Famous Arias: Part 1 - Cliff Burton SB-1000

This is the first in what I hope to be a regular series of posts on "famous" Arias basses. I will post about basses that were owned by famous players and that have come up for sale or are on display in places like the Hard Rock Cafe.

First up, is what I believe to be Cliff Burton's Aria Pro II SB-1000. I have tried to contact the current owner for more details but haven't had much luck yet. If you're reading this, talk to me!

This bass first came up for sale on eBay a couple of years ago. A lot of people were skeptical because of the high price and also the fact that people only recognized Cliff's Black 'n' Gold which had oval inlays and gold hardware. However, I believe this is the bass Cliff used in 1985 at legendary shows such as the Donington Festival, The Metal Hammer Festival (video) and the Day on the Green (video). He may even have recorded Master of Puppets with this bass. It is definitely not a re-issue as the finish, hardware and parts are all consistent with 1985. The finish is more of a very dark green when viewed in direct sunlight which is consistent with the black finishes Aria used in that period. Black Aria Re-Issue basses are more of a true black finish. Finally, the serial number also places this bass from 1985.

Unfortunately with a black bass there is no visible wood grain or any other hints to compare to pictures of Cliff playing the bass, so it's hard to ever be 100% sure. But given that the owner said he got it from Aria's former head of distribution, the rarity of black SB-1000 basses, and the fact that it's from 1985, I think it's authentic. It's likely Aria sent Cliff two (possibly three if you count the SB-Integra that Cliff apparently gave to Billy Gould) models to choose from: the SB-1000 and the Black 'n' Gold. In a 1986 interview with Harold Oimen, Cliff said he preferred the Black 'n' Gold. So Cliff probably just had the SB-1000 sent back to Aria, opting for the Black 'n' Gold model.

As you can see from the photos below, there is quite a lot of wear on the bass, including the bypass switch being broken off. Since Cliff really only played the SB-1000 for a short time, the wear probably occurred after Cliff's time with it.
Apparently the current owner still gigs with this bass, which some people might not like. Personally I don't have a problem with it, and I think the only thing better would be for Robert Trujillo to buy this bass and play it in Metallica. Now that would be cool.

Cliff w/ SB-1000 and Lars in the studio for Master of Puppets

Aria Pro II Ventures Bob Bogle Bass

Here is another Ventures / Bob Bogle bass, this one from about 1990. This bass is actually quite similar to the SB-JR750 model but with Seymour Duncan pickups and AP custom and The Ventures logo on the headstock.

Aria Pro II SB-R60 w/ DR Black Beauty Strings

I finally got around to stringing up my SB-R60 with some DR Black Beauty strings. As you can see I was going for a 'stealth' look here. With the black hardware, black finish and now Black Beauty strings, it really gives it a sleek look. These strings sound great with the Alembic pickup. More pics here.

Custom & Unknown Arias: Part 6

Here is an interesting Aria bass called the Zodiac. It's not quite my style, but it would sure be a conversation piece! It is a custom shop model as you can see by the "AP" logo as well as on the fretboard inlay. You can also notice the unusual output jack location, it's on the back of the body. Other interesting features include the chrome pickguard and single control knob located next to the bridge.

Custom & Unknown Arias: Part 5

I found photos of a rare Aria Pro bass that I believe is part of the RSB-Fire lineup. The RSB-Fire was basically a signature model for a Japanese artist and I never saw any mention of it in markets outside of Japan. This particular RSB is a 5 stringer, with a green finish, a 6 bolt, multi-laminate neck, black hardware, and what looks like an ebony fretboard.

Here is the RSB-Fire 4 string model, in 'black mist' finish.

Aria DMB-380 / The Ventures

Dale Titus demos another Aria bass, this time a DMB-380. Dale demonstrates the various tones and features of this model.
You can also see a DMB-380 being played by Greg Hanna of the Dickies on the Warped Tour in 2010.

The Ventures clearly inspired this design as you can see in this great live video from Japan. It's the Ventures 45th Anniversary show. Bob Bogle is playing his signature Aria. Bob and The Ventures had several signature instruments made by Aria over the years. The 50th Anniversary Ventures bass was limited to 10 instruments.

Aria Pro II SB-CB Demonstration

Here is a nice demonstration of the Aria SB-CB by Dale Titus of Dana B. Goods (US distributors for Aria). For those who don't know, the SB-CB is the Cliff Burton inspired model offered by Aria. It differs from the SB-1000CB models in that it was made in Korea so it's less expensive. Also available is the SB-RI which comes in natural finish. The RI and CB are identical except for the finishes. Remember, the SB-1000RI/CB label means it was made in Japan and costs more. The SB-RI/CB label means made in Korea and is available at a lower cost. Be careful that you don't pay over the retail price on the Korean models! I have seen some sellers selling SB-RIs with SB-1000RI prices. Enjoy the demo:

Aria Anniversary SB Bass

I posted about an Aria 50th anniversary bass last year, but I finally found pictures of another anniversary bass. This might also be a 5oth anniversary, but it is an SB-1000RI with some graphic designs. Notice the logo is "The Aria Pro II" like the original SB-1000s, but the headstock shape is like the later incarnations. I wonder if this is a real bass or just a Photoshop mockup for the Japanese Aria site? If it's real, I guess the bass probably resides with Mr. Shiro Arai, the founder of Aria Guitars.

