The Hofner Beatle Bass: A Short History

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To see the original Klemens Cathcart video: • 1964 Hofner 500/1 Viol...
For the full Bass Emporium video: • Vintage 1966 Hofner 50...
For the full Franscisco de Borjas video: • Hofner 500/1 Violin Ba...
Before you fill the comment section, yes, I know, this turned out to be a history of Sir Paul McCartney's use of the Hofner 500/1 bass guitar...but really...how could it be anything else. I've tried to give you a good helping of that, sound examples and a bit of history all rolled in one. Hope you dig it.
Keith

[@mvp019]

That set list taped to the bass was the Beatles' final concert from their touring days at Candlestick Park in San Francisco - notice the songs are not from the rooftop concert. This is also well-documented elsewhere.

[@asherfilms923]

And the roof wasn't even on Abbey road

[@steveandrews5307]

@@asherfilms923 Yep that's right it was at number 3 Saville Row. Apple headquarters at the time.

[@franktaconelli9095]

it may not even be from the final show of the ‘66 tour; it makes more sense it was there for the entire tour; there’s a similar list on John’s Rickenbacker which he didn’t play on that last tour so it must’ve been a usual thing they did; and you can see the song titles on that set list; they didn’t play any of those songs on the roof in ‘69

[@mvp019]

@@franktaconelli9095 As I said, it is well-documented in a lot of books.

[@franktaconelli9095]

@@mvp019 yep I’ve read ‘em all

[@leokimvideo]

The set list on Paul's bass is from a earlier period of the Beatles. I suppose as time goes on the story gets more and more distorted. That Hofner with the Beatles setlist is one of the most desired Basses in music history, it's basically priceless.

[@jmasno5]

1966 last tour. You can plainly see the names of the songs. I don't know how that was missed.

[@Marco-HidalgoMusicRecords]

@@jmasno5 yeaaahhh exactly!!!!

[@JonahNelson7]

@@jmasno5he missed some commonly known info

[@honkytonkinson9787]

A famous stolen instruments episode would be cool! I wonder how Paul felt about his first custom bass being stolen? And from a world class studio! Kinda makes me nauseous thinking about it I don’t leave gear anywhere, and usually don’t loan anything, cause I don’t want to lose anymore gear!

[@rainblaze.]

Known paul he probably had it well insured for three times its actual value lol

[@geneobrien8907]

Probably an inside job, maybe someone who worked at the Abby Road Studio. Its very unlikely a stranger moseyed in to the studio and walked out with two guitars.

[@goodun2974]

​@@geneobrien8907 , as Rick Beato demonstrated in a recent video, people don't get to just walk in off the street to tour Abbey Road Studios.

[@robd1329]

​@@geneobrien8907 i always suspected someone who set up the instruments walked out with it when no one was in the studio

[@geneobrien8907]

@@robd1329 That seen to be very likely. When you consider the exclusivity of the location and the insight it would take for someone to nick the guitar, it is perhaps the most plausible theory.

[@Kevin-the-Just]

If you meant the UK 60s TV music show, it was actually called ' Ready STEADY Go'. I had the pleasure of seeing the Bootleg Beatles recently and their 'Macca' was using a Hofner 'Beatle Bass'. The sound of it is definitely part of the whole Beatles sound.

[@Liam.Hardy.Music.99]

I saw them recently too! Great sound!

[@luxford60]

I was going to say the same thing. Not having been born when it first broadcast I mostly know Ready Steady Go from the edited version shown by Channel 4 in the early 80s. Rights belonged to Dave Clarke, and the Dave Clarke Five appeared far more frequently than had in fact been the case.

[@clickem2697]

@@luxford60 I'm old enough to have seen RSG live the first time round... way more exciting than Top of the Pops... the best TV music show until The Tube that was inspired by it.

[@goodun2974]

​@@clickem2697, Ready Steady Go often showed lip-synched "concerts" where the bands weren't actually performing live and the music was straight off the album or 45-single recording. In the UK you folks did much better in the Seventies and Eighties with "the Old Gray Whistle Test", where to the best of my knowledge everything was actually played live. Here in the States we had Midnight Special, In Concert, and Don Kirschners' Rock Concert, featuring almost entirely live performances. I hate lip-synching with a passion, and I refuse to take any show that broadcast lip-synched performances seriously (American Bandstand being an example of a terrible, useless music show).

