Alembic Sighting - 1975

[paulman]

Rolling through YouTube I came across an Eric Johnson performance from 1975.  Bass player is using an Alembic umm...Brown Bass?  I had no idea Eric was even a player in 1975!

[Philip-M-Bass]

Very Cool ,  Thanks !

[adriaan]

Confusing opening sequence where you hear Stanley's recording of Lopsy Lu (played on either the Brown Bass, or the one before it that got stolen). Kyle Brock is playing what must be a 74 or 75 small body Series I, with what appears to be a maple neck with darker laminates, where a Brown Bass would have a mainly mahogany neck with no maple.

[hieronymous]

The fingerboard is interesting too - rosewood perhaps?

Thanks for sharing this - I heard about them while reading guitar magazines in the late 80s/early 90s but never got to check them out. Very Mahavishnu/Return to Forever

[gearhed289]

You guys notice the "strap extension" running toward the headstock? Interesting way to combat neck dive!

[rv_bass]

Looks like a series bass, it has a hum cancelling pickup in the middle

[adriaan]

Looks like a series bass, it has a hum cancelling pickup in the middle

Before the Distillate came around, all Alembics were Series instruments. On the earliest ones, the humcanceller would be stuck in the electronics cavity, and there would be a battery cavity between the pickups.

[keith_h]

It's hard for me to tell for sure but it looks like one of the elusive long scale small body basses.

[mavnet]

I've got 2 of those elusive basses (fretted and fretless), and the proportions on his look pretty much the same. Nice catch!

[gtrguy]

Neck Dive!!!

[keith_h]

I've got 2 of those elusive basses (fretted and fretless), and the proportions on his look pretty much the same. Nice catch!

The Steve Fossen bass is a long scale fretless as well. I thought member Mike Delacerda owns/owned one or two LS small bodies as well. I talked to him about the longer neck when I was planning my Series 1 as had concerns about reaching the low frets. In the end I decided to stick with a short scale due to not having the longest arms in the world and have been happy with that decision.

[mario_farufyno]

Great playing

[David Houck]

Back in the mid to late 70's, the Electromagnets would come through Chapel Hill from time to time to play the Town Hall bar.  We were big fans, as we were of the Dregs.  Saw them again in '79 in Phoenix where they were opening for Roy Buchanan.  Then at some point Eric Johnson became the Eric Johnson.