Author Topic: When did you first hear of Alembic (Read 568 times)

olieoliver · « **on:** April 18, 2006, 08:14:45 AM »

Just curious, when did every one here first hear Alembic?
First time I saw or even heard of Alembic was around 1976 or 77 at Skyline High School in Dallas, TX. The cat that played in the lab band ordered a new. When he got it I was hooked. Of course after that I started listening to all the Clarke I could. Jaco was my favorite though, guess thats why I bought a Jazz in 76 instead of an ALembic, then again at the time I could afford the Jazz not the Alembic.I can't believe I waited 28 years to get my first Alembic.

stoney · « **Reply #1 on:** April 18, 2006, 08:25:11 AM »

Mid 70's via Stanley. I didn't know anything about Alembic but one of my friends (who was a bass major at college) said.... that an
alem-beck, I think it's a German company. I actually bumped into Stanley, Chick, Lenny and Al in front of the theater they were playing in Pittsburgh later that year. They all got off of a bus and Stanley had his Alembic with him just slung over his shoulder, not in the case. They stopped and talked for a minute or two but I didn't get a chance to check out the bass. Gee...wish I had!!!

bassman10096 · « **Reply #2 on:** April 18, 2006, 08:44:15 AM »

'72. I asked the typical, dumb question: What kind of hollow body is that, Phil's playin'? An Alembic. Oh. Olympic. No. Alembic.

jalevinemd · « **Reply #3 on:** April 18, 2006, 08:44:57 AM »

For me it was flipping through the book Maximum R&B. That's got to be at least 20 years ago.

keith_h · « **Reply #4 on:** April 18, 2006, 09:00:36 AM »

Stanley and Guitar Player magazine back in the 70's.

Keith

palembic · « **Reply #5 on:** April 18, 2006, 09:54:04 AM »

An old, one colum wide, black and white ad in guitar player showing a medium scale, omega cutout series II in figured Walnut. It was when I decided to stop playing bass at 26. I took a pair of scissors and cutted the ad out the magazine and kept it in my wallet for 14 years. Once I will own such a bass I said to myself.
Weird co?ncidence: the year I got Bonnie my wallet with the ad was stolen.

Paul the bad one

dwmark · « **Reply #6 on:** April 18, 2006, 11:08:10 AM »

Saw Jack playing a monster bass at a free Airplane concert in Grant Park in 1972. Someone said it was some kind of custom bass he got in SF. It certainly was.

dw

alembic76407 · « **Reply #7 on:** April 18, 2006, 11:46:04 AM »

In 1976 a friend of my guitar player (a deadhead) came over to our practice one night and had a new bass that cost $2000 , I thought he had lost his mind, $2000 for a bass, they saw him coming I said, but he gave me his bass to play and I did, the next I went to a music store they had 2 Alembic's both already sold, the store owner called one of the buyer to see if he was going come and pick up his new bass, he said he was having trouble coming up with the money and backed out of the deal and I took it home that day, that was 30 years ago and I still love my Series 1

David T (TLO)

jorge_s · « **Reply #8 on:** April 18, 2006, 12:08:00 PM »

For me it was that old ad with John Judge and Peggy. Christian, if you ever want to let her go please let me know. I know she has a good home though.

bonesrad · « **Reply #9 on:** April 18, 2006, 12:17:29 PM »

In the early 80's, a buddy of mine turned me on to the Dixie Dregs. I loved the tone that Andy West achieved. I was hooked for life.

Bones

lbpesq · « **Reply #10 on:** April 18, 2006, 01:34:48 PM »

ooops!

Bill, tgo

(Message edited by lbpesq on April 18, 2006)

lbpesq · « **Reply #11 on:** April 18, 2006, 01:35:47 PM »

1970's. As an unrepentent deadhead, and major fan of the Airplane and the New Riders, Alembic was the Holy Grail. In about '75 or so I played in a short-lived band in Pasadena called Cripple Finger where the other guitarist had an early Series 1. About a year later, a friend put down a deposit on one, but had to back out when another friend got busted and the $ was needed for bail. Soon thereafter I put a stratoblaster in my strat, along with brass nut and bridge saddles and then a Stars Guitars two band EQ (I think it was called the Startone). I thought Alembics were out of financial reach until I ran across my '83 Electrum at a guitar show a couple of years ago.

Bill, tgo

lowlife · « **Reply #12 on:** April 18, 2006, 02:00:13 PM »

In 1975-76 I worked here in Montreal at Steve's Music Store (who is still the local dealer). They had a Series I on the rack. I played that baby every chance I got. I knew I would own an Alembic someday, but it took 28 years before I actually did. Well worth the wait IMHO.

Ellery (Lowlife)

(Message edited by lowlife on April 18, 2006)

newuser · « **Reply #13 on:** April 18, 2006, 02:02:42 PM »

In the early 70's. I saw the pic of Johnny Winter's guitar in Rolling Stone Magazine and a couple of years later on Stanley's second album cover. First played one in '77. An acquaintance had a long scale Series I with a point (he also had an early 60's P-bass and a simply killer late 1800s Italian Flat Back!).

bigredbass · « **Reply #14 on:** April 18, 2006, 02:21:10 PM »

In the late 70s I worked for a 'mom and pop' (the BEST kind) music store. It had changed owners from an older couple to a very smart young man, and was going from reeds and marching corps business to Les Pauls, Strats, and we were riding the beginning of the era when Hartley Peavey turned hundreds of these style dealers into millionaires. It was like the first time I saw a Series One XK-E Jaguar: Everything else was an automobile, THIS was a CAR.

We cleaned out lots of old stock. They had a file cabinet with bunches of catalogs and brochures, where I found a pricelist and a few slicks from ALEMBIC. After the prices knocked me silly, the pictures killed me. I had never seen ANYTHING like this, and as I read through it, it was obvious these guys had gone from chemical rockets to warp drive.

That image of a maple topped fourstring Series Point literally burned itself into my mind. I truly felt like it was hypnotic suggestion. I felt like Roy Neary in 'Close Encounters', it's a wonder I didn't start pushing mashed potatoes into a point shape!

In late 70s oil patch East Texas (I could see refineries at the end of the street) this was some impossibility, surely available only to monied, pony-tailed and tye-dyed guys in vintage Mercs driving around Mill Valley . . . a while later I heard 'School Days', saw Greg Lake play one at a Houston concert, saw pictures of JPJ with Zeppelin, and it only added to the exotic mystery and impossibility of these things.

It's no wonder I could NEVER get excited about a Fender, no matter how good: WHY would ANYONE drive a Ford if you could somehow have a Ferrari?
The neckthru Yamahas became the surrogate: At least a little of the same concepts and they weren't common in those days. I HATED having the same thing as most other people. People who DON'T want to show off a little make me nervous!

All those years later, I found the BigRedBass. I felt like I'd finally climbed the Devil's Tower and was leaving on the mothership.

Only to find that ultimately it owns me, instead of the other way around. And it's built by some of the nicest people in the world who've become friends to me. This truly is the rarest of cases where a long-time daydream has turned out better than I could have ever hoped for in my wildest dreams.

And Honda thinks THEY have the power of ideas!

J o e y