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Hofner 500/1 bass
Paul
McCartney first saw the German-made Hofner bass, nicknamed
the "violin bass" for its body shape, in the Steinway shop
in Hamburg during the Beatles' pre-fame days in 1961. It
is likely that he asked the shop to order a left-handed
version from Hofner.
"I couldn't afford a Fender," McCartney recalled later.
"Fenders even then seemed to be around £100. All I could
afford really was about £30. Always teetering on the edge
of not having much - so I didn't really want to spend that
much. So… I found this Hofner violin bass. And to me it
seemed like, because I was left-handed, it looked less daft
because it was symmetrical. So I got into that. That became
my main bass."
The Hofner 500/1 bass became McCartney's signature instrument.
Soon it was unofficially known as the Hofner Beatle Bass.
McCartney usually played his Hofner with the Treble Switch
off and the Bass switch on, according to the book "Beatles
gear" by Andy Babiuk. He usually selected the Rhythm/Solo
switch to Rhythm.
In 1963, McCartney acquired a second Hofner 500/1 bass.
It is in many ways similar to his first, in fact the most
noticeable visual difference is the placements of the the
pickups and the style of the Hofner logo. In 1964, McCartney
was also presented with a custom made violin base by Selmer,
the British distributor of Hofner. This special version
had gold-plated hardware.
McCartney used the violin bass for many performances and
recordings with the Beatles and still uses it today.
A faithful reproduction of the Hofner "violin"
bass used by McCartney is available from Musician's
Friend.It is avilable in several versions, also left
handed. Musician's
Friend offers a 45-day full refund guarantee.
Further reading: "Beatles Gear" by Andy Babiuk
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