| Author | Message | ||
| fungke
Junior Username: fungke Post Number: 27 Registered: 7-2004 |
I know... somebody has probably done this before but I'm interested to know of peoples first experiences of Alembic. Mine was at a music shop in Croydon nr London UK. I saw this (what I now know to be a early Distillate) little bass which I instantly fell in love with. Being only 14, there was no way I could afford to by it. That bass sat in that shop for a good three years before somebody brought it. I was devastated when it was sold. In those days I had no ideal who Alembic were until one of my favourite bass players, Mark King, decided to purchase a couple. In 1991, I got the chance to play pretty much every bass in the Alembic range at the time, when London Bass Centre became the main (and only) dealer of Alembic in the UK. Two basses stuck in my mind. A Beautiful Series II in Walnut (Standard point) with Laser LED's and a Stanley Clarke signature deluxe in Quilted Maple. The latter I immediately fell in love with and wanted one. Again, Having just left school, I had a distinct lack of funds. Well... it's taken some time but now I own a very sexy looking Elan. Hopefully the time will come when I'll be able to scrape up enough to buy a new Alembic (a SC Sig Dlx or even a Custom Distillate). Best Regards, Andy. | ||
| lowlife
Intermediate Member Username: lowlife Post Number: 107 Registered: 12-2003 |
My first experience with Alembic was in eary 1976. At that time I was working at Steve's Music Store (in Montreal, Canada), and they were the only one (and I believe still are) carrying Alembic. Honestly, to remember that far back is not easy, but I believe that it was a Series I that was on the rack. What a beauty it was. I couldn't afford it then and it took until December 2003 till I got my first one, an Excel. Ellery (Lowlife) | ||
| paulcissa
Junior Username: paulcissa Post Number: 17 Registered: 7-2004 |
My instructer's Essence blew me away the first time I heard it played in 2000. Shortly after commenting on it during a session, he allowed me to finish the session with us switching basses. I was sold. I spent the next four years saving and shopping for my first Alembic. That day came last week. Woo-hoo! "Damn glad to be here, sir!". -Chris | ||
| karl
Junior Username: karl Post Number: 13 Registered: 7-2002 |
Typically for me, I started getting into music in general and into Level 42 in particular around the end of the 80s, just as the band were calling it a day. But anyway, I bought all their albums and noticed a real change in the bass sound in the later albums, and despite the fact that I wasn't so keen on the later songs, I loved that new bass sound - and I was blown away by the look of Mark's Cocobolo bass in the Heaven In My Hands video. Through various interviews with Mark in various mags, I realized that the bass he was using was called an Alembic. I also found out that he was a big fan of another bass player, Stanley Clarke. Of course, I know now that these are legendary names, but back then I had never heard of either Alembic or Stanley. Anyway, that prompted me to buy a bunch of Stan's albums, and again, I heard that distinctive sound on there, and lo and behold, I find out he's also using an Alembic. But at this stage, I'd still never clapped eyes on one in person. Coupla years later, I'm getting into 70 soul and funk and see another of my heroes, Louis, on the cover of a Brothers Johnson album with a striking and familiar-looking bass: sure enough, an Alembic. And at some point I watch a video of the Paul Simon concert in Central Park (I think that's where it was), and I love the bass sound and the playing of the young bassman onstage there - turns out it's Armand Sabal-Lecco with an Alembic . . . By this point, it's pretty clear to me that I need an Alembic. Fast forward a few years - my trusty old Jaydee is getting a bit grouchy (noisy pots, tendency for the neck to wander - all old age) and I'm thinking she needs to retire from live work, or at least have a backup, so I go looking for a new bass at London's Bass Centre. And there I spy a maple-top MK standard. Well, I just had to try it. And it was love at first play, as I'm sure you all know only too well! Played better than anything I'd ever played before, even strung with much heavier strings than I usually use. Poor shop assistant couldn't prise it out of my hands . . . The best news was that the Bass Centre was moving premises and I think their distribution contract for Alembic was coming to a close (at least I haven't seen any Alembics in their new shop since), so they had massive reductions on all their Alembics for just a few days to clear the stock. I came away from the shop that day a coupla grand poorer but a very happy man! K. www.harambeuk.com | ||
| tom_z
New Username: tom_z Post Number: 9 Registered: 7-2004 |
Though my "first time" was in '82, I remember it very clearly - not so much the visual memory but rather the auditory and tactile memories. I was working at Modular Sound Systems in Barrington Illinois (the makers of Bag End speakers). One of the guys lived nearby and we were at his house for lunch. His guitar was sitting out and I asked him if I could paly it a bit. BLISS - NIRVANA - JOY. I don't remember what model of guitar it was or what woods it might have been built from, but I have never forgotten the sound and feel of that instrument. It was pointed out that the guitar was hand crafted and rather expensive, so I just kind of put the idea of owning one away for a while. Now I'm awaiting my first Alembic - a custom Skylark. =D Tom | ||
