Cutlass Redemption

It’s my first post, so forgive me if it’s a bit of a saga. TL;DR – I got this bass. It’s awesome.

So around Xmas time, my bass quiver consisted of my trusty StingRay and about 7 Fenders. I liked the Fenders fine and enjoyed tweaking and modding them, but I didn’t play them all that much. But I figured it was good to have options – a maple, a rosewood, a fiver, a fretless, J’s, P’s, etc… Anyway, I watched a very well-done documentary on Netflix about minimalism, and it kind of dawned on me that my basses represented a mountain of excess, at least for what I need. I decided to get down to 2: my StingRay and a backup.

As I started selling them off, it occurred to me that I suddenly had the scratch to buy something really nice. I’ve always idolized Victor, so I set my sights on a Fodera Monarch. Found a lightly used one I liked and pulled the trigger, thinking that it would be my #1 and the Ray would be the backup. As it happened, that wasn’t the case. I felt really uncomfortable playing it – it felt delicate, and being a bazillion dollars, I was tentative about slapping it hard or bringing it out. The Ray was still my go-to, so I decided to sell the Monarch…

I wanted to get something slightly more reasonable and simple, and since I knew I liked EBMM, I went with the Cutlass. Thought it’d be a nice companion/counterpoint to the Ray. I found a RAD, 1-off NAMM piece in sky blue with an ebony board and roasted neck – beautiful! And when it arrived it was just perfect. Unfortunately, though the guy I sold the Monarch to was nice enough, he almost immediately started expressing that he wasn’t totally happy with it – to the extent that it was pretty clear he was going to return it to me. I was pretty stressed, and super upset to do it, but since I couldn’t afford to eat the cash, I had to return the 1-off Cutlass… OF COURSE, the folks at Fodera talked the guy down and explained that all his concerns were unwarranted, and he decided he was happy with the Monarch after all… right after I’d sent the Cutlass back for a refund. I watched for it, but it never came back in stock. Someone out there scored big time.

Now I was pretty bummed, but treated it as a sign. My wife’s b-day was coming up, so I decided to put most of the extra cash I had into an awesome weekend, which we had. I kept aside just enough to by a decent backup bass. Heard a lot of good things about Sire, so I went for a Marcus Miller 4. Cheap and versatile… Well, cheap anyway. The bass arrived. Looked great, felt great, bridge pickup was completely dead. Talked with customer service. They sent a replacement bass. Loud pops from the sweepable mid control. I returned it for a refund thinking and swearing aloud that I was just snakebit.

However, when we are at our most forlorn and GAS-afflcited, the heavens see fit to send us a boon. I scored a nice surprise gig and suddenly had something in my pocket again – not enough to get the sky blue/ebony beauty I’d had (which I couldn’t find anyway) but to get an ordinary, everyday Cutlass, which arrived today. I could not be more stoked with how it looks, feels, plays. The Diamond Blue is amazing, looking seafoam one minute, white the next, and Carolina blue the one after that. The setup and neck on it is even better than the one I’d had previously, and honestly the fit/finish and tone are every bit as good as the Monarch P. And best of all it’s just perfect sitting next to my StingRay – an equal rather than a sidekick.

Now whether you slogged through that entire 1st-world-problem account of me trying to find a solid 2nd bass or just looked at the pictures, I’m stoked that the story ends with this pic… for now…

I mean, minimalism-schminimalism, I probably could use a Caprice, right?