[@clickem2697]

@@goodun2974 It wasn’t so much about the performances… their strap line was ‘the weekend starts here’ and that was the feeling, everyone’s weekend was starting there as a musical generation. As worthy as the OGWT was there wasn’t the same excitement generated about music happening now. Also I’ve heard that because the studio was so cramped that some performances were pre-recorded then mimed to. Whatever, OGWT has provided a wonderful archive in a way that RSG hasn’t because the cultural context of that, the immediacy, has been lost.

[@bluesmavin]

Jamaican bassist Robbie played a Beatle bass extensively throughout his career. He toured with Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer, and Black Uhuru, among others. He also laid down countless studio tracks. He got a big powerful bass sound with his Hofner.

[@cochabambas]

I remember the bassist from Dread Zeppelin getting some mean reggae tones with a Hofner. Guess he took a clue from Robbie

[@martinheath5947]

You just can't beat a proper neck pickup!

[@bassmangotdbluz3547]

@@cochabambas That was my favorite Rastaman Bassist, Jah Paul Joe.

[@StarQueenEstrella]

The guy from Sly & Robbie? That Robbie?

[@aaronsearle4307]

The rooftop concert wasn’t at Abbey Road. It was at 3 Savile Row, which was the Beatles’ base of operations. Also, I believe the set list taped to the bass is from Candlestick Park in San Francisco (the final show on their final tour in 1967).

[@temporarywannabeatleprofile]

You're correct. Though the Candlestick Park gig was in August of '66.

[@Corporations8MyBaby]

1966

[@HSRA-hg9gc]

3 Sevlle Row, was the headquarters for Apple Records

[@bobrunge7594]

The set list was there in Boston, which was a week before Candlestick. I was there and I saw it

[@rustedsunday7489]

This bass inspired me to play bass. Every other bass I saw I thought looked ugly so this was the only bass I liked. I didn’t buy one until I saw Paul McCartney live. That’s what truly inspired me to start playing but even before I wanted a violin bass. I ended up getting a rogue vb100. I now have many basses and 5 of which are violin basses (3 are hofners). I still love violin basses and find them to be the most beautiful basses.

[@Valvey789]

Paul said somewhere that the key to playing that bass was to play it lightly and let the amp do the work. It doesn't look like an instrument that you would attack like, say, Flea.

[@VenomShadows305]

They rattle a lot if you pick even slightly hard too.

[@profile2047]

That is wrong. That may be true with yours. Or some odd ones here and there, but to say they rattle if played even slightly hard is hyperbole.

[@scalzmoney]

In the Get Back film someone asks Paul at one point whether he wants his Rickenbacker bass. He grabs the Hofner and says "No. I'll use this one. It's lighter." As stated, they also had been sent a bunch of new Fender stuff but they didn't seem that particular (at least on camera) about it either way. So, I don't know if the reasons they chose gear went beyond superficial, or at least simpler things like weight and familiarity.

[@hewitc]

One of the most successful music groups of all time and they mainly used second rate/less expensive instruments, like the Hoffner or Epiphones

[@NLBassist]

Thanks, Keith! Well documented. Nick Wass, he worked at Höfner, is a good friend and he wrote the article for my bass mag. I translated it to Dutch and original English one was used by his permission - and offered to them by me - by Bass Player. A nice collab. He wrote the book The Complete Violin Bass Story with Steve Russell and I recommend that for the true nerds! Nick knows so much about the basses and he worked on Paul's basses.

[@Boozeblues]

He got his bass back this year said it never got played and was in some attic. Pretty cool story about how they found it

[@nitrobw1]

As a bassist I find these practically unplayable but nobody can deny how important they are. I wish they were better designed, because I love the violin aesthetic and they sound great in the right hands.

[@christopherweise438]

The Hofner really is a piece of crap. If not for Sir Paul....we wouldn't even know it existed.

[@Supernautiloid]

Why do you find them unplayable?

[@andiebetjemann7920]

The bridge doesn't allow a precise Intonation. But for those, who struggle with the neck dive issue: try a Höfner Club Bass (Single Cut Shape): everything ist the same, but the body allows for far less neck dive. Furthermore, the Höfner club Bass is a bit more resonant. So it's more fun playing unplugged.

[@raybbj]

I 100% agree. I bought an Epiphone Viola bass a few years ago. The tone was incredible, but the ergonomics were terrible. The Viola shape doesn't allow for you you to rest it on your lap. If you use a strap, you get horrible neck dive. And I also found something strange with the string spacing which cause me pain in my right hand (although I never actually measured it). I desperately wanted to love it, but I had to return it after a week.

