Other vintage basses
FlyGuitars You've got a large collection of Gibsons, Fenders, and guitars made by other manufacturers...
Bob Daisley Yeah I've been collecting them for a long time but I think I really started seriously collecting them in the late '70's. In those days I just had two Precisions. Then the first one that I added to the collection was the 1963 Hofner Beatle Bass which I bought from Orange Music in London and I paid about 90 quid for it. I thought gotta have one of those cause Paul used one of those and it'd be a good thing to have. At the time I bought it out of ignorance because I didn't know that 1963 was the year to have because there were others, they made lots. There were the ones they churned out in '64,'65,'66 after he was known to have used one but the one I got was a '63 which was the same year as the one he had so that's the year to have.
FlyGuitars You managed to pick up the right one at the right time then.
Bob Daisley Yeah, I didn't realise it, I thought well that's nice I want one of those so I got it.
FlyGuitars You've obviously got a very interesting collection of basses and not just because it includes some fine examples of vintage basses but some of your basses have had interesting owners like the Framus that was formerly owned by Bill Wyman, how did you come on to own that bass?
Bob Daisley Well, I saw the Rolling Stones in 1965, the original line up with Brian Jones. They were young lads themselves and I saw them in January '65, I was still 14 and I was so impressed. I was used to seeing Bill Wyman in either films or photographs using his big bodied Framus bass you know the sort of cherry or maroon coloured one but this time when I saw them live for the first time he came out with that humbug finish small bodied Framus bass. I was very, very impressionable in those days being a fourteen year old kid, I'd just began to play myself and seeing that and seeing him live use that I thought god I'd love one of those.
Since then I've been after one and they're like hen's teeth, you can't find them anywhere, they must have only made a few. I suppose he had a few them cause he'd probably have more than one on the road with him in a band like that and I used to put the feelers out. I had friends in guitar shops in London and in America and when they went to guitar shows you know I'd always say look keep an eye out for a humbug cause it's just something that I got a bug for then you know, I had to have one.
It took me about forty years cause I think it was 2005 or something, somebody sent me an email and said there's a bloke in America and he's got a humbug finish Framus and it's supposed to have been one of Bill Wyman's. If you look at the one Bill Wyman used in the Stones most of the time in those days his has got dark edges but mine hasn't. It's still supposed to have been one of his. Now it's in pretty good nick so maybe it was a spare or something if it was his. There's no real proof but the bloke I got it from in America said that he'd brought it from a doctor that had had it for over twenty years that said it was definitely one of Bill Wyman's. I just wanted it as a collectable piece and it was something I always wanted from being a kid and I actually used it. We did an album with my blues band here the Hoochie Coochie Men, which Jon Lord (Deep Purple) plays keyboards with us when we do stuff and I used it on a track. We did a cover with Jimmy Barnes singing Heart Of Stone which was my idea to do that song, a very early Rolling Stones song from about '64 and so I thought well what better song to use the old Framus on so I used it on that song.
FlyGuitars Having been after one of them for so long how does the bass feel to play and sound, has it met your expectations?
Bob Daisley Oh I probably would have enjoyed it more as a kid because it's ok but they were a low budget bass. It's good but probably limited in what I would use it for now. It's just lovely to have as a part of a collection it's very, very rare.
FlyGuitars Definitely. One of the rarer basses you have in your collection is the 4001S Rickenbacker bass.
Bob Daisley Yeah, the Rickenbacker 4001s is very, very, very rare. It's another one that took me years and years to get. It took me probably 15 years of hunting around asking people for one of those as well cause there are lots of Rickenbacker 4001 but the 4001s is the same dot neck one like the one McCartney had in the days of The Beatles around Magical Mystery Tour and Sergeant Pepper. Apparently they only made about 150 of them and there aren't many original ones left. Even McCartney's had had the finish taken of it, it was fireglo when he had it in The Beatles but now he's got all the paint taken of it so it's just wood colour. That's a real rare one and I use that on a couple of tracks on the Hoochie Coochie Men album and it has got that McCartney sound you know it's a lovely bass it's a nice one to play too. It's not ideal for every track on the album but for some of them it was really good and.
