WELL EVERY NOW AND THEN I AM CONFRONTED WITH SOME BAD NEWS THAT TAKES ME A WHILE TO DIGEST AND RESPOND TO IT. SUCH IS THE CASE WHEN I HEARD THAT MY FRIEND, FELLOW BASS PLAYER AND FAMILY MAN "CHARLIE DEAN" HAD DIED. CHARLIE WAS ONE OF THOSE SPECIAL PEOPLE I MEET ALONG THE WAY WHEN I HAVE THE PERSONAL PLEASURE OF INTRODUCING VADIM BASSES TO SOMEONE WHO SO CHERISHES THEM AND HAS SUCH AN APPRECIATION FOR THE UNIQUE BEAUTY, PLAYABILITY AND SOUND OF ONE OF VADIMS BASSES THAT IS BECOMES A SPECIAL EXPERIENCE AND TIME IN THEIR LIFE. WE BASS PLAYERS UNDERSTAND THIS, WE FEEL IT, WE SENSE IT, WE LIVE FOR IT. CHARLIE'S WIFE BONNIE DEAN CALLED ME A COUPLE OF WEEKS AGO TO TELL ME THE NEWS AND I WAS BLOWN AWAY FOR A COUPLE OF REASONS. FIRST A SADNESS CAME OVER ME FOR HER LOSS AND FOR THE REALITY THAT IN TIME THIS HAPPENS TO US ALL IN ONE WAY OR ANOTHER. CERTAINLY I HAVE THOUGHT ABOUT MY WIFE BEING IN THE SAME SITUATION AND WHO WOULD BE THERE TO HELP HER. I HAVE TALKED TO MY MUSICIAN FRIENDS AND PARTNERS SO THAT, SHOULD MY WIFE BE IN THE SAME SITUATION AS BONNIE DEAN THEY WOULD STEP UP AND HELP HER. SO WHEN BONNIE AND I SPOKE ABOUT CHARLIE AND WE BEGAN TO SHARE HIS EXPERIENCE WITH ME AND WE WERE ABLE TO PUT SOME LIGHT IN OUR CONVERSATION IT BECAME CLEAR THAT I NEEDED, IN FACT WAS THANKFUL FOR THIS OPPORTUNITY TO HELP HER. BONNIE SAID THAT SHE HAD THE TWO VADIM BASSES THAT BELONGED TO CHARLIE AND HAD TRIED TO SELL THEM IN KENTUCKY WITHOUT ANY LUCK. SHE WAS TOLD THAT IT WOULD DIFFICULT IN HER AREA AND THAT THE MUSIC STORES WERE NOT USED TO MARKETING SUCH HIGH END BASSES. THERE IS SOME HUMOR IN THIS STORY AS CHARLIE HAD WITHELD THE FACT FROM BONNIE THAT HE ACTUALLY HAD NOT ONE, BUT TWO VADIM BASSES!! HE TOLD BONNIE TWO WEEKS BEFORE HIS DEATH AND KNOWING CHARLIE AS I DID THROUGHOUT THE PURCHASE PROCESS HE ALLUDED TO THE FACT THAT HE HAD TO HAVE THE SECOND ONE, BUT WASN'T QUITE SURE HOW TO SHARE HIS PASSION WITH BONNIE! I SAY THIS IN THE MOST LOVING WAY AS HE, LIKE A LOT OF US, MYSELF INCLUDED, SOMETIMES GO OVERBOARD, BY OUR SIGNIFICANT OTHERS WAY OF LOOKING AT OUR "HONEY I HAD TO HAVE THIS ONE" WAY OF ACCUMULATING OUR INSTRUMENTS. I THINK BOTH BONNIE AND MYSELF HAD A WELL NEEDED LAUGH AT HIS ANTICS OVER THAT. BUT HERE WAS BONNIE PRESENTING HER DILEMA TO ME AND WE HAD TO FIND THE WAY THAT I COULD HELP HER. I TOLD BONNIE THAT THE EASIEST WAY FOR ME TO HELP HER WAS FOR HER TO SEND THE BASSES TO ME FOR INSPECTION AND POSSIBLE SETUP SO THAT I COULD OFFER THEM TO ALL OF YOU WHO VIEW THIS WEB SITE. I ASKED HER TO HAVE THEM PROFESSIONALLY PACKED AND A WEEK LATER THEY ARRIVED AT MY DOOR. ONE WAS THE VADIM DELUXE MODEL 4 STRING AND THE OTHER WAS A VADIM 5 STRING FRETLESS. PICTURES OF BOTH OF THESE BASSES ARE IN THE VADIM ARCHIVE SECTION OF THIS SITE. AND I WILL POST THEM AND MORE ON THE HOME PAGE SHORTLY. THIS IS IMPORTANT SO PAY ATTENTION HERE! WHEN I OPENED THE CASES OF THE TWO BASSES I FOUND MYSELF LOOKING AT TWO PRISTINE CONDITION VADIM BASS GUITARS! I DONT MEAN MINT I MEAN BETTER THAN MINT! I MEAN IN A MORE POLISHED CONDITION THAN WHEN I SENT THEM TO CHARLIE DEAN!! OBVIOUSLY HE LOVED THESE BASS GUITARS VERY MUCH AND I COULD SEE HIM SITTING THERE POLISHING AND FEELING THESE BASS GUITARS PERHAPS IN HIS FINAL DAYS WISHING FOR MORE TIME TO PLAY THEM. I HAVE OFFERED MY ABILITY TO BONNIE TO GET THESE WONDERFUL BASSES IN THE HANDS OF ANOTHER BASS PLAYER AND I OFFER THESE BASSES TODAY TO SOME LUCKY BASSPLAYER FOR A SPECIAL PRICE WITH NO MARKUP FROM ME. I WANT ONLY TO HELP BONNIE DEAN RECOVER AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE FROM CHARLIES INSTRUMENTS. I NEED TO BE CLEAR HERE THAT THEY WILL NOT BE GIVEN AWAY FOR ANY AMOUNT THAT IS NOT APPROPRIATE FOR THE LEVEL AND CONDITION OF THESE TWO BEAUTIFUL VADIM BASS GUITARS. THEY WILL BE SOLD AS A PAIR OR INDIVIDUALLY SO PLEASE CONTACT ME WITH OFFERS AND TO DISCUSS THE PARTICULARS OF BOTH OF THEM. THE 4 STRING IS SIMPLY INCREDIBLE AND THE FRETLESS 5 SINGS. LET ME ADD THAT BONNIE DEAN HAS SOME MORE GOING ON IN HER LIFE BESIDES THE LOSS OF CHARLIE. SHE INFORMED ME THAT ALL OF THE PROCEEDS FROM THE SALE OF THE TWO VADIM BASSES WILL GO TO HER GRANDSON AS HE IS LOSING HIS EYESIGHT AND WILL NEED HELP IN THE FUTURE. I CAN'T THINK OF A BETTER OPPORTUNITY TO GET A VADIM BASS AT AN UNHEARD OF PRICE AND TO HELP OUT ONE OF OUR OWNS WIDOW. I AM TRYING TO PAY IT FORWARD FOR THE TIME WHEN MY FAMILY MIGHT BE IN A SIMILAR SITUATION. DON'T HESITATE TO CONTACT ME FOR MORE DETAILS OR QUESTIONS.