"Tommy - Can You Hear Me?"

1967 Rickenbacker 4005 OS Bass (Double-Bound)

This exceptionally rare February 1967 Fireglo 4005 OS bass weighs just 8.10 lbs. This 15 inch wide, just under 1 1/2 inch deep thinline semi-hollow body bass features offset cutaways and a single "slash" soundhole. Double-bound maple body with a flat top. Two-piece maple neck with a mahogany center strip,  a nut width of just under 1 11/16 inches, a standard Rickenbacker bass scale length of 33 1/2 inches and a wonderful medium profile. Bound rosewood fretboard with 20 original medium/jumbo frets and triangular inlaid crushed-pearl position markers extending completely across the single-bound rosewood fretboard. Headstock with hooked "cresting wave" top and white opaque plastic truss-rod cover, lettered in black and secured by three screws. Individual open-back Grover bass tuners with cloverleaf metal buttons. Two chrome bar "toaster" pickups, the neck pickup with 'short-poles' and an output of 7.63k and the bridge pickup with 'long-poles' and an output of 8.75k. White plastic pickguard with five screws and original clear plastic thumb-rest with two screws. An additional and identical factory fitted thumb-rest on the bass side. Five controls (two volume, two tone, and a master "blender" control) plus three-way selector switch, all on pickguard. Seven-sided black plastic knobs with metal tops with black lettering. Four-saddle bridge and "R" tailpiece. Jack input on a metal plate (with the serial number "GB [February 1967] 978" on the lower treble bout. The pots are dated "137 6633" and "137 6648" (CTS August & December 1966). Inside the control cavity on the underside of the body is written "4005 - S" and "Spcl" in black marker and the serial number "GB-978" in black pen. This wonderful bass guitar is in exceptionally fine condition (9.00). There is some belt buckle rash on the back and two small areas of surface loss (less than 1 x 3/4 inch). There are a few small and insignificant marks on the back of the neck - most notably behind the first third and fourth frets. There is some fret-wear which is mainly apparent on the first seven frets. This super rare bass is 100% original and in exceptionally fine (9.00++) condition. Housed in the original three-latch, rectangular black hardshell case with black leather ends and dark blue plush lining (9.00). Included in the case is the original 'Ace' woven-cloth and brown leather guitar strap, the original Rickenbacker polishing cloth,  an original "July 1, 1966" eight-page Rickenbacker "Technical Data and Price List" and an early 1968 eight-page color "Guitar and Bass" catalog. There is even an original Rickenbacker Bass String box in which we have put the original? and nearly dead! set of strings that were on the guitar. The Rickenbacker cases changed from silver to black during 1967 - although this is a February production guitar it may not have been sold immediately and must have been actually sold during late 1967 or even possibly early 1968. In early 1967 the list price of the regular '4005' was $479.50 and the case would have been a separate purchase - an additional $64.50!!).

"The large, flat pickguard houses a three-way toggle switch, two volume controls, two tone controls, and (as found on Capri-style guitars beginning in ’62) a fifth knob that allows balancing the output of the pickups. Other standard comparisons to Capri guitars include a slash-shaped soundhole and an “R” tailpiece… The 4005 was ultimately marketed in variants including the 4005WB introduced in 1966. This model was bound front and rear (WB stood for “white binding”)." (www.vintageguitar.com/36097/rickenbacker-4005/).

"Model 4005WB--Rickenbacker produced some 4005 basses in the 1960s with white binding on both sides of the body. At that time factory called these models 4005 OS." The Rickenbacker shipping figures for 1967 are not available but we do know that there were just ten Fireglo and seven Natural 4005 OS guitars shipped in 1966. (Richard Smith. The History of Rickenbacker Guitars. p. 208 and 238).

Introduced in 1965, "the Model 4005 and Model 4005/6 were Rickenbacker's thin-line hollow body electric basses. Rickenbacker created these models at a time when other companies were having success with this type of bass. The British invasion groups helped to start this trend with their interest in hollow body models; before the 4005 was available, the company received many requests for hollow body basses from England. The company even took an order for a violin shaped six string bass with a natural finish in 1965, but there is no evidence the factory made it. The body shape of the Model 4005 basses followed the styling of the 1965 Models 306-375 standard guitars: they had a rounded top edge and double cutaways. The 4005 basses had two pickups and Deluxe features. Like the solid body basses, they had string mutes, twenty-one [sic] frets, rosewood fingerboards, and full scales. The first ones were available in either Fireglo or natural maple finishes. In the 1970s they were available in any of the standard Colorglo finishes. These models had slash soundholes and R tailpieces" (Richard R. Smith, The History of Rickenbacker Guitars, p. 207).

Among the great "sixties" bassists who used a 4005, were Nick St. Nicholas of the Steppenwolf,  and John Entwistle of The Who, who used a similar '67 (serial no. GE 2208) in the studio between 1969 and 1970.