Lunch Report - Monday August 29

[sickbutnottired]

I haven't been able to come around much lately, so I can by to play (procrastinate) and no lunch report at almost 4:00 MDT! Lunch, left over lasagna.

So here we go. I went to my cousin's wedding over the weekend. He got married in Sandpoint Idaho. I camped about 60 miles east of Sandpoint on the Clarks Fork River in my camper. It was beautiful and I got to spend some rare time alone, my wife was on call for work and couldn't attend. The festivities started with the bachelor party on Thursday night. Pretty tame for a bachelor party, but it was great to see my two cousins that I really haven't seen much since high school. I will pass on one piece of wisdom from that...Don't, for any reason, mess with a couple of rough necks. OK.

My playing has been really limited the last couple of months. But overall I am in a very experimental frame of mind. I heard some rough recordings of our band and decided that something has got to change. I play in a quartet, if you will. Two guitar players, bass, drummer. The other guitar player is, in my opinion, a very talented player and serious. We really enjoy playing together. Playing with another serious guitar player is fun, but also a challenge. It's easy if one of us plays lead and other rhythm. But I really want to try and achieve something a little more grand at times. So that has got me experimenting.

First, I don't know enough chords. So I have been really working on straight memorizing more chords, and learning a little more about chord theory.

Second, I am playing a lot of slide, and that has got me to using Drop D tuning and finger picking. Super fun.

So this is my G&L question...Do any of you experienced slide players play 7.5" radius necks. I am big believer that you can get used to about anything. But still am not liking playing slide on my 7.5" radius necks. Which is all I have in G&L right now. Kinda wrestling with buying another guitar.


Third, I don't really like our sound with two bolt-on neck guitars--or I don't like it all the time. I play my ASAT Deluxe, but it's just not fat enough to provide a really radical contrast to his strat in my mind. I have tried adding effects, and so far not really doing it for me. So I am getting back in the set neck business.

So here is my general question, does anybody play any HH guitars that are really fat and have a longer scale? What about a bolt on neck?

I first heard Boogie Bill say this, a big part of the Les Paul sound is geometry...Basically that seems to me to be the case. But still playing guitars...

cheers, Jeremy

[Ahryn]

Cool, Jeremy nice report and drop D finger picking sounds like something I am really going to have to try...

With the slide work maybe you should look around at pawn shops since you really don't need frets for slide (one reason I don't try slide on my ASAT is those big ole frets, I could see them being a problem) and some of those guitars could have high action already (good for sliding on) so you could get something really unique for very little.

With the two guitars maybe its not so much the bolt on sound but maybe you need something with a shorter scale length.

[sickbutnottired]

Cool, Jeremy nice report and drop D finger picking sounds like something I am really going to have to try...

With the two guitars maybe its not so much the bolt on sound but maybe you need something with a shorter scale length.

I agree with you on the shorter scale. We both play bolt on necks AND 25.5 scale guitars. Bill was the first person I heard say that you really can't duplicate the utra-fat les paul sound on a longer scale guitar due to pickup position relative to harmonics. The more I think about and the more playing I do, the more I agree. But I was thinking maybe somebody and a long scale PRS or (I think maybe) Heritage makes some long scale HH that could chime in..

[Philby]

So here is my general question, does anybody play any HH guitars that are really fat and have a longer scale? What about a bolt on neck?

I had a play of the new Fender Blacktop strats at a local music shop on the weekend. They're HH versions of the strats we all know and love and are fantastic instruments for the money IMHO.

But even with the HH configuration they still sounded like a strat. And the Blacktop tele still sounded like a tele. The set neck and shorter scale length makes all the difference for getting that thick, creamy LP sound. There's no getting around it.

BTW, Larrivee also makes a longer scale set neck HH guitar (Google RS-4 or RS-2). They sound more LP than strat, but still have some of the 'snap' you get from a strat.

[blargfromouterspace]

Yeah what gives - no LR this week?

The other guitarist in my band also plays a t-style guitar, though he mixes it up with a strat, a Danelectro longhorn bass that he's converted to a baritone and even a Flying V. I only have the ASATs. I'll admit that when we're both plating t-styles I try to at least use a different pickup position to him.

For slide you could do a lot worse than a Danelectro. They're great guitars once you tweak them ever so slightly. You could even get a lap-steel.
\

[darwinohm]

Jeremy, thanks for taking the ball today. I hate to tell you what I have had for lunch today. I have been at the Minnesota state fair and started off with Cheese Curds, Then homemade potato chips and it went South from there. We Minnesotans are known for abusing our good health at the fair.

Every time I sit down with our lead player I realize how many chords I don't know. Don't underestimate a good rhythm player. They are an extreme asset to a band and are hard to find.

Slide playing is something I would like to try. Maybe a guitar with a broken truss rod would be a good place to start. Raise the saddles and you would have a good slider especially with a higher radius and a hard tail bridge.

On gigs where I do lead work with Steve I often use my Johnny Hiland PRS. It is one of those that will cover most anything. I also use my Parker Southern with the Piezo sometimes as it will give a decent acoustic sound although an acoustic player may not agree with that.

The band you are describing is what we call a wire band. We were a wire band for many years and in recent years we added a keyboard. There are times we do a four piece ( wire band) and I still have to admit that it is one of my favorite configurations. You cannot beat a good wire band.

I think Philbys assessment of the HH blacktop may be right on. I picked up an American Special Tele last spring and it is a decent guitar. Keep it up Jeremy.-- Darwin

[sickbutnottired]

Jeremy, thanks for taking the ball today. I hate to tell you what I have had for lunch today. I have been at the Minnesota state fair and started off with Cheese Curds, Then homemade potato chips and it went South from there. We Minnesotans are known for abusing our good health at the fair.

Every time I sit down with our lead player I realize how many chords I don't know. Don't underestimate a good rhythm player. They are an extreme asset to a band and are hard to find.

Slide playing is something I would like to try. Maybe a guitar with a broken truss rod would be a good place to start. Raise the saddles and you would have a good slider especially with a higher radius and a hard tail bridge.

On gigs where I do lead work with Steve I often use my Johnny Hiland PRS. It is one of those that will cover most anything. I also use my Parker Southern with the Piezo sometimes as it will give a decent acoustic sound although an acoustic player may not agree with that.

The band you are describing is what we call a wire band. We were a wire band for many years and in recent years we added a keyboard. There are times we do a four piece ( wire band) and I still have to admit that it is one of my favorite configurations. You cannot beat a good wire band.

I think Philbys assessment of the HH blacktop may be right on. I picked up an American Special Tele last spring and it is a decent guitar. Keep it up Jeremy.-- Darwin

I love the fair!

I have never heard of a wire band! I think that you can, in fact, beat our wire band; but we have our moments!

Right now my slide style is kinda hybrid. I am playing bass notes with my thumb pic, and then pick medody/fill stuff with my fingers.. Plus I am playing a lot of notes behind the slide. As well as just fingering stuff intermittently. Right now I am messing on a borrowed LP Custom. (The owner wants to sell it to me, for a small fortune). The action is just short of 4/64's at 12. I know that is higher than a lot of people prefer, but that is about where I setup most of my guitars. And it works great for slide, and it's not a slide only outfit for sure.

[stagecoach]

The Shadows use to have 2 identical guitars (Hank Marvin and Bruce Welch)and it worked for them

[youtube]Ax7PoQd0euk[/youtube]