THAT NECK, tho...smh. Had a bolt-on bird and it was THE WORST. At that price I'd hunt around for a used Epiphone neck-thru (and a can of matte black spray paint if you are hell bent on the look)
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Nikki Sixx
- Thread starter ZBirdV8
- Start date
Not knocking Nikki at all as a person or musician/songwriter. Just saying I don’t find his bass playing exceptional or memorable. That’s all.
Seriously, just read his book. For a guy who never finished high school, he’s quite an entertaining writer. I don’t consider him to be an extremely good bassist, but he’s got a talent far better than that; he’s a very good songwriter.
That talent made him a multimillionaire.
Some bands have technically superior musicianship . But they aren't fun and playing their music will empty a party in under two minutes. Motley Crue was FUN, most people dig at least a few songs by them, and Nikki Sixx was pretty much the mastermind of it.
You can't beat Nikkis bass riff in Too Fast for Love....its fast and fun
It shadows behind Mars's guitar but Nikki wrote it for the bass...
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That may be, but that's where you'll keep hearing those people play...at your local pub.
Nikki Sixx was able to parlay his great songwriting ability and "just good enough" bass playing into a multi-billion dollar career.
I also tend to think that he can play much better than he does in Motley Crue, he just doesn't need to in their songs. Some of his lines in his Sixx:AM are a little more involved.
While I thought NS' bass-playing was sufficient for Crue, I think he's not in the same ballpark with others in metal, though Crue would have to be more hair-band than metal to me. I, am however, very happy that someone with as many brushes with the dope life has come out the other side healthy and happy, we don't need any more deaths.
I will say, though, that when he concentrated on it, Tommy Lee to me was one of THE great rock drummers, and had he not had the later side-trips and detours, would be thought of more highly.
I will say, though, that when he concentrated on it, Tommy Lee to me was one of THE great rock drummers, and had he not had the later side-trips and detours, would be thought of more highly.
Apparently he would anchor his pinky on a bracket mounted behind the bridge...never heard of any other bassist doing that.
Great songwriter, great entertainer, ok bassist. TBH those are probably listed in the order of importance if you want to be successful. His two bands were never in my list of favorites, Crue in particular were actually annoying to me. But you have to respect the fact that he wrote tons of songs that appealed to a great many people. And he played them well all over the world. A good musician.
Great song writer, but Nikki’s bass playing has nothing to write home about. Compared to Nikki, Michael Anthony is like Jaco.
Just read his book. Good for him getting clean and sober. I don't care about the band, but NS has to be applauded for his ability to tap into the public's tastes enough to build the band's following the way he did. Good for him!
Check out this track
He plays so well it sounds like a midi track
He plays so well it sounds like a midi track
Signature basses
Sixx is most often seen playing Gibson Thunderbird basses. Between 2000 and 2003 Invalid Link Removed produced the Nikki Sixx Signature Blackbird.Invalid Link Removed The Gibson Blackbird was for all intents and purposes a standard Thunderbird bass, but with a satin black finish, Iron Crosses on the fretboard instead of dots, an Iron Cross behind the classic Thunderbird logo, and Nikki Sixx's 'opti-grab' (a metal loop installed behind the bridge for hooking the little finger onto while playing). What also made this bass interesting was the lack of volume or tone controls, being replaced by a single on/off switch. Although subtle, this helped give this Blackbird more tone and a higher output. This model was discontinued in 2003, but has recently been put back in production as the Epiphone Nikki Sixx Blackbird.Invalid Link Removed Cosmetically the Epiphone Blackbird is identical to the Gibson original, but with a bolt-on single ply neck, solid mahogany body, different pickups and lower grade parts and manufacturing. The Epiphone model still kept the 'opti-grab,' designed and made first by his bass technician Tim Luzzi, and single on/off switch of the Gibson original. In 2008, Gibson announced a 'limited run' new Nikki Sixx signature bass. Like the original it features a neck through design made of mahogany and walnut, with maple 'wings' to form the body. Unlike the original 'Blackbird' bass, a clear 'satin black cherry' finish is given to the instrument, with red 'slash' X's on the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 12th frets. A mirror pickguard is also applied, with a red signature and two X's (6 x's on the whole bass) is also a new addition. Unlike the Gibson Blackbird, the new signature featured volume and tone controls, the 'opti-grab', and an on/off switch.[57]
Other basses
His inspiration to use the Gibson Thunderbird came from Pete "Overend" Watts of Mott the Hoople and John Entwistle of The Who. His first Gibson Thunderbird was a white 1976 model. He would light it on fire with pyro gel during early Mötley Crüe shows, (when they were still a club band) and it finally just disintegrated. He used Fender Precision basses and Rickenbacker basses before he had his first Thunderbird.
