Early, Finally Friday Lunch Report-04-29-11

Friday is here and lunch will be a brunch. Bacon and Eggs, fried potatoes and some other goodies, all done on the grill. This is the end of the older than dirt tunes, DJ routine. Note: I am posting this late Thursday as I will not be online until Sunday afternoon. I will answer any questions then.


NOMINATION FOR LUNCH REPORTER--Our Lunch Reporter next week will be Scott, AKA gitman001. Thanks for stepping up Scott. Lay it on us!


G&L topic will be our G&L family today which has changed considerably since last year. I wish I had kept all of them, but I really can't. We are out of room. So here they are:



They are the CAR Legacy, 30Th Aniv ASAT, ASAT Special, S-500, and the Roland Legacy.



Legacy, ASAT Classic S, F-100 Return, ASAT Z-3 Bigsby, and the L-2000 Fretless Bass.

I have an ASAT Tribute in CAR that is not pictured.


Two questions for the day:

!. Most of us have G&Ls. If you had to make the choices over on which that you have, would you have changed your choice, and if so, to what?

2. Are you interested in recording, and if so, do you have an idea as to where you are going to start?

I ask that question because I had seen Pro Tools and went into it with no knowledge of the product but consulted with some others. It is a scary venture for those who have not done it before. One of the problems is what do you start with? It takes dedication and I spent quite a bit up front, more than intended, but didn't have the concern of upgrade issues later. I was a serious decision for me as I had to produce some goods. Anyway, it has been fun sharing my efforts with you this week. So lets get on with it.


Music today: Finally an original song and it isn't different that any other 60s song. Two of our band members started writing it in 1962. They finished it in 2000. We recorded it in 2000 and if we had recorded it in 1962, I think that it could have been a hit. This is our Original Pretenders foursome. Terry does the lead work on his original 1962 Fender Jazzmaster and I am playing a 1967 Fender Mustang bass which actually was a good recording bass. This was an in and out the door recording and is an example of a 60s wire band. Pony Tail Baby. Terry, the lead player, and Roger the drummer, have since retired from the band. Roger did most of the drum work on the CD that you have listened to this week. This band reunited in 2000 after disbanding in 1965. It was a terrific experience.


01 Pony Tail Baby.mp3

Next is a Buddy Holly song, True Love Ways. We do it quite differently than the original. Done by Jerry.

04 True Love Ways.mp3

I am closing the week with an instrumental done by Santo and Johnny in the 60s or possibly late 50s. Sleep Walk, Done by Lonesome George on the steel guitar.

05 Sleepwalk.mp3

Thank all of you for participating this week, and, thanks to Muleya for giving me my first DJ opportunity, and hats off to all for putting up with me. -- Darwin.

Man, I missed this week, but here I am. I've owned 9 G&L's and boiled it down to one: '98 S-500 LH clearly assembled w/ earlier parts. I added a Tone-Guard when "they" made the Centennial ASAT guards, etc. Mine was in that batch, so that's cool... As for recording, I use a studio, but my "home" system is all TDM, Waves, Peak, Focusrite Red Series. I may be heading to Hawaii for a few months to record some Slack Key stuff and will pickup a new G&L for the occasion... Yeah, slack key on a G&L; I'm that crazy!

Great work this week, Runestone Man!


Cheers,

Will

Those are some really nice guitars, my man. Good tunes this week!

I think I have made really good choices with the G&Ls I've bought. Certainly, I've "bought low"; with the aspiration and hope to "sell high" when the time comes.

I bought only one G&L over the last 3-4 years. It was a 3CSB Legacy with a maple neck. The set-up was messed up, but otherwise it was in good shape, and it only set me back four bills--a total no-brainer. I stated worrying when I realized how the truss rod was set, but once I got into it, it fell into perfection very quickly.

I was thinking the other day, of what would have to go first if I needed to slim down the collection. The new Legacy allows me to sell off a 3CSB/RW Legacy that is a duplicate of my first Legacy. It's a killer little guitar with nice slim neck and TONS of mojo. It was in pretty bad shape when I got it, and it was filthy dirty; but I cleaned it up and it's been my "sofa" guitar for the past nine years; babied and loved. I've got a couple of other that could go, but I know I would miss them.

In general, I feel so blessed. When I was first learning to play, we found this wonderful little Duo-Sonic in a pawn shop for $80, and I know how hard my mom and dad sacrificed for me. A few years later I go an unbelieveable deal on my 1969 Tele Thinline--a fabulous guitar, even though the Bigsby drove me crazy. When that guitar was stolen in 1972, I did manage to find some really great deals on some really nice guitars--including my 1960 Strat--but I never found the one guitar that was perfect at giving me what I needed, until I found my first Music Man Sabre II.

