The Who’s John Entwistle, Larry Taylor (Canned Heat) and Ric Grech (Blind Faith with Eric Clapton) are among the famous faces to have strummed its legendary form.

The Fender Telecaster Bass, in its various incarnations over the years, has attracted guitarists far and wide.

But did you know that the instrument has its roots firmly based in Watford?

That’s what Barry Midford- Millership claims in his new book The Mighty Hybrid and The Keeper of The Slabs, an extensive tome which discusses the original hybrid bass in detail, as well as the British blues scene in the ‘60s.

“I’d just joined a band called Dr K’s Blues Band, I was replacing Ashley Hutchings (originally from Fairport Convention),“ Barry explains.

“Mick Hasse, who was in the band, knew my passion for guitars, and he said to me, ‘there’s only one guitar for playing blues, it’s got to be a Telecaster.’

“I was living in Oxhey at the time, working as a telephone engineer at the Orphanage Road depot, so I walked into EME, my local guitar shop in Watford, and ordered a Fender Telecaster Bass.

“They were a little stumped by my request,“ he chuckles. “because at that time, there was no such thing.“

Indeed, he’s correct, it was, after all, 1966. But, the proprietor of the shop in Queen’s Road, John Doyle, pressed the order forward and the result, as they say, is history.

“He warned me it was going to cost a few quid (more than £200) because it was going to be made from scratch, so to speak, but I was delighted when I received it,“ explains Barry, an avid guitar collector, who now lives in the Isle of Wight.

“It was a thing of great beauty. The Strat has a rounded edge to the body, whereas a Telecaster has a square-edged body, non-contoured.

“It was in the style of the ‘51 bass guitar and as standard basses have rosewood fret boards. In order to match the Telecaster guitar they fitted a maple cap neck.

“When it arrived in London, it caused great squabbles and even a punch up between some rather famous faces who wanted to acquire one. “It really was a magnificent instrument, a stunning hybrid.“

His unique commission will forever link Barry with Leo Fender’s 1950 and ‘57 Precisions and ‘67/68 Telecaster basses.

Perhaps most importantly, it was the forerunner to the 1967/8 Telecaster Bass, the first instrument of the Fender reissue programme. As such, the genesis instrument quickly generated a second order, for what has affectionately become known as “Slab“ basses.

But then Barry sold his Fender.

“I needed the money. I’d just gotten married, I had a baby boy, so I was shouldering my responsibilities.

“I’ve got it back now,“ he says. “It was a four-year quest, but I managed to track it down in the middle of America.

“A friend called me up saying there was a Slab for sale in America. “When it arrived I broke out in a cold sweat and I had goosebumps up and down my arm.

“It was always easy to spot. On the body there were three little knots, which always looked like a face in the wood. They’d made some modifications to it. It had been repainted gold, much to my horror, and there were changes to the headstock, but it’s back to its former glory now.

“I’m pleased it’s back with me and I’m pleased to share my story in my book. It’s a mad thing when you think about it – who’d have thought Watford had links to the Fender Telecaster Bass?“

  • The Mighty Hybrid and the Keeper of the Slabs by Barry Midford-Millership is out now. Details: 01353 646608, melrosebooks.co.uk