Legendary music shop Chuck Levin’s has collaborated with custom bass manufacturer Spector and renowned airbrush artist Dan Lawrence to craft a collection of 12 limited-edition bass guitars celebrating the iconic Spector bass sound and New York City arts culture with The NYC Graffiti Collection. Spector has been building basses in New York for over 45 years since starting in a collaborative woodworking shop in Brooklyn, NY where Stuart Spector developed the company’s signature contoured NS body shape in collaboration with Ned Steinberger.
Each bass is constructed using Spector’s signature NS body shape consisting of solid maple wings, 3-piece neck-thru maple neck, and an ebony fretboard. They are then loaded with Spector’s HAZ 9v preamp and a set of EMG pickups – a PX/SJX set on 4-string models and a 40DCX set on 5-string models.
The idea for the collaboration sparked from a conversation with Carlos Romero, Guitar Dept Manager at Chuck Levin’s. “I wanted to bring something into the store that paid homage to Spector’s ties to New York City,” shared Romero. “[Spector] had never worked with Dan Lawrence before and most of the [custom painted] instruments you see from the 80s and later have been done by Dan Lawrence. So I gave [Dan] a call and explained to him the idea of doing this special run of basses with Spector, and he said he was excited to work with the legendary brand.”
“We gave Dan a bunch of words that are tied to the Spector brand and sort of come off like a graffiti tag,” shared Taylor McLam, Sales Manager at Spector Bass. “All kinds of references to Brooklyn, references to hip hop, references to famous graffiti artists, there’s bass clefs in there, there’s all kinds of cool details. I’ve been around these for a while now and I’m still noticing unique nuances.”
Seen in the hands of artists as diverse as Sting, Nikki Sixx, and Doug Wimbish, the signature Spector growl is both respected and beloved by everyone who picks one up. Celebrating this history and heritage was a core objective of the NYC Graffiti Collection, but it wasn’t always obvious how to express this.
“I enjoyed working with Spector Bass and Chuck Levin’s WMC team. This opportunity to design the NYC Subway Graffiti project and seeing it turn to reality is what makes my job worthwhile,” shared Dan Lawrence. “Carlos [and his son] gave the idea to create the NYC Subway VIBE. I assure you, I have never tagged a wall with a spray can but have a whole new perspective and appreciation for street artist. Thank you again for including me in this special collection.”
To learn more about Dan Lawrence visit DRL Graphics (drlgrafx.com).
These basses are available exclusively at Chuck Levin’s, a legendary family-run music shop in Silver Springs, MD, and premier Spector dealer. Chuck Levin’s celebrated its 65th Anniversary in 2023, and has been a Spector dealer since the late 70s when the NS-2 was available in just one color. https://chucklevins.com/collections/spector-nyc-graffiti-collection
