Osage Orange to be Played

[paulman]

Looks like the Mission Control is coming out!  You guys in Cali have all the luck.


https://www.jambase.com/article/dark-star-orchestra-phil-lesh-mission-control-bass


It's been forever since I posted anything, and now I've made two!  I've been missing this place...

[pauldo]

Glad to see you back Roger and both your posts have great depth of content.

Paul (who posts frequent non-sensical thoughts and ramblings)

[cozmik_cowboy]

"....Skip will be the first to perform with it in public since the pickups and neck were lost."

Pick-ups and neck??  Reminds me of something I heard once somewhere:  "This is my grandfather's ax.  My father replaced the handle.  I replaced the head.  Is this my grandfather's ax?"

As it seems only the body wings survived, I have to ask - Is this Phil's ax?

Peter

[edwardofhuncote]

I'd like some clarification on that too. I had not seen that the neck was replaced; only that sections of the neck beam and top that had been 'bath-tubbed' out were replaced with inlaid peices of correct wood. There were some pictures here somewhere of the work in progress.


Whatever events transpired, that Mission Control/Osage Orange is a functional bass again is a big win in my book, and better still that it's being used to play the music it was intended to play. Sitting untouchable behind glass, or worse yet, hacked up in a moldy old case is a heartbreaking thought.


I'd like to know more... maybe we will sometime.

[StephenR]

I thought the restored bass was already played at a gig in Nashville last July?

[edwin]

I thought the restored bass was already played at a gig in Nashville last July?

Somewhat restored. Since then, Rick has done a lot more work on it.

It appears that there is a lot more original than previously thought. Aside from the center section, the top and back were all solid except one of the inlays around one of the knob clusters. The current owner, Jason Schuener, is determined to get it back together.

Now I wish I hadn't turned down Dark Star Orchestra back in 2002!

[Mission Control]

Hey guys.  I'm the guy who bought the bass.  Lots of misinformation about the bass.  The neck and bridge pick ups have been recovered and are going to be installed in the next 30 days along with historically accurate hum canceling coils, historically accurate quad pick up, and historically accurate batwing tailpiece.  The restoration by Gruhn was structurally excellent, but the pick ups were all wrong, that is being corrected and then some with the original units, etc....  We also replaced the LEDs in the top.  When I say we, I mean Rick Turner.  It will go to Alembic for final inspection when the last of the work is done.  Hit me up for any questions about the bass or the project.  God bless the Grateful Dead. 

[lbpesq]

Hi, Jason, and welcome to the club.   It is wonderful that Phil’s bass appears to finally be in the hands of someone who truly appreciates its historic significance and is committed to restoring it to as close to original condition as possible.  Towards that end, relying on Rick Turner and Alembic could not be more correct.  I know that Gruhn is supposed to be the god of vintage instruments, but for this job no one can compare to the folks who built it in the first place!   Thanks for taking the reins of this project and please post pics when it’s completed.  We LOVE Alembic/Grateful Dead porn around here!

Stay safe,

Bill, the guitar one

[cozmik_cowboy]

Nice to meet you, Jason!
Allow me to second Bill's welcome, as well as his other comments - and add that while George "Top-Dollar" Gruhn (whose old column inn Guitar Player I used to love reading, & on whose "Inventory" page I have whiled away many an insomniac hour) was once a legendary vintage-guitar expert, in recent years he has seems to have become much more of a celebrity memorabilia huckster. 

Now, you just need 4 MacIntosh MC-2300s & 36 1X15 Alembic speaker cabs to go with it............

Peter

[lbpesq]

Now, you just need 4 MacIntosh MC-2300s & 36 1X15 Alembic speaker cabs to go with it............

Peter

....... and stack them 32 feet high to put out the open low E string as a full wave.......

Bill, tgo

[cozmik_cowboy]

Pardon; things are a bit hinky this AM, and this posted itself.  As I can't delete a post, I will modify to say good morning, all.


Peter