SHAFTESBURY ROSE MORRIS 3263 Bill Wyman 1970s Sunburst

Rolling Stones' bassist Bill Wyman playing a Shaftesbury Model 3263 bass.

This Shaftesbury Model 3263 bass is in very good vintage condition, chrome work and finish look great, with a few typical minor dings here and there. Totally original including pick-ups, bridge, tailpiece, scratch plates, even the Rose-Morris tag. Nice straight super-thin set neck with  low action is effortless to play, rosewood fingerboard and frets near perfect, electronics all functioning perfectly.

Shaftesbury was the house brand for the UK distributor Rose Morris (their shop was on Shaftesbury Avenue at the time). From about 1968-1974, Rose Morris sourced instruments under their Shaftesbury name that were built side by side in the same Japanese and Italian factories that other distributors used during that era. The first batch appeared in late 1968: three semi-acoustics based on the Rickenbacker 330 body style- a six-string, a 12-string and a bass

Rose Morris and Rickenbacker go back a long way. Back in the sixties Rickenbacker was all the rage thanks to John Lennon, Pete Townshend and Roger Mcguinn. Rose Morris was the main distributor of Rickenbacker in the UK and saw an opportunity to develop a more affordable house brand so that working musicians who needed a great playing axe on a budget could go down to Rose Morris and grab a great guitar for a great price. Many aspiring young British musicians of that generation fondly remember a Shaftesbury as their "1st decent guitar".