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How can you talk about bands that were born by Rickenbacker basses and not talk about Motörhead??

With Rickenbackers the consensus with them is dead split between “they’re overrated and they suck” and “they’re the best basses ive ever played”

4001s were originally meant to have flatwound strings on it. If you bought a new one back in the day, they came with flatwound strings. With the combination of the mute and flat wounds, it was meant to sound like an upright bass. With round wounds, it has that classic bright and nasally rattle we all love.

2 of the coolest growling sounds: A Rolls Royce powered Spitfire and a Rickenbacker bass.

There's a reason Paul McCartney, Chris Squire, Geddy Lee, and Lemmy Kilmister used Rickenbacker Basses... The one of a kind sound you can get with them! No other Bass sounds like it.

The Ricky bass was ubiquitous in the '70s. It played through so many genres. Some times it is best not to meet your heroes, but, if you can get over their quirks you too can look cool.

I’m a guitarist, but have sat on bass when a band needed the help, but you guys look so happy playing, infectious!

My 4001 cost £477 new in 1978 in the UK. Still got it and it still sounds good. Fell in love with the sound that Chris Squire used to get. Unique to the instrument.

Huge rickenbacker fan and I’m glad to see they’re getting some recognition on SBL finally. However, Scott’s 4003S has a feature they didn’t go over, if the treble tone pot is pulled out, it activates a capacitor that makes it sound like the old 4001’s

The models they are playing were designated back in the day 4001 "S" for Standard. They were the export models. The ones we know with the bindings and sharks-teeth inlays were the Deluxe model, available in The States. McCartney, Squire, Entwistle and Lynott all played "S" models, with dot fret markers and no bindings.

I adore the 4003. I think the best sound I ever heard was a friend playing a 4001 through an SVT and a custom 21" bass cabinet. They have made 5-strings and 8-strings, too.

I’ve had a Rickenbacker for 3 years now, and it’s easily my favorite bass, tone to kill for, easy to sing with, and just the most comfortable neck. Just a legendary bass that kills live and in the studio

I believe the model Scott has is actually the 4003S. Standard 4003 has the binding and shark fin inlays. I’ve got one and the tone is something special! Takes a lot of time to get used to though

In case it hasn’t been mentioned already, the picture at around 3:30 that you said was of Adolph Rickenbacker was actually of F.C. Hall, who bought the company from Adolph.

It's the bass behind The Jam. Bruce Foxton is one of the most underrated rock bass players ever.

They are the coolest looking bass ever (in my opinion)

Leon Sylvers II recorded some of the funkiest bass lines on a Rick in the 70s/80s. Can't forget about Rick James either.

I have a Jazz, and consider myself a loyal Fender player, but I have recently gotten a Rick, and I must say, the Rick has some of the best tone I have ever heard.

Great video! Beautiful basses.. that bright, glassy, punch from the maple body! It’s been one of my dream basses since I was a kid. I had the pleasure of owning a ‘94 330, but I couldn’t justify it because I’m a bass player haha. Plus, it really sounded like similar to my Tele range for what I was playing. Unplugged that Rick was so special! Thank you for the walk down memory lane.

I think Ian and Scott are fuckin soul mates made in heaven. I hope I can be in a friendship as wholesome as theirs someday. Y’all are so cool man!!!!!!!

I used to have a 4001S and played soul/R&B, reggae, hip hop with it. Rickenbacker is so known for punchy rock, but the smooth, deep beautiful tone I got from mine blew people's minds. Play close to the fret board with the tone cut down and the bass turned up and it's just gorgeous

I bought my 4003 around ...40 years ago for £150 - I replaced the bassist in this band & he just wanted rid of it.I was only a kid & bought & sold numerous basses, motorbikes, cars etc to raise the cash.I loved & treasured that bass for most of my younger years, had kids then got back into playing in bands..One night I came home to find that some arsehole had broken in & stolen numerous electronics & most heartbreaking of all, my beloved Ric.😭.I've never had the cash to replace that bass..maybe one day..I used to play through a Y splitter into 2 amps, sounded amazing..I still play but miss my Ric every day...

Would absolutely love to own a Rick. As a fan of 70s prog it's all over early Genesis, Yes, and Rush - and props to the guys for mentioning that Spacehog tune, fantastic bassline. Feel like Bruce Foxton is another Rick player well worth mentioning. Not massive on The Jam but his bass playing is amazing.

