Fender Telecaster Bass Pink Paisley Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar (1968)
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Item # 12573
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Fender Telecaster Bass Pink Paisley Model Solid Body Electric Bass Guitar (1968), made in Fullerton, California, serial # 222242, pink paisley metallic paper with overcoat of clear acrylic finish, ash body, maple neck, original black tolex hard shell case.
This is a truly superb all-original example of a fabulous looking instrument, the infamous Paisley Telecaster bass. One of CBS/Fender's most whimsical ideas in the summer of 1968 was applying pink paisley or blue floral wallpaper to Telecasters to catch the "Groovy" 1960's vibe at its late-decade high. This process worked well on the slab-bodied Tele shape (the contoured Strat/Precision bodies proved impractical!) and the instruments were released in mid-1968 with a burst of publicity. "Paisley Red pulsates with every beat and swirls in a blinding carousel of colors and forms" claimed Fender's promotional materials, and who are we to argue. Unfortunately these were not big sellers; the basses were made in smaller quantities than the guitar version, and all were out of production by mid-1969.
The Telecaster Bass is the same as its plain blonde siblings under this colorful livery. The large upper body pickguard is clear plastic allowing the full glory of the design to shine through, while the body edges are sprayed pink. This Paisley bass has a neck dated to September 1968; The pots are coded to the 31st week of 1966, part of the huge haul CBS bought in that year. At the time the Telecaster bass in general was a relatively new instrument in the Fender line, although not exactly a new design. It is essentially a straightforward re-issue of the original 1951-2 Precision bass, with the same straight single-coil Tele-style pickup, slab body and chrome fittings. The chunky 34" scale round-backed neck is an early example of the recently re-introduced original 1950s style one-piece maple design.
The July 1968 Fender price list showed the Paisley Telecaster Bass priced at $289.50 (a $40 upcharge from blonde) plus another $64.50 for the black Tolex case. In any finish the original 1968 Telecaster Bass is a fairly bright and powerful sounding instrument with its maple fingerboard, slab body and punchy four-pole pickup. This one is almost incredibly well preserved, absolutely one of the truly grooviest 4-strings we have ever seen!
Overall length is 46 in. (116.8 cm.), 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 34 in. (864 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This bass shows only very minor wear overall and remains in 100% original condition, down to the last screw! Overall this is the best preserved example of this relatively rare model we have seen. It has hardly any of the heavy topcoat checking that often occurs on these paisley models when the Poly finish shrinks over the wallpaper applique, just a few small check marks here and there, nothing is peeling or flaking off. There are a few small chips and dings and a small spot of old tape or strap wear (on the back) to the Poly topcoat on the body, but no serious loss anywhere.
There is some play wear down to the wood on the treble edge of the neck and a couple of scratches and dings along the back. The maple fingerboard shows hardly any wear. The finish has shrunk up a bit on the back of the neck, so the "skunk stripe" seam can be felt in a couple of spots but there is no separation to the wood.
All hardware and fittings are complete and original, including the pickup, wiring and both chrome covers. The mute foam is gone from under the tailpiece cover but the glue mark remains on the metal. The original frets show minimal wear and the bass plays and sounds fantastic, set up with LaBella flatwound strings. This is a super cool and very rare find in this condition; even many only lightly played examples show some of the typical deterioration to the finish this one has almost entirely avoided. It is complete in the classic original Fender HSC; all in all quite a timely (and timeless) late 1960s relic. Overall Excellent Condition.
This is a truly superb all-original example of a fabulous looking instrument, the infamous Paisley Telecaster bass. One of CBS/Fender's most whimsical ideas in the summer of 1968 was applying pink paisley or blue floral wallpaper to Telecasters to catch the "Groovy" 1960's vibe at its late-decade high. This process worked well on the slab-bodied Tele shape (the contoured Strat/Precision bodies proved impractical!) and the instruments were released in mid-1968 with a burst of publicity. "Paisley Red pulsates with every beat and swirls in a blinding carousel of colors and forms" claimed Fender's promotional materials, and who are we to argue. Unfortunately these were not big sellers; the basses were made in smaller quantities than the guitar version, and all were out of production by mid-1969.
The Telecaster Bass is the same as its plain blonde siblings under this colorful livery. The large upper body pickguard is clear plastic allowing the full glory of the design to shine through, while the body edges are sprayed pink. This Paisley bass has a neck dated to September 1968; The pots are coded to the 31st week of 1966, part of the huge haul CBS bought in that year. At the time the Telecaster bass in general was a relatively new instrument in the Fender line, although not exactly a new design. It is essentially a straightforward re-issue of the original 1951-2 Precision bass, with the same straight single-coil Tele-style pickup, slab body and chrome fittings. The chunky 34" scale round-backed neck is an early example of the recently re-introduced original 1950s style one-piece maple design.
The July 1968 Fender price list showed the Paisley Telecaster Bass priced at $289.50 (a $40 upcharge from blonde) plus another $64.50 for the black Tolex case. In any finish the original 1968 Telecaster Bass is a fairly bright and powerful sounding instrument with its maple fingerboard, slab body and punchy four-pole pickup. This one is almost incredibly well preserved, absolutely one of the truly grooviest 4-strings we have ever seen!
Overall length is 46 in. (116.8 cm.), 12 3/4 in. (32.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 5/8 in. (4.1 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 34 in. (864 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This bass shows only very minor wear overall and remains in 100% original condition, down to the last screw! Overall this is the best preserved example of this relatively rare model we have seen. It has hardly any of the heavy topcoat checking that often occurs on these paisley models when the Poly finish shrinks over the wallpaper applique, just a few small check marks here and there, nothing is peeling or flaking off. There are a few small chips and dings and a small spot of old tape or strap wear (on the back) to the Poly topcoat on the body, but no serious loss anywhere.
There is some play wear down to the wood on the treble edge of the neck and a couple of scratches and dings along the back. The maple fingerboard shows hardly any wear. The finish has shrunk up a bit on the back of the neck, so the "skunk stripe" seam can be felt in a couple of spots but there is no separation to the wood.
All hardware and fittings are complete and original, including the pickup, wiring and both chrome covers. The mute foam is gone from under the tailpiece cover but the glue mark remains on the metal. The original frets show minimal wear and the bass plays and sounds fantastic, set up with LaBella flatwound strings. This is a super cool and very rare find in this condition; even many only lightly played examples show some of the typical deterioration to the finish this one has almost entirely avoided. It is complete in the classic original Fender HSC; all in all quite a timely (and timeless) late 1960s relic. Overall Excellent Condition.