[@raybbj]

@@crawfish666 Agreed. I can't stand playing either of these basses. I never understood the hype over a Ricky

[@mikiegood]

I believe the set list taped on the bass was from the last Beatles tour in 1966 not the rooftop concert

[@NewFalconerRecords]

Yep. You're absolutely correct.

[@jkinthewind]

I have the contemporary model, so semi hollow. I'm a guitar player so the short scale was perfect for me. The fact that it sounds so good is just a bonus!

[@wmg1958]

😉I feel like I could have written this (but I didn't)!

[@luigig6256]

I love my Contemporary. Underrated. So easy to play and after a bit of set up it has fab intonation. Has many haters but I don’t care. Enjoy yours in good health and joy.

[@GearGasms]

I have an inexpensive one of these and it plays great with flatwounds. Great stuff as always!

[@diegoalejandrocostanzo7572]

Thanks Paul for all. Desde Argentina.

[@OktoberFilms]

What a perfect timing of this video. After not looking at my Hofner bass in months, I picked it up earlier today and played a couple of tunes. Thought, I need to do this more often. Such a lovely instrument. As I went into the kitchen to make dinner, I opened the iPad (I often watch videos while I cook) and here was a brand new video on this fantastic instrument and it was by Five Watt World! Synchronicity does seem to be real. Now you just need to make a video on it’s brother, the one used by Tina Weymouth of Talking Heads and many others.

[@drbluzer]

My old roommate "Rick" from around 1978 to 1983 found a circa 1960's HOFNER BASS in a pawn shop for $200.00 around 1981 and he said that I could have it if I paid him $100.00 ( half the cost ) ,which I gladly did ! I loved that bass as all four of my fingers could easily fit on the fretboard ! I got my Assocites Degree in Electronics Engineering Technology in 1982 but by the time I graduated , I couldn't get a job in my chosen field so in 1983 I signed up to join the Navy and I became active duty in early 1984 . I told "Rick" that he could borrow my HOFNER BASS while I was in the Navy as I was going to be stationed overseas . He left that bass over at his parent's house and in 1996 or 1997 there was a flood which totally destroyed my bass ! I cried at my loss and I thought that I may never have another HOFNER BASS like the one that I owned . Fast forward to around 2002 as I found a "retro" version of that HOFNER BASS , which had the words "B BASS" up by the nut (string guide) at a Jacksonville , Florida strore called "THE GUITAR CENTER" . I gladly paid the $400.00 price to have my HOFNER BASS back . This time no one is borrowing my bass !!!

[@davidbell3678]

It really is a perfect bass for guitar players. It sounds great with a pick, and the neck is thin and short enough to play comfortably.

[@jimbofet]

As a guitar player who had to play bass, I agree, the short scale is a win. I also put flat wounds on mine and use a thick rubber pick to sound a bit more like I’m playing with fingers.

[@Gynra]

@@jimbofet I used a thumb pick with my Hofner 500 at first (1964), but I broke so many strings. After I changed to playing finger style, I never broke another. Flat-wound strings always gave a more mellow sound to my ears, and I preferred them over wire-wounds.

[@davidbell3678]

@@jimbofet I play with a Big Stubby pick to give it more of a thunk sound I enjoy.

[@psychostellar1432]

I'm using this jazz pick I got and it kicks ass with a little fuzz distortion or doing postpunky tones. The qualities of it's sound can make it act more like an extra guitar than just a bass you just set to the back. The versatility of a violin bass is really unappreciated because they think of using it more as just a bass but it can really be its own kind of instrument on top of that.

[@Terribleguitarist89]

My dad has had his 63 since it was new. Still one of my favorite basses to play.

[@tomdaoust]

That was so much fun to watch. Very well researched and detailed. I know that many bass purists consider the Hofner violin bass a less than ideal bass guitar. But it's so iconic because of the exposure it got with the Beatles it is a favorite of mine. I played guitar as a teen and still play a little. I could not help but stare at the guitars the Beatles played every second they were on stage. I play a 1969 Mosrite combo sunburst guitar. It's nearly identical to Glen Campbell’s. Thanks for sharing.

[@timmmcdonald4143]

I have 4 basses and two of them being precisions. I have tried many basses out in my life time. I’m not really what one would call a bass player but you know, when you record everything yourself, you tend to do those things. Since 1998 when I got a 58 longhorn short scale, that is the bass that is always present on any of my recordings. The Danelectro signature punchy sound, nothing else compares to it for me. Each there own, but the longhorns never really get appreciation they deserve.

