CLIFTON BASSES & GUITARS

Mo Clifton began designing and building instruments in 1986 after spending twelve years engineering and sixteen years studying, teaching design and technology. He found that the bass guitar he had played for a few years with a blues band was beginning to give him shoulder problems so he designed and made a headless bass. The design was very successful and he made a few before being asked by Simon Woolf, a fine London upright player, to help him design an electric upright bass.
The Clifton Upright Bass has become the instrument for which Mo is best known and there are around 100 of these around the world. When flying instruments around became a big problem a few years ago, Mo designed the Frequent Flyer, a 41 in. scale upright which collapses down to fit easily in an overhead locker and this too has enjoyed popularity. There is also a 36 in. scale Mini -Upright for bass guitarists who want more of a double bass feel and sound.
The original headless four-, five-, and six-string Downright Basses are still produced, along with a short scale lightweight bass guitar; the Cherry Bass (named after its English cherry body) and a number of custom designed guitars and basses for customers who have particular needs which the stores cannot fulfill.
Mo is essentially a problem solver with a particular bias towards electric stringed instruments. Devices such as the Clifton Tail-Lift, designed to soften the action and improve the response of double basses and a double-sided magnetic pickup for a sitar, or an instrument like the electric saz were all commissioned by a particular musician with a need for something different.
Although Mo is now semi-retired, spending a few months each year in France, he is still continuing to practice his skills and welcomes orders for his existing designs or for something entirely different. For more information, visit Clifton's website.