For Sale: Leon Wilkeson's Freebird Thunderbird

[OVERDRIVEN66]

     I agree with Scott. 2K is all over it IF it is legit.  The picture of Leon with the bass is a II, not a IV, and is a totally different bass than is in the auction!  With questionable provenance, this bass may not even be worth the opening bid. Don't let the 'Freebird' claims fool you. Without proper documentation, or certified pix of him playing it in it's current condition, this bass is what it is. A hacked up refin worth . Buyer beware!!!!!

[Bionic-Joe]

I agree...But the paint DOES looks Cool!!!! But that bridge pickup??? Should have left it a single pickup. I too think that the headstock may be repaired.

[godofthunder]

 From the picture(even though it is of poor quality) of the RCB I can presume it is one of Leon's basses. I think the Freebird link is BS. For a 2k opening bid I don't think someone would mod and finish a bass like that and fake the road case, just not worth the effort. I do think it is one of Leon's basses and for that must be worth something.

[Dave W]

It looks like he was at least holding the same bass. Maybe he actually owned it and played it in the later band. Skynyrd connection? No evidence of that.

As for the stenciling on the case, maybe it's legit, maybe it was done after the fact. With the name and the band on it, it might as well have said "steal me."

[lowend1]

Found thid pic on a Skynyrd site. If you look at the very bottom of the photo, where the bass is cropped, you'll see a chrome piece that looks too far forward to be the bridge - could be the Muddle One. The extend-o bracket seems to be in place as well.

[uwe]

Need I say that I really, really like the refin? 

I have a hunch this is the real thing. Possibly it was even on the recording of Free Bird if Ed King played it and it was at this point not owned by Leon but by the band (or Leon lent it to them for the recording).

Nice piece of Rock'n'Roll history, but I'm not interested.

Uwe

[gearHed289]

Leon is pictured on the inside of the gatefold sleeve playing a Ric 4000. So I guess it was a Ric that he didn't play on Freebird. 

[godofthunder]

And there it goes climbing through the stratosphere. http://cgi.ebay.com/Lynyrd-Skynyrd-1964-THUNDERBIRD-recorded-FREEBIRD_W0QQitemZ320334554119QQcmdZViewItemQQptZGuitar?hash=item320334554119&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=72%3A1205

[uwe]

I'm not surprised. While the initial description is full of inaccuracies and non-sensical stuff (the "Artist" legend), I think there is a subdued truth at the core, Herr Wilkeson played this at one time or another so it is forever anointed with the Skynyrd plane crash mythology. And it's a sixties TBird after all, modifications or not, though I'd be surprised if this specimen didn't have a repaired neck break somewhere given what it must have been through even without plane crash survival. Not that these hardy guys from the South were ever too tender with their instruments. Didn't one of the Skynyrd guitarists play a Les Paul whose neck break had been repaired with a - yes  - screw? And didn't Gibson actually bring out a signature version of it some years ago that featured the screw (but hopefully not the prior neckbreak)?

Uwe

[Barklessdog]

Some guys at Talkbass, that did investigating, did not think it was authentic to the story, last I read.

http://www.talkbass.com/forum/showthread.php?t=509658

Hello all (y'all ? ) from the land Skynyrd. Did some checking on this yesterday with some folks and these are two different basses. The one pictured in the studio photo suffered an irrepairable neck twist/bow and truss rod damage, was stripped of all it's hardware and ended up as a wall hanger in a local music store. It's current location is unknown but I suspect it's still in the hands of the former owner of the music store that Leon gave it to. Btw, the sticker says: Skynyrd Smokes- from the back of the first record.
__________________

I don't know?

[Dave W]

$6250 and reserve not met for a bass with a dubious history? 

[Blackbird]

I might be nutz on two occasions:

1) I never heard Freebird until this post.  I listented to it a few times....the version on Youtube that comes up first....it seems towards the end there's some high stuff on the bass that I would figure wouldn't be so easy if it's past the 15th fret....for that Thunderbird........just kinda had me thinking it's another bass type altogether.

2) I like the finish.

[Barklessdog]

I never heard Freebird until this post

Don't feel bad about that! That's a good thing.

The guys an idiot for not taking the money. As more people look into this, I bet he will be lucky to get half of that amount now.

[uwe]

Not heard Freebird?!  I'm no Southern Rock diehard and Lynyrd Skynyrd old or new aren't the best representative of that type of music (they never climbed the heights of the Allmans, but never went as nether as Molly Hatchet or Blackfoot either, I'd rank them with the Outlaws or Marshall Tucker; Charlie Daniels was more country than them all put together), but they have their deserved place in American rock history though I still prefer "Mr. Young" to Sweet Home Alabama. 

And since we're at it: RIP Billy Powell of Lynyrd Skynyrd.

http://www.gibson.com/en-us/Lifestyle/News/billy-powell-of-lynyrd-skynyrd/

Darn good ivory tinkler he was. From "Working for MCA" to working for the Good Lord. 

Are they now going to get Greg Allman?

[ramone57]

I never heard Freebird until this post

I salute you!