Exhibit No. 8: The Bass Guitar

Originally posted on MySpace on October 18, 2007.

Up to this point, most of the focus of my page and even my blogs has been on John Ondrasik. Yes, John IS Five For Fighting, but he has always relied on others to help him get the job done...a terrific bunch of musicians who have toured with him and recorded in the studio with John to put out those masterful albums. Probably the one guy who has been with John the longest and has contributed the most in both capacities is Curt Schneider. John's trusted friend and bass player has rocked with him since 2001. In my view, Five For Fighting just wouldn't be what it is today without Curt. With the exception of a couple of vintage autographed t-shirts, I didn't have anything in my Five For Fighting memorabilia collection from Curt. I needed to rectify that somehow.

Well, last July, I was Googling when I stumbled across a guitar store website. For sale were two bass guitars, both supposedly played by Five For Fighting. Now, we all know John doesn't play bass, so I knew they HAD to be Curt Schneider's guitars. I phoned the guitar store, and was told that one bass had already been sold. The other was no longer available because it seemed Curt had a change of heart. I gave the store employee my contact information should Curt reconsider and decide to sell the bass again. In the meantime, I discovered Curt had a MySpace page and thought, what the heck...why don't I ask him about the bass and let him know I was interested in it. To my delight, he got back to me and confirmed he decided to hold on to it...for now. He DID agree to let me know when he was ready to sell it again.

Now, you're probably thinking, why would I want to spend so much money to buy another guitar, especially one that wasn't even John's? Well, one look at the photo of the bass at the guitar store website sold me. This particular bass had a history. Back in 2001, Five For Fighting was slowly gaining steam on the airwaves, and in people's hearts and minds. John was touring and doing personal appearances non-stop, from January through to December. It was sometime around fall that Curt joined the band as bass player. Perhaps wanting to enjoy the fruits of his burgeoning success, John bought a new guitar, a Gibson L-140 acoustic-electric. Curt also decided to upgrade, and purchased a Gibson Les Paul bass. Both guitars soon made their appearances on stage as John, Curt and the rest of the band played on into 2002. It was truly a wild ride for everyone involved.

So, knowing the origins of this particular bass, I felt it was something well worth going for...IF Curt would sell it to me. In my initial email to him, I DID let it be known that the bass would be part of my collection...probably never to be played again. Would that matter to him? Well, I kind of forgot about it until I got a surprise email from Curt last month. He said he was thinking of selling the bass again and wanted to know if I was still interested in it. Was I ever! I emailed him back, and in the following weeks, exchanged correspondences as Curt shopped for his replacement bass. After a couple of weeks, Curt was ready to sell, and money exchanged hands. I won't tell you how much I paid for it, but let's just say it was more than what I shelled out for John's guitar.

Curt was shipping the bass to me himself, so I experienced a slight delay as he waited for his new bass to arrive...he needed the box it came in to use it to ship mine. Finally, this Monday, the box with the bass arrived via UPS. I was so excited as I opened the box, revealing the gig bag containing the coveted guitar. I carefully unzipped the bag, and pulled out the bass...it was BEAUTIFUL! It was obvious Curt had taken good care of it over the years. Despite the fact that he had used it on tour, TV appearances and in the studio, it was it great condition. The Gibson Les Paul standard bass with sunburst design is a top-of-the-line guitar. I had asked Curt to autograph it for me and it was, complete with his signature and the obligatory "FFF" added on.

And, so, two guitars have been reunited again...check them out on my pic page! John hadn't played his Gibson acoustic since 2004, and I obtained it myself in May 2006. The last time Curt performed with John was September 2006. In fact, the Les Paul bass probably made it's last public appearance at Toronto's Beachfest that month. Curt is no longer officially part of Five For Fighting. He's gone on to do his own projects, both producing and playing other gigs. That's not to say he won't connect with John again sometime in the future...let's hope he does! In the meantime, I've done my little part to help preserve Five For Fighting history. Curt's bass will soon join John's guitar on my wall. Hmm...I'm going to have to move that baby Taylor to make room. One can never have too many guitars...