H22 - Bass
Bass - Sunburst
Production year(s) : 1961-1968 (other years possible, not verified)

Other brands : H22 Bass was also sold as Alden 9983 | Holiday AL9224

Single cutaway. The later model H22/1 has double cutaway from 1969. Note : these basses are flat top and back, not arched as a Rocket for example.

Show text from the catalogs (2)

| Show original prices (2)

49 images in database
mouse over image for file name - click to enlarge

35 comments | Add your comment !

• Sean - 2005-09-30
  The best bass ever built.
• Chris - 2005-10-23
  I bought this bass in 1974 and have just handed it over to my 16 yr old son who is learning how to play it.
• Bob - 2006-01-20
  The best bass I've ever owned. I've had them all.
• Bob - 2006-01-27
  The Harmony H22 is one of the best basses I ever owned. I got it from ebay and it needed a lot of work. Had the repairs done by Halifax's note worthy Tom Dorward, the results were amaizing. I play this bass every day. I won't gig the bass brcause I don't have a case for it yet. Gonna get a custom road case built for it.Buy these basses guys and keep the bass alive,the bass is worthy of this.
  Bob Young
  Nova Scotia, Canada
• johnny b - 2006-02-13
  two words...killer tone...best bass I have ever owned or played, just bought another as a back-up. Plays great-sounds great, bought my first one in 2002 and have used it on over 500+ gigs as well as some recording and am always asked about it, sounds like an upright without having to lug the ol' doghouse around. Do yourself a favor and get one, you will not be disappointed, you can find some in great condition and some that need a little work, but well worth it.
• big daddy bass 51 - 2006-09-26
  I acquired an H22/1 with the original strings! The sound when i first tried it out is amazing.I can not stop playing this BABY.it has 5-65w or m on the inside.The first 2 serial no's have faded ,the rest I can read.I have been looking for this bass for over 9 months. The condition of the bass was immaculate it had been hardly played' the frets are in great shape.I don't know what could top this sound coming from this jewel!God bless HARMONY for making a true classic.For those of you who haveone you know what Imean. Now to find a H27!GROVE ON!
• JW - 2006-11-18
  1966 Harmony H-22 has a nice woody tone with a full bass sound. Any ideas on replacement tuners or a nice fitting hardshell case?
• Johnnyp - 2006-11-20
  The H22 the best sounding electric bass ever built.
  Howdy from Ft Worth Texas !!!!!
• Skidd - 2006-12-27
  In the early '70s a friend of mine had a guitar and an amp in his basement that would make noise,so I picked it up, played along with the records (Grand Funk, Sabbath et al) and eventually learned a bit about how to play. (30 years and some bands later I hope I'm a player, but you know...) The guitar was a Harmony H-22. Don't know what the amp was. 20 watts of some junk or another,long since mercifly gone to the dump. But the guitar! This bass hung on my friend's wall unplayed (he would never let me play it because I'm a heavy handed 5 string rock player, among other things) for all these years and then lo and behold! he gave me the guitar! How fabulous is that? This thing is the ultimate RnB, country, rock whatever tool through a 100 watt tube amp of most any variety (done have played it through several, so far. The Hammond Rnb dude I'm playing with at the moment loves it.) So! The point being it's my fave axe and is going to change my playing (nothing could hurt) but I have some questions. What kind of strings should I put on it? Modern strings have way too much tension for the neck, they warp it, so I've been playing it in a D flat tuning because the neck will take it. Where can I find technical info on this guitar? And other questions later. This thing is not in pristine condition.The original sunburst finish was sanded off and taken down to the blond wood (which looks great) the knobs are other than orignal, tho acceptable, and the small tuning pegs were replaced with bigger,cheap pegs, which I'm going to replace with Schallers or something. The big pegs look and work better, so. One last thing. Somebody on this site was wanting the bat wing pick guard for the H-22. I've got it and don't want it on this guitar, so I'de be willing to give it up. Love to all, lots of fun with the cheap(Ha!) and beautiful guitars!
• The ThumpMeister ! - 2007-01-12
  Got a '66 H22 and it's spanking! Has flatwounds fitted which I think are the original strings!
  How do you go back to a P-Bass when you've played one of these awesome woof monsters! This bass can remove a bars' optics in two notes!
  The great Ronnie Lane used one of these throughout his stint with the Small Faces which made me lust for one. Many years of searching finally came to fruition and I nabbed one on e-bay...Ye Gods what an awesome bass! This is one of those great lost treasures that Indiana Jones strives to discover for posterity...totally original including the oft removed scratchplate , she just booms a woody yet melodic undertone that really is so earthy and mellow I swear you will be convinced she's speaking! OK...OK....so I love this bass... Yeah I admit it... Just grab one and ignore any other bass review....believe me...the H22 IS the ULTIMATE Bass !