Early on, he was sponsored by B.C. Rich, and used Mockingbird & Warlock basses. He used Hamer Firebird basses during the tour for Theatre of Pain, in either plain black or plain white, while some of them had finishes that suited his stage outfits. After that, he used Spector basses during Girls, Girls, Girls and Dr. Feelgood. These Spector basses were shaped like Thunderbirds, and usually are commonly called Spectorbirds. Sixx owned at least eight Spectorbirds. All eight had an opti-grab, designed and made by Tim Luzzi, 1 volume knob, P & J pickups, 24 frets and Spector bass "Crown" inlays. He used four during the tour for Girls, Girls, Girls, two black ones and one with a 101 Dalmatians finish, all of which had the Gibson Thunderbird Non-Reverse body type. One of the black basses had a large skull painting covering most of the body. He also used one in a buckeye burl finish with the reverse body style. It had an orange Invalid Link Removed Crüe sticker where the Thunderbird logo usually is. These all had black hardware. For Dr. Feelgood he used five Spectorbirds, two in sunburst and one in a natural finish. He also used a white one with a Non-Reverse style body, covered in small black stickers and a sticker saying Dancing on Glass. He also used a plain black Spectorbird with a reversed body style, which he smashed at the Make A Difference Foundation Invalid Link Removed in Moscow.
During the 1990s, Sixx started using 12-string basses made in Japan by the Hiroshigi Kids Guitar Company. He owns at least five: a black one with red lettering and white binding, a black one with gold binding, a black one with white lettering and white binding, a red one with "Helter Skelter" written on it, and a green one. The red and green ones have dragon inlays on the body. He also used four- and five-string Epiphone Non-Reverse Thunderbirds for the Invalid Link Removed tour and would usually smash one after his bass solo. He has also used Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay 5 basses, most notably while on tour with Brides of Destruction and the two newly recorded songs for the 1998 Mötley Crüe album, Greatest Hits.
He also has used Fender Precision Basses, particularly when smashing basses at the end of a set. They are usually black Squier Precision Basses with white pickguards. He previously used Ampeg amplifiers with Ampeg 8 x 10" loaded cabinets made with real wood, but had switched to Basson cabinets prior to their going out of business. The Basson cabinets were notoriously heavy (typically running 230–250 lbs), using medium density fiberboard covered with indoor-outdoor carpeting and loaded with Chinese Firestorm 1075 speakers (10"/75 oz magnets) and neoprene surrounds. Many of these cabinets were painted red with latex paint to match tour themes. Basson gave Sixx the cabinets in a marketing move to sell to metal-playing bassists, a very limited market. Basson went out of business in 2010. While recording The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack, he used a 1959 Fender Precision, which was amplified via 1964 Fender Bassman. Sixx also uses Audiotech Guitar Products Source Selector 1X6 Rack Mount Audio Switcher.
Personal life
Nikki Sixx and Courtney Bingham at the 'Call of Duty: Black Ops' Release Party in Santa Monica, California on November 4, 2010
In 1987, Denise "Invalid Link Removed" Matthews claimed that she was engaged to Sixx. In his book The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star, he describes his relationship with her, "Vanity came and went during different periods of my addiction. She was a wild black chick who had sung with Prince: she’d also been his lover for a while. At the time I thought of Vanity as a disposable human being, like a used needle. Once its purpose was fulfilled it was ready for the trash, only to be dug up if you were really desperate…We became drug buddies: sometimes, you could even just about call us boyfriend and girlfriend. Vanity also taught me how to really freebase: the first time I based was with Tommy when Mötley just started and only a few times after that. So up until then, I’d been mostly snorting or injecting. But as soon as she showed me the real ins and outs of cooking up a good rock…it was love. Not her. The drug."
