Geddy Lee's Bass

[Freez]

That was the wierd phase. I dunno what got into him. He was so into the ricks, and now into jazz, but then he was flip flopping all over the place.

In Ged's defense, EVERYBODY was playing Steinies then. He stayed with that for a few years until the Wal(s), then back to the Jazz. So in his long career, he's really only played 4 or 5 basses with any degree of regularity, and he stuck with each one for a while. Not exactly flip flopping all over the place!

 

[Joeykun]

Ged said he played Steinbergers because it was small and easier to get behind his massively growing keyboard rig during that time. He never liked the tone either.

 

[Spidey2112]

Ged said he played Steinbergers because it was small and easier to get behind his massively growing keyboard rig during that time. He never liked the tone either.

I stopped using the Steinberger, as my #2, as I wasn't getting any royalties from playing it out...

(cue laughter)

... love me some Geddy, though.

 

[Ric5]

Not the signature model! His actual bass! The one and only.

I heard his in an interview mentioning something about picking it up in a pawn shop. Would this be correct? From what I've heard he got it in a pawn shop in the 70's, and forgot about it, until he picked it up during the Moving Pictures era, liked it, and used it in Tom Sawyer. Been using it ever since and is that bass we see in concert.

What year does his bass come from? Is it the original he got during that time?

EDIT: That first image isn't the same as this one:

This one clearly has more wear, different neck and pickguard. Does anyone know about all this?

You will really enjoy reading this thread ...

Geddy's bass tone

 

[DigitalMan]

That was the wierd phase. I dunno what got into him. He was so into the ricks, and now into jazz, but then he was flip flopping all over the place.

I would bet that the typical TB veteran flip flops at a rate about 10x faster than Geddy did. He seems to be averaging about two basses per decade (as primary players).

 

[REV]

I'm no fan of Rush but I do think Geddy's a really good bass player. Somehow Fender really nailed it with the Geddy Jazz bass. I've owned four of them and played a bunch more and the MIJ ones are pretty consistent. To me the Geddy Jazz is really special, it doesn't sound like a regular Jazz bass and I can't really say why. I've never had a chance to play a US Geddy but I'll bet they are really good too.

 

[consectaneus]

Some of the keener ears seem to have sussed it out, but it's interesting that there was (and possibly still is) some debate over Moving Pictures about what songs are the Ric and which are the Jazz. They have an amazingly similar sound on that album.

I like how the Fender guys had to meet him on the road to do the measurements because there was no way he was going to let them take it.

 

[john_g]

I remember him talking about the jazz and saying how it sounded different from any other jazz he had because of a short in the neck pickup. He wouldnt let fender open it up because he didnt want to lose that tone. I wonder if when he had it rewound it "fixed" it?

 

[Wilmingtonian]

is that (the) bass we see in concert.

To be more specific with regards to that question - I don't think it was mentioned already in this thread- but on the last tour, at least, he used many, many basses, almost changing with each song. Maddona and Beyonce have costume changes; Geddy was mixing up the instruments in the same manner - for his own enjoyment and his fans, many of which were watching and listening closely. It was very Fender Jazz-heavy rotation, but allowed for Ricks, including a doubleneck (for Xanadu, I believe) as well as Gibsons and a couple others, at least according to the listing (and his discussion about selections) here, from the "tour book":

Rush: R40 Live 40th Anniversary Tour Book - Courtesy of Cygnus-X1.Net

1972 Fender Jazz Bass (Black) My Number One
1972 Fender Jazz Bass (Blonde)
Fender Jazz Bass (Surf Green Custom Shop)
Fender Jazz Bass (Trans Red Custom Shop)
1960 Fender Jazz Bass (Fiesta Red)
1962 Fender Jazz Bass (Sea Foam Green)
1963 Fender Jazz Bass (Black with matching headstock)
1964 Fender Jazz Bass (Lake Placid Blue with matching headstock)
1964 Fender Jazz Bass (Sonic Blue with matching headstock)
1965 Fender Jazz Bass (White)
1966 Fender Jazz Bass (Shoreline Gold with matching headstock)
1966 Fender Jazz Bass (Fiesta Red with matching headstock)
1957 Gibson EB-1 (Walnut)
1964 Gibson Thunderbird IV (Sunburst)
1964 Epiphone Embassy (Cherry)
1967 Gibson Thunderbird II (Polaris White)
1959 Fender Precision Bass (Olympic White) with matching headstock
1965 Fender Precision Bass (Burgundy Mist)
1968 Fender Telecaster Bass (Paisley)
1967 Rickenbacker Model 3261 (FireGlo)
1968 Rickenbacker Model 4001 (BurgundyGlo)
1977 Rickenbacker Model 4001 (JetGlo)
1975 Rickenbacker Model 4080/12 (JetGlo)
1978 Rickenbacker Model 4080/12 (FireGlo)
1961 Hofner Solid Body 2 Pickup (Cherry Red)
1992 Zematis Bass (Black with engraved metal front)