[@rickkaylor8554]

I always wanted a Hofner violin bass since I've always been a huge Beatles fan. I played a Fender Precision bass and upright bass in high school and then got a Fender Jazz Bass. Both Fenders are heavy and get very tiresome when played while standing for any length of time. Since I don't play bass that often I decided to get the Ignition model since I didn't want to spend $4K for the German model. The Ignition model I got is really well made with no flaws and the intonation is spot on. My stepson got an earlier Ignition model and it isn't as good for some reason. Maybe I just got lucky. I liked this Hofner so much I saw the 6-string model 459 and got one. It too is a really good guitar for the price. I really like playing both.

[@jasonbates2687]

I love this type of content: music and history, 2 of my favorite things

[@cliffords2315]

The secret to his studio sound was the 50 Watt Vox Foundation Bass amp with an 18" Speaker. Thats how he got that powerful low notes he is famous for from his early records.

[@GRobLewis]

Who made 18" speakers back then? I worked at Cerwin-Vega in the early 70's and I think they basically had the market for 18" bass speakers to themselves. I know the speaker in the iconic Acoustic 360 folded horn bass amp was theirs; I owned one of those before my stint with C-V.

[@cliffords2315]

@@GRobLewis The only companies that used the 18" was Vox as far as i know and they werent sold in the US I had a SUNN Colliseum with two Reverse Horn 1-18' Cerwin Vega Cabs, the most powerful bass amp i ever used. Loved it. I wanted an Acoustic 360 but no music stores had them within 200 miles so i got the SUNN.

[@gregrandallbtsr03]

Thanks, Keith. I really appreciated the short and informative history of the Horner company at the beginning. As always, excellent.

[@carlmontney7916]

Great video. Being a bassist I enjoyed this one. One thing that's always surprised me are all of the Japanese import basses that were basically copies of the Hofner beatle bass. Those are harder to manufacture than a typical solid body bass, yet the manufacturers made thousands of them anyways. That just goes to show the power that the Beatles had. One picture of Paul playing that Hofner and everybody wanted to have a bass that looked like that.

[@Candlepinman]

Crazy, I just picked up a 1967 Violin bass with the blade pickups a few days ago! Perfect timing for this 👌

[@fivewattworld]

Then you should like the one playing example.

[@Candlepinman]

@@fivewattworld I did! The blade pickups are underrated as they're overshadowed by the Paul McCartney/Staple pickups connection

[@paulreese3071]

@@fivewattworld Here's my 2 cents and I'll try not to be too long winded. I was 16yrs old and went to Chuck Levins Music with my buddies. I had about $100 in my pocket. There we find a '67 w/ blade pickups and they want $300. I tell my buddies we need to run home so I can get the balance, this is pre ATM btw. My one buddy digs into his pocket and pulls out a wad of cash. He fronts me the $200 and we bring the Hofner home! On the ride home the cash flush buddy gives us all a life lesson that "you never go to a music store w/ less than $500 in your pocket, bcuz you never know what you might be fortunate enough to stumble across!" I played that bass thru high school and then put it in it's case for almost 30yrs. About 15yrs ago I dug it out and sent it to Mike Lennon in Arizona who perfectly restored it to its full glory. It has been a joy to play and share with others ever since. Thank you so much Keith for all of the work that you do!!!

[@paulsimmons5726]

I’ve always loved Paul McCartney and his Hofner 500/1 Beatle Bass tone on all those Beatle albums. Having said that, I’ve tried a few Hofners over my first years but finally found that my Rickenbackers always supplied the tone I heard in my head. Paul McCartney has always set the standard for all-things-bass… Paul’s 500/1 has certainly helped make the 60’s what it was! Your remark about having a short scale bass to add to your sonic versatility was/is spot on! Great video, thanks for posting!

[@jackpine70]

Keep it up, Keith. Finally added a 500/1 to my collection just a year or two ago after 45 years of playing a Ric. You can't help but play Beatles tunes on it!

[@fredsalter1915]

Thanks!

[@riksplace]

Hearing/seeing the story of the rooftop setlist still being on his bass brought a moist eye..........amazing......

[@kevbob]

It's actully the final tour Candlestick show setlist, but still, the effect is the same- so awesome it remains there to this day.

[@acledfloyd]

I recently got a Hofner and it is so great. It’s effortless to play and so fun to write songs with.

[@solicitr666]

As I guess you have heard, the Cavern bass has been recovered. It wasn’t actually stolen from Twickenham, but from an equipment van when it was parked in Notting Hill (back then Notting Hill was a slum, not trendy)

[@mightystorm9688]

This is a fun and great sounding bass. In the hands of a musical genius like Paul it was upfront, melodic and defined the bass sound from my youth along with Jamerson.

