The bass VI in all its shapes and sizes.

[Blazer]

Let's talk about Fender's most unusual bass, the VI. And let's show the different ways that instrument can be used.


The fact was that when Fender released the VI, it seemed that everybody played one at some moment, high profile players like Rick Danko and John Entwistle appeared on stage with them but there were actually very few who could express themselves on the VI and make it work for them.

The Tielman Brothers for example used the VI to great effect, using two in tandem: one playing bass, the other twangy riffs with reverb. The result can be heard clearly in this cover of Elvis' "Bossa nova baby"


Fusion Bassplayer Barry Goodman employed his VI as the ultimate solo bass, making good use of the vibrato while playing both supportive basslines and flashy solos.


Can't do a topic like this without Jack Bruce who played a VI with Graham Bond and on the first Cream album "Fresh cream"


The Beatles used a VI in the studio where it was both played by George Harrison and John Lennon to provide the bass duties if Macca was playing something else. They got their VI when becoming Fender endorsers. In this track it's Lennon playing the Fab four's VI and making it heard that he could have been a great bassplayer.


It's perhaps ironic that one of the biggest fans of the VI loves it for how it sounds when you play it up at the highest frets. In that way, Robert Smith has been using a VI for 25 years and counting. He plays his VI through a Boss chorus and Delay pedals and a Peavey Colliseum bass amp unchanged since he first discovered that sound he's now known for and which he continues to use unchanged stating that he doesn't "want to change a winning team"

[leftybass]

I have used 6-string basses for about 15 years now and used to own a Fender VI, currently a Jerry Jones Longhorn Bass VI and Gretsch Synchro Bass VI.
One of my fave 6SB players is Hooky from Joy Division/New Order, not a Fender, it's a Shergold, but sounds great.

[Blazer]

I have used 6-string basses for about 15 years now and used to own a Fender VI, currently a Jerry Jones Longhorn Bass VI and Gretsch Synchro Bass VI.
One of my fave 6SB players is Hooky from Joy Division/New Order, not a Fender, it's a Shergold, but sounds great.

Dark one, the bassplayer in my band, plays two six strings, a Gretsch Baritone Jet and a modified Ibanez GAXB I made him, with an EMG soapbar because I wanted him to have a little more sophistication in his sound, he plays through heavy distortion and a solid state Laney amp resulting in a very brutal sound. And the Gretsch just doesn't have the depth.

[hieronymous]

I think I was first turned on to the idea of the Bass VI by Douglas McCombs of Tortoise. One of my favorite songs of theirs is called "Gamera" (it was originally a single, but re-released on the Japanese import of Millions Now Living Will Never Die, and also on the recent box set A Lazarus Taxon), which starts with a great acoustic guitar part, and is then doubled by a bass that I think is a Bass VI.

While I was still living in Japan they released a kind of cousin to the Bass VI, called the Jaguar Bottom Master - a somewhat strange name that was changed to the "Baritone Custom" and later "Jaguar Bass VI" overseas. I snapped one up, and really enjoyed it, even though it was 28 1/2" scale length instead of the Bass VI's 30". But the Japanese version had built in fuzz that I really liked too!

Then when I moved back to the States, I came across one of the Japanese reissue Bass VIs, which had a couple of things that I didn't like - a really crappy tortoiseshell pickguard that looks like it was printed in a magazine, and the screw on the low E-string saddle interferes with the string's vibrations.  Well, for a variety of reasons, I decided to try and get this thing in shape - ordered a new pickguard (black), and finally found an explanation online of how to set up the tremolo. I'm waiting on the pickguard, after which I'm going to jump in. Here's how it looks for now:

[ilan]

I owned two - a MIJ bass VI reissue, and a 1960 Danelectro shorthorn 6 string ("tic tac bass"), both 30" scale. At first I played them a lot but when the novelty wore off, and I realized they don't get played at all, I sold both.

The Fender VI was far better than the Dano. Although the Fender is shaped like a guitar and feels like a guitar, it can sound like a standard bass. The Dano was more like a low-pitched guitar.

In my experience, the first thing you should do when you buy a Fender VI is dump the stock roundwound strings and get a set of LaBella flats:

http://www.juststrings.com/lab-767-6f.html



By the way, the black VI in the first post is from the first year of production, when it had the pickup surrounds and 3 on-off switches. Later versions had Jag pickups and a 4th switch (bass cut "baritone switch").

[ilan]

Since we're posting youtube links... this one was posted on the FDP today (solos at 1:30 and 2:36):

[hieronymous]

Just found this one - Bob Babbington with Soft Machine, 1974 - stick with it - wicked fuzz enters a few minutes in!

http://www.youtube.com/v/njVcutKBPTo&hl=en

[Dave W]

Ilan, even having a Bass VI and an Earthwood in the same video isn't enough to make me sit through a Pinkard & Bowden song. 

[HornetAMX]

This song was originally on the '76 release "Rocks" which Perry used a Bass VI on.  He also had an EB6 that he used (the solid body SG version).  I could only find an early 80's version with Jimmy Crespo on the Bass VI.

[ilan]

You can't look at this one... NOS Foam Green, still got the old tag on it (1:54):

[Dave W]

You're not even allowed to look at the video of that one. 

[chromium]

"It's like, how much more green could this Bass VI be? and the answer is none. None more green." -N. Tufnel

[godofthunder]

The sustain just listen to the sustain. Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh go out and have a bite  ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[Bass VI]

Yea, I guess I have to get in on this one ( and Hello to everyone at the Fender forum, as some of you may know despite the username I'm usually on the Gibson board ) However there is a good reason ( for the username )



From left to right my '67 ( mostly original ) my Japanese reissue neck on a USA Custom body with reissue bits and my '96 Japanese reissue with dark tort guard. That pickguard was on the black '67 until recently.



The DeArmond Bajo Jet joining its' cousins.



An old Teisco TB ( I think ) body that is almost a ringer for the Bass VI, I'm building a neck for it and if I can get the hardware together I'll have five "octave" guitars in the collection.
Why? Well, I'm a huge Cure fan ( and pretty fond of New Order also ) and one of my old bands used to do about five Cure and maybe a couple of New Order covers a night, sometimes I would play the bass parts on the VIs' or if it was a reall obvious part we would track the bassline and I would play the Robert Smith bits. In my current band I write parts for it specifically to go with ( and hopefully compliment ) my basslines.

And finally, it's the coolest instrument Fender ever built!

Cheers,

Scott

[hieronymous]

Love the blocks & binding on the black one!