Hey hey, all! If you wanna grab your free entry in our $50k bass giveaway, here's the link: bit.ly/3GHyy4i

I got a Rick because I loved the tone that Paul McCartney got when he started using one. But when I started playing it, the most noticeable thing was the sustain with the first neck-thru design I ever had. I could play a low note, and it would just go on forever. Plus the tone with the stereo effects was very different than other basses at the time, and the playability of it was great, easier than Fenders at the time, at least for me. The neck-thru allowed me to easily hit high notes that were not as easy to get to with a bolt-on. And I had that bass for years.

My cousin before he passed used to have a rick. It was the first time i ever saw one in person. As soon as i get some debt paid off, Im so getting myself one. Gorgeous bass

I really like this format of the two of you trading stories and ideas. You guys make a great duo.

Is that actually a 4003? That looks like a 4003S. The S model has dots, no binding, and no stereo jack; the regular 4003 has triangles, binding, and "Rick-O-Sound" stereo.

Something holy grail about Ricks. You two are fun to watch. Your excitement is fun.

yo looks like I missed out but I just started watching your videos in the last 2 weeks and have already found multiple things to improve on and have a better understanding of da Bass Thanks!

Gotta give some credit to a company that has NEVER done import instruments. Every instrument made in the USA since day 1. Have to respect that level of commitment. I think Rickenbacker are equal amounts genius and quirkiness.

I've always had a huge love of Rickenbackers thanks largely to all the bands Scott named like The Beatles, Rush, Metallica, Yes and other guys like Motörhead and Pink Floyd (since Roger Waters used one during the Syd Barrett era of the band) and I actually bought a Rick 4003S (specifically the same one that Scott has since I've always loved the red sunburst/Fireglo finish on these basses) over the summer of 2021 at a local guitar store here in Toronto (it was also the only one they had in stock at the time since the store doesn't have many Rick basses come in, mainly just Rickenbacker guitars), it's definitely the best bass I've ever played next to my Music Man StingRay and it's my go-to bass when it comes to recording stuff for either myself or college and I just actually played it last night when my band got to open for a Led Zeppelin tribute band, which was absolutely awesome (it was also our first paid gig, so that was also a bonus)

The excitement that Ian brings is so infectious.

Fun vid! I just got my first ever 4003 today! Couldn’t be more excited, as this has been a grail base for me. I wanted one for years. Even with the shortcomings or frustration points that you mentioned in the video, there’s not a base in the world I would rather have.

The Rickenbacker bass was an important part of my youth. The first time I heard Bruce Foxton playing one in The Jam I fell in love with the sound, like their music, the bass had the energy and the articulation. Always wanted a bound 4001 but as yet, never actually owned one :( They may have a few flaws that you have to work around but then so has my wife but I still love her to bits ;)

Chris Brubeck has been playing a 4001 fretless since 1969 ! I have seen him perform in several groups with it . He always gets great tone to support the music .

I learned how to play on a '4003 '81 rick I picked up used for $300 in early 80's...I made mods to it and it was all I owned until stolen in late 80's. Went through many other brands but I picked up a '86 4003 about 10yrs ago. It's not my #1 as my style has changed but I do revisit it often to connect with my youth. They are Iconic but the new ones don't feel the same to me as the older ones with bound fretboards, block inlays etc....yes they have some minor annoying issues but they sound great are really fun to play!!! Great video!

The part you left out on the iconic "Frying Pan" guitar- it was a steel guitar with strings well elevated off the neck to be played with a slide. The history of this first electric guitar is that after the "Hawaiian boom" the steel guitar was crazy popular and, already louder than the standard acoustic guitar, became an important lead instrument decades before the fretted guitar became a lead instrument. As such the "Frying Pan" guitar was created so that the steel guitar could compete with horns and get over the drums

Fantastic to see Royston Langdon getting a shout-out here. Such an underrated bass player. Not only is In The Meantime an awesome bassline, but the guy sings at the same time as playing it! He was one of my inspirations for once owning a Ricky too, along with John Entwistle.

Back in the '70's I was playing 5 to 7 nights a week. I bought a Rick based on the hype. I changed the strings to whatever my favorie was back then. The neck immediately bent up like a pretzel and no amount of truss rod adjustment corrected it. I didn't care for the tone either. I sold it and got a Gibson Ripper fretted and then a fretless Ripper . Heaven for me. And never looked back.

I always loved the Rick sounds of McCartney, Geddy Lee, and Chris Squire, but for me it was John Camp from renaissance on “A Song For All Seasons” that defined the ‘Rick’ sound, that ‘stringiness’ that just cuts through, making it sound louder and more biting than anything else would in the mix.

