I wonder whether having the personal signature of a famous alembic bassist on an alembic bass would be a good thing or a bad thing?
 
I know that a while ago the signature models had Stanley Clarke or Mark Kings signature on the headstock and that was later dropped.
 
Personally I prefer it without the headstock signature. ( No disrespect to owners with the signature models.)
 
Now I'm in a bit of a quandry. I'm going to Stanley Clarke's gig at the Jazz Cafe later this month and in two minds about taking my bass down there in the hope that he would sign it.
 
If I did, I wouldn't want the signature on the front of the bass as it has a lovely Coco Bola top and for me it would spoil the purity of the look.  
 
However the back is also coco bola and I'm not sure whether it would be a good idea to sign there too.
 
If I had a brass back cover then I would be fine with having the autograph there as it wouldn't interfere with the fantastic wood on the back and could replace it if I had to sell the bass.
 
But I have continuous CB back plate so he could sign that or maybe the back of the headstock but I'm not sure whether I think it's a good idea or not.
 
Although I don't plan to sell my alembic, I also wonder if it would affect sale price postively or negatively if i decided to sell it later?
 
In one sense I would be happy if Stanley just held the bass, played it and I had a photo of me, him and the bass.
 
Yeah I know I probably sound like an adolescent fan but i just wanted to put the feelers out and see what others think.
 
The other consideration is the inconvenience of walking around London all day lugging my alembic round and worrying about it being safe from damage.
 
Help :-)
 
Jazzyvee

If I were you, I would ask him to / let him sign the inside of the Coco Bolo back plate. I assume you want the autograph for yourself and not to show off, so it'd be your personal cool little secret, a bit of Stanley's mojo hidden inside your bass.
 
Wilfred

thats not a bad idea
i would go back of the headstock

I dont like signatures on instruments (no offense to anyone, just not my thing), so I would go for signing the inside of the backplate also....
 
As for how it affects the price of an instrument, I think a big fan of the artist who signed it would probably pay a little more for it, but the average person probably wouldnt...

I'm not much of an autograph seeker either but if I were, inside the back plate is a good idea. That way you don't have to take your whole bass with you.

Here's another vote for inside the cover plate.  Signatures look too much like graffiti to me.

The only thing a signature does is makes the instrument worth more money even if the artist only played it once!........ if a BONO took a bite out of a fish sandwich & left it on the counter that f#cking thing would be worth a million bucks on EBAY!.....it's all about Money!

I'm not an autograph hunter either but Clarkee is probably my favourite musician so having his signature would be cool for me. And yes it wold be a personal thing for me and not something I would want to show off so I like the idea of having it inside the backplate. I think I'll go with that one. Hope I don't lose it during the day. lol
Thanks for  your views.
Jazzyvee.

Another vote for a hidden signature. My whole problem with autographs is how do you know they're real? If someone were trying to sell me a Stanley Clark Alembic for more then it's worth because Stanley Signed it I'd want proof positive it was Stanley's actual Signature. Like a photo of the seller standing with Stanley with bass in hand. It's a tough thing to prove. There's nothing stopping me from finding Stanley's signature someplace on the web, getting a magic marker and forging his signature on the back of my SC Standard. Now I would never do this ... but we all know there are some very dishonest people in the world. So MY opinion is an autographed bass isn't worth a penny more unless you have proof positive the autograph is real. BUT that being said, if you're there and you know Stanley signed your bass I think it's cool for bragging rights! Of course this is just my opinion. Someone else may be willing to pay you a lot extra for the signed bass. Some people are far more trusting (or gullable) then me. :-)

I would also vote for inside the backplate, but maybe for different reasons than have been voiced so far.
 
I would take the backplate to the concert and leave the bass at home.  Why risk the damage?  Also, signatures on the outside of the bass could eventually wear off, depending on what if anything you are willing to do to preserve them.  I had Nathan East and Gerald Veasley sign a bass that I no longer own.  Although Nathan's signature stayed very clear until the new owner had it removed, Gerald's signature became a blur over the course of 2 or 3 years.
 
I also had The Brothers Johnson sign the back of my 5 string Alembic with a Sharpie.  Three gigs later I found myself removing what was left of those signatures.  That's when I wished I had just had them sign inside the plate.
 
Peace,
 
James

I personally wouldn't buy an instrument that had been signed as I think it detracts from the value.
 
As far as Stanley's signature goes he sure signed a lot items when I saw him last year. This included album covers, CD covers and several bass guitars. Given how many are out there I don't think it adds any value to anyone other than the receiver.  
 
Keith

If you're going to preserve a signature on the finish, you need to prep the finish first, that means sanding - otherwise a protective coating will not stick to the smooth, buffed surface of the existing finish. It's not easy , and if you're not experienced, I wouldn't recommend experimenting on your Alembic.  
 
Once your finish is prepped, you'll need to find a suitable marker. Sharpies are common, but you need to check that it won't react with whatever you're going to protect the signature with. For instance, Krylon spray paint likes to melt away Sharpies, so test your marker and your cover paint first.  
 
Wow, getting the inside of the backplate signed is sounding better and better all the time!

Maybe use one of those paint-pen sharpies?

I shared a bill with Will Lee once.  I asked him to sign my Series II.  He thought it wasn't a good idea, but did it anyway.  He signed it on the front of the bass near the bridge and tailpiece.  After a couple of weeks, I got tired of looking at it, and it just wiped away with a damp cloth!  The inside of the backplate is the way to go.  Signatures with a sharpie on the front of a Series II just wipe away.  Good Thing!

I was ask for MY autograph when I bought my Alembics, Of course it was on the bottom of a check too.