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First Bass You Got?

I took one guitar lesson in 8th grade (1988/89) and at the end, the teacher asked, "have you ever thought about bass?" At the time, I assumed it was my sausage-fingered incompetence on the 6-string that raised his question, but now I like to think he just saw me in my proper context as a bass player. I told my parents what he'd said and for my next birthday was given a dark red Ibanez P/J with the old tapered, single-sided, hair-band-looking headstock. I paid no attention to model number or type, and still have no idea what it was, although I think it had a stripe of darker wood down the back of the neck. I bought a Stingray a few years later, but kept the Ibanez until the electronics lunched themselves.

I wish I still had it, both because it was my first bass (and probably easily repaired by anyone more electrically competent than myself) and because it had a really thin, fast neck. It's the sort of neck I prefer today, and I'm still not exactly clear on why I took a 20+ year detour to play the split log bolted to the body of my Stingray.
 
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2007 Squier PJ Special, black/white. Excellent instrument!
 
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Mine was a Czechoslovakia-made Jolana Iris bass...see the photo.
I got rid of the cover plates immediately and played without them. Originally, it came with factory installed strings that were covered in plastic!? I jokingly called those laundry wire.
From that, I went on to a Yugoslav made P bass copy, mangles a bit. At one point I even put in a Bartolini pup, but sold it very soon after, in order to get my first "real" bass, which was Washburn Scavenger. Matter of fact, I am trying to get that one back now.
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That's pretty!
 
A $99 National sort of P bass thing in 1976. Terrible action, tuners, sound. Learned the basics on it. About a year later saved up and got an Aria Jazz bass clone. Natural finish, MOP inlays, white pg, beautiful bass... really learned how to play on it... unfortunately some scumbag stole it in a house robbery in 1980. Miss that bass...
 
My first bass was a telestar. Bought it for $75 and a Gibson Thor amp for $100 when I was in high school about 1978 or '79. Never learned to play. Just started to actually apply myself & try to learn again about 4 years ago. This is not my actual first bass but, a photo I found on the net but, it is identical to my first one
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