From May 1989 to November 1996, Sixx was married to his first wife, Playboy Playmate Brandi Brandt;[1] they have three children: Gunner Nicholas Sixx (born January 25, 1991), Storm Brieann Sixx (born April 14, 1994), and Decker Nilsson Sixx (born May 23, 1995).
One month after the divorce from Brandt, Sixx married his second wife, another Playboy Playmate, actress Donna D'Errico.[1] Sixx and D'Errico have one daughter, Frankie-Jean Mary Sixx (born January 2, 2001). D'Errico has a son, Rhyan Jacob (born 1993), from a previous relationship. They separated shortly after their daughter's birth, and reconciled months later when Sixx completed rehab. They separated again on April 27, 2006 and divorced in June 2007, with D'Errico claiming irreconcilable differences.[58][59]
Sixx dated tattoo artist Invalid Link Removed from 2008 to 2010.[60] A few months after their breakup, Sixx and Von D were spotted back together.[61] Sixx was featured on an episode of Von D's reality television show LA Ink in 2008, in which Von D gave him a tattoo of Mick Mars, lead guitarist of Mötley Crüe.[62] On August 25, 2010, Sixx issued a statement that their relationship had dissolved.[63] It was reported on October 19, 2010 that Nikki and Kat had gotten back together.[64] On October 27, 2010 Invalid Link Removed confirmed to USA Today that indeed she and West Coast Choppers owner Jesse James were still together, debunking original reports that she and Sixx had reconciled.[65] On November 4, 2010 Sixx was spotted at the Call of Duty: Black Ops Launch Party in Santa Monica, California with Courtney Bingham, whom he has been dating ever since and they now live together. On November 26, 2012, Nikki revealed to the public that he proposed to Courtney while vacationing in St. Barts. They were married on March 15, 2014.[66][67][68] Courtney revealed in July 2014 that she and Sixx are planning to have a child, her first.[69][needs update]
Transcendental Meditation is an important self-help technique to Sixx.[70
Sixx is most often seen playing Gibson Thunderbird basses. Between 2000 and 2003 Invalid Link Removed produced the Nikki Sixx Signature Blackbird.Invalid Link Removed The Gibson Blackbird was for all intents and purposes a standard Thunderbird bass, but with a satin black finish, Iron Crosses on the fretboard instead of dots, an Iron Cross behind the classic Thunderbird logo, and Nikki Sixx's 'opti-grab' (a metal loop installed behind the bridge for hooking the little finger onto while playing). What also made this bass interesting was the lack of volume or tone controls, being replaced by a single on/off switch. Although subtle, this helped give this Blackbird more tone and a higher output. This model was discontinued in 2003, but has recently been put back in production as the Epiphone Nikki Sixx Blackbird.Invalid Link Removed Cosmetically the Epiphone Blackbird is identical to the Gibson original, but with a bolt-on single ply neck, solid mahogany body, different pickups and lower grade parts and manufacturing. The Epiphone model still kept the 'opti-grab,' designed and made first by his bass technician Tim Luzzi, and single on/off switch of the Gibson original. In 2008, Gibson announced a 'limited run' new Nikki Sixx signature bass. Like the original it features a neck through design made of mahogany and walnut, with maple 'wings' to form the body. Unlike the original 'Blackbird' bass, a clear 'satin black cherry' finish is given to the instrument, with red 'slash' X's on the 3rd, 5th, 7th and 12th frets. A mirror pickguard is also applied, with a red signature and two X's (6 x's on the whole bass) is also a new addition. Unlike the Gibson Blackbird, the new signature featured volume and tone controls, the 'opti-grab', and an on/off switch.[57]
Other basses
His inspiration to use the Gibson Thunderbird came from Pete "Overend" Watts of Mott the Hoople and John Entwistle of The Who. His first Gibson Thunderbird was a white 1976 model. He would light it on fire with pyro gel during early Mötley Crüe shows, (when they were still a club band) and it finally just disintegrated. He used Fender Precision basses and Rickenbacker basses before he had his first Thunderbird.
