Sardonyx Bass
The Sardonyx Bass is an electric bass from Prince’s collection. It is not known whether Prince played the bass on any recording dates, although it was used by Andre Cymone and later Sonny T. It is notable for its unusual body shape which later inspired the Cloud guitar.
The bass was built by luthier Jeffery Levin working out of Matt Umanov Guitars in New York. Levin made other guitars under the Sardonyx brand, most famously played by John Lennon. He made this bass as a one-off for his own use, inspired by the Gibson F-style mandolin. The original version didn’t balance properly, leading to the extended upper horn on the second version. This article on Madcats & Clouds includes an interview Jeffery Levin, which goes into more detail.
According to Andre Cymone, Prince bought the bass for him in California when recording For You:
We had a day off, so we just got in the car and drove. I spotted a shop in San Rafael, we popped in, and I saw the bass. I played it and fell in love, but I didn’t have the cash at the time, so I asked Prince to buy it and he did. I’m not completely sure who the maker was—I haven’t seen it since I left the band. I was pretty surprised when I saw him playing a guitar version. I’d never seen anything like that before.
However, Levin recounts putting the bass up for sale Matt Umanov Guitars where it was purchased by a then-unknown Prince sometime later. The bass was played by Cymone in the “Why You Wanna Treat Me So Bad?” video and at Prince’s first live performance in 1979. It has a few modifications by Prince, including the installation of EMG pickups. After Cymone left the band it remained in Prince’s collection, suggesting that he was the actual owner.
It was later taken by Prince to Knut Koupeé Guitars in Minneapolis where it became the basis for the Cloud guitar. The bass appeared again in the early 1990s where it was played by Sonny T in the “My Name Is Prince” and “Most Beautiful Girl In The World” videos.
The bass is currently in the collection at Paisley Park and appears in the Prince - Guitar & Bass book.