Wait... i thought there already WAS an Aria Sig bass for him... "The Aria SB-CB"... http://ariabasses.blogspot.com/2010/05/aria-pro-ii-sb-1000cb-cliff-burton.html
Awesome! Looks like they -unlike the prev reissues- even got the original SB bridge right (hard too see in the pics)
A few years ago i would have been trying to get one, I know i kept an eye out for the Aria Pro II in general. Looks good, just hope this isn't any way of metallica getting more revenue. I've always liked the fact he got what he did out of a single pickup, for that bass anyways.
Stuff like this always makes me laugh. It may or may not be the case here, but to me it always screams "I want more money!!!" Just like all the Dime "signature" stuff that came out after his death.
I'm sure there's dough involved. However, let me get deep on you. If my son had been killed as a bass player, I would want to keep his legacy going for non-financial reasons as well. My sister died many years ago. She was a great athlete and musician. Had someone come to me for permission to make some signature horn or shoes I would have jumped all over it. Just the fact that people years from now would know about her would be touching.
I played with a Guitarist who had his "Signature" Amps. Only Dimebag can get that sound. Dime liked the sound he was getting from the recording console preamp during the Cowboys From Hell sessions and ripped it out and implemented it into his amplifier!
I don't know anything about Arias. How much did that model cost back then when it was new? Where they high-end?
The SB-CB was I THINK $2300 on Musiciansfriend, and it was stated to be only a "tribute" bass and not an authorized sig series, similar to what Cliff used back in the puppets days until his death. They had a few on Amazon as well. And unless I miss my guess, Aria stopped making it. I never got to play one, but reading posts here suggested that it left a lot to be desired compared to the original SB-1000, that Aria also did a re-issue for.
It was a actually a mid range model, cheaper than the SB 1000, 900 and Elite 2. However, very few black and golds were made, so combined with the Cliff connection the real deal is much pricier used than any other Aria.
If you want to keep someone's memory alive, there are other ways of doing that than putting out a "signature" model of a bass the deceased has never seen or played. These signature models aren't a touching emotional tribute. They're a way to squeeze a few bucks out of rabid/gullible Metallica fans. As far as Burton's father and Metallica signing off on something like this - I can tell you that if I croaked some years ago, the LAST people I would want approving my posthumous "signature" model would be my father or my former bandmates.
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