| fungke
Junior Username: fungke Post Number: 28 Registered: 7-2004 |
Slightly off topic... are there any dealers in the UK now. If I wanted to go ahead and start the ball rolling on a custom, who would I talk to? Can I order direct from Alembic? Cheers, Andy. | ||
| karl
Junior Username: karl Post Number: 14 Registered: 7-2002 |
Hi Andy, I know The Bass Gallery in Camden stocks a number of Alembics - don't know how it works with ordering your own custom but maybe they would be able to tell you? Their site is at www.thebassgallery.com Hope that helps. K. www.harambeuk.com | ||
| fungke
Junior Username: fungke Post Number: 29 Registered: 7-2004 |
Cheers Karl  | ||
| bracheen
Senior Member Username: bracheen Post Number: 535 Registered: 11-2003 |
The first bass I ever held was an Alembic. About '81 or '82 I decided to learn bass. My roommate at the time was a bassplayer and a music store employee. He took me shopping at his store. The first bass he handed me was a big, heavy thing. As I held it and ran my fingers over like I had seen bassplayers do, I was enthralled. I felt as if I could actually play this instrument. He told me that is was called an Alembic and was very special. He discribed the handcrafting and the LEDs and the price. David did'nt tell me a model name but looking back it was a Series I. Reluctantly I put it back but I never forgot that experience. Twenty some years later when in a position to aquire a top notch bass I bought an Alembic. It's every bit as satisfying as I remember. Sam | ||
| dannobasso
Member Username: dannobasso Post Number: 83 Registered: 3-2004 |
My brother was friends with Al DiMeola. They'd hang out from time to time and jam acoustics in Memorial Park in Bergenfield. One day a promotional lp of Romantic Warrior came to me. I was totally amazed! Stanley became a fixation for me and I bought whatever he had to date. Then I connected all these other players with the Alembic name. I also saw a guy playing a Series 1 in a local bar Walley's. He was resting it against his amp! Well I bought my first Spoiler in 83 at Sam Ash 48th St. $900 no case. I got home, put on RTF and the tone was there! Played along as best I could for days. Thanks to the Wickersham's magical skills I just recieved my 10th Alembic Tuesday. Yes, I will order more soon. I have 3 other non Alembic basses and a StickBass, 6 guitars and tons of stuff, but my real lust and desire is for Alembic. BTW It took me over 20 years to get a SF2. Get one! Don't miss out like I did! Oh the wasted years! Danno | ||
| bassman10096
Senior Member Username: bassman10096 Post Number: 526 Registered: 7-2003 |
I had been away from playing bass for 10-15 years and had just moved to Milwaukee. My son needed strings for his guitar and I didn't know any music stores. We blundered into Uncle Bob's Music (Wisconsin's only Alembic dealer). Just killing time, I looked at the used basses and saw an Alembic (all I remember was neck thru - and gnarly, beat up). I knew a bit about Alembic through having seen Phil Lesh, John E. and Stanley many times over and being very impressed by their sound. The bass at Uncle Bob's was sorely in need of a set up and cleaning. But I remembered its incredibly solid feeling and sustain (even un amped). During the year after this, I dusted off my Jazz bass and started practicing and playing. Fast forward 2 years to when I decided to trade in my 73 Jazz for something else (just needed a change - I'd give my arm to get the Fender back now). As naive as I was, I was shocked at the price I got for the J. I instantly thought "Alembic!" and within a week or two, found and bought my Spoiler. I was blown away by the craftsmanship, the playability and the sound! Within a couple weeks I knew I wanted to build one. Now I'll receive the new bass in the next weeks. This has turned out like a dream with all happy endings! Bill | ||
| jeff
Junior Username: jeff Post Number: 47 Registered: 12-2003 |
My first Alembic experience occured nearly 30 years ago and I still remember it well today. I was at the home of a fellow bass player (Dan Schwartz - played bass on Cheryl Crow's "car wash" CD) when he opened the case to a brand new Series I. I don't remember what the wood combination was, but it was simply beautiful. It was the first time that I ever saw an Alembic and I was thinking that this is not at all like my P-bass! Then he plugged it in. I was transfixed by the range of tones available - from the sweet highs and warm mids to the rock solid bottom. The side LED's and the outboard power supply with its 5-pin connector also fascinated me. It was not until May of 2001 that I decided to call Alembic to order my first bass. A woman answered the phone, whom I assumed was a secretary, and we started talking about my proposed bass. When I realized that I was talking to Susan Wickersham, I was again blown away that a woman who is a walking piece of music history was talking to me! Susan was just fantastic as she was willing to talk about the history of the company and my friend, Dan Schwartz. Susan got me hooked up with Greg at B&B music in Delaware and my first Alembic, a Series II in coco bolo, was born. (Message edited by Jeff on August 05, 2004) | ||
| alembic76407
Advanced Member Username: alembic76407 Post Number: 323 Registered: 5-2002 |
