• Musician That Coloring Our World

    John Alec Entwistle



    John Alec Entwistle was an English bass guitarist, songwriter, singer, horn player, and film and record producer who was best known as the bass player for the rock band The Who. His aggressive lead sound influenced many rock bass players. Wikipedia
    Born: October 9, 1944, Chiswick
    Died: June 27, 2002, Las Vegas
    Height: 6' 0" (1.82 m)
    Spouse: Maxene Harlow (m. 1991–1997), Alison Wise (m. 1967)












    1974–1976

    Bass guitars

    Alembic bass, courtesy Brad Rodgers, whocollection.com.

    1974 Alembic Series I basses
    One in natural finish zebra wood (the first one); others finished as pictured at right and below.
    Zebra wood one sold in Sotheby’s 2003 auction.
    Indistinct serial number (74 011?) impressed to top edge of headstock.
    Estimated £2,000–£3,000; sold for £13,200.
    These Alembics featured active electronics and five-pin connector along with the standard jack.
    John (about the first one): Bought from Fred Walecki whilst holidaying in L.A.… I had it re-wired back to stereo by Peter Cook. He brought it along to a Who rehearsal when he’d finished — I plugged it in and it blew my mind. I jetted to San Francisco 3 days before the tour started and bought three more!

    From the August 1989 Guitar Player
    He happened upon a second-hand Alembic in a Los Angeles music store. “Someone had wired it incorrectly, so I gave it to my guitar tech, Pete Cook, to fix. Right before we were to leave for a U.S. tour, he brought it to a rehearsal, where I tried it and was, of course, blown away. I flew over early to order three more basses from Alembic, who eventually built me the Explorer-shaped models.”

    Instrument at right owned by Brad Rodgers; on display at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland, Ohio, from 1998–2007.
    Fender “Explorer-Bird”
    Used in studio only, 1975 and 1978.
    Gibson Explorer-style body with Fender Precision Bass maple necks and machine heads; gold-plated hardware, two volume controls/one tone control.
    Several custom-made by Peter Cook, in white (later given to Pete) and orange/red.
    As seen in the Who Are You segment of The Kids Are Alright film, 1978.
    Orange/red one old in Sotheby’s May 2003 auction. Estimated £2,000–£3,000; sold for £12,000.
    1973 white Rickenbacker 4001 prototype 8-string bass

    Used in studio only: Success Story, 1975.
    Serial no. MH2553.
    Reverse (low string/high string) setup.
    Wavy headstock, with four-a-side machineheads.
    Cream finish with chequered binding; through neck with rosewood fingerboard, dot markers.
    One of two; other one bought by Chris Squire.
    Sold in Sotheby’s May 2003 auction. Estimated £1,500–£1,800; sold for £4,560.
    Custom Peter Cook “Lightning Bolt” bass

    Click to view larger version
    Custom “Lightning Bolt” bass, made by Peter Cook. Courtesy Rock Stars Guitars.

    Featured on The Who By Numbers album cover drawing
    Used on many tracks
    On display at Hard Rock Café, New York.

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