Texas is understood for music, particularly Austin, which within the mid ’70s grew to become a hotbed due to golf equipment like Armadillo World Headquarters, Fortress Creek, and Cleaning soap Creek Saloon, which largely hosted “progressive nation” acts that have been making a sound without delay too radical and conventional for radio.

Within the ’50s and ’60s, East Facet golf equipment like Charlie’s Playhouse hosted blues stars B.B. King, Bobby “Blue” Bland, T-Bone Walker, Junior Parker, and others. However by the early ’70s, younger black music followers have been not enthralled with the blues, and the scene was primarily shuttered – till a diehard blues fan named Clifford Antone purchased an previous furnishings warehouse downtown at Sixth and Brazos and transformed it to a membership that might host the one type of music he needed to listen to.

Antone grew up in Port Arthur and discovered to like music due to his babysitter, a nun who performed gospel data. Later, he joined different teenagers who’d cross the Sabine River to hit Louisiana juke joints, the place they’d watch regional blues acts like Clifton Chenier, Clarence “Gatemouth” Brown, Lazy Lester, and the Fabulous Boogie Kings.

Antone moved to Austin in ’69 to attend the College of Texas, however after getting dinged for promoting pot, he dropped out and for a number of years managed his household’s delicatessen. There, he’d play blues on the radio and strum guitar on his breaks. In a 1998 interview with Classic Guitar, he recalled the Austin music scene in ’75, which was thriving for sure genres, however…
“Blues was at its lowest level,” he stated. “Guys have been begging for a spot to play.”

The doorways to his membership – Antone’s Dwelling of the Blues– opened in July of ’75. In a neighborhood that faculty children didn’t go to and taking part in music they didn’t need to hear removed from different venues, most nights drew small audiences even because the membership’s repute started to develop amongst musicians. Ultimately, although, it grew to become the joint, spurring a renaissance of the district and making Austin a certifiable blues city. Then, metropolis official tore down Antone’s constructing to increase a parking ramp.

Undeterred, Clifford briefly reopened on Anderson Lane earlier than settling into the area for which Antone’s is greatest recognized – a former Shakey’s Pizza on Guadalupe, close to the UT campus. Via the years, the membership hosted a trove of legendary performers – Albert Collins, Albert King, John Lee Hooker, Buddy Man, Muddy Waters, and others who performed each evening Tuesday by Saturday, usually backed by the membership’s home band within the ’70s – the Fabulous Thunderbirds that includes Jimmie Vaughan and Kim Wilson, or native singers Angela Strehli and Lou Ann Barton. Issues have been seldom higher than the evening Albert King and a younger Stevie Ray Vaughan jammed collectively.

“On that stage, they each performed a few of their very best stuff,” Antone stated.

Simply 56 when he died in Might of 2006, Antone was additionally a musician and busy guitar collector within the ’70s and ’80s, visiting pawn retailers and serving to musicians liquidate once they stepped out of the enterprise.

“The extra you take care of and perceive guitars, the extra you turn out to be,” he stated in ’98. “And I feel each guitar participant ought to have 5 – 6.”

Within the mid ’80s, his friendship with native vendor Danny Thorpe led him to many classics together with early Teles and Strats, custom-color Fenders, thinline and hole Gibsons from the ’50s, and this ’52 Precision Bass.

“I used to be on the membership in the future a few years in the past when Clifford advised me Danny had purchased the Precision and a ’52 Tele from a pair guys who had performed in a rustic band,” stated the bass’ present proprietor, John “Toad” Andrews, an completed guitarist who has been a part of the scene because the late ’60s, was a member of Mom Earth (in San Francisco), and is a fan of blackguard Fenders.

Stored prepared on the membership, Clifford typically used the Precision to take a seat in with gamers he counted as shut mates – King, Collins, Man, Bonnie Raitt, Hubert Sumlin, Pinetop Perkins, Luther Tucker, and others together with native up-and-comers like SRV, Sue Foley, Doyle Bramhall, II, Jake Andrews (Toad’s son), and Gary Clark, Jr.

“Cliff had so many nice devices and cherished for his musician mates to play them,” stated Derek O’Brien, one other shut pal of Antone’s who for years led the membership’s home band, often taking part in guitar.

Getting ready to serve a jail sentence after a second conviction for dealing marijuana, in ’94 and ’95, Antone offered a number of devices together with a ’64 Gibson Tal Farlow, ’59 ES-335, a ’69 ES-330, ’57 Byrdland, ’59 Epiphone Regent, and the ’52 Precision to Dr. Robert Mingea, a fellow collector in Austin. Circa 2005, Mingea offered the Precision to Andrews.

“The pots have a producer’s date of the thirtieth week of ’52,” stated Andrews, who has carried out some forensics on it. “Which is sensible as a result of only a few Precisions have been made that 12 months; the manufacturing date would seemingly have been August.”

Dave Hinson, an instrument vendor who runs Killer Classic retailers in St. Louis and Dallas, just lately appraised Andrews’ assortment, which incorporates a number of early blackguards (his ’51 Esquire as soon as owned by “Gatemouth” Brown was profiled within the July ’18 concern of VG). Given its provenance and near-mint situation, Hinson is assured the Precision would deliver $80,000. Andrews insures its authentic form-fitting “poodle” case for an additional $15,000, which sounds excessive till he remembers how Fred Stuart, Grasp Builder within the Fender Customized Store, advised him it could be the one one nonetheless in existence.

“After they have been tooling-up to make fiftieth Anniversary 1951 Precision Bass, Fender scoured the nation on the lookout for a poodle case, however was unsuccessful, in order that they needed to accept creating

Constructed within the days earlier than sturdier exhausting instances, the improve (from a gig bag) chipboard case had served admirably. Nonetheless, time took its toll, and Andrews did his greatest to revive it.
“It was principally being held collectively by its material liner,” he stated. “However the material wore out simply from the burden of the bass. I’m certain Clifford dealt with it rigorously, however after a couple of a long time, it simply wasn’t holding up.”

Not wanting to interchange materials or in any other case detract from its originality, Andrews eliminated the duct tape that had been holding its seams collectively and utilized new glue.

With Andrews, the bass has seen a quiet life however was featured in a 2022 episode of “Pawn Stars on the Highway” when the present stopped in Austin.

“I used to be round for a very good variety of Cliff’s guitar and bass buys – I want I’d saved a diary!” stated O’Brien. “And I’m so glad John ended up with the Precision.”

This text initially appeared in VG’s December 2023 concern. All copyrights are by the creator and Classic Guitar journal. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.