I played a 4001 with binding played it a good 25 years it was a very reliable bass for me . I got so many compliments all they had to was just see it. Love the sound.

I always wanted a Rick (because Macca, Chris Squire) right up until I played one. And then, never again since.

My uncle owns one of these and he let my brother use it for a few years and he played it in our band and it was my favorite bass ever.

I’ve own a vintage 4001 that I have played for years. My favorite bass.

I love my Rickenbacker. Can't get over the range of sounds you can achieve. Interesting that you did not mention the switch on the Bridge Pickup tone control which puts a filter capacitor in the circuit to give a more treble sound and the fact you can also use the Rick-O-Sound and connect to two amps for different amp configurations. Love your comments, a unique bass.

I love Ian’s enthusiasm when it come to Bass

In 1971 I was mourning the loss of my early 60's Fender Precision Bass in a traffic mishap when I was just 17 years old. I bought it when I was fifteen for $150 but never wrote down the serial number because I thought it was my "forever bass". In 1971 I travelled with a band mate from Lewiston, Maine to Boston as he was to pick-up the Les Paul he ordered from E.U. Wurlitzers. While there I thought to check out what they had in the used department. I spotted a black Victoria case on a top shelf thinking it might be a Fender so I asked to see it. The salesman seemed annoyed but got the ladder and brought the case down I discovered a 1967 Rickenbacker 4001! It was made before "Rick-O-Sound" and had "Roto Sound 66" strings on it. At that time no music store in Maine sold the brand. It turns out during our conversation we discovered the we at one time we lived within five hundred feet of each other on Ninth St. in New Auburn! He gave me a price of $300 and all I had on me was $35. Bob Cavanaugh was that salesman and told me that if I coudn't meet the deadline he'd refund my money. As it turned out my "Step-uncle" was working in a T.V. Radio Repair shop on Mass Ave where we parked about five blocks away from Newbury St. After Don, bought his Les Paul we walked the five blocks back to his van parked in front of my uncle's shop. He was back from his lunch-break and we showed him Don's brand new Les Paul and told him I may be back to see him in a few weeks to buy the bass I had just put a hold on. He knew I didn't have the money and said "come with me" where he led me to a back office, he opened a file cabinet drawer and pulled out a wad of cash and counted out $300 and said "Go buy your bass!" I literally ran the five blocks back to Newbury St. whereas Bob Cavanaugh asked me if I had just robbed a bank. I explained to him that my uncle just worked five blocks away and loaned me the money. I got all the "Case candy" as well as being told it was the shortest "lay-away" he ever experienced! Upon returning to Maine to following week that Ric caused a stir!! Yes, I did pay Uncle Louie back in short order and the Ric caused other bass players in Maine to rush to Boston to order their own! I loved the slim neck and the sound but actually wore the bass out after nine hard played years! The binding on the bottom of the neck was seperating as well as the fret markers and the cost of repairs exceeded the bass's worth. I wish I still had it today! o

I always LOVED the Mike Rutheford Double Neck Rick bass with old Genesis !!! The sounds he could get out of that were some of the best prog bass still today. I do need to replace my Fender Squire Jazz... hmmmm maybe win one of these?? Wow sure hope so!

Cliff played a rickenbacker on kill em all and that's it. The other albums were with an aria pro 2

Lemmy kilmister used rickenbackers he even had a signature rickenbacker bass

I am not much of a bassist, but long ago I played a Rickenbacker with the binding and everything, and it was SO fun. I wish I could afford one now. Maybe some day... I will continue playing my Squier Jaguar Bass until then.

No mention of Bruce Foxton of The Jam? Legendary Rick player

FINALLY! A Scott's Bass Lessons video with a Rickenbacker! Thanks for making such a fun, informative video - of a bass I personally own and love! ❤ "A chupa chup." I totally turned on closed captions to see what the heck you were saying / talking about!! 😂

Would LOVE to see at least ONE lefty bass in a giveaway!

I love Rickenbacker basses. Always have, always will.

Wow, that's the most anthologic bass ever made and played. It sounds amazing! Geddy Lee and Chris Squire made some incredible prog bass lines with it! Hey, men, you forgot Lemmy... But it's okay! Nice video, guys! Greetings from Brazil!🇧🇷🇧🇷💪💪🍻🍻

I still have the 4001 I bought used in 1975. My wife will have to find it a new home when I die. Thank you for a great video!

4:47 as a Rick owner I can say that you definitely can palm mute with a pick or fingers. BUT, it is harder than on a p-bass style bridge

Some guys make them sound cool but I never got that far. I revert back to a fender right away.

