Here is a picture of my bass project I had John Scott at Bluesman Vintage Guitars bring to life. It is a clone of Billy Sheehan's "Wife" bass.. All the stickers were purchased from collectors, so they are the real deal. John painted all the paint specs on the bass and clear coated the body to protect stickers from peeling and further wear. the EBO is a 1966 pickup and the P-bass pickups are D.Allen. ( I tested all the major pickup makers and found D.Allen to be closest to vintage tone while still having pissed-off midrange and clarity. PERFECT pickup IMHO ) Bluesman will have more info about bass on his home page in a few weeks. The Bass will makes its debut at the Dallas International Guitar Convention April 20-21st, 2012. more pics to come later... John still has some aging to finish, but I couldn't wait to show it off. thanks for taking time to visit this page.
That is what road worn is supposed to look like! I love the wife, and this is probably the best looking tribute bass I have ever seen. That is so fantastic!
Looks great- I've always wanted a bass like this but have no sonic use for the neck 'bucker. Do you make use of the scalloped section?
That is amazing. I remember having the poster of this bass from a guitar magazine hanging on my wall when I was a kid. I'd like to know why Billy didnt go to fender to make his Signature bass? I'm sure the Attitude are great basses but nothing looks as cool as a Fender
I agree, and that was my point. I'd have done something* like this long ago if I wanted to use the 'bucker. I didn't need the 'bucker, so I didn't ever do the build. * = minus the scallops and stickers and washers- the OP has done a replica, and that's very cool. But mine would have been more "in the style of". Billy Sheehan is grown and probably comfortable enough in his own skin to not even have "looks cool" on his radar anymore.
I bet Fender wants him "to come back" and i think someday he will. All the shredders went to Japanese companies (where they where treated like kings) during the early 90s. Nice bass!
If you go to Bluesman Vintage Booth at Dallas Guitar Convention you can test drive the bass. I had this built to be a players bass. It will be used on a daily basis. If you are interested in one you can contact John Scott at Bluesman Vintage Guitars. .: Bluesman Vintage Guitars :. We have plans to build one for Billy, since the original WIFE is in such bad shape that it is not playable for stage use anymore. The price tag on this beauty is MUCH cheaper than the $25,000 FENDER would ask for it.