists out there who want a Fender with a twist, then try one of these. They will be out sometime later in the coming months.

Check out the specs for the Coronado [here] and the Starcaster [here].

New Fender Bass Models Announced

There have been several updates to the Fender lines in 2013, such as the American Vintage Series and just today a few new models have been announced:

Classic Player Cabronita Precision Bass

This bass was originally a product of the Fender Custom Shop, priced at over $4,500. Now it's available in a lower price as it's made in Mexico. Love the pickup, reminds me of the older Guild basses.

Classic 50's Precision Bass Lacquer

Continuing the Classic Series line, also made in Mexico, this bass is finished in nitrocellulose lacquer (or nitro for short) just like the old vintage basses, unlike the modern finishes which are polyurethane (poly for short). It is thinner than poly, and will wear out faster, giving a vintage sound and vibe. Only in black.

Classic 60's Jazz Bass Lacquer

Same as the 50's Precision Bass; only in 3 Color Sunburst.

The Fender P-Bass & The Blues

Clavin "Fuzz" Jones backs John Lee Hooker, from the Blues Brothers movie.

It is of no secret that I am a huge fan of the Fender Precision Bass; I have 3 of them for god's sake. It's simple, classic, old school sound that has been featured on millions of recordings and it's enduring legacy lives on till today (it is the most selling bass in the world).

When Leo Fender designed the electric bass in 1951, his vision was to give bassists the opportunity to use a smaller and more amped version of the upright bass.

My P-Bass with it's ancestral father.

What followed was a huge explosion in the music world; bassists can now be heard just as loud as their guitarists, and music was never the same since then.

It quickly caught on, but it wasn't until 1957 when the first (and only) redesign of the Precision was made, using the split coil humbucking pickups which is now the standard in electric bass.

Of the first bands to embrace and use this bass were the blues bands. The blues is the father of rock n' roll, and it was the electric Chicago blues that started it all. From Muddy Waters to Howlin' Wolf to BB King and all in between, it was the P-Bass that held the low end, and the foundation was set in stone.

Muddy Waters was one of the first to embrace the Precision Bass in his band once we went full electric; and one of the key performances where it was brought to nationwide recognition was the 1960 Newport Jazz Festival, where bassist Andrew Stephens is seen holding a 57 or 58 Precision on the backline.

Another important recording in blues, which I rated at no 5, is 'Born Under a Bad Sign' by Albert King, which had the legendary Donald "Duck" Dunn on the P-Bass. The title track, and other songs like "Crosscut" are among the top blues tracks. This also led to huge recognition.

Turnin' goat piss into gasoline.

Another notable P-Bass in the blues world, with a rock edge, is Dusty Hill of ZZ Top. Their infectious grooves and riffs (and beards) set the stage for a new era in music.

One of their most famous tracks is "La Grange" and you can't get anymore hardcore than this:

The simplicity of the P-Bass and it's sturdy build has been a favorite of blues bands and musicians, and I don't expect this relationship to die down anytime soon.

Here's to more thumpin the blues on the down low!

Fender's New American Vintage Basses

It's been pretty hush hush for a while, but Fender finally announced their new updated American Vintage bass product line.

Since the early 80's Fender had the same vintage series ('57 & '62 for the Precision Bass, and '62 & '75 for the Jazz Bass); this is the first time they revamp the line, with new vintage years; '58 & '63 for the Precision Bass, and '64 & '74 for the Jazz Bass. They feature period correct details, hardware, finish, and pickups. There are some vintage custom color options, such as Faded Sonic Blue on the 63 P-Bass and Lake Placid Blue on the 64 J-Bass (with matching headstock!!)

I'm loving them! Need to get a '63 P-Bass in Olympic White now!!! Below are all the series with all the color options. Go to Fender's American Vintage site for videos and detailed specs. Which one would you choose?

 1958 Precision Bass

1963 Precision Bass

1964 Jazz Bass

1974 JazzBass