It wasn’t literally the first electric bass, but Fender’s Precision was the genesis of the instrument the world knows today. For more than seven decades, the four-string workhorse has been a favorite in the studio and on stages, and the story of modern music can’t be written without it.

Fender’s American Vintage II line (VG, March ’23) takes a look back at the 1954 release of this fundamental favorite, and goes detail-for-detail with this transitional version of the P-Bass. The ’54 model lost the slab body and black pickguard of its predecessor, but kept the Telecaster headstock, two-saddle bridge, and one-piece pickup.

Aesthetically, it’s a testament to the artful simplicity and thoughtful engineering of Leo Fender and George Fullerton; the only superfluous feature is the pickguard that covered the upper horn until the late ’50s. The simple wiring and bolt-on neck bear further witness, and like the original, the Vintage II wears nitrocellulose gloss on the body and neck.

The one-piece maple neck has 20 Vintage Tall frets, traditional 34″ scale, and Fender’s “1954 C” shape. A 7.25″-radius fretboard and 1.70″-wide nut continue its blast-from-the-past playing experience, but require acclimation by anyone migrating from a modern bass. Period-correct reverse tuners and skunk stripe down the back of the neck complete the vintage package.

Just like in the 1954 catalog, this bass sports a string-through bridge with two fiber saddles – a fantastic touch, and a new experience for most. The non-split, single-coil pickup was designed specifically for this model and when paired with flatwound strings delivers real time-machine tone – big, fat, and fundamental, it sounds like everything James Jamerson played once he went electric, and feels like every country record after Western swing left the charts. The thump is real, and the dearth of ringing overtones puts a laser focus on the guts of the instrument’s output. It’s the defining feature of the Precision Bass, and this reissue is faithful to its namesake.

Available in two-tone Sunburst or Vintage Blonde over its ash body, the American Vintage II 1954 Precision Bass may carry a price tag at the higher end for a standard-production Fender, but it’s a reasonable ask for a nitro-finished U.S.-made instrument aimed at a discriminating player.

This article originally appeared in VG’s November 2023 issue. All copyrights are by the author and Vintage Guitar magazine. Unauthorized replication or use is strictly prohibited.