John Mc Vie

[jseitang]

funny you say, im actually getting a bass made that is inspired by the one above..its gonna have the same scale and body shape.

[mtjam]

Cool bass! That will look and sound great!

[fretted4]

I had to steal this thread pic for this section....But I had to post it....John's stainless steel fretless series 1!!!
 

 
(Message edited by mica on October 20, 2014)

[fretted4]

Here is a pic from another thread, sorry guys!!! This one really stumps me....I thought I knew everything there was to know about his basses, guess not....Whats the deal with this bass???
  **the upload attachment is not working...click on the link****  http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/199036.html?1413629148

[fretted4]

 

[edwardofhuncote]

That's awesome Rusty! If there's anything in the world that might get me on another airplane... that might do it. =)
 
Regarding this other bass that once belonged to McVie... having always wondered what bass was pictured on the box set, I too am anxiously awaiting the rest of it's story. That unusual (string-thru?) tailpiece almost reminds me of the one on The Godfather. Totally an uneducated guess on my part, but I wonder if John had the Elves do some mods on an older bass (maybe a secondhand victim of broken neck) for the purpose of touring without risk to #27 or the stainless steel fretless.

[David Houck]

The thread at the ball-end of the strings suggests that it is not a string-thru tailpiece.  And the combination of that beautiful top wood (I'm guessing Rosewood), neck inlays, tailpiece, and full superfilter, suggests that this is a custom build.  The only thing that seems (to me) out of place is that unusual peghead and the tuning pegs.  However, although it's hard to tell in the pictures we have at the moment, it does look like the peghead may have the same top wood as the body.  Another unusual feature is the truss rod cover.

[edwardofhuncote]

Spotted this one of Mac with #27... looks like this picture was made before the bird tailpiece and master volume mods. Pickups look like the black ones too. (didn't it get the caramel-colored ones later?)
 

[edwardofhuncote]

Ran across this picture of McVie with post-mod #27 while looking for something else... 
 


 
 
Here's a little mystery I've been trying to figure out about John's Alembics. As far as I've even known, he's had four of them... the early Standard Point known to be #73-27. Then there's the Stainless Steel fingerboard Omega body, and the graphite-necked small standard body, both reportedly made in 1976 according to the History page. http://www.alembic.com/family/history.html Lastly, a dark colored, mysterious Standard Point body with a Fender-shaped graphite neck, with custom inlay and possibly a super-filter. (as seen/discussed in this thread: http://club.alembic.com/index.php?topic=8271.msg95573#msg95573
 
So I'm reading Ken Caillat's book, Making Rumours, and the fretless Alembic is mentioned several times as being used during the recording of the album, which began early in 1976. But he also mentions John's Alembic #33. Huh?!
 
So which one is being referred to? That dark Standard Point with the complex electronics is almost certainly newer than #73-33. I guess it's possible/likely Caillat (or his ghost writer) didn't know any different. 
 
Is it also possible Mac's been holding out on us? =) Anybody know? Just curious.

[David Houck]

Interestingly, #33 is in the Showcase three times, with three different owners.
http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/1908.html?1033755887
http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/5494.html?1117685470
http://club.alembic.com/Images/411/210516.html?1449866073

[sonicus]

Very interesting !  A popular instrument !

[edwardofhuncote]

Ah.  I knew #73-33 was Todd's bass... right next to Wolf's, and the only one of the small-bodied basses McVie ever had (that I know of) was this graphite-necked prototype from 1976.  
 
 
 
This may be a simple case of the author taking an artistic liberty. Hard to say, since of the 4 Alembics he's had, I have never read provenance of any other than old #27.

[edwardofhuncote]

Anyone recognize this early Alembic on McVie's Facebook page? It's not #27, but it's almost certainly from that same time frame.

https://m.facebook.com/1727753080847083/photos/a.1727757810846610.1073741828.1727753080847083/1727757720846619/?type=3&source=54

Doesn't even say it's his... maybe Mac spotted one that got by us all. 

[jseitang]

this looks like mine .