Rolling Stones
1969 Fender Mustang bass in Competition Orange finish serial number 345763.
Fender introduced the short-scale Mustang bass in 1966, and it was the last bass designed by Leo Fender before he left the company.
In 1969, Fender launched the Competition Mustang bass, adding a special competition finish of racing stripes to the body. Wyman’s Mustang bass has a Competition Orange finish with red racing stripes, Fender colour code #510.
This 30-inch short-scale Mustang bass has an alder wood body, a bolt-on maple neck, dot inlays on fingerboard, a chrome bridge with adjustable string mutes, a black Mustang split pickup mounted on a white Pearloid pickguard, and an input jack and single volume and tone knobs mounted on a chrome faceplate.
The strap button was moved to the short horn for Wyman’s comfort. Together with the original Fender Mustang case.
Wyman used this bass extensively on tour with the Rolling Stones and for studio recordings from 1969 to 1971. He also used the guitar in the music video for the Rolling Stones single “It’s Only Rock ‘n Roll (But I like It).”
A gold and black satin two-piece stage ensemble from famed London boutique Mr. Freedom.
The boutique, located at 430 King’s Road in Chelsea, was famous for its pop-art inspired fashion, often incorporating stars, lightning bolts and ice cream cone motifs in their designs.
This suit features a zip front jacket with matching trousers and a signature melting ice cream cone design on the back of the jacket. Wyman’s records indicate that he purchased this ensemble in September 1970 and wore it during stage performances with the Rolling Stones.
It was previously on exhibit with the British Music Experience exhibition in Liverpool.
A framed poster for the Rolling Stones 1973 tour of New Zealand promoting their show at the Western Springs Stadium in Auckland on February 11. This was the only show in New Zealand during the Oceania leg of the Stones 1973 Pacific tour.
32 by 24 1/4 inches.
A pale green ticket from the Rolling Stones January 21, 1973, show at the Honolulu International Center in Hawaii. This $6.75 ticket was for the arena level, row 5 seat 10, with ZZ Top as the opening act. The Stones played three shows in two days in Hawaii.
1 1/2 by 4 inches
1974 Dan Armstrong prototype bass original natural finish. This prototype double-cutaway bass was built using a unique body shape quite unlike the later production models.
The fingerboard has thumbnail inlays at the upper bass side of the fingerboard and is fitted with two-on-a-side Schaller tuners and the Dan Armstrong name on the headstock; production models also had “London” silkscreened on the headstock. The bass was fitted with an aluminium wraparound top-tailpiece/bridge, an anodized aluminium pickguard, and a movable single Dan Armstrong humbucking bass pickup, and it was wired with single volume and tone knobs.
Wyman spoke about the prototype Dan Armstrong bass in 1978, saying, “I’ve had a Dan Armstrong that I’ve used onstage since 1975. The first one [I had] was Plexiglas and incredibly heavy. We thought of ideas to lighten it, like drilling holes in it and still keeping it strong. In the end, Armstrong finally said, ‘Well, why don’t I make you a wooden one?’ So off he went, and he came back three or four months later and says, ‘Try this.’ It was quite good.”
This bass was used by Wyman on the Rolling Stones 1975-1976 tour.
A silk patchwork jacket with zip front closure, green knit cuffs and waistband. Wyman was photographed wearing the jacket at the 1974 Montreux Jazz Festival while performing with Muddy Waters, Buddy Guy & Junior Wells.
Featured on page 423 of Rolling With The Stones. Wyman, Bill. Doring Kindersley Limited, London, 2002.
A black kid leather stage ensemble accented with silver nailhead studs. The top features wraparound self-belt, and the flared-leg trousers have snap front closure. No labels present. Wyman wore the ensemble while performing live on stage during the 1975 tour.
A burgundy and brown leather suit stitched together with matching leather cord. Jacket and trousers have snap closures. The suit was one of several custom leather suits purchased in June 1975 and worn by Wyman during subsequent tours.
Featured on the table of contents page, Rolling With The Stones. Wyman, Bill. Doring Kindersley Limited, London, 2002.
A framed original photographic composite print mounted to presentation board featuring an image of the Rolling Stones running in front of an image of the Matterhorn. This composite image of the band set against this famous European peak was used for the Rolling Stones 1976 Tour of Europe poster and other promotional materials.
The poster was designed by Christian Piper utilizing an image of the band taken by fashion photographer Hiro. This is the original print presented for approval.
23 1/8 by 15 3/4 inches
This bass was custom built for Wyman in 1977.
It is built with a double-cutaway Koa body in a white finish, aluminium neck with the 19-fret fingerboard, two Travis Bean bass pickups wired with volume and tone knobs for each, and a three-way toggle switch. Clifford Travis Bean was a California machinist and drummer who patented an innovative design for guitars and basses with machined aluminium necks. He partnered with Gary Kramer and Marc McElwee in 1974 to produce Travis Bean Guitars and set up his factory in Sun Valley, California.
Wyman used this bass for Rolling Stones recordings in 1977 and 1978.
Together with a copy of the December 1978 issue of Guitar Player magazine featuring an image of Wyman holding this bass on the cover.