Lunch Report, Tuesday March 16, 2010

Hey gang.....thanks for all of the posts yesterday!

We're going to start off today with a poll about how you're hanging.....

I'd like to tell ya'll a really great story.
I also frequent the Gretsch Discussion Pages. Like this forum it's a geat bunch of guys passionate about a guitar brand. One of the long time members, Bear, has been struggling with horrible health problems for the last couple of years, well, recently he recieved some very sobering news. He didn't really go into it, but you could infer from his posts that it wasn't good. Anyhow, this weekend a couple of forumites were going to be in his neck of the woods, so they decided to stop by and visit. Bear knew they were coming, BUT they were also bringing a suprise.

....this guy...

[youtube]R8w0B0QCLXg[/youtube]

Duane Eddy. Duane's wife Deed is a frequent contributer to the Gretchpages, and Duane stops by ever now and then. Duane is one of Bear's heroes but had never met him before. Well, Saturday they suprised him with Duane in tow, and from the pictures, Bear couldn't be smiling more!

Really cool thing they did, making his dream come true.

So, that leads me to my non G&L question for the day...

Does anyone have any cool, interesting stories about meeting famous people, be it musicians, actors, sports figures, or whatever else?


G&L Question - When you first tried a G&L, did you instantly bond with it, or did it take a while for their inherent goodness to sink in?

Oh yeah, lunch today.
Well, I'm a bit under the weather today, so I brought some homemade chicken soup. My wife makes the best chicken soup, and it always maked me feel better. So, nothing too exciting for lunch, but damn yummy!

That is a great story, for sure.

No super interesting story comes to mind but when I was working at a clam bar in the Long Island, I was approached by actor Jerry O'Connell. He is perhaps most famous for playing the fat kid in Stand by Me but was also in Jerry Maguire. He was starring in the TV show Sliders at the time of this story. Anyway, he approached me as I standing near the kitchen, shook my hand, asked me how I was doing and what I had done the night before. So....he thought I was someone else, but it was cool just the same.

Yes, I instantly bonded with my first G&L. I was handed a Legacy at a music shop, I didn't even look at the headstock and assumed it was a Fender (because of it's shape, of course). I played it and it felt so right. I remember telling the sales guy when he came back that I really loved the guitar but was wondering why he didn't hand me a Strat like I had asked. He told me a bit about G&L. I did end up playing a Fender Strat and a new SG. They both felt like crap compared to the Legacy.

That is a great story, for sure.

No super interesting story comes to mind but when I was working at a clam bar in the Long Island, I was approached by actor Jerry O'Connell. He is perhaps most famous for playing the fat kid in Stand by Me but was also in Jerry Maguire. He was starring in the TV show Sliders at the time of this story.

I loved Sliders, it was a bit of a cheesy sci-fi show, but entertaining. And Kari Wuhrer was on it...ME-OW!

This pic is a good reference for how George wore his Gretsch back when he played with that obscure band he was in...



..and here's Jimmy hanging low.




WOW....it hurts my wrist to play with my guitar sitting that low.
Looks cool though...!

Sorry you are feeling puny Shawn!
Love the Duane Eddy story. One of my favorite things about forums is the possibility of a dream fulfilled or a need met by someone you've never met in person.
No real famous guy stories for me other than I had dinner with Barry McGuire, the "Eve of Destruction" guy from the 60's.

My Legacy is the only G & L I've played as there are no dealers where I live in the wilds of Idaho. I had a two or three year period where I was buying/selling/trading guitars
like crazy. During that time I tried every 'strat' under the sun including Custom Shop and Suhr. I had just bought and sold an '08 Fender American standard that had their new features. I found it to be just ok and was looking for something a cut above when I happened across a NOS '06 Legacy on E-bay. I took a chance and got a real beauty. It still had the plastic on the guard and smelled new (love that G & L smell). I Instantly felt comfortable with it and loved the larger profile of the neck.
I still keep a Fender around (EJ strat) but I am seriously thinking of selling it as I love the looks of the Bluesboy. Gotta get me one 'o those.