5:23 I'd never realised that you could pass as brothers. I'be been watching you both for a couple of years. Cool bass stuff. Thanks both!

Rics are the best basses ever made and the Bass (neck) pickup adds the huge bass to the sound. The "deluxe" model with binding and the "S" (special order) model without binding both date back to the early 1960s, though there have been gradual changes and improvements over the years, including the re-brand from 4001 to 4003.

Ian’s wall unit with built in bass storage rack and the AT-AT above the fireplace? Killer!

Love my Rick. Nothing sounds like a Rickenbacker, such a unique growl

Fun video! Thank you both! 😊👍 By the way, I noticed that the neck pick-up is further away from the fretboard on Scott's bass! 🙂

It’s a 4003S, with dots but without binding. The 4003 models have mono/stereo outputs while the 4003S comes in mono only. All Rickenbacker instruments are made in one plant in Santa Anna, California. Rickenbacker has no beginner, Asian-made, versions like Gibson has Epiphone and Fender has multiple plants across the Pacific… Anyways, Ricks are pricey but they’re a totally unique product, period! I started playing bass back in the 70’s, high school, and Chris Squire was my hero. My current bass is 2015 4003S that’s basically been converted to a 60’s type like Squire. And, yes, my 4003S has been converted to stereo, the only way to run a Rickenbacker! Great video, thanks for posting!

Its really nice what you are doing here. the giveaway and your lessons, videos and everything. It helped me a lot (and I think that it helped other people too), you are probably the best bass YT channel. Videos are always so nice and easy to understand. The Rick is sooooo nicee, always loved them. Has tone like no other bass IMO and the style...love ittt. Such a shame that there are 0 ricks in my country or even near. Hope I'll win it in the giveaway :))

Bruce of The Jam, Paul Gray of Eddie and the Hotrods 2 amazing bass players who play the Ricky. Great little video guys really enjoyed it👍

Good work boys,I love the sound of a Rickenbacker Bass,the"Smoke on the Water" bass line that Roger Glover played on a Rickenbacker is so good and different 👍👍👍👍

What about Cordell Boogie Mosson with Parliament? He's pictured with a Rick on the cover of Parliament Live - P.Funk Earth Tour.

I find it interesting that you didn't call out that the two Ricks you were playing had different neck pickups. Ian's has a toaster pickup and Scott's has a high-output pickup. (At least those are the names for the equivalent guitar pickups.)

I can't tell you how much I enjoyed watching this video! The enthusiasm of you guys is just infectious :-). As a big Chris Squire fan I also own a Rickenbacker 4003S which is very similar to your red one. But it's of black colour (called jetglow, I think) and it features two »Rick-O-Sound« stereo output jacks, allowing for individual amplification of the two PU's. This puzzles me, as per the serial # it was built in November 1984, but I didn't find a bass guitar with all these features in an appropriate Rickenbacker catalogue of the era. Oh, and it's neck PU cover isn't plastic at all, and I guess your's also isn't ;-).

12:30 that slap riff and tone was some of the best I’ve ever heard.

I know (not personally) a bass player from the UK who's used a Rickenbacker for reggae music for more than 30 years. If anyone wants to hear a Rick in that context look up the Misty in Roots Live in London 1991. Or Misty in Roots Chiemsee festival. Surprisingly it works well.

Peter Hook (I’d love to see a video about him) is one of my favourite bassists ever. He used his Yamaha BB on “Love Will Tear Us Apart” though and he also used a Hondo Rickenbacker copy. Another great Rickenbacker bassist is Bruce Foxton from The Jam

Loved this conversation! 🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻

Cliff Burton and Lenny inspired me to want to learn bass. Seeing them play those basses made me always want one!

I have an interesting relationship with these basses. I've had three of these so far. I love them, they look and sound awesome, but when I got to a point in my life when I had to decide which of my basses should I sell for any reason, I'd always chosen the Rickenbacker. They are cool, but my old P basses were always closer to my heart, and honestly, they sound better in most scenarios.

Rickenbackers in jazz - Chris Brubeck (son of) played a de-fretted 4001 and sounded awesome.

I bought a Rickenbacker 6 string copy just to hang on the wall and look at. So beautiful!

I have a Rickenbacker 4003W and I love it. I took the plastic pickup cover off and put Joe Barden humbuckers in it and it sounds amazing and plays really well. I like to play it with both pickups on but the tone rolled off a bit on the neck pickup. It sounds huge that way especially when you use the stereo output.

