Felix Pappalardi....."Pappalardi continued to work as a producer, session musician, and songwriter until he was shot and killed by his wife, Gail Collins, in 1983."Who is Felix?
At age 44 btw.
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NBD-Eastwood EB-1
- Thread starter B-Mac
- Start date
At age 44 btw.
cool
Playing a 'real one!
Felix Pappalardi
Now I gotta listen to a lot of Mountain!
Playing a 'real one!
Felix Pappalardi
Now I gotta listen to a lot of Mountain!
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That bass is so sexy.... I think I need a cigarette now, and I don't even smoke...
047912
047912
So I guess there are really 3 of these sort of?
Gibson EB-1
Epiphone EB-1
Eastwood EB-1
Any others?
Gibson EB-1
Epiphone EB-1
Eastwood EB-1
Any others?
The Epiphone version
On Regurge now for $695 used. No idea what these are like or how they compare.
On Regurge now for $695 used. No idea what these are like or how they compare.
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That's Pappalardi's bass, BTW...
There's actually two different Gibson versions: the original one from the '50s (known as EB) with banjo tuners and a single coil pickup (very similar cover to the Mudbucker, though) and one from the early 70s (aka EB-1) with standard tuners and a Mudbucker.
I'm fairly certain that I've seen a couple of Japanese replicas from the 70s - maybe Greco - but that was so long ago that I really can't recall the manufacturer...
The original one from '53 was the first Gibson electric bass guitar. The second one - a reissue from '69 - is what you see in the hands of Pappalardi and Bruce.
Another nice showing here:
And the original version here:
Why is the Mudbucker sometimes called a 'Sidewinder'. Someone here at TB referred to it as a 'Sidewinder'. What did (does) Gibson officially call it and were they different than the Mudbuckers on todays SG basses? They look the same, but were the guts different?
Is there a difference?
I call it Sidewinder quite often, the term comes from the way the pickup was wound. Gibson official name was just a "bass humbucker" I believe. People who hated the sound named it Mudbucker and it stuck...in the mud...
Yes. The current pickups are Thunderbird pickups in the Mudbucker/Mini Bucker guise. Completely different specs and a very different - far more defined and polite - sound.
were there any 'evolutions' of the Sidewinder / mudbucker over the years as far as design and output? for nearly a decade the PUs were with bakelite covers and then the classic chrome was standard forever more. some of those really kick out the gnarliest sounds ever and then it's said Jack had a boost in his circuit and that Felix got Gibson to up the output, any facts on this?
The '50s version was called the Gibson Electric Bass (not really sure how official its shortening to "EB" was, if at all) from its introduction in 1953 (when it was only the third electric bass guitar ever mass-produced, after the original slab-body, single-coil Fender Precision of 1951 and the short-scale, hollowbody Kay K162 "Electronic" Pro Bass of 1952) until when it ceased being the only electric bass in the Gibson catalogue: in 1958 another, hollowbody bass was introduced, based on the ES-335 guitar, and called the EB-2.
The Electric Bass was thus renamed EB-1. However, it was discontinued in 1959, and replaced with the early version of the EB-0 (at the time shaped like the Les Paul DC, not yet the SG, but that's another story).
The original EB sported banjo tuners and a single-coil pickup under a brown plastic cover. Its design, to the best of my knowledge, was essentially that of half a mudbucker, with a row of polepieces and a coil to the side of it, placed parallel to the strings. It could then be called a "sidewinder", which is an informal name for the type of pickup, just as "mudbucker" itself is.
The single-coil was also used on the '58 EB-2, under a black plastic cover. I've no idea what its official designation was, but I seem to remember that that of the later humbucker, which made its appearance on the '59 EB-2 and EB-0, and also wore a black plastic cover (it would switch to nickel in late '62 and chrome in 1965), was "Super Humbucker". I think.
(By the way, banjo tuners were used on the early EB-2 and EB-0 too, approximately until the turn of the decade.)
The EB-1 reissue came out in 1970 (or was it late '69?), and the fact that Felix Pappalardi used an original one with Mountain may have had a hand in it. It had a mudbucker and normal tuners, and was produced until 1973.