Not exactly super cool or interesting, but I met Adrian Belew at a bar after a show a few years ago.
We chatted briefly for a few minutes. I didn't want to bug him with fan-boy questions all night. But
he was very gracious and seemed to be an all around decent guy as far as I could tell.

My first introduction to G&L was from a salesman at a small shop in the late 80's. I had never heard
of G&L but loved the ASAT he put in my hands. They had a couple of other "S" types that were OK but
didn't grab me like the ASAT. Don't even recall the other models he had, maybe a Skyhawk.

As for guitar hanging, it seems to be creeping higher over the years. My wrist just can't handle the
awkward angles anymore.

Jeff

Not exactly super cool or interesting, but I met Adrian Belew at a bar after a show a few years ago.
We chatted briefly for a few minutes. I didn't want to bug him with fan-boy questions all night. But
he was very gracious and seemed to be an all around decent guy as far as I could tell.

My first introduction to G&L was from a salesman at a small shop in the late 80's. I had never heard
of G&L but loved the ASAT he put in my hands. They had a couple of other "S" types that were OK but
didn't grab me like the ASAT. Don't even recall the other models he had, maybe a Skyhawk.

As for guitar hanging, it seems to be creeping higher over the years. My wrist just can't handle the
awkward angles anymore.

Jeff

Cool! Adrian Belew is great. I loved his work with David Bowie.
Yeah, my guitar is creeping up as well. I do a lot of fingerpicking with my current band, and I just can't do that well when it's hangin low.

Sorry you are feeling puny Shawn!

Thanks! Yeah, the weather change has me down.
Bad part is, we have a gig Friday night, and we're playing for 3 hours, so I have to be well enough for an extended gig.

My famous person story: In the early 90's my wife had a surprise concert lined up for me one evening. Desert Rose was in town unknown to me. We got there and I was soooo happy that I had to settle in with a few beers. At intermission time this fellow (sound man) came to where we were sitting and said "Darwin , I would like to take you backstage and meet Tom Brumley". Now Tom Brumley has always been my hero steel player. What could I say??? I'm probably a third in the bag by now. We go back stage and Tom talked to me the whole intermission. We talked about his days with Rick Nelson and I was almost speechless just talking to this guy who turned out to be one of the most gracious persons I had ever talked to. After intermission this called for some celebrating. Later I find out that my wife worked with the sound mans wife and she told this lady how I loved Desert Rose. It was a rush to say the least.

I have bonded with each of my guitars almost upon first sight. We all have different criteria but if they do not pass the art test they go no further. I have purchased many without having played them. After giving them a good setup I plug them in and I am never disappointed. There are many differences between some of them but they are all keepers. I thought some of my G&Ls had different profiled necks, so I sat here one Saturday and measured them all with a caliper. I made a chart and it turns out that they are all probably the same profile. After that they all felt very similar. Last week when recording I could not get the sound I wanted from one of my favorites, a Gretsch Nashville. I ended up using one of my G&L Legacys. I may be a bubble off but I am happy being there!!! -- Darwin

I thought some of my G&Ls had different profiled necks, so I sat here one Saturday and measured them all with a caliper. I made a chart and it turns out that they are all probably the same profile. After that they all felt very similar.

Sounds like something I would do.

That's fantastic that Duane made the trip to see Bear.

The only personal story I have that comes to mind is when I met Al Hendrix while playing golf. He was one of the friendliest and warmest souls I have met. My Dad pointed out to me a short guy playing behind us with a purple baseball hat, I stalled a little on the green so I could talk with him. Al played saxophone, and I can hear alot of that in Jimi's playing.

I grew up on crappy equipment , when I discovered G&L's I could tell I had been missing out on the wonderfulness of a well designed ax. It was a no-brainer to start exploring a brand that was Leo's latest and greatest endeavor.
I wish I had figured that out 30 years ago when I started to play, it would have been much easier to practice for hours at a time.

As I try different set-ups (amps,pickups,strings,tubes) I'm slowly learning what makes me happy in the world of guitars, there is no denying that a G&L will always be in reach to help me climb what seems (at times) to be a steep learning curve .

