Jefferson Starship Guitarist Finds Long-Lost Bass Guitar

Bass stolen 35 years ago returns to Pete Sears.

A notorious rock-n-roll riot has a happy ending.

"Dragon" is back in the right hands.

Former Jefferson Starship guitarist Pete Sears is on cloud nine after a bass guitar stolen during an ugly crowd scene in Germany 35 years ago resurfaced, according to the Marin Independent Journal.

The custom-built bass was crafted from the same piece of wood used to built Grateful Dead frontman Jerry Garcia's "Tiger" electric guitar.

It vanished at the 1978 Lorelei Festival in Germany, after Starship -- with whom Sears was playing at the time -- canceled a show. The crowd rioted, stormed the stage, and stole band equipment, including the "Dragon" bass.

Turns out the instrument's current owner bought it in 1991 from a fellow musician. It sat in a closet until the owner saw a photo online and read about Sears's sad story. The German owner contacted Tom Libber, who built the bass, and offered to sell it back for $4,000.

Sears was "ecstatic" to recover his long-lost bass, the newspaper reported.

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