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Possibly the best ad for a drummer I've ever seen...

#81
Spectrum said:
Can someone clue me in as to why it's considered odd to use a Ric in country music? I've used mine for all types of rock and even played some jazz on it. It has tone knobs and even a mute if you fancy that sound. I'm not into country music generally so I'm not up on this.

Is it the looks? Or the false "only good for prog" stereotype?
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Well, here’s a guy with a cowboy hat and a Ric bass, and he ain’t playing no prog…
IMG_8124.jpeg


But seriously, early on when rock and roll hadn’t steamrolled over country in popularity, Rickenbacker courted the same kinds of artists as Fender…
IMG_8125.jpeg
IMG_8126.jpeg


For whatever reason(maybe cost?)they just didn’t catch on.
 
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#83
Michedelic said:
Well, here’s a guy with a cowboy hat and a Ric bass, and he ain’t playing no prog…
View attachment 5204979

But seriously, early on when rock and roll hadn’t steamrolled over country in popularity, Rickenbacker courted the same kinds of artists as Fender…
View attachment 5204981 View attachment 5204982

For whatever reason(maybe cost?)they just didn’t catch on.
Click to expand...

I thought maybe it was because of the crested-wave body shape, which I figure was meant to court the surf rock crowd of the late 50s.

Maybe country is even more conservative when it comes to image than usual musicians, and Fenders best fit the image?

There is, or was, a prominent Ric player here on TB who posted pics of him playing his Ric in a country band. Rics are all USA-made and have an old school 50s style, so it beats me why it's not more popular in country.
 
#84
Spectrum said:
I thought maybe it was because of the crested-wave body shape, which I figure was meant to court the surf rock crowd of the late 50s.

Maybe country is even more conservative when it comes to image than usual musicians, and Fenders best fit the image?

There is, or was, a prominent Ric player here on TB who posted pics of him playing his Ric in a country band. Rics are all USA-made and have an old school 50s style, so it beats me why it's not more popular in country.
Click to expand...
While there were r’n’r instrumental bands in the late 50’s, Johnny and the Hurricanes and the like, Surf as a distinct genre didn’t happen until 1960 and Dick Dale. Carl Wilson used a Ric guitar for a while in the Beach Boys circa ‘62/‘63.
If anything, Fender designs were an abomination to the traditionalist Gibson/Gretsch crowd, but once again, I think it was the pricetag, plus you could toss Fenders around and they’d take a beating…that was a deciding factor. A Ric bass might be solid, but if you break a neck on the road, whaddya gonna do?
 
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#85
Michedelic said:
While there were r’n’r instrumental bands in the late 50’s, Johnny and the Hurricanes and the like, Surf as a distinct genre didn’t happen until 1960 and Dick Dale. Carl Wilson used a Ric guitar for a while in the Beach Boys circa ‘62/‘63.
If anything, Fender designs were an abomination to the traditionalist Gibson/Gretsch crowd, but once again, I think it was the pricetag, plus you could toss Fenders around and they’d take a beating…that was a deciding factor. A Ric bass might be solid, but if you break a neck on the road, whaddya gonna do?
Click to expand...
Well, in those days the Rick, or the Fender, would have been a replacement for the upright in country music. So early on I don't think either would have been more or less of an abomination.

If the Fender basses were a lot cheaper, that'd do it right there. Plus they came out first, so guys saw other guys using them, tried them out on break, went down to the store and bought one. You know, there was no internet; you wanted a bass guitar you bought what was in the music store that you'd had recommended to you by a buddy.

Fender bass amps were introduced concurrently with the basses; was the same true for Rick? That'd be another factor. Were early Rick bass amps as well regarded as Fender's?
 
#87
turf3 said:
Well, in those days the Rick, or the Fender, would have been a replacement for the upright in country music. So early on I don't think either would have been more or less of an abomination.

If the Fender basses were a lot cheaper, that'd do it right there. Plus they came out first, so guys saw other guys using them, tried them out on break, went down to the store and bought one. You know, there was no internet; you wanted a bass guitar you bought what was in the music store that you'd had recommended to you by a buddy.

Fender bass amps were introduced concurrently with the basses; was the same true for Rick? That'd be another factor. Were early Rick bass amps as well regarded as Fender's?
Click to expand...
Country, and Jazz, were the most resistant to any kind of electric bass until the early 60’s. The Telecaster guitar was laughed at for resembling a toilet seat, but it found a place in the CA country scene, as opposed to Nashville. Ric amplifiers, just like Gibson amps, didn’t get anyone excited, they were just kind of add-ons or afterthoughts.
 
#88
Michedelic said:
Country, and Jazz, were the most resistant to any kind of electric bass until the early 60’s. The Telecaster guitar was laughed at for resembling a toilet seat, but it found a place in the CA country scene, as opposed to Nashville. Ric amplifiers, just like Gibson amps, didn’t get anyone excited, they were just kind of add-ons or afterthoughts.
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So you're saying that the Fender amps had a better reputation? That right there would make a big difference to the country musician looking to buy an electric bass. There weren't a jillion amp makers, you'd probably buy what went with the guitar. If the Fender amp was considered really good and the Rick only so-so, that could easily sway a purchase decision.

I wonder, also, if there may have been a divergence between the marquee artists and the ordinary grunts grinding it out on Friday and Saturday night, about the adoption of the electric. Seems like the guys with some visibility might have stayed acoustic longer, and the ordinary grunts voting with the ease of handling and transport - but then on the other hand the guy working with Hank Snow or Kitty Wells probably would have had more resources to BUY an electric bass.

Anyone with more knowledge about this want to chime in? I'm just guessing here.
 

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