• rackhunter - 2007-02-13
  Hey guys I have a 63 H22, I've had it since I was 16. I noticed mine have dark brown knobs instead of the white ones I see on the ones in the pictures. I'm sure mine are original. Have you ever seen that before? The toilet flusher as someone called it is white.
• david michael - 2007-03-18
  I received this bass as Christmas present in 1985, it was used. It has heavy duty gear box type tuning pegs[they were on it when I got it], it doesn't have any #'s on it. It also has black nobs[one is clear with #s on it]. It also has only 3 screws on the back. It has sound that is so deep and vibrating! I have a Gibson tube type amp. Have not seen any pics that match mine exactly.
• Bird Stevens - 2007-06-30
  I have a Harmony 1961 H22 bass it sounds like a Big train
  The best i ever had "highly recommended"
  I'm searching for the pefect case for it to get on the road
  any suggestions ?
• jsohn - 2007-08-30
  I have seen H22 fit Epiphone 335 guitar cases. It's a bit tight but it it works!
• Jerry J - 2007-10-31
  Has anyone been able to confirm the Epi 335 case as a fit? I wonder if the ES175 case would work better? I just don't have a source locally where I could try it out. So I would have to order the case and hope that it fits.
• DaveC - 2007-11-15
  I bought an H22 back in 1965 from 8th Street Music in Philly, and played it for a number of years. It eventually got stolen. I replaced it with a Gibson EBO (no comparison there), and then a Rickenbacker 4001 (totally different animal). To this day I still remember the tone of that H22. I played it with the original flat wound strings (never replaced) through an Ampeg B15, and it thumped!
• Izdovrcr - 2007-12-05
  I was given this bass a gift from my mom back in 1964. She bought it from Montgomery Ward resale shop for about $30.00. It has a crack on the bottom side but still sounds and plays fantastically
• Reggie - 2007-12-28
  I am a Saxophone Player who recieved this bass as a Christmas present from my parents back in the 60's. Loved it then Love it now its my first and most valued instrument and I have many, so that says a lot. I can play it tirelessly with the nice small neck and smooth feel. Be it through an amp, or sitting on the side of the bed, the tone is killer. Yes Harmony got it right on this instrument.
• Biff the Bass - 2008-01-22
  I have owned my H22 since 1968. I bought it for £30 second hand. I'm still gigging a couple of times a week, although these days I mainly use my P bass. I also have a Jazz bass. However, occasionally the Harmony still goes out. It never fails to amaze me how much bottom end it has, & it's considerably lighter than the fenders!
  Wiltshire England
• phrenology - 2008-03-30
  I love Harmony Guitars. I have a 68' H54/1 Double cutaway and I love it, but I'm more of a bass player. I'm anxious to give the H22 a shot. I just finished building up a P-bass 57' reissue with a fretless Jazz neck. I strung it up with Rotosound RS 88 LD nylon coated black flatwounds. I bet Rotos would be good on the H22, as they have a lower tension. Hey Bassmelon you wanna sell me that H22??? What shape is it in...email me phrenology@yahoo.com
• New2H22 - 2008-04-07
  I recently was asked by my pastor's father in law if I wanted to learn to play bass. Oh boy do I! So he broke out this well used '67 H-22. He said I could have it if I stayed with it, and traded a nice medium size Yamaha accoustic for it.
  I just about fell over, for months I've been looking for a hollow body, but never dreamed of owning one. A friend tried talking me into a Carvin... but they do not build hollow bodies and I simply didn't have his kind of money.
  After a season of just plunking on it and learning some chords, I just love it. At home it is being run through a Fender Rumble, which is OK for practice. But at church it runs through a Fender 150 Bassman and it shakes the floor. At home with the 150, it used to rattle the wife's nick gnacks on her curio shelf... and run the dogs out the back door! The tone is awesome and it is very easy to play. I had no idea how different and way neater the sound quality was on a hollow body until this H-22 came along.
  The fellow who had it plays it like a lead guitar, and says he loved it better than his '57 Gibson.
• The Ive - 2008-06-24
  I traded a Hondo Alien and an el Degas 4001 for my H22 in the mid 90's at a shopping mall music store. I ripped them off so bad! I've played in Classic Rock cover bands, and between my '74 Rickenbacker 4001 and my H22(i think it's a '63), I have all the bases covered.
• Jennifer - 2008-06-29
  I just found this page. Imagine my surprise when pictures 11-18 were pictures of MY actual bass! Lol... I listed it on ebay years ago, and I guess lots of people liked and copied my pictures, because this isn't the first place I've seen them. Would have been nice to get credit for them, though, lol... Needless to say, I still have the bass. I had a high offer on it since it's in EXCELLENT condition, but I play bass and just couldn't part with it. The H-22 is a really cool vintage instrument with a very distinct tone.