it was 1976, a friend of my guitar came to our practice and had just got a new Series 1 and wanted me to play it, when he told me it was a $2000 bass I thought he was on drugs (after all he was a deadhead)to pay that much for a bass but after playing it all night long I didn't want to give it back, I was hooked and the next day I went to a music store and they had 2 Alembic's , a large body standard point and a small body, both Series 1s, I had a choice to make, I took the big one home, and 28 years later it's still at my house. David T (TLO) | ||
| kungfusheriff
Intermediate Member Username: kungfusheriff Post Number: 125 Registered: 8-2003 |
The first Alembic I played was a Series Exploiter...I had been playing only a few years and so had no idea how to tune the tone controls and walked away with the impression it was a really bright-sounding bass. On a summer day in the mid-1990s I walked into Drome Sound in Albany, NY, as I often did, and saw a five-string Essence with mahogany body and maple top hanging from the ceiling. I didn't like it. But I did like the '84 Spoiler I bought from Bass NW a few years later, even though I never got the Activator control harness I installed to replace the homemade electronics the bass came with to work right. I also had a Spoiler Exploiter that I never got to sound right...think something was wrong with the electronics. Now I have an '82 Series 2 and look forward to the day when I can have another. | ||
| kayo
Member Username: kayo Post Number: 54 Registered: 10-2002 |
The first virtuoso I was exposed to was Stanley Clarke. I remember reading many of the Guitar Player articles that had SC on them (at the time there was no Bass Player magazine) and I loved reading his tips on bass playing - I knew he was an Alembic player but I had never seen one in person and the tone on his material with George Duke (R&B oriented) wasn't so salient that it made an impression on me. Then a friend that is older than I introduced me to Return to Forever in 1984..... and that was all she wrote. SC's tone on those albums was out of this world - and I knew then that ONE day I would have to own an Alembic. I didn't even care what they felt like - the reputation, craftsmanship, and the tone alone were all I cared about. As I've matured and grown older - I've come to appreciate other things - such as not having what everyone else has (Fenders, Ibanez's, Spectors, etc), having a bass with a "personality" & not settling for less. I am sure many of you know the heartache of settling for seomthing less than what you really want (gearwise) and then the drama of trying to get rid of it later (and losing your shirt in the process). I had gone through Aria, Ibanez, Steinberger, and some no-name by that time before I finally got to the point that in 1999 I was earning enough $ to order a custom Rogue (never even having seen one in person). I have no regrets.... everywhere I go, musician's are blown away by my tone, and the aesthetics of my bass. I've even had 2 bass playing acquiantances go out and buy Alembics after seeing mine. I plan on getting an S2 and an EVH somewhere down the road..... the cost of these things - though worthwhile, only allow me to acquire one about every 5 years and I currently have a bass on order that's in the same price range (not Alembic though). (Message edited by kayo on August 05, 2004) | ||
| kenbass4
Intermediate Member Username: kenbass4 Post Number: 113 Registered: 10-2003 |
I had only been playing bass about a year in '82 when a friend of mine and I were at Haight-Ashbury music. They had what I guess was a Distillate, and being a big Genesis fan and knowing Mike Rutherford played an Alembic, I thought I would check it out. Too bad I was poor then, because it sounded better than ANY bass I had played previously, and left me searching for years to find anything that came close. Twenty-odd years later and now I have my own Rogue. Ken (TEO) | ||
| bigredbass
Advanced Member Username: bigredbass Post Number: 265 Registered: 9-2002 |
I grew up in East Texas, and had only seen ALEMBICs in pictures. Those images of 4-string 'Points' stuck in my mind like a UFO sighting. I went to work in a very progressive local music store in the late 70s, who, strangely enough, had an ALEMBIC brochure and pricelist. Pictures of Series Ones with graphite necks, woods and shapes from another world . . . which it may as well have been. Believe me, LA or NYC seemed like they were worlds away from there. I moved to Nashville in 1990. Biggest music stores I'd ever seen. Gruhn's. Corner Music especially had a fabulous bass department with Spectors, Pedullas, etc. In no time at all, I'd seen somebody with just about every bass I'd ever heard of . . . except for ALEMBICs. Then I saw that Rock Block had a SC, but it was short scale (Brown Bass)and I wasn't interested. About five years ago, I walked into Rock Block, and the BigRedBass was hanging on the wall. Five string, Omega shape, Crown peghead, and my favorite color (see thru red), a consignment (cheap!) and I bought it WITHOUT EVER PLUGGING IT IN. I've never been sorry, and it fundamentally changed my entire outlook on my musicianship. This was a power I'd never encountered in another bass. In my piano days the only thing that moved me similarly were big Steinways and the one Bosendorfer I ever played. It is such a magical instrument. It forced an introspection on me like few things EVER have before. The power of dreams (or was it just lust?)multiplied over time is INDEED a powerful force. J o e y | ||
| nick_bassman
Junior Username: nick_bassman Post Number: 31 Registered: 9-2002 |
