Lunch Report: Thursday, April 14, 2011

Dateline: Thursday, April 14, 2011 – Tripoli, Libya – Cease-Fire talks between Libyan Rebels and the Ghadafi Regime broke down today over Rebel demands that the importation of G&L guitars be allowed. A Rebel spokesman was quoted as saying “I wanna ROCK!”

Garlic Parmesan and Lemon Pepper Wings from Pizza Hut…half price on “Wings Wednesdays”…delivered by Angelina Jolie…(yeah, Wings & Dreams)…

G&L Question: What’s in a name?
The “Legacy”…nuff said…the “S-500”…a traditional letters/numbers model designation…the “Rampage”…yeah, I rock like a charging Rhino…so, then….WTH is an “ASAT”?...a noob question for sure, but please, somebody tell me what it stands for so I can sleep at night again. And then, which G&L model’s name best conjures up what that guitar is about in your mind?

Non-G&L Topic: I found myself thinking about a guitar I sold last year….a Guild BluesBird…great guitar…mine was one of those apparently made at the Fender Custom Shop…they did a great job of it…it’s one of those I’d love to have back even though I replaced it with my PRS SC245 which covers the same ground both in feel and tonally except that the BB’s SD 59 pups were a bit brighter than I wanted. So I know all the normal reasons I liked it so much, but there’s something else I just can’t figure out…something that made it special in the way it felt to play it…possibly, that the body is a bit bigger?...or maybe it’s chambering gave it a certain weight distribution? Another example of this is the Squier Classic Vibe Custom Tele I’m selling….there’s just something about it that I can’t figure out.
Do you have or did you have, a guitar with a strong appeal that you can’t figure out?

Note: Any use of the term “Mojo” in discussing this will land you the duty of attending and reporting on a Justin Bieber concert. In the event said person doesn’t mind seeing Justin Bieber, they will be reassigned to listen to and research every Milli Vanilli recording and report on the instruments used thereon. In the event said person likes Milli Vanilli too, they are off the hook since it is obvious that the mental institution they reside in will not allow them out anyway.

FLOTD - Somebody mentioned lipstick pups??
http://www.kaneva.com/asset/assetDetails.aspx?assetId=5431401&communityId=0

G&L Topic: ASAT was taken from the military Anti-Satellite missile, apparently Leo, George and/or Dale liked the idea of a guitar shooting a satellite out of the sky. You can make it whatever acronym you want though, like.....A Super Awesome Tele

Non-G&L: hmm I guess that can be said of the Epi acuostic/electric I have, I think it only cost me around $300, and it's not a great acoustic or anything but it does have that certain mo... something Probably sentimental at this point I've have it for about 14 years now. Also had a Fender strat I loved and sold, haven't played a strat that's felt right since.

-Dave

G&L: Most common definition I've heard/read is "After Strat, After Tele". That's usually followed by the counter-definition that it just sounded cool and like something from the space program, complete with references to Anti-SAtellite Technology. Could also be "All-Season, All-Terrain," which works well for that style of guitar. Or maybe it's just a shorthand version of "asshat."

Non-G&L: I don't think I've ever owned a guitar with the indefinable "something" that made me want to play/keep it. The Steinberger had the cool switch configuration with the middle-pup blend knob..."something" in that case was the tonal palette. The Comanche had that great finish, superb ash body, natural binding and ebony board...it's "something" was looks. The ASAT Classic just looked, well, classic (so, again with looks, I guess) and the neck felt incredible (just the right size and shape). The Heritage H-170 custom with the push-pull pots and Bigsby; well, that one's something was "the complete package" of looks+tone. Wish I had them all back, sure, but not at a loss as to why.

I'd be interested in hearing the story on the S-500. Was it in production prior to the Legacy? If so, "S" could be a reference to the body shape..."strat-style"??? Just guessing.

Non G&L: I did sell a Charvel Surfcaster a few years ago...basically because it wasn't quite the tone I was hearing in my head and I needed the funds to finance an amp. But it was such a unique and beautiful guitar, I do wish I could have kept it, just for it's look alone! It was semi-hollow, Jazz-master shaped body with Rickenbacker-style f-hole, quilted maple over mahogany, greenburst finish, creme binding, 24 Jumbo frets, rosewood FB, thin maple neck. HB in the bridge, lipstick SC in the neck.

i've read good things about the Surfcaster...my first lipstick was putting a set of Kent Armstrong Strat-Size lipsticks in a USA Strat...didn't sound like i wanted...later got my hands on an Ibanez Talman with the 3 Kent full size lipsticks...used it on several of my recordings...

G&L Question -

I have no idea what ASAT means. I have heard the satellite business, that seems plausible, given previous names like stratocaster.

What makes a guitar special? I really don't know and I am getting more confused as I try more guitars. I basically have made peace with the fact that I make friends with some great guitars, and others I don't. Once I had two very nearly identical ASAT Classics. I was pretty new to telecasters at the time, but I really liked one much better than the other. Same neck, I think they were the same wood, but both solid bodies for sure.