So, OP, I may be going in a different direction than you were asking, but the basic answer is "yes, that is the 'one' that you see when he is playing what looks like his 72 Fender Jazz."

 

[mmbongo]

Ahh here we go. This is more like it. Never did Geddy have a better sound than with Wal basses.

 

[Spectrum]

About that P bass he cut into a teardrop, here is what it looked and sounded like before the butchery:

That was the wierd phase. I dunno what got into him. He was so into the ricks, and now into jazz, but then he was flip flopping all over the place.

There is an interview where he says he adopted the Steinberger because he was banging headstocks into his keyboards at the time. The Wal? Well, Geddy is kind of a gearhead sometimes and Wals were and still are considered a high end bass that any one of us would love to add to our collections. The Wal tone isn't my favorite but it was perfect for the music of albums like Power Windows.

 

[consectaneus]

Dang. What a stable. I also watched another backstage conversation with him and he made special mention of his Jaco Sig. fretless Jazz. He really likes it, but I can't remember what he said which numbers he uses it for (if at all, or just enjoys having it around).

 

[superdick2112]

He plays the Jaco on Malignant Narcissism.

 

[DigitalMan]

About that P bass he cut into a teardrop, here is what it looked and sounded like before the butchery:





There is an interview where he says he adopted the Steinberger because he was banging headstocks into his keyboards at the time. The Wal? Well, Geddy is kind of a gearhead sometimes and Wals were and still are considered a high end bass that any one of us would love to add to our collections. The Wal tone isn't my favorite but it was perfect for the music of albums like Power Windows.

The Wal was a bit of a fluke. He brought his usual array of basses in to record Power Windows. The producer, Peter Collins, owned the Wal. It turned out to be the beginning of the Wal era since the bass fit into the newer material so well. I suspect that the lighter gauge Rotosound Funkmasters were what happened to be on the bass at the time.

 

[Spectrum]

The Wal was a bit of a fluke. He brought his usual array of basses in to record Power Windows. The producer, Peter Collins, owned the Wal. It turned out to be the beginning of the Wal era since the bass fit into the newer material so well. I suspect that the lighter gauge Rotosound Funkmasters were what happened to be on the bass at the time.

Interesting, I hadn't heard that story.

I saw the Power Windows tour live in Philly in 1986, and I will never forget that sound. What a great show, too.

 

[consectaneus]

I caught that tour in Sacramento. They were on top of their game. However, the Fabulous Thunderbirds opening was one of the stranger pairings I've seen at a concert. Poor guys got booed off the stage.

 

[Captain Chaos]

I heard a rumor that he had an East preamp installed in one of his Jazz basses but with regular knobs.

 

[Felken]

You will really enjoy reading this thread ...

Geddy's bass tone

Like this isn't already a meme

 

[PortlandBass77]

It's detailed in most of the Rush biographies:

He bought the bass for $200 at a Pawnshop in Kalamazoo, Michigan and started using it in records with moving pictures.
Prior to Time Machine (correct me if I'm wrong on the time frame), the neck was replaced by a Fender custom shop model due to years of touring and abuse.
I believe the top photo is indeed the original bass, the bottom photo is one of the many basses Geddy had made for the Clockwork Angles tour.
There's a thread somewhere on TB where Geddy's former tech details how the bridge pickup on the bass is "defective" and that is why that bass sounds like no other.

 

[Felken]

He plays the Jaco on Malignant Narcissism.

I made an extended version of that song on my eponymous youtube channel. Just sayin.