My first experience was in the 70's. I was into Stanley big time and there was a British magazine called Guitar (IIRC). They were running a story about Stanley and his rig and the sight of the Alembic made me want one soooo bad, I had a really bad P bass copy at the time. Stanley had that plexiglass sphere speaker thing then too. At the time I was earning a pittance and so my first Alembic was a picture stuck up on the bedroom wall !! It was some years later that I finally managed to get an SC model (wish I still had it) and then an Essence both have since departed from my collection due to my love affair with basses of the six string variety. However I'm now looking forward to the impending arrival of my custom 33" scale six string from the Alembic crew. I won't be making the mistake of letting this one go. | ||
| palembic
Senior Member Username: palembic Post Number: 1458 Registered: 9-2002 |
How I met Alembic? My first bass was a Fender Telecaster (CBS-era). I was a bedroom musician from my 16th ubtil my 25th I sold everything I got. That week a friend gave me some old Bass-player magazines and in that magazine was a tiny B&W ad for the most incredible looking bass I ever saw "Alembic Series II medium scale with custom Omega cutout in Walnut". I said to myself: "one day I will have such a bass." ANd i cut the ad out an put it in my wallet. Years went on and the urge to play again came back when I was 34. I showed the ad -I still got it than (the wallet was stolen unfortunately in Lisboa a coupe of years ago)- in different music stores in Belgium and always got the same reaction: "Huh ...what's that ?" or "That 's way to expensive ...did you see our Yamasukiders?" or "That's too fancy for Rock & Roll ...try the Fendsonacker". Until -by pure coincidence- I was pointed to EVH's store in that time just over the Begian/Dutch border. A friend and I went over there and I came home with ...A mediumscale, pointed head Spoiler ...which was definitely NOT my thing. I went back -with more money (sure)- and bought the Coco-bolo Mark King signature Standard Pointed Body that now is filling Italy with her lovely low tones by our friend and brother Stephano Riges. That must have been 1990 or so. EVH and me changed the electronics a bit. We changed the "pan" to a volume and added a mastervolume + a on/off switch with led. In 1996 I bought Bonnie which is basically a Series I with Series II electronics. Live hasn't been good to me financially since than and I sold everything I got except ...Bonnie. After long years of saving and only recently I was able to rebuild rig and add humble (non-Alembic) basses to my "collection". Paul TBO | ||
| jacko
New Username: jacko Post Number: 8 Registered: 10-2002 |
My first experience of hearing alembics was in the late 70's. I was buying a precision off my drummers cousin and he was playing Stanleys double live album. This was the first time I'd really listened to bass playing other than Chris squire and geddy lee and I was absolutely blown away by the sound and skill. After that, I bought just about every stanley clark album I could find but didn't even see a real alembic until many years later. Skip to 1997, I was working in birmingham and giging with a local band. Around this time I decided I could really do with a 5 string so spent many lunchtimes in the local guitar shops seeing what was available. I did find a 5 string rickenbacker that sounded fantastic but the string spacing was just too narrow. Eventually, i had a short list of three, a warwick thumb and an epic in the bass centre and a pre gibson tobias in the shop round the corner - can't remember the name. after a couple of days to-ing and fro-ing I settled on the epic and I'm pretty glad I did. Since then, I guess I've picked it up to play just about every day and it's still as pleasureable now as it was then. graeme | ||
| adriaan
Advanced Member Username: adriaan Post Number: 271 Registered: 6-2002 |
My first experience with an Alembic was sometime between 85 and 90 when the local shop, who did have a decent selection of higher end guitars in glass cabinets, among which one day stood an SC shaped Alembic. IIRC it had a single filter plus Q switch and I think a pan pot. I can't remember any neck laminates, so it was probably 3 piece maple; the top wood was dark, probably rosewood or walnut, and it probably had a matching back laminate. It was most definitely a short scale with a narrow neck, which I knew very well from starting out on a true Höfner violin bass for a few months, and then on to a (sorry excuse for an instrument) Egmond; luckily I had switched to a half-decent Jazz Bass copy at the time. They allowed me to play it, though they knew that like most posters here I could most definitely only dream about owning an Alembic at the time. The rig they had was one of those awful Trace Elliot stacks: couldn't get anywhere near an open or even bright sounding tone. That's definitely not the right set of circumstances to find your way around the filter and Q switch options ... I remember I was appropriately impressed with the woods, the workmanship, the punchiness and not least the amazing things it would make you play - but I couldn't get a decent sound, and I sorely missed at least an elbow carving - didn't really like the gloss finish either. Fast forward to 94, when I saw the Bass Player review of the Epic: I really, really, really liked that bass. Later that year there was a big music fair in Amsterdam, and there was an Epic just