But, really, the most likely thing is I just got the preference stuck in my head and it became a self-fulling prophesy--I can play great, I have the white guitar!

Ah, I see some folks have not done their homework.

The answer is in the G&L Knowledgebase, G&L General Questions sub-forum: What does "ASAT" stand for?

i tried....did a search...but it doesn't like any of my words...preferring to pull results for "stand"...lol

i tried....did a search...but it doesn't like any of my words...preferring to pull results for "stand"...lol

Here is a search tip: use "What+does+ASAT+stand+for?" as the search string and click on Search for any terms.

Hope this helps.

I don't know about names. I would have loved to sit in on those meetings. Maybe it went like this, "I was on a Rampage, but I'll Climax after I Interceptor!!!" LOL!

Bad dog!

Yeah, mojo is one of those words I hate, just like the phrase, "...plays like buttah!" PUH-LEEZE!

But, sometimes a guitar just tells me it wants to go home with me in a way that is unmistakrably clear. And I have deals fall through on guitars that I thought I wanted, and it later turned out that maybe it was a good thing.

Aa for not being able to figure a guitar out, read my post "Comanches For Dummies". When I was starting to explore my first Comanche, I knew it was a great guitar, but I was having trouble figureing it out--mostly in terms of how I was going to use the tones it offered up--it's NOT a vintage strat or Legacy! It wasn't ever really about the guitar--it was about changing my mind-set and being open to the possibilites--seeing the guitar with a clear mind. And, I found a way to make that guitar work for me. I love the two I have and they will have to pry them out of my cold dead fingers! So the Legacy is still my Number ONE guitar, and I know how I like to use the humbucking tones of the Legacy Special, and I know how to use a 2HB like a Les Paul, and the banjo, and the acoustic ,and the bass--but there are just some times when only the Comanche will do.

I've had some experiences in the past with trying to figure out some of the guitars I've owned. My little Univox Les Paul Sunburst copy was a guitar that was simply greater than the sum of its parts. I think my beloved Ibanez Ghostrider GR-520s fall into that category--actually I think that about ALL of my Ibanez instruments. The old Hondo 935 does too. Sometimes a guitar can be great even when it has humble breeding. Like humans, a guitar's DNA might be poor or trashy--but they sometimes rise above that and become heroic.

And on the other sign of the coin, I've had some guitars that were less than the sum of their parts. My best example of this was my Gibson ES-150DCN. This natural blond maple beauty had it all. It's shaped like a 335, but about three inches thick at the rim. Fully hollow body, with a trapeze tailpiece. ABR-1 bridge, twin humbucking pickup with two volumes, two tones and a master volume on the upper treble bout. Slim mahogany neck with a rosewood board with block inlays and Grover tuners. Perfect!

Well, hardly. Where do I begin? It screeched like a banshee anytime the volume was over 2 on any amp I ever played it with--and that was the only way you could get any sustain from it at all. The HBs had a edgy yet muddy tone to them; the master volume was virtually useless, since you couldn't turn the volume up anyway. The guitar was difficult to tune; it would not play in tune; it would not stay in tune!!! (I attribute a lot of this to the trapeze tailpiece and the wide-flat Gibson frets of the day having little area to properly crown.) Sounded okay for lead work, but chords were mushy and ill-defined; and chords are difficult to play anyway, as the 1-9/16th" nut was a little too narrow for chording. And finally, the Grovers made the guitar extremely neck heavy--and in the era before straplocks that made playing on stage a pretty terrifying experience --and with the screeching feedback--terrifying for both guitarist and audience!!

I tried everything I could think of with that guitar over six years and finally took a huge loss on it when I traded it for my first Music Man Sabre II. It's the one guitar I've owned that I don't want back. The Zen and the Jedi Mind Tricks of the "Comanches For Dummies" didn't work here at all. The beautiful blonde with the great looks and body turned out to be a BIMBO after all. I dumped her, and I've been much happier ever since.

I have some other guitars that have some little quirks that irritate me, but nothing I can't handle. The ASAT Deluxe with the DF Vibrato has one--it's difficult to reach the switches and knobs with the arm in place. The ergonomics could have been better, but I can deal with it. The DanElectro 12-string has a problem with the pickguard warping in the hot temperatures we've had in summers past; and when it warps, it will raise the neck pickup up against the strings and cause a buzz. I think a combination of lowering the pickup and adding a screw to the pickguard will solve this issue. My Les Paul Elegant isn't quite providing the ecstacy I thought it would--it has a set up issue that I have not been able to resolve. I just haven't found the sweet spot for the action yet, but I'm sure I will.

I have the benefit of experience in dealing with guitars over a long career. I don't like making buying mistakes, so I do my homework and my research before I spend my money. I've learned what I like and what works for my style--and I know who I am as a player. I've fought like crazy to keep the guitars that I knew could work for me, but I had to learn to let the bad girls go. It's better to just avoid the heartache.

Good job this week!