Everything I know about these basses I owe to @Fly Guitars anyway, so you might as well go straight to the source:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Some more info here
history of the violin bass
brands
and here
The EB1
As for the Epiphone version, it was made from 1998 to 2001, it had an Epiphone mudbucker, three-point bridge, gamba-corner body profile, 32" scale (the original was 30.5"), bolt-on neck, your garden-variety bass tuners, had the cello stand like the original, and also came fretless.
EB-Series - The Unofficial Epiphone Wiki
brands
___________________
Re: copies, some violin basses from the '60s and '70s were clearly influenced by the Gibson even though they were actually hollow. This page shows examples under many a marque (Apollo, Cameo, Estrada, Ibanez, Leonardo, Orlando, Univox, Ventura, Zenta):
violin bass gallery
This one, also by Ibanez but this time solid-body, called the no. 2333, was a faithful copy of the Seventies' EB-1:
brands
The Electric Bass was thus renamed EB-1. However, it was discontinued in 1959, and replaced with the early version of the EB-0 (at the time shaped like the Les Paul DC, not yet the SG, but that's another story).
The original EB sported banjo tuners and a single-coil pickup under a brown plastic cover. Its design, to the best of my knowledge, was essentially that of half a mudbucker, with a row of polepieces and a coil to the side of it, placed parallel to the strings. It could then be called a "sidewinder", which is an informal name for the type of pickup, just as "mudbucker" itself is.
The single-coil was also used on the '58 EB-2, under a black plastic cover. I've no idea what its official designation was, but I seem to remember that that of the later humbucker, which made its appearance on the '59 EB-2 and EB-0, and also wore a black plastic cover (it would switch to nickel in late '62 and chrome in 1965), was "Super Humbucker". I think.
(By the way, banjo tuners were used on the early EB-2 and EB-0 too, approximately until the turn of the decade.)
The EB-1 reissue came out in 1970 (or was it late '69?), and the fact that Felix Pappalardi used an original one with Mountain may have had a hand in it. It had a mudbucker and normal tuners, and was produced until 1973.
Everything I know about these basses I owe to @Fly Guitars anyway, so you might as well go straight to the source:
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Some more info here
history of the violin bass
brands
and here
The EB1
As for the Epiphone version, it was made from 1998 to 2001, it had an Epiphone mudbucker, three-point bridge, gamba-corner body profile, 32" scale (the original was 30.5"), bolt-on neck, your garden-variety bass tuners, had the cello stand like the original, and also came fretless.
EB-Series - The Unofficial Epiphone Wiki
brands
___________________
Re: copies, some violin basses from the '60s and '70s were clearly influenced by the Gibson even though they were actually hollow. This page shows examples under many a marque (Apollo, Cameo, Estrada, Ibanez, Leonardo, Orlando, Univox, Ventura, Zenta):
violin bass gallery
This one, also by Ibanez but this time solid-body, called the no. 2333, was a faithful copy of the Seventies' EB-1:
brands
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I just got an Eastwood EB1, and I must say I love it so far. It's light and feels great. Less neck dive than some violin basses, but I find they usually are more comfortable with a strap. I like the neck...a "good girth". The wood is beautiful, I think. And the real f-holes (verses the painted on ones of Gibson/Epiphone) is a huge upgrade. So much beauty, versus the "cheesy factor" of the paint (IMO). The midscale neck is always a great feel for me. The most positive surprise: the sound of the pickup. It is a lovely thumpy sound. I have another Eastwood bass, and its pickup is a bit too dark. This EB1 pickup is quite pleasing to my ears. The only thing I might want to change is the chrome cover. It's just such a huge pickup... I like the look of the plastic (bakelite) covers on some Gibson EB1 basses -- don't know if I could ever find (or make??) something like that, but it would be a cosmetic upgrade I think.
Well, not yet... But I just got it, literally, today! I'll keep you posted.
They make really fun stuff. I saw a few places online where people were very disappointed that this was chambered rather than solid (like the Gibson) and that it was medium scale instead of short scale (like the Gibson). I really feel like both of the Eastwood changes are improvements -- but if your heart is set on short scale and solid body, than get an Epiphone version. They're out there! I like that Eastwood took the inspiration and did something a little different.