• François (webmaster) - 2008-06-30
  Yes Jennifer, your pictures are great, and now you have credit for it ;-) To say the truth, I even used your stamps pictures as the sample of date on the FAQ page... This serial is now a legend !
• Snofi - 2008-07-12
  I got mine in 78 from a friend of a friend who had found it on a dump and restored it
  This for me is THE BASS
• Texas_Traveler - 2008-08-12
  I started playing bass in 1967 on a used H22. have not found anything that was comparable. ran through a fender super bassman amp with twin 15"JBL speakers. anything smaller either blew up or walked off stage from the deep tone
• Ian McLagan - 2008-11-11
  The Thumpmeister said it. Ronnie Lane was playing one of these when I joined Small Faces in 1965. He bought another and then got a double cutaway, moved on to big old ugly Gretsch, which sounded great, but nowhere near as good as the Harmony H22. He used to smack it with the palm of his hand, we called it his Cubo-Latin thing. He and Kenney jones used to rock out! This site is fantastic. My first guitar in 1962 was a Harmony Sovereign. I bought one recently that sucks, but I have two Harmony Rockets, one a mint blonde sunburst, and the other a red sunburst that I can't stop playing. It sings. What a great site.
• The Thumpmeister! - 2008-11-13
  Oi Oi Mac! Whaddamindblast to have a namecheck from the #1 Hammond Masseur. You said it cocker...the H22 just has a very special tone all its' own. Played "The Fly" on it a few days ago and I swear it had the sweat drippin' from me underpants...glorious! OK guys & gals...it's
  official. This really is the ultimate bass!
  BTW-Caught you darn the Brighton Concorde not long ago Mac...blindin'gig! Stay Cool.
• JW Bass - 2009-01-14
  I replaced my 1966 H-22 tuners (It came with large Schaller tuners) with Hipshot UltraLights after drilling out and replugging the holes. Huge improvement in the balance of the bass when wearing a strap! I've found a nice fitting hardshell case, it's the Epiphone Jack Casady bass case for $119.97 w/free shipping at Sweetwater.com. What a player!
• Len Liechti, Bath, UK - 2009-01-20
  I have a fascination for Harmony's cheap but cheerful kit (I own a 60's H-1 Copper Lapsteel, and a mid-70's A-line mandolin made in Taiwan just before the company disappeared, both fine players given their budget origins). Players have always queried the use of the tiny tuners on the H-22 bass, and on looking at the gallery above it appears to me that these are the same tuners as used on Harmony's archtop tenor guitars. Harmony came very late to bass guitar manufacture and may have regarded the bass guitar as just an extension of the tenor. They would also have been a lot cheaper than the big Kluson bass heads! Brilliant website, by the way. Best, Len :-)
• rocknewtne - 2009-01-25
  I Own Three H-22s A 1962,A 1964 and A 1967. I LOVE This Bass.The Tone is Amazing and The Short Scale Neck Is Very Fast.I Use Rotosound Jazz Swings and Am Continually Told It Is The Best Bass Sound People Have ever Heard.I Use My 62 As A Regular Gigging Bass and Get Comments On It All The Time.I Play in a blues band and we do about 200 gigs a year.I also have a 73 ricky 4001,a 2002 Fender Jazz an 80 Ibanez roadster[only model year] and none compare to the Harmonys.The band won't even let me bring one of my other basses to gigs.Through a great Ampeg Setup these basses are truly amazing.I Love My Harmonys.
• Bob Diddley - 2009-02-16
  I traded a Rambler (car, for the young'uns)for an H-22 about 30 years ago. I got the better deal. It was a mess, and I stripped off the sunburst paint, stained it walnut brown, and replaced the tuners with Schallers. I'm not a stickler for authenticity - I wanted a bass to play, not a museum artifact. I still have it, though I don't often use it anymore. A friend has one in immaculate original condition. I'd like to get the black plastic-coated strings for it, that's what sounds best to me, but I can't find them.
• Bassman Lewey - 2009-02-22
  I have a 1966 H-22 I am in the process of re-doing. Can't wait to get it finished so I can play it!
• Dennis - 2009-05-05
  I had one of these from 67 to 74. I played bass in a high school cover band in east central Missouri. We had a blast. We were not very good but we were loud and this baby rocked. We played high school gyms, outdoor pavilions, dance halls, etc. We played this guitar and the organ through a Sears 100w solid state amp on one side of the stage and placed a Fender Bassman aux speaker cabinet on the other side of the stage, so the organ and bass came through solid and loud. We had a blast. I sold it to the campus Catholic center in Columbia MO before I graduated college. They may still have it, who knows.
• Leslie - 2009-11-08
  Mine has original everything, it was my grandfathers and was bought in the late 60's. It's absolutely beautiful and he even cut 4 records in 2 different bands using it.