The 1st ever made Precision Bass

[JohnnyB53]

Jailhouse Rock was the first recorded song with an electric bass.

I doubt it. Jailhouse Rock was released late in 1957. There is a rock 'n' roll film, Invalid Link Removed filmed and released in 1956 that features several early rock'n'roll acts including Bill Haley and the Comets and Little Richard. The film also featured another rockabilly group and another black R&B group, the Treniers. I noticed that the white groups in the film played doghouse basses, but the black groups used electric basses. Specifically, the bassist for the Treniers was playing a Fender Precision and Little Richard's bassist was playing a Gibson EB-1 (the one shaped like a violin).

While it's likely that Little Richard et al were lip-synching for the film and we don't know what kind of bass was used in the original recordings, it does indicate that some bands who recorded frequently and regularly had assimilated electric bass into their group well before Jailhouse Rock was recorded.

And I doubt that Little Richard or the Treniers were the first to record with electric bass. Is it really plausible that the P-bass was on the market for six years before it ever got recorded?

 

[JimmyM]

And I doubt that Little Richard or the Treniers were the first to record with electric bass. Is it really plausible that the P-bass was on the market for six years before it ever got recorded?

for the longest time, the electric bass was thought of as a joke instrument. so it's unlikely but plausible.

but certainly monk recorded with it, right?

 

[elgranluis]

I remember years back at the fdp forum. Someone posted about finding the original P prototype. It was supposed to be in the hands of leo's secretary or assistant, and I'm pretty sure I remeber the bass was in a house right there in corona!

 

[JohnnyB53]

for the longest time, the electric bass was thought of as a joke instrument. so it's unlikely but plausible.

but certainly monk recorded with it, right?

"For the longest time"?

That's some short "longest time," given that Gibson came out with their own version in 1953, Hofner in 1956, and Rickenbacker in 1957. Also within those first four years Leo was already on his third generation P-bass, with sculpted body and split coil pickup.

Leo's electric bass had a profound effect on popular music from the beginning. Traveling with a doghouse bass was the biggest pain in the ass for any band that didn't have a bus or van, which was most of them. The electric bass in 1951 was an idea whose time had come, and the rapid improvements and copycats prove it, regardless of what anybody may have said about it at the time.

 

[JimmyM]

"For the longest time"?

That's some short "longest time," given that Gibson came out with their own version in 1953, Hofner in 1956, and Rickenbacker in 1957. Also within those first four years Leo was already on his third generation P-bass, with sculpted body and split coil pickup.

Leo's electric bass had a profound effect on popular music from the beginning. Traveling with a doghouse bass was the biggest pain in the ass for any band that didn't have a bus or van, which was most of them. The electric bass in 1951 was an idea whose time had come, and the rapid improvements and copycats prove it, regardless of what anybody may have said about it at the time.

then why is it so rare to find recordings with electric bass until the 60's? seriously, i think you need to read up a little more. a handful of people adopted the electric bass in the 50's, but by far, the upright dominated and tons of producers refused to record with the electric.

 

[wideyes]

then why is it so rare to find recordings with electric bass until the 60's? seriously, i think you need to read up a little more. a handful of people adopted the electric bass in the 50's, but by far, the upright dominated and tons of producers refused to record with the electric.

I'd have to agree. After reading up on it myself, it seems the electric bass met wide skepticism throughout the 50's. Although it was clear that the role of the bass in popular music was in need of a change, nobody knew that Leo's bass (nor Gibson's, nore anybody else's) would be the kind of success story we now know today. A few hip 'forward thinkers' adopted it early on, but it took the rock explosion of the 60's to make the electric bass a household instrument.

 

[queevil]

I doubt that this is a question that would ever have a definate answer but I think that any living early adopters of the P bass would be able to give more insight. All we can really do is speculate. Interesting question though. So, who is a living early adopter that is accessable?

 

[JimmyM]

I doubt that this is a question that would ever have a definate answer but I think that any living early adopters of the P bass would be able to give more insight. All we can really do is speculate. Interesting question though. So, who is a living early adopter that is accessable?

we have plenty of recorded evidence that supports the idea that the electric bass didn't really catch on big until the early 60's.

 

[mikeswals]

I remember years back at the fdp forum. Someone posted about finding the original P prototype. It was supposed to be in the hands of leo's secretary or assistant, and I'm pretty sure I remeber the bass was in a house right there in corona!

Well actually he didn't "find it", yet anyway. I remember that story too....
The poster said his kids' karate instructor is the son of Leo's secretary. And that instructor claimed his mom was given the prototype Precision. The poster was supposed to have scheduled a visit to see the bass, but that poster seemed to drop off the face of the earth.

 

[Rocinante_x1]

Leo had a habit of destroying prototypes, though at least one prototype Broadcaster was saved, and resurfaced after Leo's death. I've never heard of the prototype Precision surfacing after his death, so I assume it's been destroyed. I think David Gilmour has the lowest serial # I've heard of, I think it's #0007 or #0011. He also has Strat #00001, but that wasn't the first one built, as the neckplates were randomly grabbed from the bin.

The First "Broadcaster" prototype is in the Experience Music Project. A music museum in Seattle. I was just home from Iraq for leave and made another visit there, and it's just sitting there in a glass case right as you walk in. Pretty cool, actually.