[@StarQueenEstrella]

Another equation of the signature sound of Sir Paul’s Höfner is that he was using flatwound strings rather than roundwound strings. I’m not entirely sure why he opted for those instead but clearly it worked well for him.

[@docteurpikachu6913]

He opted for them because roundwound strings had not been invented in the early 60s yet.

[@roughcutguitars]

​@Docteur Pikachu Beat me to it :-) Yeah, that characterizes all the somewhat darker guitar tones on the earliest recordings and throughout Meet The Beatles etc.

[@StarQueenEstrella]

@@roughcutguitars you mean With the Beatles? Meet the Beatles was an Americanized version of the album which, among other things, added artificial reverb not present on the original tracks.

[@roughcutguitars]

@Jeanne Taylor Yes to both. Funny that I defaulted to the American title - I suppose due to being from the U.S. - despite later getting and preferring the more pure production U.K. import. Still, my point is more to the same flatwound-strung guitars throughout, which impart a more mellow/'darker' tone balanced nicely with the brighter Vox amps. My first Rickenbacker ordered back around 1982 was still shipped with Pyramid flatwound strings though that was before I ever knew the technical side of things. Ignorantly put round wounds when it came time for a string change and couldn't understand why I lost that characteristic sound - that and the awful high-gain pickups they'd switched to by that point. While pickup preference for lo/hi-gain is admittedly subjective, it does directly affect the ability to get the same 'Beatles tone'.

[@goodun2974]

​@@docteurpikachu6913 , Interesting. So, what type of strings would have been stock on a Danelectro Longhorn bass around 1964 or 65, flatwound or woundwound? John Entwhistle was playing Longhorns live and in the studio around that time, and recorded My Generation with one, but he ended up with 3 Longhorn basses because he kept breaking what he said were "really thin" stock strings and nobody in England had those strings in stock, so he would just buy another bass!

[@justinchilds1593]

Another great one Keith!!! I wonder how many times I'll watch this one... Thanks for the great content brother!

[@Bob-of-Zoid]

Just a few months ago I worked on a modern Hofner violin 6 string guitar. I think it was made around 2010, it was a chocolate brown one. It was a blast to play for the short time I got to play it before It's owner picked it up. My very first electric guitar was a 62 Hofner Galaxy. Thanks Kieth for another great Video!

[@StarQueenEstrella]

In a Wired autocomplete interview (circa 2018, I believe?), Sir Paul said that although he has no idea where his original 1961 Höfner bass is, he has a half-fantasy that it’s on the mantle in someone’s castle somewhere in the “hills of Bavaria”.

[@fredstevens799]

great job (as usual) Keith! many thanks! I play an Epiphone "Viola" bass - basically a solid-body Beatle-bass: tobacco burst, short scale, zero fret. about 8#, beautiful carved flame-maple top & back. VERY affordable! I put on flatwounds and play with a pick (like Carole Kaye and Macca occasionally). I LOVE the sound! I am amazed how few people at the bar gigs I play (classic rock covers) recognize the bass or its significance/history - even the ones old enough to know! I wondered how it was that Epiphone had a version of a guitar not made by Gibson, then I discovered that Gibson DID make an early violin-shaped bass (EB-1) - I think Jack Bruce played one at the Cream reunion Royal Albert Hall gig... thanks again!

[@whodom]

Cool episode. I don’t think you mentioned this: I remember reading years ago that a big part of McCartney’s tone with the Hofner was that he used Pyramid Gold flatwound strings, and of course a pick.

[@edkutschke814]

Always enjoy your videos,Keith. Interesting, informative and entertaining. Definitely one of my favorite channels.

[@sassycat]

I wasn't aware of how there were neck reset issues with these. Informative as always, Keith!

[@josephmosesso466]

Keith- What a fantastic journey through an incredible history. Thanks!

[@sharkman4928]

Awesome video Keith!!!! I was just at Sweetwater and was in the used gear room playing a 1979 Gibson Les Paul Standard (Natural) when a guy brought in a green Hofner bass. I had one of my Gibson SG's in the repair shop and went over to pick it up when I was leaving and that green Hofner was there waiting to get a check-up. I really like the look of the Hofner but never played one.....maybe someday!