standing in a booth so you could try out some BagEnd speakers, going through an SF-2 and a power amp. I had been lurking around the Wils booth who were the Dutch importer at that time (I think EVH already left them at the time) and they had some almighty Alembics on display - a dark 6 string fretless Series comes to mind. IIRC, the Epic at the other booth was actually the same one that I picked out a few weeks later when visiting Wils, who were kind enough to let me try out a few Alembics. There was an Essence, which I didn't like because of the Q boost that you can't switch off. There were maple and walnut Epics, for which I did not care much - I just had to have that flame koa one! Amazingly, as this was the first or second batch of Epics, the top wood was no extra charge, and the price was low - not counting inflation, it would now be around 1400 euro, so 1600 USD. Minus a 10% discount from my dealer - a very good deal in all. The sad side to this story is that I bought the Epic with money that I should not have spent. I did manage to hold on to the Epic, but my budget was very tight for a few years after that ... | ||
| palembic
Senior Member Username: palembic Post Number: 1463 Registered: 9-2002 |
Hehehe ...niet beschaamd zijn broeder Adriaan ik speelde OOK ooit op een Egmond!!!! Bwak! (For English turn your computer upside down hehehe) Paul TBO  | ||
| hifibassman
Member Username: hifibassman Post Number: 57 Registered: 12-2002 |
I was about 17 years old at about 1978ish, and a friend of mine at that time was really deep into basses. He was caught up in the funk bass sounds of that time, and he kept telling me that his mom was going to buy him this "olympic bass" for christmas. He told me how impressive the sound was and he exposed me to funk groups at that time that were playing them (slave, mother's finest, etc...). Yes- i was impressed by the sound too, but i didn't know much about the basses. He never did get that bass for christmas... his mom didn't know how expensive they were. He ended up getting a poor look alike that sounded like crap(a gibson grabber bass). That was funny to me back then. Anyway, at first i would see a bass shaped like a series, and in my casual way would immediately say "there's an alembic" proving my ignorance of those basses at that time and what they are all about. then i kept seeing these ad's popping up in guitar magazines and eventually it peaked my curiousity. So i started searching music stores for the elusive instruments. My interest started wavering, and i went to college (1980). I met another guy there that was an alembic freak, and he had introduced me to stanley clarke. He had a playing style like stanley although he was playing a piece of junk bass with light gage strings tuned a,d,g,f- but he was very impressive emulating stanley. So again this prompted me to look for the "alembic bass" that both my friends were talking about. And my initial style of bass playing developed from both my friends and stanley clarke influences over a few years. Finally i found several alembics at a fairly large music store, and immediately i drooled over this series 1 sitting inside a glass case. i asked the sales guy could i play it- they would not let anyone touch it. of course this just sent my curiousity and desire thru the roof. I started collecting more stanley clarke albums and those sounds he was making with that bass just kept blowing my mind. i would get very excited when stanley put out a new album- my wife thought i was crazy back then (but she eventually understood why i loved alembics because she became interested too). Finally, sometime around 1986, that same music store changed management and i was finally allowed to play a series 1 for the first time. It was plugged in thru the ds5, and the sounds i heard was not to be believed. this to me was the most perfect sounding, perfect playing bass i have ever experienced. i know this sound signature so well that i can immediately tell from any recording just by listening whether or not it's a series bass or not. Well, today i still don't have a series bass, but one fine day.... (Message edited by hifibassman on August 06, 2004) | ||
| the_mule
Intermediate Member Username: the_mule Post Number: 194 Registered: 1-2004 |
The end of last year really was a strange time for me, musically that is. I was starting to lose enjoyment in playing my guitars, very strange as they were fabulous instruments, a 2001 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe and a brand new PRS Custom 22 Artist, instruments I had worked and saved very hard for. But the passion was missing, I didn't know why, but it was... I'd already become more and more interested in the bass after the two The Deep End albums of one of my favorite bands Gov't Mule were released. Being a wood freak pur sang I started browsing around the WWW for information and pictures of high end bass guitars. After some vague consideration of a Fodera or Elrick, I luckily visited Bass Connection's website, which featured some fabulous pictures of even more fabulous instruments: Alembics! The prices at that moment were just YIKES! to me, but then my eyes were drawn to a beautiful bass with a very interesting but understated look, and a price that was much more in my league. I contacted the owner of the shop via e-mail, one Edwin van Huik (never heard of him!), and we agreed on a trade in: my Les Paul and some spare cash for the pictured N.O.S. 1999 Alembic Orion 4 in 'grafted' walnut. But no deal