When my music situation changed, I went looking for a 1962 American Vintage Strat, and instead found a used S-500, and then a Legacy--and that was it. I had sold the Strat a few years before to help me survive after my divorce--and the G&Ls were everything the Strat was and more. Better pickups, better tuners, better vibrato, better neck, etc.; it had all the character that I loved about my Strat, yet it was clearly a superior guitar. That's no reflection on the Strat, either--it is still THE BEST vintage Strat I have ever played, both in playability and in tone.

While I'd love to have the Strat back, it would only be to help build up my bank account. The Legacy-bodied guitars I have right now are the best guitars for me, with the right upgrades over a vintage Strat. They offer such wonderful value. I can't imagine playing anything else.

And I suppose if I HAD to play a different brand of guitar, it would be a Fender Custom Shop guitar--one that would have the same basic specs as a Legacy, including the PTB controls.

And that's why I feel so blessed--finding these guitars that have fit me and my needs so well over the years. They have helped define me. I know who I am; likes and dislikes--I have not been on this huge 60-year tonequest that so many other players go through. It's frustrating, it is expensive; and for many it is an endless obsession. For me, I'm happy. Every time I open a case around here, I start to drool! I have to pinch myself that, yeah, I actually OWN THAT GUITAR! I still feel that excitement, every time I play. It is a great feeling; a great place to be in.

===================


Well, as I sort of touched on earlier this week, the real starting point for me with the recording is I need to create the physical and creative space where I can do it. That might take a while.

And unfortunately, with my health issues, I feel like I'm running out of time.

Bill

Hey Darwin! I have been swamped at work, so that is why I have been kinda scarce this week.
G&Ls that I have- I wouldn't change a thing. I like the guitars and basses that I own, I may just add an ASAT someday.

I have friends and acquaintances that are heavily into recording, so I don't feel the need for it. I just got a small digital recorder for band use. I intend to use it tonight at an open mike.

Great week.

i only have my ASAT Classic S as far as G&Ls, but i'm sure it's the one i'd keep if after buying more i'd have to choose 1...

good week and cool tunes, Darwin...

Ginny...Darwin secretly told us he wants to trim down his G&L collection by giving one G&L guitar (not Bass) to a forum member, but he can't pick who it should go to....SO...it's left up to his wise and wonderful wife to choose the lucky deserving one and which G&L he/she gets...
and Ginny, you sure look lovely today...

P.S. - blue is my fave color....

'Pony Tail Baby' is a great tune Darwin, really enjoyed it! And 'Lonesome' George is such a cool name for a steel player. Love that Hawaiian music. Jerry Byrd is an all time favourite player of mine - what a talent.
[youtube]M0RvvAfcBtY[/youtube]


If I were to change anything about my G&Ls I'd get a Classic S without the body contours. Or break into Jaxx's place and switch them while he wasn't looking....

Next one I get will most likely be another custom order - double bound, semi hollow classic......or something else... I'm looking forward to it!

Darwin, I wouldn't choose a different G&L, my special is it.

As far as recording goes, I use Sonar 8, I know what you mean about jumping into a DAW, dauting work. I learn a little more every song I do though. I want to start mastering my tracks soon, the ones I am pleased with anyway. Get into using impulses and such to help it along. The first couple tunes were absolute murder, but every time you get a little faster , a little better as you accumulate all kinds of tricks. Mixing is certainly easier when the levels aren't all over the board.

That tune does sound fresh out of the 50's that is for sure.

Hi Darwin, thanks for the entertaining week.

I'm pretty happy with my guitars. Like Boogie Bill, every time I pick one up I have to wipe a bead of drool from the corner of my mouth. I chose them all primarily on how they play, but in a perfect world I'd like to change the colour/finish options on some. Reds and sunbursts are probably over represented in my herd. One day I'll order that Himilayan Blue ASAT semi hollow with double binding and gun oil maple neck that's been in my head for years. The most expensive guitar I have is a 1995 USA Strat Plus which is a great instrument all round EXCEPT for the funny, thin/flat, shredder-ey type neck that Fender used at the time. I used to like it when it was my only guitar, but these days we don't bond at all. It will most likely make way for another G&L sometime soon.

As for recording, I use a studio, but my "home" system is all TDM, Waves, Peak, Focusrite Red Series.