[@glenkepic3208]

Nicely done. I was 7 in '64 for the Ed Sullivan show but didn't know anything about Hofner. I started playing for real (first electric) at 15 in '72. After a few months, i swing by a local shop to check out some stuff. I remember 3 guitars pretty clearly,,, A 'wave crest' Ric solid body, a Fender Jag and a blonde Hofner violin guitar. Never seen anything like it ever since. ha, asked myself 'why is the finish broken?' It was checking. Still sweet. Thanx for the memories, Keith !!

[@sebastianmaharg]

Correction: the taped setlist was that of the Beatles' final tour in 1966 and the rooftop concert was not at Abbey Road but rather Apple HQ on Savile Row.

[@ungnome1]

Gosh. I’m as always…SO appreciative of what you do. This was, is, killer!

[@eaglesfan1164]

Great episode!! Always wanted to learn about that unique bass that Paul McCartney certainly made famous!!

[@monday6524]

Keith, another great Short History. The Beatles are always interesting and this SH provides more insight into Paul. I have never played a Hofner but would love the historical experience. I have a copy of Andy Babiuk’s book Beatles Gear. It is a great read.

[@malexder0082]

I bought a used one in 1967 for $50 in Mannheim, Germany, when my father was in the US military. I never learned to play it and sold it for $150 when I was a student in Paris in 1970. It sure would look cool hanging on my wall now.

[@guithawk-ij8is]

Excellent job as always, love your short histories! Picked one up a few years ago and absolutely love to play it. As a guitar player mainly, the short scale neck is inviting, and as the owner of several Gibson and Gretsch hollow bodies, I love how it resonates. Works great for jazz as well as Beatles

[@macmccreadie8541]

The presenter of 5 Watt World is a top class communicator...excellent.

[@fivewattworld]

Thanks Mac

[@citygirlfarm]

As always, very enjoyable. Your content never fails to inform and entertain. Thanks.

[@stickman55100]

Amazing how every one of your episodes is so interesting, meticulous and really important. Thank you.

[@fivewattworld]

Thanks Michael

[@stickman55100]

@@fivewattworld 🙏🎸

[@aaronarchermusic]

Love your content. Always a treat when you release a new video!

[@JoshuaC923]

Another amazing short history video, great sound! Thanks Keith!

[@PANICBLADE]

Worth mentioning, Bob Daisley also used a Hofner violin bass while playing with Ozzy. It's on Flying High Again.

[@kzumbrun27]

Recently, perhaps late 2023, Paul was reunited with the stolen 1961 he first owned. A wonderful reunion.

[@stephenfisher9505]

I never wanted a Hofner . Till I ran across a Chinese one on a MUST GO!! sale for under $275 . WOW I WAS BLOWN AWAY . what a nice little bass I LOVE IT. Made in china designed in Germany. Its my finger plucking bass. I don't beat it like my my P bass (don't think the HOF can handle a thumpin.) If you run across a cheap Hof get it you won't regret it.

[@twantheunisz9281]

after asking for so long! glad we got it!

[@davidchase-lopes8413]

Thanks for my Good Friday morning coffee compagnon ! Super as usual Keith!!!!

[@fivewattworld]

Merçi mon frère!

[@davidchase-lopes8413]

@@fivewattworld we should try to catch up soon

[@jeffmckinnon5842]

Ya got to love 5Watt-World. It's dedication to documenting history via video, is just so cool, weather you play, or not. Thank you so much for all you do.

[@kevbob]

I bought one of the cheap Ignition versions of this bass for like $325 or $350 or something and I love it. It's got the thump that I expect. I have a Japanese Fender Jaguar bass for whatever else I like to play, so yeah, it's nice to have the short scale in my collection with the Hofner.

[@mcexley001]

Nice job, Keith! I never really appreciated this instrument, and you made it clear that it deserves attention.

[@Gynra]

I wish I still had my Hofner Beatle Bass, bought new in '64. The short scale suited my fairly small hands (though I did play a Precision in later years) and it was easy to play. It's strange that very few other bands used the instrument. I don't play any more but I still have a Gibson SG bass, another great short-scale instrument.

[@edsteinke8820]

Your slogan “the most sound with the least gear” is great. But ever time I watch a video I think, maybe I should get one of those. That would be a cool addition. 😀

[@Irkennalpha]

For me this is the quintessential sound of bass. I love the bass on Tiny Tim’s first album, for example.

[@stoobydootoo4098]

I think you should 'tip-toe' around that admission!😁

[@tomdaoust]

Good program. Thanks.

[@procurorick]

love these videos, the one about Pauk's guitars made me cry...

