The Fender Mustang Bass is a classic, revitalized and brought back to life.

This was the first bass I ever played in my Jr. High Jazz band. At the time, I had been playing guitar for at least 5-6 years, and there was no one to play bass in the Jazz band. Being that the school had a bass, I figured it would be a good idea to try and learn to read bass clef and try out for the Jazz band. Being that I already knew how to read treble (or trouble as I call it now) clef, I devised an easy way to learn bass clef and I was off an running. I remember that is was a white bass and I ended up getting the gig with the Jazz band, which I ended up playing throughout high school.

I’ll never forget that bass; still to this day it has been one of my favorites to play. Maybe it’s because it was my first bass “love…” I don’t really know, but I do know the Fender Mustang Bass is back and it brings back great memories that got me to where I am today. I won’t talk about the specific year of the bass I played in high school, as I don’t know what it was, but the Fender Mustang Bass was first introduced in 1966.

The new Fender Mustang Bass still has the classic body, 30” rosewood fingerboard with 19 frets and white dots. The pickup configuration is the classic R/J style, with both being single coil. The electronics consist of volume and tone with a three-way toggle switch to choose between using the P or J pickups alone, or together. The body is made of alder and is available in three high-gloss colors, which are Olympic White, Sonic Blue, and Torino Red. I have to admit I am partial to the Olympic White as that was the color of my first bass. The “C” shape neck is one-piece maple with a satin polyurethane finish and rosewood fingerboard. All of the hardware is chrome and the strings are Fender USA NPS .045-.105.

Don’t discount the Fender Mustang 4-string Bass PJ just because it is a short scale bass, as it plays and sounds great. Not only does it sound great, being that it is lighter, it is easier to play for longer periods of time. I did not experience any issues with intonation or tuning as has been expressed at times with short scale basses. This bass has been used by many artists, all the way from the Rolling Stones to My Chemical Romance, Talking Heads, and even David Bowie.

Check out the Fender Mustang 4-string Bass PJ online or at a Fender music retailer near you!