Classic Wal Basses - The John Entwistle Wal JG Series Bass, JG1128
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| John Entwistle playing one of his Wals at a celebrity gig with Rick Wakeman, members of Status Quo and others |
The Ox, Thunderfingers, just
plain John... call him what you like the Who's bassist wasn't averse to picking
up the odd bass or two. Indeed, the Sothebys auctions of his private collection
have passed into rock and roll history – for the scale, scope and just plain
weirdness of the basses he had accumulated. However, amongst his beloved
Fenders, Alembics and Warwicks nestled a couple of classic, custom build period
Wals. Well, you'd probably expect that he'd have managed to pick up a couple of
everything, wouldn't you? However, Entwistle's relationship with Wal was closer
than many of the brands in his collection. In fact, close enough that he agreed
to appear in adverts and other promotional literature for the brand.
The bass in question here is
a JG series bass, complete with the characteristic leather tooled scratchplate
which typified the design. It now resides in Arizona in the collection of bass
and Wal enthusiast Mike Gutierrez. As a
professional sports and music memorabilia appraiser and a regular contributor
to the US version of the Antiques Roadshow he's well placed to spot a good deal
when he sees one. Bearing in mind the prices which Wal basses have reached in
recent eBay auctions the Entwistle JG looks like a pretty good value investment
– even without its famous provenance. On the day, six years ago, the bass went
for only £2040. Gutierrez recalls, “When I first heard of this auction I knew I
had to go! I had just started buying basses & guitars casually and this was
a must-attend event for me that eventually marked a renewed interest in musical
instruments - but in full fever! Initially I lost out on the 1953 Gibson EB1
bass, then the 1967 Rickenbacker 4005 bass, plus several others including
Alembics and Buzzards. I had a list of basses I was interested in and would
have stopped had I won a couple. The Wal bass, simply because of design, was on
my list and toward the latter portion of the auction, so I bid and won.”
The construction of the
Entwistle Wal is typical of the JG series basses. The body is fashioned from
solid ash, mated to a four bolt maple neck with rosewood board – a typically
Fender-influenced 1970s construction, but effective nonetheless. That said,
little else about the bass is “typical” since pretty much every component,
other than the tuning heads and strap buttons are custom made. Most distinctive
is the leather tooled scratchplate – a throwback to the original Wals made for
John Perry and Rick Wakeman/Roger Newell. The bass also features a pair of
Wal's unique eight coil humbucking pick-ups, each armed with a coil phase
switch situated on the pick-up mounting ring. These temper the high and low end
response of the of the bass and providing additional tonal flexibility from a
still passive circuit – a clue to the session player input which went into the
design of the bass.
But how does it play? Best
to ask the current owner. “I'm not that much of a gear-head. I look for a sound
with a strong low end that can also pop the highs. Mid-range isn't that much of
an issue to me as I always was a huge James Jamerson fan and he played through
an Ampeg B-18, which was just a low decibel machine with no crispness and not
very discernible. All I can say is that it has that sound which has always
moved me. The heaviest of all my Wals. My first thought when I grab that neck
is that it was probably a prototype which Pete & Ian would work on
improving. It's slightly round and the width of the fretboard is not as wide as
later models. On the other hand, perhaps that's what John ordered. If you watch
him play you will notice he had small hands.”
Many Wal aficionados – or
Walnuts as they're affectionately known – place the distinctive sound of modern
Wal basses at the feet of their unique pickups and active circuitry. This begs
the question of how this vintage model stacks up. Gutierrez has had a range of
Wals in his collection over the years so he seems qualified to comment. “I've
had two early pre-production custom Pros, single and double pick-up Pros and
the "Last Pro" (which is essentially the prototype for the Mk I
Custom Series bass). And there's a Mk II waiting for me in Brighton, that I
just paid for today. But the JG really does sound so comparable to most of the
others I think Ian and Pete got this right from the beginning. To my
non-educated ear Wals rank as the best sounding modern bass! I can get them to
do most anything - even sound like a Fender, yet also boom like thunder. I like
the body shape on all Wal models. I would be proud to hold and play any of
them, and have! The neck profiles sing to me. I feel like I'm at home when I
grab them. It's almost like they were personally profiled for me. The weight is
generally heavy, especially the Entwistle JG, but I get used to it quickly.”
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