Early on, he was sponsored by B.C. Rich, and used Mockingbird & Warlock basses. He used Hamer Firebird basses during the tour for Theatre of Pain, in either plain black or plain white, while some of them had finishes that suited his stage outfits. After that, he used Spector basses during Girls, Girls, Girls and Dr. Feelgood. These Spector basses were shaped like Thunderbirds, and usually are commonly called Spectorbirds. Sixx owned at least eight Spectorbirds. All eight had an opti-grab, designed and made by Tim Luzzi, 1 volume knob, P & J pickups, 24 frets and Spector bass "Crown" inlays. He used four during the tour for Girls, Girls, Girls, two black ones and one with a 101 Dalmatians finish, all of which had the Gibson Thunderbird Non-Reverse body type. One of the black basses had a large skull painting covering most of the body. He also used one in a buckeye burl finish with the reverse body style. It had an orange Invalid Link Removed Crüe sticker where the Thunderbird logo usually is. These all had black hardware. For Dr. Feelgood he used five Spectorbirds, two in sunburst and one in a natural finish. He also used a white one with a Non-Reverse style body, covered in small black stickers and a sticker saying Dancing on Glass. He also used a plain black Spectorbird with a reversed body style, which he smashed at the Make A Difference Foundation Invalid Link Removed in Moscow.
During the 1990s, Sixx started using 12-string basses made in Japan by the Hiroshigi Kids Guitar Company. He owns at least five: a black one with red lettering and white binding, a black one with gold binding, a black one with white lettering and white binding, a red one with "Helter Skelter" written on it, and a green one. The red and green ones have dragon inlays on the body. He also used four- and five-string Epiphone Non-Reverse Thunderbirds for the Invalid Link Removed tour and would usually smash one after his bass solo. He has also used Ernie Ball Music Man StingRay 5 basses, most notably while on tour with Brides of Destruction and the two newly recorded songs for the 1998 Mötley Crüe album, Greatest Hits.
He also has used Fender Precision Basses, particularly when smashing basses at the end of a set. They are usually black Squier Precision Basses with white pickguards. He previously used Ampeg amplifiers with Ampeg 8 x 10" loaded cabinets made with real wood, but had switched to Basson cabinets prior to their going out of business. The Basson cabinets were notoriously heavy (typically running 230–250 lbs), using medium density fiberboard covered with indoor-outdoor carpeting and loaded with Chinese Firestorm 1075 speakers (10"/75 oz magnets) and neoprene surrounds. Many of these cabinets were painted red with latex paint to match tour themes. Basson gave Sixx the cabinets in a marketing move to sell to metal-playing bassists, a very limited market. Basson went out of business in 2010. While recording The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack, he used a 1959 Fender Precision, which was amplified via 1964 Fender Bassman. Sixx also uses Audiotech Guitar Products Source Selector 1X6 Rack Mount Audio Switcher.
Personal life
Nikki Sixx and Courtney Bingham at the 'Call of Duty: Black Ops' Release Party in Santa Monica, California on November 4, 2010
In 1987, Denise "Invalid Link Removed" Matthews claimed that she was engaged to Sixx. In his book The Heroin Diaries: A Year in the Life of a Shattered Rock Star, he describes his relationship with her, "Vanity came and went during different periods of my addiction. She was a wild black chick who had sung with Prince: she’d also been his lover for a while. At the time I thought of Vanity as a disposable human being, like a used needle. Once its purpose was fulfilled it was ready for the trash, only to be dug up if you were really desperate…We became drug buddies: sometimes, you could even just about call us boyfriend and girlfriend. Vanity also taught me how to really freebase: the first time I based was with Tommy when Mötley just started and only a few times after that. So up until then, I’d been mostly snorting or injecting. But as soon as she showed me the real ins and outs of cooking up a good rock…it was love. Not her. The drug."
From May 1989 to November 1996, Sixx was married to his first wife, Playboy Playmate Brandi Brandt;[1] they have three children: Gunner Nicholas Sixx (born January 25, 1991), Storm Brieann Sixx (born April 14, 1994), and Decker Nilsson Sixx (born May 23, 1995).
