Gibson Thunderbird
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The Gibson Thunderbird electric bass has been in production on and off since 1963. At the time, Fender was having success with their modern looking bass models, and the Thunderbird was Gibson's response. Designed by German auto engineer Ray Dietrich, it was Gibson's first long scale (34½ inch) bass and was named after the giant bird of Native American folklore. It was a companion to the Firebird guitar. Production dates are 1963-1969, 1976-1979, 1987-present, with some custom ordered models produced in between these periods.
In the 1960s two Thunderbirds existed, the Thunderbird II (one pickup) and Thunderbird IV (two pickups)
The Thunderbird bass, like the Rickenbacker 4000 series, had neck-through construction, where the neck wood went through th entire length of the body, with the rest of the body being glued into place. This construction method was dropped briefly between 1966-69 in favour of the customary Gibson set neck. These rare Thunderbirds also had a back to front shape, and are known as non-reverse Thunderbirds. They did not sell well at all, but are highly sought after amongst collectors today.
The neck-through construction (and original body shape) were revived for the bicentenial models of 1976, and have been used ever since. From this time on, only the two-pickup model (Thunderbird IV) were manufactured.
The Current official Thunderbirds produced by Gibson are:
Gibson Reverse Body 4 String Original, Gibson Reverse Body 4 String Studio, Gibson Reverse Body 5 String Studio, Epiphone 4 String Original
The Gibson models are made out of the heavy and expensive mahogany for maximum tone and feel, while the offical 'Take Off' Epiphone is made out of Alder. Because of the two Humbucker Pick Ups, the tone is deep and rich, perfect for all types of rock. The main points why Thunderbird's aren't as popular as the rival fenders are:
They all have heavy neck, making them unbalanced and awkward to play, without damaging, Due to the location of the pick ups they are hard to slap, which although not every bass player does, it is a major draw back
The Gibson "Blackbird" was made for Nikki Sixx. It is the same construction as a Thunderbird but is black and has minimal electronics (only an on/off switch). It was originally going to be named the "Sixxbird".
Recently a set-neck studio thunderbird has been issued - cheaper than the through neck, but looking very similar. A five string model (the first five string Thunderbird) also exists.
The Gibson Thunderbird is probably the only bass produced by Gibson that has many users, despite an undeserved reputation for being notoriously neck-heavy (moving the strap buttons and using the right strap almost completely eliminates any neck dive). Artists who use this bass guitar include
- Krist Novoselic (Nirvana)
- Simon Gallup (The Cure)
- Craig Eastman (Greenlight The Bombers)
- Kim Gordon (Sonic Youth)
- Linda Ong (Lunarin)
- Nikki Sixx (Mötley Crüe)
- Sam Yaffa (ex-Hanoi Rocks current - New York Dolls)
- Shavo Odadjian (System of a Down)
- John Entwistle (The Who)
- Alvin Gibbs (UK Subs, Cheap And Nasty)
- Nicky Wire (Manic Street Preachers)
- Frankie Poullain (ex- The Darkness)
- Stefan Olsdal (Placebo)
- Jeordie White (Twiggy Ramirez) (ex-Marilyn Manson, Nine Inch Nails, current A Perfect Circle)
- William Carruthers (ex- Spaceman 3, Spiritualized)
- Tyson Ritter (The All-American Rejects)
- Michael Small (The Meligrove Band)
- Eric Digaire (Matmatah)
- William Murderface (Dethklok)
- Chris Cain (We Are Scientists)
- Keith Hoerig (Five Iron Frenzy)
- Adam Clayton (U2)
- Glenn Cornick (Jethro Tull)
- Mikey Welsh (ex-Weezer)
- Dolf de Borst (The Datsuns)
- Cliff Williams (AC/DC)
[edit] External links
- Gibson Thunderbird– Information, sound clips, catalogue appearance and pictures of the Gibson Thunderbird.
