The

Hagström Hagström () is a musical instrument manufacturer in Älvdalen, Dalecarlia, Sweden. Their original products were accordions that they initially imported from Germany and then Italy before opening their own facility in 1932. During the late 1950s ...

H8 was the world first mass-produced 8-string bass and was produced between 1967 and 1969 for a total of 2199 units.

History

According to Karl-Erik Hagström the idea for the eight stringed bass came from the American who visited Hagström's American retailer Unicord. Ernie Briefel, who was the head of Unicord, liked the idea and contacted Karl-Erik Hagström in Sweden and in 1966 a first prototype was built and tested both in Sweden and in America. The next year mass production of the H8 began. The H8 was based around a regular four stringed Hagström bass but all strings were doubled much like a

12 string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in o ...

. The lighter string was placed above the standard string and tuned one octave higher than usual. This gave the H8 a unique tone which was very suitable for bass solos. In Hagström brochures the manufacturer also recommended creative tunings based around the

major third In classical music, a third is a musical interval encompassing three staff positions (see Interval number for more details), and the major third () is a third spanning four semitones. Forte, Allen (1979). ''Tonal Harmony in Concept and P ...

, the

perfect fifth In music theory, a perfect fifth is the Interval (music), musical interval corresponding to a pair of pitch (music), pitches with a frequency ratio of 3:2, or very nearly so. In classical music from Western culture, a fifth is the interval fro ...

and the

major seventh In music from Western culture, a seventh is a musical interval encompassing seven staff positions (see Interval number for more details), and the major seventh is one of two commonly occurring sevenths. It is qualified as ''major'' because it i ...

. The bodies of almost all of the H8s were made out of mahogany, but a few were made out of Finnish Birch, something very rare among guitar and bass manufacturers. The bass was available in Mahogany Sunburst and Cherry Red finishes. There were also a very few all white basses produced. There were a number of prototypes built for a successor to the H8 built with a 32" scale length as well as acoustic eight stringed versions of the Concord bass built but none were ever put in production. Recently the revived Hagström brand announced that they will launch a re-issue of the original Hagström H8 later this year.

Notable users

Jimi Hendrix James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

- Owned the sixth one ever made in 1967 and used it in jams later entitled "Get that Feeling", "Odd Ball", "Love Love", "Hush Now" and a jam based on

The Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

"Day Tripper". It is currently in the Hendrix collection at the

Museum of Pop Culture The Museum of Pop Culture or MoPOP is a nonprofit museum in Seattle, Washington, dedicated to contemporary popular culture. It was founded by Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen in 2000 as the Experience Music Project. Since then MoPOP has organized ...

in Seattle, WA. *

Noel Redding David Noel Redding (25 December 1945 – 11 May 2003) was an English rock musician, best known as the bass player for the Jimi Hendrix Experience and guitarist/singer for Fat Mattress. Following his departure from the Experience in 1969 a ...

- Was approached by a Hagström representative when

The Jimi Hendrix Experience James Marshall "Jimi" Hendrix (born Johnny Allen Hendrix; November 27, 1942September 18, 1970) was an American guitarist, singer and songwriter. Although his mainstream career spanned only four years, he is widely regarded as one of the most ...

was on tour in Sweden and used it later on "Spanish Castle Magic", "You've got me Floating" and "Little Miss Lover" *

Mike Rutherford Michael John Cloete Crawford Rutherford (born 2 October 1950) is an English guitarist, bassist and songwriter, co-founder of the rock band Genesis. Rutherford and keyboardist Tony Banks are the group's two continuous members. Initially servin ...

- Bassplayer of

Genesis Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

used a Hagström H8 on the song "One for the Vine" from the 1976 album "''

Wind & Wuthering ''Wind & Wuthering'' is the eighth studio album by English progressive rock band Genesis. It was released on 17 December 1976 on Charisma Records and is their last studio album to feature guitarist Steve Hackett. Following the success of their ...

''". *

Danny McCulloch Daniel Joseph "Danny" McCulloch (18 July 1945 – 29 January 2015) was an English musician best known as the bassist of the 1960s psychedelic rock group The Animals, Eric Burdon and The Animals. History Early career Danny McCulloch was born i ...

- Bassplayer of

The Animals The Animals (also billed as Eric Burdon and the Animals) are an English rock band, formed in Newcastle upon Tyne in the early 1960s. The band moved to London upon finding fame in 1964. The Animals were known for their gritty, bluesy sound and ...

was listed as a Hagström H8 user in promotional material from Hagström Guitars. *

Andy Kulberg Andy Kulberg (April 30, 1944 – January 28, 2002) was an American musician notable for his bass playing with the groups Blues Project and Seatrain. He was born in Buffalo, New York, and grew up in Amherst, New York. In 1965, he became a f ...

- Bassist of the short-lived psychedelic rock band

Blues Project The Blues Project is a band from the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City that was formed in 1965 and originally split up in 1967. Their songs drew from a wide array of musical styles. They are most remembered as one of the most artfu ...

used a H8 and was also used in Hagström's promotional material. *

Lemmy Kilmister Ian Fraser Kilmister (24 December 1945 – 28 December 2015), better known as Lemmy Kilmister or simply Lemmy, was an English musician. He was the founder, lead singer, bassist and primary songwriter of the rock band Motörhead, of which he wa ...

- Bassplayer of

Motörhead Motörhead () were an English rock band formed in London in 1975 by Lemmy (lead vocals, bass), Larry Wallis (guitar) and Lucas Fox (drums). Lemmy was also the primary songwriter and only constant member. The band are often considered a precu ...

used one on the BBC Top Of The Pops video for Bomber (which he claims to have received during his time working as a roadie for Hendrix's band).

External links

Official Hagström Website

Official Albin Hagström Website

References

Vintage Guitars - Hagström H8

FUZZ Hagström H8 Article
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hagstrom H8 Electric bass guitars