One month after the divorce from Brandt, Sixx married his second wife, another Playboy Playmate, actress Donna D'Errico.[1] Sixx and D'Errico have one daughter, Frankie-Jean Mary Sixx (born January 2, 2001). D'Errico has a son, Rhyan Jacob (born 1993), from a previous relationship. They separated shortly after their daughter's birth, and reconciled months later when Sixx completed rehab. They separated again on April 27, 2006 and divorced in June 2007, with D'Errico claiming irreconcilable differences.[58][59]
Sixx dated tattoo artist Invalid Link Removed from 2008 to 2010.[60] A few months after their breakup, Sixx and Von D were spotted back together.[61] Sixx was featured on an episode of Von D's reality television show LA Ink in 2008, in which Von D gave him a tattoo of Mick Mars, lead guitarist of Mötley Crüe.[62] On August 25, 2010, Sixx issued a statement that their relationship had dissolved.[63] It was reported on October 19, 2010 that Nikki and Kat had gotten back together.[64] On October 27, 2010 Invalid Link Removed confirmed to USA Today that indeed she and West Coast Choppers owner Jesse James were still together, debunking original reports that she and Sixx had reconciled.[65] On November 4, 2010 Sixx was spotted at the Call of Duty: Black Ops Launch Party in Santa Monica, California with Courtney Bingham, whom he has been dating ever since and they now live together. On November 26, 2012, Nikki revealed to the public that he proposed to Courtney while vacationing in St. Barts. They were married on March 15, 2014.[66][67][68] Courtney revealed in July 2014 that she and Sixx are planning to have a child, her first.[69][needs update]
Transcendental Meditation is an important self-help technique to Sixx.[70
I'm not a fan but I whenever I pour another bourbon when I really shouldn't, I always think about something he said in the VH-1 Behind The Music Documentary. He was talking about how he ODed on heroin and almost died. Then he went home and took the biggest shot of heroin he ever took or something like that.
Anyone who can make a living playing bass like Nikki Sixx has is doing something musically better then I have lol.. I like to read about any musician who is successful. Especially to that level..
Why do musicians tend to gravitate or become addicted to Heroin/opioids?
My guess is it's the closest similar feeling to the pleasure, excitement and enjoyment of playing a gig and everyone there and the band members are all in sync. Time stands still. The downside, pretty soon all you'll be doing is the opiate and slowly lose your talent and skill/stamina ability. Pretty soon you'll start selling all your gear and be left with nothing....so I've been told.
Another explanation is it mimics the exact feeling you get after just having had great sex and relaxing with a smoke.
Personally I find playing stone sober much more entertaining and fun. You catch all the nuances of the songs and blend in with the band together really well.
Now the next question is;
Why do some musicians take it personally and consider it an act of war if you make a suggestion on their playing or mention the note they are playing is incorrect? It's like they feel you are judging them as a person and/or putting them down rather than working together to make the songs awesome?
Too much heroin or too little maturity?
My guess is it's the closest similar feeling to the pleasure, excitement and enjoyment of playing a gig and everyone there and the band members are all in sync. Time stands still. The downside, pretty soon all you'll be doing is the opiate and slowly lose your talent and skill/stamina ability. Pretty soon you'll start selling all your gear and be left with nothing....so I've been told.
Another explanation is it mimics the exact feeling you get after just having had great sex and relaxing with a smoke.
Personally I find playing stone sober much more entertaining and fun. You catch all the nuances of the songs and blend in with the band together really well.
Now the next question is;
Why do some musicians take it personally and consider it an act of war if you make a suggestion on their playing or mention the note they are playing is incorrect? It's like they feel you are judging them as a person and/or putting them down rather than working together to make the songs awesome?
Too much heroin or too little maturity?
Smooth_bass88
vaxx!
- Oct 31, 2006
- 12,122
- 16,793
- Disclosures
- have been on nationally released albums, charting on the Billboard 200
I like the bassline on "Shout at the Devil". Also "Smokin in the boys room". I also like his bassline during the guitar solo on "home sweet home". I like Nikki's overall approach. Kinda like Ian Hill, Cliff Williams and Nate Mendel. They just play rock-solid. You know, the kinda basslines you play in arenas and stadiums.
