Ronnie Lane

The story of Small Faces starts with a Harmony H-22, when Ronnie Lane went to the J160 Music Bar in east London looking for his first bass. He traded his Gretsch Tennessean with Steve Marriott, who happened to work there, for this bass and together they would eventually form Small Faces.

Ronnie's H-22 would take a lot of beatings, and the pickguard would go from white to black, and then be removed compleatly. In an interview for Beat Instrumental in may 1966, Ronnie states: "My Harmony bass has been through so much action – there were no Volume controls left and I had to turn the volume up and down with a pair of pliers. I’ve just bought another couple…. The old friend is being renovated".

The bass is clearly seen in an appearance on Colour Me Pop from 1968 around 0:43 in.

In this lip-synced performance of "Tin Soldier" in 1967, Ronnie Lane can be seen playing his Harmony H-27. The bass is clearly visible at 1:25 onwards.

According to Vintage Guitar Magazine, Ronnie bought his H-27 right when it was released in 1966 from Boozey & Hawkes’ display stand at the British Music Trade Show. "Plonk has gone for the very first of a new line in harmony Bass guitars," reported Beat Instrumental.

Ronnie stated that "the sound I want is chunky and sharp," something this bass could bring to Small Faces.

In this live performance of "All Or Nothing" in 1967, Ronnie Lane plays an Epiphone Rivoli in a blonde finish. He rarly used this bass. It is clearly visible in the end, around 2:42.

In this lip-synced performance of "All Or Nothing" in 1966, Ronnie Lane plays a Fender Precision bass in sunburst with bridge and pickup covers. The bass is clearly seen at 1:00.

In this scene from the 1965 film Dateline Diamonds, Ronnie Lane seems to be playing a Framus 1/149 Star Bass. It is only visible for a few seconds, roughly around 0:19.

In a 1972 performance of Faces on BBC's "Sounds For Saturday," Ronnie Lane is seen using a Zemaitis Custom Bass, as evidenced by the video footage.

At 2:09 in the video "The Small Faces - Song Of A Baker - 'Colour Me Pop' (1968)" by vinylsolution, Ronnie Lane can be seen using Rotosound RS77LD Monel Flatwound Bass Strings (45-105).