Great LRs Shawn, looking forward to more.
Kris

I'm not sure if I wear my guitar quite as highly as George Harrison, but closer to him then Page. I don't have the finger length to get any leverage for fretting when the guitar is worn way down low. Admittedly, it does look cooler.

I've bonded with most of my guitars very quickly. They are mostly G&L's, so why wouldn't this be so? I can't say enough positive about my "put together" ASAT III though. The only real difference between it and my other factory Leo-era ASAT III, is the electronics, which are straight from a Fender Nashville Tele. Even after getting new frets on my '86 ASAT, which is a tone monster, I seem to be gravitating towards the "3" these days. It's weird because I rarely use anything other than the neck pickup. I have been blending the neck/middle a bit more these days though.

As far as feeling under the weather when it changes: I feel that same effect. It's like a get a low-grade fever and lack energy when the weather and barometric pressures start changing. Sometimes it helps if I go out for a run, or otherwise force myself to sweat. I guess it depends how badly you feel, and for how long. Good luck with that.

Alright.....great responses gang!


Famous people..hmm.

Probably the one that's meant the most to me music wise was meetin Mike Watt last year. Mike Watt was in the Minutemen, a very influential 80's punk band. He would later go on to form fIREHOSE, another really awesome band. Anyhow, he's indie rock royalty, and someone I always hoped to meet. Last year his new band, The Missing Men were playing at a club called the Spanish Moon here in Baton Rouge. Our bass player called in a favor and got us an opening spot. We got to hang with Mike and the band, and even got mentioned in his road diary/blog that he keeps. Knowing that this legendary guy dug our band really felt great. He was a great guy, and talked our ears off. So cool.

I'm a huge movie fan, especially horror movies. Back in 2008 my wife and I attended the Texas Frightmare convention in Dallas. It was the 40th anniversary of Night Of The Living Dead, and all of the surviving cast was in attandance, as well as director, George A. Romero. Now, I am a HUGE fan, so I was super jazzed to meet all of them. George was especially cool though. We found out he was in the room next to ours, and we walked down a few times with him. We gave him a bootle of Absolut Jazz New Orleans vodka as a small thank you for all of the enjoyment we've gotten from his films.



As far as G&L's go. I have to admit I wasn't a fan of them at first sight.
First time I saw one, I was about 13, if I recall. I was deadset on a Fender Strat, and nothing else would do. A local shop had a G&L on the wall. I can't remember if it was a Nighthawk, or S500. I had only been playing about a year, and couldn't really appreciate how cool the G&L's were. I wanted a FENDER and that was that. Of course I didn't know that G&L WAS the real Fender. Anyhow, I got a Strat, which was a good one, and went on my happy way. Flash forward to the late 90's. I played a Legacy, and fell in love with it. I was able to evaluate a guitar on its own merit by then. I would buy my first G&L in 2002, and haven't really thought about any Fender product since.

I wish I would have bought that Nighthawk back in the day though!
Stupid kid!

Dang, I forgot the "famous people" question.

Well, aside from the fact that I sold a house to a friend of my brother's, a fine actor by the name of Steve Root, I've had other less personal/professional encounters. Steve may be best know for his role in the movie "Office Space", or the station owner in the series "News Radio" . He also does voice-over work on King of the Hill. He gets a lot of work and is a very nice guy, very unpretentious. He has the reputation of being one of the best character actors around these days.

Also, when I was about 10 years old, I attended a Pro Bowl that was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, CA. In the seats in front of me were too stars of different types. One actor, Hugh O'Brien, and one "bad actor" athlete named O.J. Simpson. I got both of their signatures on the back of my ticket stub. For 25 years they sat in my mother's jewelry box for safe keeping. So, when the whole O.J. trial was happening, and O.J. items were going for big bucks, I asked my mom to dig them out. Well, the woman who never threw away anything that might be useful as a paperweight, kindling, goat food, etc., had just cleaned out her jewelry box about 6 months earlier. She was wondering what those old ticket stubs were with the "scribble" on the back, as she threw them in the garbage.