FlyGuitars And you have two basses by Zemaitis, including one formerly owned by Ronnie Lane
The Ronnie Lane Zemaitis, that's one I saw him use live in London in the early 70's when he was with Rod Stewart and The Faces and I remember trying to track Tony Zemaitis down to see if I could get one or how much they would be when I was in London but I never ever did. Eventually, it wasn't until about '90 that somebody phoned me and said I've got a number for Tony Zemaitis if you wanna contact him and I did. I went to his house and talked about The Faces and the sort of thing I want so he made me the single cutaway Les Paul sort of shape with the metal front engraved by Danny O'Brien. I asked him about Ronnie Lane's bass and he said "oh that one's just a one off, I made that for Ronnie and he brought along his own pickups". They were vintage Fender bass pickups, the straight pole ones, the early 50's ones and he put those on there. After that I became an honorary member of the Zemaitis owners club. They send me this news letter thing and I noticed it must have been early 2005 that there was an ad for Ronnie Lane's bass and I thought god now there's one to have in your collection and a bloke in Australia had it. I phoned the guy in England, Keith at the Zemaitis owners club and then he gave me the details of this bloke here and I ended up having a deal with him for it. There was only one of them in the world so it was a very rare one. The value of Zematis have gone through the roof in the last few years since Tony died as well because he didn't make that many when he was alive, there aren't many around. I know there being reissued in Japan through the name Zemaitis and there's also a bloke in Newcastle in England. He just goes under the name of Dave Of England and he's got all the tooling and the patterns and jigs and things from Tony Zemaitis himself and he makes them. His have the real Danny O'Brien engraving on them which I think makes them more attractive than the ones in Japan which are just done from a machined template. I had an acoustic fretless bass made by Dave Of England last year and Danny O'Brien did the engraving on it.
FlyGuitars Another bass favoured by Ronnie Lane in the early days was the Harmony H22
Bob Daisley They were another low budget thing in the early to mid 60's. American, the Harmony and I always wanted one just out of curiosity. I saw one in Los Angeles in the early 90's and it wasn't much, it was like 500 bucks or something so I brought that and it's a great little bass. I remember that Muff Winwood with the Spencer Davis Group used one and Ronnie Lane used one with The Small Faces in the early days. They do have a distinctive sound and they are a pretty good little bass.
FlyGuitars Yeah, I was listening to Ogden's Nuts Gone Flake the other night and you can hear that sound on there.
Bob Daisley Yeah, and the bass sound with the Spencer Davis Group was quite distinctive as well. Things like Keep On Runnin' and Gimme Some Lovin' and all that sort of stuff.
Thanks to Graham Fieldhouse and Bob Daisley for making this interview possible. Images courtesy of bobdaisley.com
Links: Bob Daisley's hompage | Kahvas Jute homepage | More FlyGuitars interviews
Gibson bass guitars for sale
Vintage 1966 Hofner Beatle Bass 500 / 1
Round Rock, Texas, 786**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$4000
Here's a beautiful example of a well-aged 1966 Hofner Beatle Bass. All original with the vintage case, this one is unique in having a sleek, black finish on the neck. It plays extremely well and recording with it produces the sound this bass is known and loved for.