Are you a millionaire Will? I have lusted after Focusrite Red gear for some time but have to concede it is way out of my price range. I've set up a small studio in the basement of my house and recording gear has become more than a passing addiction this last 10 years or so. My set up is pretty basic - an Echo Layla 3G audio interface, some good condensor and dynamic mics, a Yamaha keyboard controller, a really nice preamp and compressor, all running into Sonar 8.5 software. Despite having some good gear, IMHO a great performance in a great sounding room is the most important element in a good recording. Editing is so easy these days that many young musicians have forgotten how to arrange and perform a song. Cut and paste is making all music sound the same.

Or break into Jaxx's place and switch them while he wasn't looking....

i'll be offline for a few days to build a guitar vault...

Are you a millionaire Will? I have lusted after Focusrite Red gear for some time but have to concede it is way out of my price range. I've set up a small studio in the basement of my house and recording gear has become more than a passing addiction this last 10 years or so. My set up is pretty basic - an Echo Layla 3G audio interface, some good condensor and dynamic mics, a Yamaha keyboard controller, a really nice preamp and compressor, all running into Sonar 8.5 software. Despite having some good gear, IMHO a great performance in a great sounding room is the most important element in a good recording. Editing is so easy these days that many young musicians have forgotten how to arrange and perform a song. Cut and paste is making all music sound the same.

Ha, I love the Red. A great performance in a great sounding room IS the best. It's the capturing of said performance, cleaning and posting, that can get pricey... My digital started way back with Opcode, Bias Peak, and the Native PowerPack from Waves. I still have some great software for Mac OS 8+(Sidplayer(C64 Sound Interface Design chip - MOS 6581), Syd "Synthesis Donut", thonk_0+2, Beatnik Editor Pro, etc...) and plan to use them again. Really, some great software that has just been tossed aside. For home recording I try to keep it simple and record it well. Just talking about this has got me breaking out my Commodore Amiga!


Cheers,

WIll

Man, did I post "said performance"?! That is cheesy even for me... I really need to work on my social skills.


Cheers,

Will

Man, did I post "said performance"?! That is cheesy even for me... I really need to work on my social skills.


Cheers,

Will

I only have 2 G&L guitars and an L-2000 bass, so it's not like I have much wiggle room to reshuffle what I have. I do wish that when the Trinity came available I had the money to buy one. Now I can only drool over pictures and imagine how good it sounds.

Love all the tunes you posted. Your "Sleepwalk" is pretty true to the original. I also did a version of the song, but you already know that.

Kit

Great week Darwin,

Missed a few days strapped with work but topics and tunes were fun.

Two questions for the day:

!. Most of us have G&Ls. If you had to make the choices over on which that you have, would you have changed your choice, and if so, to what?
I have to choose? As I lean to ASAT's, my choice of something else would either be a Tom Anderson, a Nash or Fender Custom Shop tele.

2. Are you interested in recording, and if so, do you have an idea as to where you are going to start?
Yes interested but have no idea when and where I will start. Most $ going to guitars and amps.

Great Sleepwalk. You can find Jeff Beck doing this also on his Les Paul tribute CD I mentioned earlier this week, highly recommended.

TGIF!

Thanks for a great week Darwin!

G&L Questions: I'm very happy with both G&L's that I own, I think if I could go back to when I bought the '90 ASAT I may have held out for either a maple body or a leo sig ASAT Classic, which was what I really wanted, but I have a tendency to impulse buy when I see a good deal. Your questions this week have put that ASAT in the red Star Trek uniform if you catch my drift. No plans to sell it but when the time comes it will be the one to go

Recording:

I'm cheap(broke actually) so I've just been using Audacity, it's a free program and works well enough for me. Plug an sm57 direct into my laptop(with adapters) and I'm good to go. You can cut and paste, add effects, adjust the gain level etc. I still haven't used it to it's full potential but I'm still learning.

Really appreciate all the songs Darwin they sound great!

-Dave

!. Most of us have G&Ls. If you had to make the choices over on which that you have, would you have changed your choice, and if so, to what?

Wouldn't change much. It has been a fun ride collecting all the ASAT''s, LE's, and Special Build's. But for sentimental reasons I wish I would have purchased my Butterscotch ASAT Classic before my Legacy Special instead of the other way around since the former would absolutely be the last to go. It is the first axe I custom ordered (although in a very, very traditional configuration) and truly fell in love with. Any time I pick up that one, I'm 'Happy', which is usually the first tune I play.

2. Are you interested in recording, and if so, do you have an idea as to where you are going to start?

The recording equipment still has to wait a bit. Amazing thinking back to the days my band recorded by bouncing tracks between 2 tape recorders using a small mixer 30 years ago and how technology has moved forward. Now choices for which DIW to use are somewhat overwhelming. All computer? Or separate unit with 8, 16, or 24 channels? Internal CD burner? I still have a certain preference for a real work surface instead of using the computer mouse to do stuff. So likely you will still find faders somewhere. And like mentioned by Will, building the right 'room' would be part of the whole project.