[@ObjectiveDynamics]

Another great video. Thanks! The photo of The Steve Gibbons Band took me back a while. I did a favour for a friend about then and it ended up with us being at a soundcheck for the band at The Half Moon in Putney, London. They were a good band. Check out their version of Tulane. The band were from the UK but the guy sat at the front is PJ. He was an American. He was a great slide player and showed me a few tricks. A great band and all-round good people to boot

[@gregmize01]

Thanks Keith!

[@ght_1]

The setlist taped on the bass was the setlist for their last tour in 1966, not the rooftop concert

[@IamMagPie]

00:24 - one could also argue that there are three important basses: 1) Fender (P & J) 2) The Höfner 500/1 3) Rickenbacker (4001 & 4003) I love all of them 😍

[@IamMagPie]

14:48 - the set list on the bass was present at the rooftop concert at 3 Saville Row (not Abbey Road studio as some say). But the set list was attached prior to that. It's from the 1966 tour.

[@mykewright1]

I'd argue that the Rickenbacker 4000 series are more important and influential than the Höfner 500/1 series in terms of number of influential bassists and influential recordings.

[@johna1160]

Always thought of the Paul's Hofner as having a thumpy, hollow tone, but tubby describes it accurately as well.

[@pensatorseven1898]

Rickenbacker should also be mentioned as one of the Basses used in Rock as well.

[@shaunw9270]

I agree 👍

[@NewFalconerRecords]

He has done a history of Rickenbacker basses. He even mentioned it in this very video.

[@alanshewitt]

Agree 100%. Absolutely the fourth “voice” of rock bass.

[@lenwhatever4187]

The sound of the Rick has always been what I think of when I think rock. Right from roundabout on. The fender bass sounds are what you use if you don't want the bass to stick out. On the other hand, I think more bass players go custom, fretless, 5 string, 6 string or at least semi-custom. Bass playing is a different animal from guitar playing. Guitarists seem to pick from just a few iconic guitars, bass players are more willing to look outside of the fender P/J and Rick basses. As stated in the video, it was hard to find video of people playing a Hofner aside from Beetle tunes. Historical importance but not a common use bass. The assertion that the Hofner was bought because a better instrument cost too much pretty much says it all. Many musicians used cheap guitars not for sound but because of price.

[@bassmangotdbluz3547]

I played a 1974 Rickenbacker 4001S for years on the road until it died in a car wreck in 1983. I never thought I got a really good sound out of it since the shielding sucked on those and most Bass Amps of the day other than an Ampeg SVT were downright shitty but I was broke and used a Fender Bassman 135 with a VT15 Cab, Sunn Sorãdo Piggyback with 2x15" and 2 Peavey Bass Amps (Century, Centurion) in my early days. Prior, I had a 1959 Gibson EB0 and broke the neck. The only two solid neck thru-body Solid Body Basses I owned in my youth are the only necks I have ever broken, I have never broken a bolt-on neck. The irony of this is staggering. These days, I usually play a 1971 Fender Jazz Bass, which is currently getting a fret job, so I'm playing my early G&L JB-2 that I scored from a Pawn Shop a few years ago. I also have a dozen others that never leave the house. Mostly, my other Fender Basses (Jaguar, Modern Player Telecaster Bass, fretless J Bass) Gibsons (EB2, EB3, Flying V), Danelectros (Longhorn Bass, SC-2 Baritone), and even an incredibly versatile 1978 Peavey T-40 with a Rock Maple Neck & Swamp Ash body, it literally weighs 40lb, and was my #2 fave to play until I found this G&L.

[@BessieBopOrBach]

An unexpected and wonderful video, Keith. Thanks. To this day, Hofners (particularly the import CT series) may have the best price-quality proposition in the world of guitar.

[@geoffparkes]

The 60’s TV programme was not “Ready Set Go” but “Ready Steady Go” with Keith Fordyce and Cathy McGowan presenting. It was filmed in London, for the ITV network in black and white and never broadcast in the US. It was one of the reasons that I own a Hofner 500/1 63 model.

[@jake105]

I always assumed Paul bought the Hofner "violin" so it could be altered right to left and not look like an upside down righty.

[@BedeLaplume]

Excellent research and narration worked. I shared it on FB Hofner page..

[@chrisggoodwin777]

Not bass, but Beatles related: according to Zildjian, after the Beatles performed on Ed Sullivan, Zildjian finished the year with 99,000 back orders. Indeed, everyone wanted what the Beatles were playing

[@christopherweise438]

Ringo was one of the few British drummers that used Zildjian as Paiste tried to get a foot hold in the market by giving drummers free replacements if they cracked one. Most of the heavy rock guys played Paiste for that reason.

