Fenderbird on Craigslist

[Denis]

Thanks for the additional information, Curt. Interesting!

[Highlander]

Been digging for Peter Cook stuff and found this BBC stuff - lots of others - T'birds, NR's...



The black Fenderbird...

[Highlander]

... and what's he using here...? 

[Highlander]

... and here's a red NR TB4, not disimilar to the one that went for silly money recently...

[Hornisse]

I read a long time ago that Pete used a Gretsch 6120 guitar on Who's Next after being tipped off about these guitars by Joe Walsh.  I could be misremembering though.........

Oh, here is an article.  I think I originally read it in an ancient Guitar Player mag.

http://www.thewho.net/whotabs/gretsch.htm

[dc10bass]

I read a long time ago that Pete used a Gretsch 6120 guitar on Who's Next after being tipped off about these guitars by Joe Walsh.  I could be misremembering though.........

Oh, here is an article.  I think I originally read it in an ancient Guitar Player mag.

http://www.thewho.net/whotabs/gretsch.htm

That Gretch was given to Pete by Joe as a gift.

[Highlander]

Certainly confirms the "modification" on that TOPT 5:15 vid... 

[dc10bass]

Ha... someone isn't a fan!
See it while you can... I'm sure it will get flagged soon.

http://newyork.craigslist.org/mnh/msg/1607460643.html

[OldManC]

[TBird1958]

Man I love "that '70s show" 

[SKATE RAT]

he was the "villian" in Robo Cop

[dadagoboi]

Thanks for the explanation, Curt.

It's probably a fine bass. It's just that with something like this it's not likely you'll get your investment back even unless it's an actual Gibson body and Fender P neck, and probably not even then.

Fenderbird bodies were NOT Gibson bodies, Peter Cook made them complete with Fender style rear cutaway.  Gibson  Tbirds have the center neck thru part thicker than the "wings".  Would have been much more trouble than it was worth.  The NR style pickguard finishes off the bass, it would impossible to do on a Gibson Reverse body.  Anyway Entwhistle's "Bass Culture " says Cook made the bodies.

[Dave W]

I've heard that that's true, but it's beside the point. The seller wasn't claiming this was original. And I've never heard of a bassist interested in building a Fenderbird who was looking for a Peter Cook-made body. My point was that this is just a parts bass (like all Fenderbirds), you're not going to get your investment back just because you hired somebody else to do the work for you.

[dadagoboi]

I follow your point.  I guess I was concerned that someone might think JAE's originals were just late '60s P bass necks mated to Gibson bodies.

I totally agree, parts is parts.

[Highlander]

As far as I have been able to discover over the years, and being one of the very few to own such an instrument, hence the interest, the parts were acquired from dismantled and/or damaged Thunderbirds, from several JAE bought up at the time he started using them, and iirc he asked Peter Cook (who I believe was a WHO roadie, or at least "inner-circle") to build a Precision thickness body (mahogany, afaik) in the Thunderbird style - tail/bridge/pups were all Gibson, the neck was a "D" profile Precision... the bridge was positioned 1/4" forward of normal to those on Gibsons at the time...

My Peter Cook Thunderbird was almost certainly built at around the same time; and although she has a through neck (with a "D" profile) and has some original Gibson components (tail and bridge) does not follow either a Gibson Thunderbird or a Fenderbird in construction: just a Fender profile through neck with a Thunderbird shaped body...

Mr Cook is not available for discussion...