until seeing and playing it in person off course. At the store, which is located quite a long way from where I live (the Dutch sense of distances, not the American!), me and 'senior management' were welcomed by this extremely nice guy that talked a helluvalot, played some absolutely shredding bass, took the time to answer every question I could think of and to show patiently how the controls worked. He also gave us all the coffee we wanted, and we really wanted some after a long drive through pouring rain! He played the bass on the 'home system', a Glockenklang Heart Core, and I listened while preventing my jaw from dropping on the floor every three seconds. It sounded amazing! Then I tried it, and it felt wonderful. It looked amazing too, and I immediately fell in love with it. It played like a dream, wish I could say that about myself, but there's some progression noticable I hope...(!) So to conclude this long story: my 'Alembicism' started because of two releases by Gov't Mule, the great help and passion of Edwin van Huik and the beautiful Orion bass I was lucky enough to meet on my quest for the Holy Grail of Tone. Well, that was the first one! I'm almost ashamed to admit that since that the purchase of the Orion last January, two more Alembics have come into my life. The EVH was also bought from Edwin after selling the PRS and the Series I short scale was an unplanned 'lucky', a fabulous pawn shop prize. The spark has become a roaring flame while playing and really enjoying these three instruments, and certainly also because of the Alembic Club, this fine community I'm very proud to be a part of today. Wilfred | ||
| somatic
New Username: somatic Post Number: 10 Registered: 11-2003 |
I walked into a store in 84 and saw an Alembic Distillate hanging in a glass case. I asked what it was, and if I could play it, but received a snotty 'no' for a reply. But I was in love with it, and went to the bank to get a loan intending to buy it (unplayed mind you). The loan came through and I marched into the store with the cash but it had a sold sticker on it. Dejected, I went to work and told my workmates about the day, and they were like "well, you've still got the Ibanez". A day or two later, I received a call from the store saying that the sale had fallen through and was I still interested. Hell yes, so I went in and got it. In my excitement I didn't realise that I'd never given the store my info. A workmate said he'd been in there next day and mentioned I was sad I'd missed out on buying it and had passed on my contact details 'in case'. Some time later, I found out that said workmate's family had qite a bit of influence with the store's owner, and even knew the bass' buyer and had done some arm twisting behind the scenes to get the bass into my hands. | ||
| bassman10096
Senior Member Username: bassman10096 Post Number: 531 Registered: 7-2003 |
What a nice workmate. Getting involved with Alembic and Alembics seems to be related to good fortune and good people all the way around. Don't know if that makes sense, but yours is a good story to hear. Bill | ||
| hollis
Advanced Member Username: hollis Post Number: 294 Registered: 11-2003 |
I'm a Deadhead and proud of it. So for many years I heard Alembics without getting any closer to them than the stage of a Grateful Dead concert. Around 1977 I was living in the Santa Rosa area. A friend of mine invited me to a party somewhere around Sebastopol. It was a weeklong party, at a very cool house that had a creek running through the property. The music that was played there was magic. The people at the party were artists of every sort. I’ve often wondered who exactly these folks were... On the first night, the owner of the house brought out a case that looked bulletproof. In it lay the most beautiful instrument that I had ever seen. It was an Alembic series bass (I know now). It looked like pirate’s plunder. The wood was surreal, and the hardware was hand pounded. He said it was a sister bass to a guitar that had been built for Bobby Weir. I have no way of corroborating that, but it seemed very likely at the time, because it was indeed an Alembic bass, the man who owned it was a very gifted musician who had no reason to be blowing smoke. Well, maybe he had a reason to be blowing smoke, but that’s another story… I’d never seen anything quite like it since then until I stumbled onto this website. I’ve never forgotten that party, and the first time I held an Alembic instrument. It’s very cool to read others stories in this thread. I feel honored to be a part of this community. | ||
| malthumb
Advanced Member Username: malthumb Post Number: 269 Registered: 5-2002 |
I don't remember what year it was, but I'm thinking late '70s early '80s 'cause I was either in high school or had come home from college for a weekend. Saw Rose Royce in concert. The bassist had this HUGE bass with a HUGE sound. Tucked that away in my memory. Shortly thereafter picked up the Brothers Johnson "Right On Time" album with Louis waving a beautiful bass over his head. Looked just like the Rose Royce bass I had just seen, except it had an innie instead of an outtie (Omega instead of a Point). Now, I had been tuned into Stanley Clarke for years, but didn't really know how he got "that sound". Until I recognized that the headstock on his bass looked just like the headstock on the Rose Royce bass. Then I saw Greg Lake's bass and watched a concert video of Fleetwood Mac and, whaddaya know, there's that bass again! That's when I finally put some energy into finding out what they were. Fast forward to 1995. I'm in a Guitar Center in Southfield, Michigan and they had about half a dozen of "those basses". Including a couple of the HUGE ones. Both "outties", no "innies". I finally got to play one these mystery basses that had been haunting me for close to 20 years. A seriously breath-taking experience! Finally, in '96 or '97 I saw an ad for a used '83 Spoiler and snapped it up. I liked everything about the bass except the placement of the neck pick up. I eventually traded it for a Stanley Clarke Deluxe. Four Alembics later, I've finally settled down to the two I currently have. Two HUGE basses with HUGE sound, one is an "innie" and one is an "outtie" Peace, James | ||
