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| No doubt you will all know of the legendary status that early Tokai instruments enjoy. Stevie Ray Vaughan himself was an early, high-profile devotee before his untimely and way-too-early death. Stevie appears on the cover of Tokai's 1985-1986 Electric Guitars catalogue. There is also an interesting piece of trivia concerning the Texas Flood (Epic 1983) album cover photo. It was taken while Stevie was playing a Tokai replica Strat®. On the cover, the Tokai logo was removed, but many music shops used to sell a poster of that album cover and "Tokai Springy Sound" is clearly visible on the headstock! The whole 'lawsuit' era in Japanese guitar manufacturing is fascinating, and the legacy is amazing, with many unbelievably good 'copies' of American originals that often surpassed the American product of the day, in workmanship, materials (including tonewoods), and - importantly - accuracy regarding historical detail. Tokai was at the forefront, with their "Springy Sound" Stratocaster® replicas and the "Breezy Sound" Telecaster® replicas often being regarded as superior to the original Fender® models they copied. Tokai has its own factory, and has built guitars for many famous known brands such as Fernandes and Fender Japan. This pre-1982 vintage made-in-Japan (MIJ) Tokai Jazz Sound (a '60s Jazz Bass® copy) is a perfect example of the heights Tokai achieved. It also has a sought-after L serial, #L05399. It also has the 'pre-lawsuit' logo Condition of both the instrument and its original case are amazing, with only the barest signs of play. There is some slight scratching and worming to the finish on the back of the body, with a virtually mint front face. The finish is a beautiful thin nitro-cellulose lacquer, with a sunburst that is as stunning as the best of the 1960s Fenders. The Maple neck is unbelievably nice to play, while the Rosewood used on the fretboard is as luscious as Fender's best. Fret wear is negligible. Weight on this Ash-bodied bass is 4.3kg, or 9 lb and 7.67 oz, and the playability and sound are both absolutely amazing!
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