[@walterbrazil231]

My 1st Bass was a copy of the Hofner. My mom paid $85 which was a lot for 1967. Had flat wounds and pushed through a Fender Bass amp. Enjoyed it for a while but then in 8th grade Graduation my buddies brothers band played and he let me try his Jazz Bass and fell in love with the longer neck plus the sound because I switched over for a flip top Ampeg B 15 which was the main amp for Salsa electric uprights.

[@walterbrazil231]

Yes . The Bass in my profile pic.....

[@cameronstilliens7163]

What a great video! No joke, was just thinking the other day, “I wonder when a video on the Hofner bass is coming?” Lol 😆 great video cheers 👍

[@johndelong9230]

I remember being told by a engineer that the Hofner was the best bass he ever used in mixing on his board.

[@jeffkroboth5466]

The BASSMAN sticker , was to designate the Bass Cabinets from the guitar cabinets which were the same size in those years. I had mine for years from my 2-15" cab

[@cochabambas]

Also worth mentioning that during the Get Back period McCartney's Hofner was strung with black nylon flatwounds and they sound great.

[@stoobydootoo4098]

Yes. A very smooth sound, I found when I used them many years ago.

[@williampayne7678]

Nice bass I'm a left Handed Guitarist as well from South Wales. 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁷󠁬󠁳󠁿 United Kingdom 🇬🇧. Nice job Keith.

[@ad-rz1cd]

I would say that the influence of Paul's Hofner bass was more visual than sonic, since on Beatle recordings with the most memorable (and audible) bass lines Paul was actually playing the Rickenbacker. That wasn't widely known for years because there wasn't the kind of documentation and analysis of recordings that goes on today, so a lot of us just assumed we were hearing the Hofner until it was revealed to be otherwise.

[@ad-rz1cd]

And full disclosure, I own a 1965 Hofner 500/1 and it is a great instrument. I never have owned a Rickenbacker, so there you go..

[@artofnoly9754]

Can't help feeling that the "set list" taped to the Hofner bass, with durex, is from a considerably earlier epoch. They definitely did not open the London rooftop gig in 1969 with Chuck Berry's Rock 'n' Roll music. Great vid. Thanx.

[@fivewattworld]

See the comments. Seems the story I was told was a little off. But hey, it was just a story.

[@artofnoly9754]

@@fivewattworld No worries. Still love your stuff. Keep it coming.

[@benjclarke5825]

Big ol' goof - the setlist is NOT for the rooftop concert. That is for an earlier show. Nonetheless, very cool and informative video.

[@georgecranston8102]

Great video as always, have a mug ordered coming in soon!

[@TheHylianBatman]

I'm grumpy about people calling it a violin bass. To me, it seems obvious that the bass is styled after a classic upright bass, like the EB-1. But that's just what I think. I love these things. If I had one of those in addition to my Precision, I would feel quite set!

[@mortonwilson795]

Terrific episode, thanks! I had a Hofner when I started out on bass with our band in NZ but soon switched to guitar so bought a 1968 Les Paul Custom. I STUPIDLY gave the bass to a 'potential' girlfriend at the time who 'wanted to learn' . . . still kicking myself. I bought a Hofner 62 or 63 re-issue sometime in the 90's when it turned up here in HK, having already bought a blonde Rickenbacker a few years earlier - both fab! I put flat-wounds on both FWIW - still play them in the studio when the track warrants it 😀

[@rollowarlin8450]

My best friend in high school bought one of these after we graduated in 1964. Years later l saw him and asked him if he still had it. He told me he sold it because it just could not compete with the Fenders. Yes, it was used on many Beatle records, but you have to take into consideration the multi-million-dollar equipment at Abby Road Studio they used to bump up and fill out the sound of this rather thin, light weight bass produced.

[@gregorramsundar]

Finally I was gonna find if he made a video about the violin bass but he then I saw this just now

[@blakewhittington4336]

Part of Paul's sound is the fact that he plays with a pick should have had someone playing with a pick for the demo

[@EricNielsen85]

This was perfection… till that last slip with the setlist. Once again thanks Keith! Will rewatch if you decide to edit!!

[@fivewattworld]

Yeah…thanks

[@nclsrfn]

bought an Ignition, I thought this bass was a quirky toy at first but I became a fan after the first rehearsal with the band, I agree that every bass player should have one.

[@TonyLovell]

SHOUT OUT at 9:20 to the Music Emporium - one of the finest guitar shops in this world. North of Cambridge, Massachusetts. Bought two guitars there.