Custom & Unknown Arias: Part 4

Here is a rare headless SB with MIDI capabilities that I found online. As you can see, it is an "AP Custom Shop" bass. I have no idea when this bass was made, but probably in the early to mid '90s since that seemed to be the heyday of Aria's Custom Shop. If anyone out there has one, let me know.

Neil Murray and Aria Pro II

Neil with SB-1000 and SB-900 in 1981

Whitesnake, Black Sabbath, Cozy Powell, Gary Moore, Sting, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton, Brian May, Michael Schenker. These are just a few of the legends Neil Murray has played bass with during his long and distinguished career. (See my video links for proof!) Without question, Neil is one of the best hard rock bassists around and still going strong. He is currently playing with the We Will Rock You tribute show to Queen.

Neil was gracious enough to take the time send me loads of photos and recollections of his time using Aria Pro II basses. Neil has simply an amazing amount of information about his career. Unlike many rockers who seem to have forgotten everything, Neil actually seems to remember most of it - good news for gear heads like us!

Case in point: Neil shared a story involving fellow bassist Jack Bruce and the late drumming legend Cozy Powell. Neil says he was replaced by Jack for Cozy's solo album Over The Top because Neil's experimental Fender Strat bass wasn't getting a good sound in the studio. Meanwhile Jack Bruce comes in with his SB-1000, one of the first in the UK according to Neil, and lays down the track with a much better bass tone. Here is the title track from Over The Top featuring Jack Bruce on bass.

While with Whitesnake, Neil was able to buy his own walnut SB-900 and oak SB-1000 soon after, and would go on to use Aria for several years. It seems he preferred the SB-900 and had it converted to stereo output inspired by an Alembic he used previously. Neil says he played the SB-900 with Whitesnake on the album Ready An' Willing. Check out Neil's great bass line here.

For the next year and a half or so, Neil played the SB-900 on tour with Whitesnake including the Come An' Get It album. Listen to Neil on "Wine, Women an' Song" and the title track.

Working with Whitesnake is impressive enough, but Neil also worked with Gary Moore who, tragically, just recently passed away.

Neil says he had several custom basses made for him by Aria. These included a red SB which was very similar to an SB-900 but with the pickups much closer together. He mainly used the fretted bass but also had a fretless version as well. You can see some pictures of it below as well as in my video links page. Here is a good video of Neil playing with Gary Moore where you can get a nice view of this bass.

Later, Neil was also played with metal legends Black Sabbath. Neil continued to use custom Aria Pro II basses during this time. One of these basses was a red Integra with customized pickups. This bass can be seen on "When Death Calls". You can also see Neil playing the red Integra with a legendary lineup including Brian May, Steve Vai, and Cozy Powell!

Continuing with Black Sabbath, Neil used a signature Aria model with Bartolini pickups. This bass had a really nice 'flame' maple top. A lucky Sabbath fan purchased this bass from Neil a few years back. It can be seen while being played on "When Death Calls".

Adverts for Neil's signature "ARB-CST" bass can be found here.

Update: here is a cool interview I found of Neil Murray along with fellow bassist Phil Lynott! Don't worry Neil, you'll never be 'too old to rock 'n' roll'!

Update 2: Just found another good video of Neil with Whitesnake, this time with one of his custom Aria SBs. The video is from Top of the Tops in '84 (watch in HD!).

Thanks again to Neil Murray for all of the great photos and information!

You can find Neil on Myspace and Facebook.

Billy Gould with Faith. No Man.

I came across some amazing old footage of the pre-Faith No More band, Faith. No Man which had two future FNM members Billy Gould and Mike Bordin. As the story goes, the singer, Mike "the Man" Morris (seen above, giving the evil eye to Bill) was ousted for being a tyrant and thus the band became Faith No More. I remember an interview where Billy said something about 'The Man' walking around in a trench coat 'pretending he was in England or something.' I believe I do detect a hint of a fake English accent in some of Morris' song intros (listen to the beginning of "Decay" for example)!

This show is a really great find. To top it off, Billy is playing a gorgeous Aria Pro II SB-700 in oak finish. It's already a well known fact that he used Integra basses in the 80s and early 90s, but I had no idea he had also used an SB. It also looks like he is using a pick for most of, if not all, of this particular show. Billy had already established his trademark droning bass lines by this time.

The video is from 1983 in San Francisco. Thanks to whomever filmed this back in the day and the uploader! Great stuff! It's kind of like Duran Duran (Billy's hair and SB-700) meets Killing Joke!

Here are two songs which Faith No Man had also released on vinyl, "Song of Liberty" and "Quiet in Heaven". They also play a few others...check them out! Here is "Life is Tough For Me" which starts out with one of Bill's hypnotic bass riffs.