All electronics / pickups work and sound great! The neck is also remarkably straight for it's age. Set up by Kurt Viles guitar tech with flat-wounds, it's ready for any show or recording session. There are some knicks and ... more
1965 Hofner 500 / 1 Violin Bass
Loveland, Ohio, 451**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$5395
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1974 Hofner 500 / 1 Beatle Bass Vintage Violin Bass 100% Original w / Blade Pickups
Seattle, Washington, 981**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$4300
There??s a distinctive pluck, percussive cut, and hollow thud that this bass delivers even while unplugged, with... more
1972 Rickenbacker 4001S Bass a stunning neck thru 4000 converted to 4001S specs
Fort Lauderdale, Florida, 333**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$12495
Hofner H500 / 1-61L Cavern Club '61 Violin Beatle Bass, Left-Handed w / Case & Tags
Seattle, Washington, 981**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$4200
A genuine German-made Hofner and the highest tiered example offered, this Cavern Club bass features a flat, ... more
1965 Hofner 500 / 1 Violin Bass
Florence, South Carolina, 295**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$5000
1979 Hofner 500 / 1 Beatle Bass Vintage Violin Bass w / Blade Pickups, Case
Seattle, Washington, 981**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$3400
1965 Hofner 500 / 1 Violin Bass
Loveland, Ohio, 451**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$4995
1965 / 66 Hofner 500 / 1 Violin ( " Beatle " ) Bass
Redwood City, California, 940**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$3850
Exceptional Hofner 5000 / 1 Violin Bass with Flight Case - Impeccable Condition
Monticello, New York, 127**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$4200
Attention to all bass enthusiasts and collectors! Here is a unique opportunity to own an iconic Hofner 5000 / 1 Violin Bass, renowned not just for its distinct sound and classic design, but also for its exquisite flame maple wood. This legendary instrument has been the choice of professional musicians for decades and now awaits its next virtuoso
Key ... more
1961 Harmony H22 Short Scale Bass guitar, Gold Foil PU, Super Clean Shape, Case
Clifton, New Jersey, 070**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$2500
A very lightweight 6 1 pound example of the highly sought-after Harmony H22 bass, with its distinctive gold foil pickup giving you the classic warm, woody, percussive tone of the best ?60s bass sounds especially with flatwound strings like this one has, just like the instrument originally came with. The H22 was used by such acts as the Small Faces and the Spencer Davis Group, and can be heard on their ... more
Hofner HCT-500 / 1-SB Contemporary BEATLE BASS GUITAR MODIFIED w / hard Case
Long Beach, California, 908**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$1100
Vintage Electric Framus Star Bass Guitar 1966 Tuned and Cleaned
Atlanta, Georgia, 303**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$1200
There is normal wear and scratches but the bass is complete and plays well
Since this is used, I will not offer returns.... more
1965 Hofner 500 / 2 Club BASS GUITAR VINTAGE SUNBURST & HARD CASE
Unionville, New York, 109**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$3200
Vintage 1960's Meazzi Dynelectron Longhorn Bass (Danelectro Copy) w / case
Redondo Beach, California, 902**, UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
$1500
This bass has been professionally converted to fretless at some point in the past. The lipstick pickups give this fretless bass a great tone. The original finish is still bright and ... more
Hofner / Höfner 500 / 1 B 1966 / 67 - brown sunburst
Neustadt, 96***, GERMANY
€2200
ich biete hier ein seltenes Erstjahresexemplar des Höfner 500 / 1 B aktiv Basses an. Es ist die Boost-Version des 500 / 1 Beatles-Basses
Das Instrument ist im Originalzustand. Die Elektronik wurde vom Rudi Irion wieder hergestellt. Er bekam neue Höfner Flatwound Saiten
Der originale Koffer ist dabei, der ist aber ziemlich lädiert
Die Fotos sind original von dem hier vorgestellten Instrument
Am besten die Gitarre vor Ort anschauen / ... more
Guitare basse creuse Hofner 500 / 3 (Senator) 1960 - excellent état
La Chatre, 36***, FRANCE
£2185
This rare 1960 Blonde bass is in simply magnificent original condition. This is one of the rare 500 / 3 basses equipped with a 'Toaster' pickup. A true collector's item with beautifully crafted top, back and ... more
Hofner 500 / 1 shortscale bass von 1961 in Sunburst (Cavern, Restauriert, Vintage)
Burgstetten, 71***, GERMANY
€7400
?Hofner / Höfner 500 / 5 SENATOR Bass, Bj. '63 / 64 ? lightweight - sehr leicht
Berlin, 13***, GERMANY
€1600
?Hofner / Höfner 500 / 5 SENATOR Bass, Bj. '63 / 64 ? lightweight - sehr leicht
Berlin, 13***, GERMANY
€1600