I remember that, for years, I wanted a left handed Rickenbacker. Then I tried one and I was very underwhelmed.

As an owner of an OG 4001 Rickenbacker, I frickin' LOVE this bass! It sounds incredible! CONS: It actually has TWO trust rods so the neck can tilt (advantageous?), and they are crippling the bass! It's hard to replace them without going to a specialist, but the overall sound of this oddly specific, yet versatile instrument is incredible (I put it through a DS-1 guitar pedal the other say with a bit of delay, and that sounded awesome!).It's an incredible workhorse!

Got my hands on a brand-new Ric 4001 in 1973 because Chris Squire was my hero. Played it with a gold Herco pick and strung it with light-gauge Roto SwingBass strings. Kept it for 30 years. Sold it because my playing changed to fingerstyle over the years and by then I owned an Alembic S. Clarke Signature. In my old age I wish I still had the Ric.

in 1979 i saw a stingray in guitar player magazine. i knew instantly from the picture it was for me. the 3 and 1 headstock eliminates neck dive. took me until 1981 to find one. never looked back . i still have it. along with a few other stingrays. to me, its the most versatile bass in a cover band. ive played rock, country, r&b, funk. it does it all. love squire but i found it hard to cover all the bases as it were trying to emulate that sound.

The best 2 days of owning a ric is the day you buy and the day you sell it, if you sit at home in a bedroom they are fantastic, gigging it often and touring don’t even bother.

Loved y’all’s passion for basses 🥹🥹

13:15 - such a good point! Creativity comes out of a process of someone getting used to limitations. For a period I had to try playing with a broken finger and I've written some ideas I'd never have written otherwise because I had to rethink how I'm playing and what I'm playing.

The Atlanta Rhythm Section was good for the Ric sound as well. In 1982 the cost was $650. Also, if you wanted to get the older Ric 4001 sound, they put in a switch in the pots to pull up and down. This turned on a capacitor to bring back the thinner 4001 sound. They do have a binder on 4003, but they have what you are holding now without the binders on it and also 4003S ment stereo or Ricko- Sound. Although on some Rush albums the Ric was played and yet a Fender Jazz was played. Same with YES. If you look with some of the music, a Fender was played in some songs. It depends on what sound you want. These basses have that dirty and warm sound at times. The split in the bridge pic-up guard was a modification to allow the strings to go through without messing with the pick-ups or taking the guard off all of the time. 4003 does not have this feature. It was on the 4001CS Bass. To be honest, it is not a funk bass. It never was. The sound that was for the most would be Progressive Rock. You hear a lot of this even in the Prog Band Renaissance.

In the Meantime by Space Hog is a totally underated 90s alt rock gem!

I’ve been playing bass for 10 years and have been playing in a rock and roll band for 3 years now. I’ve gone through a couple basses. But my favorite has to be my Rick. Its a 1979 Rickenbacker 4001 Mapleglo. It has served me well and its a hell of a bass.

My dad passed last March. So I got his 80s 4001 azureglo. The bottom of it has a bit of the paint chipping. And the action is super high and I don't know how to make the strings lower to the board. But I love it. It's his prized bass.

I love that you guys brought up Space Hog! i was listening to that just the other day & was really jazzed about that frontman bass player. My wife cracks up when i get excited and its so rare - but that guy was great.

Ian is extremely correct about just getting used to a bass and making it work, rather than seeking a bass that's inherently perfect for you. And incidentally it is only by that mentality that one can adopt the Rickenbacker bass. Because they fit no one perfectly lol. You have to just be like ok this is my bass and I'm going to commit to it. I did that for many years with mine. Ultimately my tastes changed and I moved on from it but I learned a LOT just by needing to make that Rick work in different styles of music.

I can't believe you didn't talk about taking that cover off of the pickup. I know on early ones it was sort of part of the pickup and changed the sound if you took them off but on the later ones you should try it. There were a few other things about these basses that I'm surprised you didn't talk about. Double truss rods, two outputs, the glossy fretboard, more about the unique tone, the neck shape, playability.

This video is so fun! Thanks guys!

The Ovation Magnum bass has that foam muffler built in too, but with a quicker system, makes a very useful feature

I don't think Hooky played a Rickenbacker....it was a cheep Hondo II. And by the time of Love Will Tear Us Apart, he'd moved on to Yamaha BB series.

Ricks sound awesome (that's the "why" in all of this). They look pretty cool. I'm glad other people have gotten the use of out them, because they're not comfortable, they're full of glitches/ticks/ideocracies that simply make them hard to consistently use.