Pedulla
Pedulla or M.V. Pedulla was a private bass guitar manufacturer from Boston, Massachussets, USA. The company was founded in 1975 by luthier Michael V. Pedulla and ceased their opartions in 2019, when he announced his retirement. Pedulla's range of basses included the Thunderbass, the Thunderbolt, the MVP Bass and the Buzz fretless and fretted bass, which made the company popular in the 1980s, and the Rapture line, which were Fender bass clones and were used by Chris.
Wolstenholme used Pedullas live and in the studio between 1999 and 2007. After using Pedullas for 5 years for live performances, when the Black Holes and Revelation Tour started, he swapped from Pedullas to Fender Jazz Basses. One of Wolstenholme's Pedulla RB4's was on display in the Manson Guitar Shop in Devon, above Bellamy's M1D1 Mirror.
Tobacco Sunburst/Rosewood fretboard Pedulla RB4
| Pedulla Rapture RB4 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | M.V. Pedulla |
| Used | 1999 - 2001 |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Tobacco Sunburst paint |
| Wood | Body: Unknown Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood |
| Bridge | Chrome Fender-style 4-String Bridge |
| Electronics | Two volume, one tone |
| Pickup(s) | Single soapbar pickup |
| Special circuits | / |
Chris' first known Pedulla. Used on gigs from 1999 to 2001 (such as Bizarre Festival 2000 and the St. Malo gig in 2001) for songs in DADG (Drop-D) tuning.
This Pedulla featured a tobacco sunburst paintjob with a tortoise shell pickguard and one soapbar pickup.
Candy Blue/J-Style Pedulla RB4
| Pedulla Rapture RB4 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | M.V. Pedulla |
| Used | 2001 |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Candy Blue |
| Wood | Body: Unknown Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood |
| Bridge | Chrome Fender-style 4-String Bridge |
| Electronics | Two volume, one tone |
| Pickup(s) | 2x J-Style pickups |
| Special circuits | / |
This bass was used to record Origin Of Symmetry & was used at some gigs in 2001 and in the Plug In Baby music video, he bought it for £1300 before being sold as a Part-ex at the Manson Guitar Shop.
Chris preferred the sound of the single soapbar pickup Raptures as opposed to dual Jazz-style pickup Raoptzres and since then, he has only used single-pickup Raptures.
Candy Blue/Soapbar Pickup Pedulla RB4
| Pedulla Rapture RB4 | |
|---|---|
| Manufacturer | M.V. Pedulla |
| Used | 2001 - 2009 |
| Body type | Solid |
| Neck joint | Bolt-on |
| Body covering | Candy Blue |
| Wood | Body: Unknown Neck: Maple Fingerboard: Rosewood |
| Bridge | Chrome Fender-style 4-String Bridge |
| Electronics | Two volume, one tone |
| Pickup(s) | Single soapbar pickup |
| Special circuits | / |
Used from 2001 after Chris had sold the blue dual J-Style pickup Rapture. Can be seen on the Hullabaloo DVD for songs in standard EADG tuning. This bass was also used for live performances of Space Dementia in 2004 & Micro Cuts at some some gigs in 2007. It was also tested in studio whilst recording Undisclosed Desires to try find the best slap sound.
In terms of looks, it was identical to the previous blue Pedulla.
Flat Black, Rosewood Neck, Flat Black Pickguard, Single Soapbar Pickup
Used for songs in dropped-D tuning between 2001 & 2004, can be seen on the Hullabaloo DVD. While playing Stockholm Syndrome in Trabendo, France in 2003, a straplock broke causing Chris to play the remainder of the song while trying to hold the bass up. After Bellamy had thrashed Howard's kit, Chris held the bass over his head & launched it onto the drum riser. The bass landed on the head, possibly cracking it and 1st string peg. He made a new hole for the 1st string peg since the old one was useless. This makes this bass suspected as 5 string Pedulla. But, it's too strange for a 5-string bass (note the bridge, PU dimension, string spacing, and nut width).
Candy Red, Rosewood Neck, White Pickguard, Single Soapbar Pickup
This bass was used for all songs in standard tuning between 2002 & 2005. At the end of 2003, Chris sprayed the white pickguard flat black & after a while sprayed the whole body flat black, except for a design believed to be a Dragon, which was left red. Chris also used this bass briefly in 2006 for the Shepherds Bush gig for 2 songs, Stockholm Syndrome and Butterflies and Hurricanes, possibly because of the fast-paced finger picking in both songs, Chris was more comfortable with the usual feel of the Rapture.