Vintage Bass Guitars – Danelectro
Posted By admin on
The story of Danelectro is a brief one but worth mentioning as they produced the first six-string vintage bass guitars. It’s not often that a guitar manufacturer can get a leg up on both Fender and Gibson.
History 101
Nathan Daniel is the man who started Danelectro back in 1947. At first they just produced amplifiers. Around 1954 they started making electric guitars but mainly under the Silvertone name which was sold by Sears-Roebuck.
These were no-frill guitars that where cheap to buy but still produced a decent tone. They used basic inexpensive materials like plywood and masonite which was cost-effective and increased production speed.
From 1956 to 1969 they achieved success with their electric basses and guitar lines. In 1966 they were sold to MCA but the Danelectro plant was shut down in 1969.
Apparently the closure was the result of poor decision making by MCA which choose to market their merchandise to small guitar shops instead of the big department stores. (I told you their story was brief).
Bass Models
It was in 1956 that Danelectro came out with the first ever six-string electric bass. They were produced in two models, the UB-1 which had one pickup and the UB-2 with two pickups.
They had a short 29” scale, a single-cutaway body and a 24-fret fingerboard which was unique for the time. Basically these were electric guitars tuned an octave lower than normal, also known as a baritone bass. They never achieved much success and were discontinued in 1959.
1959 Shorthorn
1958 Longhorn
In 1958 the Shorthorn electric bass made its debut. These had the famous ”coke bottle” headstock, a single ‘lipstick tube’ pickup, double-cutaway hollow-body with 15 frets and a 29 ¾“ scale and was available in both 4 and 6 string versions.
Also in 1958 they added the Longhorn model. These light-weight and distinctively designed (some say ugly) vintage bass guitars featured a radical double-cutaway hollow-body, two pickups, 24 frets, a 29 ¾” scale and was also available in both 4 and 6 string versions.
If you want to hear some great examples of period pieces using the Longhorn, listen to Duane Eddy’s 1960 recording of ‘Because They’re Young’ or Glen Campbell’s recording of ‘Wichita Linemen’.
Collectibility
You don’t have to be rich to afford any of the original Dano bass models.
In excellent condition the UB-2, for all years 1956-1959, will fetch about $2K.
The 1958-1959 Shorthorn four-string version will run you about $1K while the six-string model would be close to $2k, in excellent condition.
The Danelectro Longhorn vintage bass guitars from 1958-1959 in excellent condition will cost about $2,500 for the four-string and $2,700 for the six-string.
Starting in 1997 both the Shorthorn and Longhorn models were reissued. You can get one of these new Dano’s, based on the original specifications, for about $350.
[...] You can find out more about Danelectro by visiting Vintage Bass Guitars. [...]