Bill Black's 1956 Fender Precision Bass Serial #13182

People always talk about Elvis and Scotty, but let me tell you something — there would have been no Elvis without Bill Black and that bass. Bill Black was one of the funniest, most charismatic musicians who ever lived, and this Fender Precision Bass — serial number 13182, one of the earliest production models — was his road instrument from 1956 through 1958, right through the peak of Elvis's early career. The Fender Precision was a revolutionary instrument at the time; before it, bassists were lugging around a giant upright bass. Bill was one of the first musicians to bring this instrument into a rock and roll setting, and the sound it produces — warm, punchy, unmistakable — you can hear it on 'Heartbreak Hotel,' 'Hound Dog,' and 'Don't Be Cruel.' I traced this bass through three different owners and finally located it through a Nashville estate sale in 2019. The original case, which is also here, still has Bill's name handwritten on a piece of masking tape inside the lid.