Memphis P Bass?

Hi! Wonder if any of you have seen/heard/know anything about the bass used at our church. It looks, feels and plays just like a Fender P Bass, even the headstock shape, but it's labeled as Memphis. I talked to the owner(the pianist), who said he bought it in a pawn shop some years ago. That's all he knows about it. I like the instrument and would love to know more about it.

I only know Jesus Lizard's bass player Dave WM Sims plays a Memphis but jazz style.
http://davidwmsims.files.wordpress.com/2009/01/bass-2008-01-08.jpg?w=500

My first guitar was a Memphis, black Les Paul knock-off, purchased for me in 1981 by my mom. It was a pretty lousy entry level guitar. I can remember her telling the salesman that she wanted something cheap in case I didn't stick with lessons. I am pretty sure it was made in China.

I love me some Memphis guitars. There were (are?) several streams of Memphi. The early ones were Fender/Gibson knock-offs...on par with Tokai quality in my estimation (made in Japan). These typically have the logo like the bass in the pic above. Later they seemed to move to Korea & China for production & the quality dropped.

I had a Memphis Les Paul Custom copy that was on equal footing with the real deal. I also had a tele thinline copy & a 335 copy that I loved. Unfortunately they got sold along the way...and I regret it.

JoeBob has an ultra cool Memphis set neck, Paul-ish axe with the "diamond" headstock (like a flying V)...and some screaming pickups that will take your face off.

=jason

Cool! Thanks. This is an older bass(probably aound the 80's). The finish shows the age and patina that a lacquered finish would, which is what I believe it is. I borrowed it when I was first interested in learning bass, all I had to do was make sure I brought it back each service so it could be used when needed. In exchange, I set the bass up well and repaired the hinges on the case.

Memphis basses were the first Korean Fender bass copies to be imported into the US AFAIK. The very first ones were very cheaply made and they had very low quality tuners and pickups. I used to sell them new when I worked at a music store in 1978-1987.

These were entry level instuments and I think they actually had to improve the quality to deal with the initial numbers of basses that were returned with bad necks, bad pots, etc.. I actually think the first ones didn't have truss rods!

The finishes are definitely polyurethane. These instruments never even sniffed lacquer. We used to rent them with the option to buy to beginners.

The natural finished basses were made up of so many pieces of wood that the appeared to have been made from the crates that they were shipped in! LOL
Memphis guitars never approached the quality levels of Tokai instruments.
If you have one that is that good , it is definitely an exception.

As with any instrument , there were some good ones and these have passed the test of time and many were made later on, when they got their act together.

Memphis guitars were always a Korean " import brand" and never were manufactured in Japan or China, at least not back in the 80's. If they are still manufactured,I would expect them to be made in China today.

If it says "Made in Japan", then that bass was made by the Matsumoku factory which burned down in 1987. That factory was responsible for some pretty nice guitars by the likes of Univox, Aria, Westbury, Westone, Epiphone, Memphis, Electra et al. They were quite prolific in their day. They made some great copy basses along the way, like the Univox Professional (P-Bass) and Stereo Bass (a dead-nuts Rick 4001 copy). My guess is that you have a pretty decent bass there. The pickups were usually just OK, but that is easily remedied.

Of the brands that remained after Matsumoku got destroyed, most of the production got shifted to the Samick factory in Korea.

If it says "Made in Japan", then that bass was made by the Matsumoku factory which burned down in 1987. That factory was responsible for some pretty nice guitars by the likes of Univox, Aria, Westbury, Westone, Epiphone, Memphis, Electra et al. They were quite prolific in their day. They made some great copy basses along the way, like the Univox Professional (P-Bass) and Stereo Bass (a dead-nuts Rick 4001 copy). My guess is that you have a pretty decent bass there. The pickups were usually just OK, but that is easily remedied.

Of the brands that remained after Matsumoku got destroyed, most of the production got shifted to the Samick factory in Korea.
I will look for the MIJ label. I have worked on the bass a few times, but never really looked past the job at hand at the moment. From working on it and playing it, I can tell you that IMO it is well built and plays great, which is what prompted this thread. Thanks to you,jrfrond, to BCbassman, and all who replied.

Memphis originated in the mid-late 70s, so it could possibly be that old. If it is, then it won't say made in Japan anywhere on it, and it won't have a serial number. Neither do most of the Japanese guitars of the 70s era.

Memphis originated in the mid-late 70s, so it could possibly be that old. If it is, then it won't say made in Japan anywhere on it, and it won't have a serial number. Neither do most of the Japanese guitars of the 70s era.

That's possible, and may be why I never noticed. I'll definately check as soon as I can.

Memphis originated in the mid-late 70s, so it could possibly be that old. If it is, then it won't say made in Japan anywhere on it, and it won't have a serial number. Neither do most of the Japanese guitars of the 70s era.

If it is a Matsumoku guitar, it will have "Made in Japan" stamped on the neck plate.

The older MIJ Memphis-branded instruments are quite nice. Later they sold the Memphis "brand name" and they started being churned out in Korea and later China.

The post-MIJ Memphis instruments are among the worst I've seen or played, but the Japanese ones can be killer.

The ones I have played have been some of the worst. I am sure there are some good ones, and I am sure many could be setup/repaired.