Back in 1985 I attended the Barbican Guitar Exhibition in London - this all came flooding back to me when I was looking for information on Bass Ukuleles last week - one link that came up was the info on this site about Kala Bass Ukes.
When I was at the show in 1985, I happened to be talking to Alun Ashworth-Jones about pickups when Nigel Thornbory brought out a rather strange piece of rough sanded pine with bits of rubber attached... The public debut of the Ashbory bass. As I recall my instant response was amusement but, like those around me, I was curious to see what happened when you plugged it in...
Amazing - it sounded just like a double bass! It wasn't long before Chris Martin came round to the stand but in the meantime I had cornered Nigel on the subject of "Are you building them to sell? When? How much?" and the answers were a bit indefinite! I think we agreed on the sum of £99 for a passive model and I paid him a deposit .
I also recall it was some months before it arrived - but eventually it did - I unpacked it, there were a few spare strings and the bass. I noted some distinct construction differences - the fret markers were actually inlaid strips of a lighter wood, it was lacquered and everything! - I played it quite a lot and showed it to all my friends - every body agreed it made an amazing sound and was virtually unplayable!
Eventually it ended up on my wall and then up to the attic - from where I dragged it down again this very day.
So, I bring you what is almost certainly the first Ashbory bass ever ordered from Nigel