Great week Darwin and thanks a bunch.

- Jos

Hey Sam. I think I found your "other" guitar:

http://andersonguitars.com/cfpages/gallery_display.cfm?passedID=19&finishID=92&bodyWoodID=4&modelList=3,4,18,19

Will, may I trouble you to pass the water crackers....???

Darwin: Catchy tune(s)! Great week! One question: With your being a low-ender at heart, I wonder why so many more G&L six stringers than basses? - ed

PS: If you ever want to trade wives...... ;+)

Zapco that will get me even deeper in the GAS dog house! Da*n that is very tempting, will do more research and see where it leads me. The 24 3/4 neck would be a new adventure as well. Maybe the G&L boys will look at a short scale neck again, like the G-200.

Sam, we can only hope. Man, that Andy looks sweet! I'm starting to imagine a Trinity Special.... Damn!
Thanks for the PM and the kind words. Great vid you found! It's not stated, but the guitar sounds like it's S/H to me. You? - ed

Will, glad you could check in Friday. I have seen the pictures of your pickguard and it really does the job. Your recording equipment is awesome and I suspect that you are making a good living in the music industry. A dream that many of us had when we were young!!!

Kit, you appear to be a both guit and lowender guy. We have more fun. A couple of you commented on Sleepwalk and I really like the way Lonesome George does it , kind of soul full.

Sam, I am going to look into the Jeff Beck thing. I currently do not have anything by him and maybe I can expand my culture level. Don't be afraid to try one of those Anderson T types.

Boogie, really appreciate your insight into guitars and what they do for us. You, Philby and myself have the same issue in that we drool over all of them. It is really difficult to put in words the beauty that I see in guitars. It is the visual art value and the artistic value that we get from playing them. They are almost priceless.

Zapco, you have really asked the question of the week! Why do we have so many six stringers instead of loweneders? It is not easy to be a lowender. They drive the band. A lot of responsibility! Also, Basses are heavier to hold and it takes strapping dudes like Bassman, Ken Baker, and myself to hold em up. Not for the wimps. Hope that Bassman and Ken will beck me up on that! Thanks for checking in Bassman.

Jaxx, my only advice on the vault is to make it big enough. 40 x 60 feet should do it for a while. Install a TV camera in the middle, with a big screen TV and a chair and you can sit in the middle and do a panoramic view and look at each guitar.

Yow, I am not sure that you are being honest about your age. How could a kid like you have been recording 30 years ago???? Keep on collecting the fine ones that you do, and G&L is going to have to raise the bar a bit. I do like the black pearl pickguard that was just announced. Thanks for sharing you pics Jos.

Dave, hang in there, sooner or later you will find some cash, spend it wisely, and the thoughts of that, it keeps us going. I am glad you enjoyed the music.

Blarg, I really think that Pony Tail Baby could have been a hit in the 60s. I has actually had a lot of play on the oldies station in Duluth, Mn, on the Friday night oldies show. It was frequently requested. By the way, I am the only one who calls George, Lonesome George. I introduce him as that and the Ladies love it. I'm not sure that George does.
Blarg, The clip on Marty and Jerry Byrd was great. I didn't know that Marty was a decent guitarist as he often did piano work. Great stuff!

Thanks to every one who participated this week and gitman001 is going to move it on!

Just a final note, there were 15 songs posted this week. The top played, by far, was Dance with the Guitar Man, followed by Sleepwalk featuring Lonesome George and the next was Its So Easy. Apache, featuring Steve, was fourth. Ponytail Baby did well and the least listened to were Back Home Again and Diana both featuring Mike. As always , there are winners and losers. I will break the news to Mike gently that he was the loser. Thanks for the honor this week and nominate me again in 20 years. I will be in my late eighties and have completely forgotten the songs I posted this week. I will lay them on you again, thinking they are new material and may even post them as my originals. -- Darwin

Jaxx, I forgot to mention that I just had a discussion with Ginny this weekend. If I were to scale back I would keep you on the top of my list. The problem that I have is Ginny has accused me of having TRIPLE GAS. Now, I can't disappoint her and start scaling back at this point. In fact, a smart man always agrees with his wife on important issues. So my thought is that maybe this would be a good week to talk about adding another. I certainly don't have GAS but on the other hand I don't want to disappoint her either. -- But, If she thinks that I am cured and suggests that we scale back, you are candidate number 1!!!!!!! -- Darwin ?????

ROFL...

sorry, been glued to CNN since the news hit, so haven't been on forums...