 

[GM60466]

1951 P Bass

Link Removed

I bvelieve that the serial # is 6

 

[lpdeluxe]

Great post, but I can't entirely agree with the above statement. I remember seeing what I thought at the time were sky-high prices for older Fenders & Gibsons in flyers from Guitar Trader (Red Bank New Jersey) by the late 70's. I paid a pretty penny for my '60 P bass in 1980; people were already well aware of the cachet of Pre-CBS by then.

I defer to your experience. I bought my Country Gent from Rainbow Music in Poughkeepsie, NY -- I recall that they were well into the "vintage" thing then, but the prices were actually reasonable. I remember reading their listings (on paper, kids -- no internet then) and being a little amused at the "clay dot" and "pre-CBS" references. I didn't play bass, back then, and I didn't get it.

Now I have an AV '57 P, which at least I can afford!

 

[buzzbass]

Great post, but I can't entirely agree with the above statement. I remember seeing what I thought at the time were sky-high prices for older Fenders & Gibsons in flyers from Guitar Trader (Red Bank New Jersey) by the late 70's. I paid a pretty penny for my '60 P bass in 1980; people were already well aware of the cachet of Pre-CBS by then.

Hey cool, I worked @ GT for about a year, in HS. I sold an ES335 to Ed King(Lynrd Skynrd) and and 2 early 60s J-basses to Steve Fossen(Heart). Fossen called on the phone from Seattle, had me take 6-8 basses off the wall. He went down the description of each one in the catalog, then had me play the particular bass and give my impressions. There was one that he was dead set on, and was buying that one anyway. He then asked me which one I thought fealt best. I told him, and he bought that one too. I swear to god, it's the one pictured on the live album they did in the late 70s. The one with the Zeppelin cover(s) on it. At least it sure looked like the one that I picked out anyway.

The guy who owned that place was a total a-hole though

 

[FunkMetalBass]

I was actually wondering about this same thing the other night. Just as I suspected, nobody is sure what to consider the "first" bass, as it likely went through numerous prototypes before landing on the "right" design. Then, lack of record keeping and the fact that Leo just grabbed parts for the first few..it's something nobody will really ever know.

Works for me.

 

[JimmyM]

Hey cool, I worked @ GT for about a year, in HS. I sold an ES335 to Ed King(Lynrd Skynrd) and and 2 early 60s J-basses to Steve Fossen(Heart). Fossen called on the phone from Seattle, had me take 6-8 basses off the wall. He went down the description of each one in the catalog, then had me play the particular bass and give my impressions. There was one that he was dead set on, and was buying that one anyway. He then asked me which one I thought fealt best. I told him, and he bought that one too. I swear to god, it's the one pictured on the live album they did in the late 70s. The one with the Zeppelin cover(s) on it. At least it sure looked like the one that I picked out anyway.

i saw steve fossen with heart, and that dude was a real bass whore. changed basses pretty much every song and never used the same one twice. unfortunately, that meant he had to be remixed every song, too, and that show made me decide that changing basses all the time is for the birds

 

[ricca]

I seen in a video of John Entwhistle collection.
That he had #5 or #6.
It was the lowest # Precision left.
The others were destroyed.

In the Entwhistle collection book there's a photo of a 51P, serial n° 043. He writes that only the first five were made with defective scratch plates, and he believe his is one of them

 

[smcd]

Great post, but I can't entirely agree with the above statement. I remember seeing what I thought at the time were sky-high prices for older Fenders & Gibsons in flyers from Guitar Trader (Red Bank New Jersey) by the late 70's. I paid a pretty penny for my '60 P bass in 1980; people were already well aware of the cachet of Pre-CBS by then.

Outside of extremely collectible instruments, like '59 Les Pauls, I think vintage prices were low until the very late 80's. I recall that you could frequently find pre-CBS Fender basses for under a grand up until the early 90's.

A friend of mine told me that when he was shopping for his first "real" guitar (a Strat) in 1979, the guy was telling him that for the same money he could buy a late 50's Strat he had on sale. (he bought the '79).

 

[Spinal Tapper]

i saw steve fossen with heart, and that dude was a real bass whore. changed basses pretty much every song and never used the same one twice. unfortunately, that meant he had to be remixed every song, too, and that show made me decide that changing basses all the time is for the birds

+100 Just get up there and play already! Thats what really bothers me about MUSE. I love everything about Chris, but just because you can change basses/guitars every song doesn't mean you have to...

Really interesting thread though!

 

[JamcoPasamerson]

It's buried with Jimmy Hoffa under Giants stadium. Geraldo Rivera is going to dig them both up on a LIVE television broadcast next week.

Naaa, just kidding. I fashioned it into a lovely coffee table back in eighth grade shop class and gave it to my mom for Christmas. It's still in her living room

 

[buzzbass]

i saw steve fossen with heart, and that dude was a real bass whore. changed basses pretty much every song and never used the same one twice. unfortunately, that meant he had to be remixed every song, too, and that show made me decide that changing basses all the time is for the birds

Dunno about that, never saw them. I did think it was really cool that he took my advice on the 2nd bass though.