| rraymond
Member Username: rraymond Post Number: 87 Registered: 6-2002 |
IMHO, this has got to be one of the most interesting threads to come along in a while! Brilliant! So here's my introduction to Alembic: Like so many others here, my first Alembic awareness was via Stanley Clarke, about 1974. Then there was Greg Lake, John Entwistle, Joey Something-or-Other the bass player for Crack The Sky, Andy West of the Dregs, Phil Lesh, Louis Johnson... I never saw an Alembic in a music store in Memphis; my first playing experience was after I moved to Portland, OR. In 1996, I got to play an Epic. I'll never forget the experience. The tone, the look, the TONE, the way the frets extended over the edge of the fingerboard! I was blown away by the sound, but I noticed that the frets kept tugging at the insides of my fingers. I went to put the bass down and found that my fingers had bled so much, there was blood in the palm of my hand! "They want HOW much money for that bass, and I'm bleeding?!" Two years later, I bought an Orion 5 string sight unseen from Bass Northwest - now that's a leap of faith! I explained what I'd experienced and they described how the ebony continues to shrink for a while, and they guaranteed me that I wouldn't receive an Alembic from them like that. They were right and I bought 5 more since then, and have one "in the oven" even now! | ||
| alemboid
Member Username: alemboid Post Number: 86 Registered: 5-2003 |
1978, Larry Carlton and Joe Sample leave the stage. Sticks Hooper and this skinny guy named Alphonso Johnson are left playing. Sticks backs off, giving Alphonso some space, and he plays this solo on a bass described by my friend as an "Olympic". The sound was so pure, for the first time I really heard BASS. I was so awestruck, I went home and drew about a dozen pictures of what I saw and heard. I'd seen several famous violinists play incredibly beautiful sounding instruments, several horn players perform wonderful solo pieces, and then this bass solo- a sound so pure, it was as if we were being annointed by its sound. Twenty years passed, and in that time, several Alembic wannabes came and went. Finally, my dream came true with an SC Deluxe that hung on the wall of a local music store for about three years. The manager and sales staff gathered around the counter to look at it for the last time before I took it home. There is a lot of cool stuff out there, but nothing like Alembic. If I am ever remembered as playing anything, may it be an Alembic. | ||
| the_mule
Intermediate Member Username: the_mule Post Number: 199 Registered: 1-2004 |
"The manager and sales staff gathered around the counter to look at it for the last time before I took it home" - Alemboid Somewhat off-topic because this isn't about the first one, but when I purchased the 1980-ish Series I at this pawn shop, several members of the staff told me that they'd miss it hanging there, that it was the most beautiful "guitar" they'd ever seen. Some of them even stroked the wood and were (mildly) jealous although they admitted not to play any (bass)guitar at all. I managed to talk another 200 euros off & closed the deal for the pricely sum of 900 euros (about $1000) Wilfred | ||
| haddimudd
Junior Username: haddimudd Post Number: 46 Registered: 6-2002 |
In 1995, while I already knew I wanted to buy my own custom Alembic, I happened to come across my first one on one encounter with an Alembic bass at the Guitar Center in Hollywood. I believe it was a series long scale and it was so used up to begin with. The strings were worn out, the batteries were at the lowest and the overall feeling to play was just disastrous. Some of the knobs even were wreckaged so they would have no stop at the min/max positions but just keep turning. I was soooo disappointed... I also remember it had somebody's initials inlayed, but I forgot what they were. I could not believe a respectable store like Guitar Center would not display such a "masterpiece" in it's best possible state, at least full batteries and decently new strings. It was almost like they wanted to kill the Almebic reputation. As if saying "You think Alembics are great? Well, try ours instead..." Nuh, the experience was pure yuk and I am glad I made better experiences with the rest of Alembics later on ... Hartmut | ||
| kmh364
Advanced Member Username: kmh364 Post Number: 292 Registered: 9-2003 |
That's one of the many reasons I call it "Garbage Center"....the "Crazy Eddie" or "The Wiz" of musical instrument retailers. See also "Sam's Ass" for further edification, LOL! | ||
| hankster
Junior Username: hankster Post Number: 16 Registered: 6-2004 |
