I think crgaston wants the bass. When you want something you take measures to work hard and get it.
The first Alembic I ever grabbed was in 1987. It was an '82 Spoiler being hosted by the Freedom guitar shop in Hollywood. The shop owner wanted 1,150, perhaps a bit high but what the heck did I know. I haggled him down to agree to let me have it for $1,000 out the door. He said DEAL and I gave him $50.00. A suprised look appeared upon his face.
We continued to deal.
At the time I was making $7.12 with rent, insurance payments, automotive expenses, and other miscellaneous fiscal responsibilies. I didn't have $1,000.00. This town of L.A. is pricey. Not S.F. or N.Y. pricey, mind you, but still up there as far as costs go.
A layaway plan was agreed upon between the shop owner and I. Every week I would walk into the Freedom guitar shop in Hollywood and give the store owner $20.00 here, $50.00 there, maybe $100.00 on a good week. I think the store owner was taken with my enthusiasm and desire for ownership of the Spoiler.
I hocked my Sunn Coliseum head to the store owner for $50.00 credit, took weekend jobs through temp agencies for extra cash, moved furniture, recycled cans, sat in on a cover band for two paying gigs despite their repertoire being artistically offensive (the lowest I ever stooped).
16 weeks and 4 days later, May 19th 1987 (a Tuesday) I walked out of that store with that bass. I remember the date because it's Pete Townshend's birthday.
I must say that I amazed myself in being able to save nearly an extra $60.00 a week in order to get that bass. It took quite a bit of extra work and sacrifices, but well worth sacrifices.
The only thing I wouldn't sacrifice was my first bass. For that one I washed dishes for four months in 1979 at $2.95 an hour. I was 17 years old at the time and in many ways it was easier to get, due to I was a high school student living at home without the extra bills.
(the bass was a '79 Rickenbacker, for those who care)
Of course I went back to being broke after getting the Spoiler because I gave up the weekend and extra work to do the musician thing; to play the bass(es). I still have the Spoiler. It has been played to death, seen quite a bit of gig and some road work, it doesn't shine as pretty as the day I bought it. Yet it sounds just as wonderful. I should post pictures of it sometime, it's one of the first 50 Spoilers with the decal on the headstock.
John Entwistle himself sat down on a couch and played it once. He then made some disparaging comment (his Alembic's were a bit fancier than mine) and he drew a little design on the back. Unfortunately that design wore off, you can only see a faint circle.
(Despite the rockstar snooty 'tude' about my bass that evening, Entwistle remains my favorite of all the thudstaff thumpers).
Anyway. What I'm thinking is that Crgaston wants that Spoiler bass. And I say GO GET IT