O.K. one more, musician related. I once had dinner at the Sea Lion (Now Duke's) restaurant in Malibu, CA, with some friends. They happened to be acquainted with the guys of Motley Crue. So I sat down and had a sort of fun dinner, sitting next to Vince Neal. I recall that this wasn't too long after he had that horrendous car accident in which, I believe, another famous musician was killed (A Swedish dude?). Vince N. had a nice, replacement Lamborghini in the parking lot. Since his license was suspended at the time, I believe he had a driver with him. He was a pretty funny guy. Dang, that has to be nearly 25 years ago. Ouch!

Living in Southern California, not far from Hollywood, we do see a lot of "big names" walking around, driving, etc. Oh yeah, I once crossed paths with Tom Selleck and a BMW dealership. That dude is a lot taller than I thought, or I'm a lot shorter. Yup, lots of these folks are So. Cal. locals. FWIW.

Dang, I forgot the "famous people" question.

Well, aside from the fact that I sold a house to a friend of my brother's, a fine actor by the name of Steve Root, I've had other less personal/professional encounters.

Milton!

A couple of pics related to my story about Bear.

Deed (Duane's wife) posted this pic earlier.
Bear getting the surprise of his life. Such a great pic.

Milton!

Yup! That be him. To say that he's versatile, is an understatement.

That's too bad that your friend, Bear, isn't doing very well. That was a fine gesture, to work on getting that memorable visit together for him.

I love the looks of the Bluesboy. Gotta get me one 'o those.

Indeed you do You won't look back! - ed

WOW!...I'm in love. That is a beauty. I have a soft spot for double bound "T" style guitars, and the Bluesboy is a beaut!

Mike Watt seems like a very cool cat. I saw him with the Missing men last year, also saw the Missing men support Lou Barlow when he was opening up for Dino Jr. I really dig the guitar player of the missing men duo. he was doing some cool stuff with what seemed like just a volume pedal.

Mike Watt seems like a very cool cat. I saw him with the Missing men last year, also saw the Missing men support Lou Barlow when he was opening up for Dino Jr. I really dig the guitar player of the missing men duo. he was doing some cool stuff with what seemed like just a volume pedal.

That's Tom Watson on the guitar. I was really impressed with him. He was playing a J. Mascis Signature Jazzmaster (naturally signed on the back of the headstock by J.) I remember he had a very minimal pedal board, a volume pedal, Big Muff, tuner and a Small Stone if I remember correctly.

I love the looks of the Bluesboy. Gotta get me one 'o those.

Indeed you do You won't look back! - ed

Dang!!! That's what I'm talkin' about!

I have had some great opening act gigs, but the one that sticks out is back stage cruising up to a trailer, I passed a guy from the main act which was Credence Clearwater Revisited, and I had no idea who was out with them.i was just excited to be doing the show.After he stopped and introduced himself as Elliot, and wished me a good show and we both went about our way.Very nice person indeed.When I got on up to our trailer, one of the guys says hey, what did Elliot Easton just say to you? I almost wet myself as Elliot and the Cars were one of my all time favorites.I watched every lick he played that night.
I went and caught the Cars the following year as they were out with Todd Rundgren, and was mesmerized that night as well.A very underrated guitarist a very nice guy as well.
Vinny

I have had some great opening act gigs, but the one that sticks out is back stage cruising up to a trailer, I passed a guy from the main act which was Credence Clearwater Revisited, and I had no idea who was out with them.i was just excited to be doing the show.After he stopped and introduced himself as Elliot, and wished me a good show and we both went about our way.Very nice person indeed.When I got on up to our trailer, one of the guys says hey, what did Elliot Easton just say to you? I almost wet myself as Elliot and the Cars were one of my all time favorites.I watched every lick he played that night.
I went and caught the Cars the following year as they were out with Todd Rundgren, and was mesmerized that night as well.A very underrated guitarist a very nice guy as well.
Vinny

Great story! I agree, Elliot is a very underated guitarists. He's from the George Harrison school of playing. Play exactly what the song needs. I'm a big Cars fan, they were such a great band. I missed the "New" Cars. I heard some of the new stuff, and it sounded good with Rundgren.