Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

How 'bout those basses that have a hump instead of an upper horn? The "hump" is one with the neck and goes to the 12 fret! Those are THE ugliest basses!

Cole

How about the BC Rich basses with the sharp pointy ends?

You mean like this?

Just add spandex and bam!

I'm soooo glad I have such broad tastes..I like Ricks AND exotic wood basses, and most in between. Variety is the spice of life so far as I'm concerned..."everything is beautiful, in it's own way...hello Blackpool, that's my home town!!!" I really should've been a cabaret singer...

One of the best basses I ever had was a mid-'80's American made BC Rich Mockingbird. It had the same electronics as the Bich pictured above....lots of tone variety. Mock it if you like but it was an excellent bass and someday I'll get another!

I like the inlays on that one, Eric. Nice!

Actually, Rickenbackers are my favorite, but sometimes I'll hanker for something else for a change. I'm taking my jetglo '94 4003 to our show tonight, as well as my brown MexiJazz. I've also been seen with a StingRay from time to time. Variety is the spice of life!

Derek Smalls would play that bass!

....but would Judge Smales?!?!

I did . . . a lot in the late 70's/early 80's. That one and a Koa Mockingbird. Unfortunately, the neck broke on the 'bird. One of these days I'm going to break out the Bich and use it at Church.

Eric, that's quite a confession!

I like the Mockingbird too, but the others I have a hard time getting with. Those could HURT someone!

I like some crazy shaped passes, but I prefer the more conservative shapes of Fenders. I like the shape of Wal basses too. Rickenbacker basses I still find kind of different, and I would totally prefer a 4003s. The binding is nice, but it hurts sometimes.

Exotic wood is cool, but when used right. I like some natural grains and the many types of maple, but the spalted tops are just nasty looking. They look cool and all, but c'mon, I'd be playing a dead tree stump on stage.

Nate, hate to break this to you, but if you're playing a wooden bass you ARE playing a dead tree stump on stage....

Quote - "Exotic wood is cool, but when used right".

I'm sure many many people would have entirely different views on "when used right". As with most things in life, it's a matter of taste, and in matters of taste no one is wrong....(sometimes unfortunately, LOL!)

"but if you're playing a wooden bass you ARE playing a dead tree stump on stage.... "

Touche`!

To me, it just seems ridiculous that someone would pay an extra fifteen hundred dollars to have their bass look like it was sliced directly out of a standing tree. Natural finishes, to me, look best when the bass is either one wood (i.e. just plain maple), or two contrasting woods, in stripes of whatnot (walnut and maple, bubinga and maple, purpleheart and walnut, etc.). But when the natural finish shows this crazy figured AAAAAAAAAA grade spalted burl [insert unheard of wood type here], that's just too much. Walnut body wings with maple center block and neck? Multi-piece necks? Sure! Alembics that use pretty basic woods (purpleheart, vermillion, walnut, maple) always look, to me, trillions of times better than ones with super-exotic wood, even though both are just as fancily constructed. It's just the aesthetic.

And of course, if a bass's body shape is gorgeous, I can ignore over-the-top woodgrain. The problem comes when you have really hideous body styles that are somehow desirable because of the crazy wood facings they've got . . .

I love wood and don't like solid color finishes on an item made of wood. I like interesting grains and patterns and spalted burls laminated tops are fine by me.

And Bob's your uncle.