My first experience... I was working in Victoria, B.C. primarily as a jazz acoustic bassist, doing some electric work...at a local jam session, a young kid - 17 or 18 - showed up with a funny looking bass. He told me it was the kind Stanley Clarke used. I wasn't really an RTF fan at the time and was kind of unimpressed. The kid, though, kept showing up at my band's gigs, and one night at a local club he showed up, with his bass, and said, "you really should try this". I was playing an old Hofner verithin hollow body electric at the time. So, for the second set, I tried his bass - a mid-to-late 70's Stanley Clarke model. I was stunned - I didn't want to give it back. Over the many years in between - 25 give or take - I have always remembered the physical sensation of playing that bass. Last month I finally caved and bought a Stanley Clarke model myself, and it is exactly the same unbelievable feel. Rick B. | ||
| flaxattack
Intermediate Member Username: flaxattack Post Number: 121 Registered: 4-2004 |
saw and heard phils guild/alembic 9/28/72 which i still love then saw and heard jack casady playing alembic #1 in 1973 at SUNY binghampton in NY. nuff said huh? 31 years later? i got my first orion- 4 months after that? just placed a custom order for a mark king sig. deluxe bal k | ||
| fungke
Junior Username: fungke Post Number: 36 Registered: 7-2004 |
Since planting the seed, this is the first time in a while i've read through all these stories. Makes incredible reading. Needless to say there's something truly magical about Alembic. All this reminiscing has got me wanting a Distillate now. See 'Swap Shop and Wish Lists' for details. All the best, Andy. (Message edited by fungke on August 24, 2004) | ||
| smokin_dave
Intermediate Member Username: smokin_dave Post Number: 184 Registered: 10-2002 |
It was a most fateful day back in the summer of 94 when I walked in to a music store I had never been to before to look for a pre-amp.They showed me an SF-2 and there was a rack of Epic's hanging on a wall.I ended up walking out of the store with both the SF-2 and my Epic Zebra wood 4.One of the best day's of my life. | ||
| senmen
Advanced Member Username: senmen Post Number: 347 Registered: 7-2003 |
Of course the one and only experience was seeing John Entwistle at the end of the 70ies playing his Alembic Spyder basses. I ever have been in unusual designs like Gibson´s modernistic designs. As I first saw John playing a Spyder, this was really jaw-dropping. My favourite body style, great woods, more than great sound! I needed to have one. But it lasted more than twenty years until I got my hands on a Spyder bass. Unfortunately, still none of the originals. Oliver (Spyderman) | ||
| ox_junior
Intermediate Member Username: ox_junior Post Number: 114 Registered: 3-2004 |
Ditto Oliver's experience. When I first became aware of The Who, John was still playing his Alembics. I thought "what the #$%& is THAT???" Never saw anything like an Alembic, before or since. And that SOUND!!! Just ROARING through the live shows and the recordings of the period. In the mid-80's I got hip to Mark King. Another amazing bassist with another amazing sound. And what sort of bass is that, I wondered...of course, it was an Alembic. Now I am so proud to own two Alembics, my Exploiter and my Spyder. I'll never be able to touch these two geniuses, talent-wise, but I have two fine instruments that carry that same Alembic badge. They make me feel like a star every time I pick them up. Mike | ||
| hup
Junior Username: hup Post Number: 30 Registered: 1-2003 |
1989 Festival Hall Melbourne Australia - Metallica , Jason Newsted came out playing a Spoiler 4 it nocked me over, then out came the Elan 5, rocked my world. Then again when i saw them in 1993!!!!!!! I'm a big Spoiler fan must get more........ Hup ALEMBICISE THE WORLD | ||
| jet_powers
Intermediate Member Username: jet_powers Post Number: 179 Registered: 2-2003 |
Back in 76 when I was a teenager I got a poster of The Who. John had this really incredible looking bass. I believe it was a Zebrawood Series I. After hearing the sounds it produced I had to have one. It took a while before I found out what it was and longer still before I got one. In the mid 80's the local dealers tried to sell me on Pedulla telling me it was just as good as an Alembic. I held my ground saying if I was going to spend that much money I might as well wait until I get a bit more money together and get what I really wanted. It was worth the wait. JP | ||
| poor_nigel
Intermediate Member Username: poor_nigel Post Number: 117 Registered: 7-2003 |
While on an expedition to Seattle @ 1977 (I am terrible with dates) to check out buying a new PA for the band I was in, I stopped in at the Guitar Center there. They had two strange basses on the wall that I did not recognize. The first I played was a series I Alembic in all maples. I am not very fond of maple basses, but the design and craftsmanship were so outrageous to me that I was blown away. I believe I was in shock over the $2,000 price tag on it. I wanted it REAL bad! Next to it was a walnut Hyak. This was even weirder, but I really WANTED it too. I do not remember the price tag on it. Back in those days, I suppose anyone who walked in, not wearing rags and carrying a paper cup full of change was allowed to pick off the wall and play whatever was there. I was never approached by a sales person to break my concentration of these two wondrous things that had just changed my perception of what a bass guitar should be. It took me a couple years to save up enough to order my first bass from the factory. But that is another story. |
