Mosrite Ventures Bass. 1991 SM: RANDY. This is the last guitar that Semie Moseley built himself in 1991-1992 for his nephew RANDY.

MOSRITE “VENTURES” BASS — SERIAL “RANDY”

Built entirely by Semie Moseley’s own hand for his nephew  ·1991–1992

One of a Kind·  Fully Documented  ·Semie Moseley’s Final Chapter

International Guitar Museum  ·  Home of the Richard Davis Collection

This guitar is offered by the International Guitar Museum of Durham, North Carolina, which now houses the Richard Davis Collection — one of the world’s largest and most deeply curated private assemblages of vintage and custom guitars. It is among the most significant pieces in the entire collection: a one-of-a-kind Mosrite Ventures bass built by hand by Semie Moseley — the founder of Mosrite — for his nephew, Randy Moseley, in the final period of his life. It is accompanied by full IMIR provenance documentation and a Certificate of Authenticity.

Museum founder and curator Rich Davis describes the instrument in his own words:

“Some guitars come with a story; this one comes with the paperwork. Semie Moseley built this bass entirely by his own hand for his nephew Randy — he signed off on every stage of its construction, signed and dated the headstock, and inlaid Randy’s name into the fingerboard. The other Mosrites of his final years were finished by his staff or completed after his death and certified by his wife; this one is his alone. I believe it is the last guitar built entirely by Semie’s own hand. I can’t prove it was mathematically the last — no one can prove a negative — but it is the best-documented such instrument in existence, and the evidence is on the guitar itself.”

Why This Guitar Matters — Semie Moseley’s Final Chapter

Semie Moseley (1935–1992) was one of the most influential figures in the history of the American electric guitar — the founder of Mosrite and the designer of the Ventures Model, the instrument that became a garage-rock and surf icon and was later wielded by everyone from Joe Maphis and Buck Owens to Johnny Ramone. He and his brother Andy founded Mosrite of California in 1956. To those who love these guitars, Semie’s hand on an instrument is the whole point.

In 1991, Semie moved his shop to Booneville, Arkansas and began building again. About six months later he was diagnosed with bone cancer, and he died roughly six weeks after that, on August 7, 1992. This bass dates to that final stretch — the last chapter of a life spent building guitars.

What sets this bass apart from the other Mosrites of Semie’s final years is authorship. After the 1991 move to Arkansas, the shop’s work was carried on with the help of staff and his wife Loretta; the anniversary and commemorative models — the 40th Anniversary and 30th Anniversary Nokie reissues, the Commemorative Ventures, Yuzo Kayama, and Built in Soul models — were collaborative shop builds, several completed only after Semie’s death, and the official late-period USA Mosrites were certified by Loretta. This bass is the opposite: Semie signed off on it personally at every stage of construction. It is documented as built entirely by his own hand.

The dating deserves a word. Semie’s inscription on the back of the headstock is physically interrupted by the tuner holes, which are bored late in construction — establishing that he wrote and signed the headstock before the guitar was finally assembled. The “1991” he wrote is therefore the date of his inscription, not necessarily of completion: final assembly postdates it and plausibly extended into 1992. With his death on August 7, 1992 as the outer limit, the instrument was completed somewhere between Semie’s 1991 inscription and the final months of his working life.

On that evidence, the curator’s position is that this is the last guitar built entirely by Semie Moseley’s own hand. It is offered honestly: that conclusion cannot be proven absolute — no record can foreclose the existence of a later solo build — but it is the best-documented such instrument known, and every part of the case is visible on the guitar itself.

The Documentation

The Mosrite shop ticket. The original Mosrite factory ticket (P.O. Box 85, Jonas Ridge, NC) accompanies the bass, filled out Model: Ventures, Serial #: RANDY, Color: White, headed “Built for Randy Moseley,” and signed by Semie Moseley across the Finish, Hardware, Set-Up, Test, and Approved By boxes.

The headstock inscription. The back of the headstock is inscribed and signed in Semie Moseley’s own hand: “Made in U.S.A. By Semie Moseley,” dated 1991.

The neckplate. The neckplate is engraved with the Mosrite “M” and the name “semie moseley.”

The fingerboard. The name “RANDY” is inlaid directly into the rosewood fingerboard — a personalization no production instrument would carry, and the source of the guitar’s serial designation.

Four independent features — the signed ticket, the signed and dated headstock, the engraved neckplate, and the inlaid name — converge on a single conclusion: this bass was built by Semie Moseley, by hand, for Randy Moseley, in 1991.

The Provenance

This bass was acquired directly from its first and only owner, Randy Moseley — son of Andy Moseley, Semie’s brother and the co-founder of Mosrite. Upon its listing, Andy Moseley wrote to confirm its history: “You are looking at a one of a kind bass by Mosrite. This was made for my son ‘RANDY’ Moseley… I worked with my brother Semie for years building one of the world’s best electric guitars — MOSRITE.” In a subsequent telephone conversation, Andy — himself gravely ill — recounted his brother building this bass for Randy in the last part of Semie’s life. The curator offered to return the instrument to the Moseley family as a gift; Andy graciously declined. This history is recorded out of respect for the family who made it and who shared it.

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