Bill

G&L Topic: I'll go along with the theory that George and Leo named the ASAT after an anti-satellite missile. If you Google S-500, the first search result is a Wikipedia entry for a Russian surface-to-air missile. I reckon the guys regarded their first instruments as 'weapons' so named them after military hardware. SC-2 and SC-3 show up as military rifles and an F-100 is a US fighter jet from the 50's/60's. That's my theory and I'm sticking to it for now.

Non G&L: I can't believe you sold the Surfcaster Muleya! Even if it played like crap it would look great on the wall.

My first guitar, a 1985 MIJ strat clone, is the only guitar I would never sell. Every worn out fret shows the evidence of the many, many hours of my youth spent practicing. My 2nd guitar, an '87 strat was stolen. I'd like that one back for sentimental reasons (it was a graduation present). I could part with all my other guitars and not have too many regrets. Parting with the current G&L's would allow me to pick up some new ones (e.g. a Bluesboy or Special semi-hollow).

Or maybe it's just a shorthand version of "asshat."

I can't top that.

Interesting to see that many of their guitars names have military origins.

I think each of my ASATs have a certain, as the French say, "I don't know what" (Dr. Evil in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged me, 1999). I'm going somewhere with the in-text referencing. My Bluesboy is my favourite because it can do anything, the neck is absolutely perfect for me, it's the best colour and has the most convenient case - one in which you can put a lead and a strap. My '97 Classic (in my avatar) has the most "mojo" (Austin Powers in Austin Powers: The Spy Who Shagged me, 1999)(I didn't say it, no Beiber for me, thank you very much) of any guitar I've played. People ask for a go on it more than any other guitar I own. I've bought each of them on line without having played them first and think I got really lucky with that one.

Jaxx, just got back from a trip tonight and see that the ASAT mystery has been solved. I had seen it in earlier days in the G&L facts or whatever it is called.

I mentioned yesterday that I have had well over 60 guitars and wish I had every one of them back. Four of the best are hanging on the wall at my daughters house. There wasn't a turd in the bunch. The special thing to me is how they look. If they do not pass the wall test, they don't come home. If they pass the wall test and Ginny, then I may be set. As Bill mentioned, there have been deals that have fallen through and in the end I always feel good as it wasn't meant to be. I have not had a bad one. Even my Les Paul was nice but it was not my fave by far. Each morning I play anywhere from 2 to 4 of them. I will look at Ginny and say, boy, is this one sweet. Then I hang it up , play another and say the same thing about it. Is doesn't get much better. Can you young dudes imagine keeping that many ladies happy each morning? Wishful thinking, young dudes, but it ain't gonna happen.

Great week Jaxx. Keep after those tunes!--Darwin

[youtube]Dq6cSepmXXE[/youtube]

Mojo --a fine, descriptive word.

So when does my JB ticket arrive.

--GDub

Last edited by GDub on Thu Apr 14, 2011 7:54 pm, edited 1 time in total.

oh, that was sneaky, GDub....lol

Lunch: Rosemary chicken, baked sweet potato and garden salad with Dijon/mayo dressing.

G&L Question: Clearly the Legacy name best conjures up what it's all about, not only because it is the ultimate expression of Leo's classic design but because the sound captures the spirit of the players who have come before me and have helped shape my sound and approach to playing.

Answer not containing the word, "mojo." -- I think we all have an ideal instrument but we don't recognize it until we find it. Part of it has to do with tone, the other aspect with playability. We all have different fingers and hands. We all hold a guitar differently and we all attack strings in a different way. Every once in a while (and sometimes more often), we hold in our hands a guitar that perfectly conforms to our body and sounds like what we hear in our head. It's like a bespoke suit or a baseball bat. It just fits and feels right, like we've been playing it forever. I think this is all purely physical and perfectly explainable. The ineffable quality is not in the instrument itself, but in the possibilities that it allows us to explore and the music it helps us create.

Holy Crap!- I'm blown away to see that Bobby Darin played harp and vibrophone!
I think I broke my Mojo listening to that YouTube clip. He was very good.

I guess I'm going to see Justin Beiber with Gdub!

Names of G&L guitars: Remember that the F-100 guitar and the L-1000 bass were the first G&L instruments.
Leo was not interested in repeating himself with guitar designs. The Legacy was not Leo's idea nor was the redesigned S-500.
The Strat bodied instruments were a market reaction pushed by Dale Hyatt to satisfy dealers who wanted more Fender-like guitars because they are easier to sell.

Guitars are reflectors of your talent. Some reflect more of what you like about your playing than others.
Those are the ones with "mojo" ;that play like butter, and were assembled by Leo.
If you get one keep it or you will always miss it.

Bassman will not only be going to see Justin Beiber, but also doing the Milli Vanilli report.
Due to this, he is being placed on Suicide Watch.

Free Milli Vanilli!

Those guys were ostracized over doing what is now standard practice in the POP music industry!

Do you really think Katie Perry doesn't get help on her records?

What about the show Glee? The song recordings used on that show are the most pitch corrected music in history!

i just picked them cuz everybody knows about them and i couldn't think of (thank God) any Rapper's names...lol