Yesterday i bought a Yamaha bass, although many of my favourite bass players (or new wave bass players in many cases) played a Rickenbacker JG 4001. Many of them used it: Barry Adamson of Magazine (i think but the fact he used a Rickenbacker bass is confirmed), Andy McClusey of OMD, Bruce Foxton of The Jam, Glen Matlock (i think everybody knows him), Paul McCartney (yes, no New Wave but a good bassist). The point i want to know is if Chris Cross used a Rickenbacker bass, a Yamaha (which i bought) or another. Sometimes i think he used a Rickenbacker because i saw i
him in the early ultravox (!) videos on youtube (wide boys; wild, beautiful & the damned; dangerous rhythm).

Excuse me for the english...my question was...What kind of bass guitar did Chris Cross play in the early Ultravox days (the John Foxx era)?

The one bass I do remember him playing was a Fender.

Which Yamaha bass did you buy? I bought an RBX170 just before Christmas. It's the absolute mutt's nuts.

I think Chris used a Steinberger headless for the 'Lament' tracks, well for appearances anyway.

Yeah, that's the one I remember seeing on the Lament promos.

I never tried the Steinberger. I always thought the fret board looked too small for my big stubby fingers.

He also used an Ashbory Fretless Silicon String bass I believe - but to what extent I can't quite recall.. it's a wicked little, and I do mean little instrument that makes a great booming, rich double bass noise..

I bought one a couple of years ago and converted it to left handed and I'm pleased to say it didn't lose anything for the trauma..

Would be interested to know if the Ashbory ever made it to any recorded Uvox material..

I say, you there, Cerise - this Anthology thingy, some Ashbory content if you please - jump to it, there's a good little filly..

For Live Quartet etc, the Grey one --- it's a Squire (Fender) Precision Bass.

Davy.

Not my question, but thanks for the info guys.

Im more a keyboard's person myself, slightly.

Any stuff to listen to NewVox?

Jus' curious????

Sadly not David. I do have some 8 track recordings from as far back as '92 when i got my first synth, a second hand Juno 6. Theres nothing on the net as such.
Recently got broadband, and started moving towards soft synths etc, so one day maybe.

SkinMechanix, i bought a yamaha RBX 270 J. Chris Cross wasn't a mediocre bassist as somebody wrote in a web page (http://geminga.it.nuigalway.ie/.../ultravox/index.html). One of the reasons Warren Cann wanted to be part of the band was for the bass style of Cross, which for me was in its climax in the songs "Someone Else's Clothes" (aprox. 1: 45 - 2:17) or in "Maximum Acceleration".

Thanks for the replies, although i'm more interested in the glam/punk/early new wave days of the John Foxx's Ultravox (or Tiger Lily). However, post more kind of basses when he was active in Ultravox, not only in the 70s.

It looks like a fender precision and a Gibson EB3 in this clip which is obviously stills.

http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=6-fAbB88rQ4

Many of the bassists listed here changed from Rickenbackers to something else. (Foxton, Matlock went to Fender precision) I think Barry Adamson actually had a fretless one and he used some kind of effect with it (chorus/flanger?) constantly.

I had a quick scan on youtube searching for Chris with a Ric and couldn't find one.

I've owned plenty of them (still have two) and they are pretty unique sounding basses but they are not for everything. They also take a bit of getting used to in terms of playing them, especially if you leave the chrome over the pickup.

As to your original question... I'm no expert on early Ultravox but a quick bit of research shows CC with a Fender precision in JF era.

He played a Guild B301 for quite a while in the Foxx era I remember and a Squire Precision later on, typically on most of Vienna/Rage In Eden/Quartet. He even gamely played a Steinberg headless job during Lament. I'm sure you can get one for about £30 now as they came into vogue quickly and went out again just as fast!

I'll always think of him playing his grey Precision during the Quartet tour when everything on-stage was also painted grey...

Heh. if only. Steinbergers are now vintage and rare and command good prices now. An original went for £1500 the other day on the bay.

Andy McLuskey's pretty much always played his blue Fender Jazz, strung upside-down. No amps on stage, just DI'd straight into the FOH desk Although I think he might be playing a WAL or some-such in the video for "Dreaming" - speaking of which, I seem to recall CC slinging a WAL at one point, and maybe a Status Graphite, too. Although I may be wrong.