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Stanley Clarke Playing Sadowsky
- Thread starter Dr. Cheese
- Start date
That’s interesting. Susan told me that it was EADGC when it left the shop; the idea obviously being to give him both the tenor and bass range he uses in one axe.
Since when does a thread need a deeper meaning? Stanley Clarke was the first real hero I ever had. Looking over his basses and his music is a real joy for me.
Like every other post... it starts off with a point and then just becomes a lovely exchange, a pleasant conversation between friends.
Unstrap that bass, pull up a chair, sit next to the fire, and have some Scotch or wine (or hot chocolate or tea, if that's your thing), amigo. And let's Talk Bass
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Maybe I could be mistaken. I thought I read in an interview that he used a B string. But I am beginning to doubt now. The bass is very hard to hear in that video. Did he ever record with that five string?
Somewhere on Talkpaint, there's a heated discussion about a great painter changing the brand of paint brushes (s)he uses. We are an absolute nerdfest, when you get right down to it.
And nobody in the general population really cares.
And nobody in the general population really cares.
Do we care that no one else cares? I know I don’t.
Getting all nerdy about stuff is fun for me.
He played a 4000. It looks like a 4001 or 4003, but only has the bridge pickup. There is no stereo either.
Not to my knowledge; but, I honestly haven’t kept up.
I’ve been mostly impressed by his upright work in recent years.
Mr Clarke has played a wide variety of axes over the years besides his Alembics. I can't imagine what all is in his bass room. In the last several years he revisited the SpellBlinder axes, the Fender Strat-based Custom Shop bass, and the mandolin-shaped Morgan. I think he's continually looking at new inspirations like many do.
He's also a full-growed man, pretty tall. One of the few people I can think of that plays a full size upright easily. The funny thing is his Alembics are all short-scales, and his necks are shaved even smaller than standard to suit him. To see him slap like mad with those huge hands on those relatively tiny necks is something to watch. He's been toying with a 5-string Alembic in E-C lately.
He's also a full-growed man, pretty tall. One of the few people I can think of that plays a full size upright easily. The funny thing is his Alembics are all short-scales, and his necks are shaved even smaller than standard to suit him. To see him slap like mad with those huge hands on those relatively tiny necks is something to watch. He's been toying with a 5-string Alembic in E-C lately.
Maybe Stanley stumbled upon this thread.
https://www.talkbass.com/threads/sadowsky-is-the-be-all-and-end-all.384130/
https://www.talkbass.com/threads/sadowsky-is-the-be-all-and-end-all.384130/
He can indulge his GAS with the same mindfulness and effort that I choose a spatula on Amazon.
Just something to remember when we compare gas pains with somebody like Clarke.
My last fanboy post, but I do love Clarke’s historical perspective.
stanley and I are about the same size.. he's slightly taller than me.. by 3/4in
This is almost exactly like my old 4000 except mine was darker and I removed the pickup cover. Believe it or not, it had a nice slap and worked well for Funk finger style.
The guy in the video was wrong, Rickenbacker started making the 4000 around 1957 or 1958.
The first 5-string Alembic made for Stanley Clarke was tuned EADGC. At some point, he had it switched to BEADG - I read in an interview that he needed the low B for something (soundtrack-related?) and left it that way. Here's the original thread from the old Alembic Club: [Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Alembic did make 5-string Stanley Clarke Signature basses before that - I have one - that's why I remember this stuff that happened over 10 years ago, or at least where to look. Stan the Man signed mine - I managed to get backstage at a show - it was after he got his and I asked him about it - he said it was throwing him off! I think he mainly played his ADGC tenor bass around that time, so I said "but it's the best of both worlds!" and he said that he needed to practice on it. It never really made it out on the road though after that I don't think.
The pic of him with a huge collection of instruments is from the I Wanna Play For You album, I think one of the LP sleeves.
I was blown away to see that video of him playing the Ric 4000 that @Dr. Cheese said is no longer available! I always wondered about the pre-Alembic stuff. I'm not 100% convinced that's what is on Hymn of the Seventh Galaxy - one of my all-time favorite fusion albums - so raw and intense!
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