Jan 16 Lunch Report

[Elemeno P]

Early submission due to travel.


Thanks to Jeff for the nod.

My name is John and current owner of a Tribute Legacy. I finally buckled down and started to learn how to play this past August. The story is pretty typical…grew up a jock and always wanted to learn to play guitar. Fast forward….college, work, and family….now I can focus and learn. Bought a $50 Peavy Rockmaster off ebay to learn basic cords and got the verbal equivalent of a head-slap from my instructor to buy a G&L. I’ll do my best to live up to the distinguished list of past Lunch Reporters.

Lunch: Probably a salad of some sort from Papasitos. We’re taking my son to the dentist in San Antonio which is about 2 hrs from our home. He had a dental procedure when he was around 2 yrs old there and he loves his dentist. We could take him locally, but we rarely take time off (wife is a Home Health Nurse) and this give us an excuse to get away for a day.

G&L Question: As a very green Tribute Legacy owner, I wanted to get everyone’s take on the moment the G&L mojo hit you. I’ve only been able to play very few other guitars (not close to a GC where I live) and, in my limited playing time, did notice a definite difference in sound and feel.

Basically, could you describe in words what you felt when the G&L lightning bolt hit you?

Non G&L Question: Jeff brought up reading in his first day last week and due to my work commute started listening to Audiobooks a few years ago. I wasn’t a big reader before and decided to catch up on the classics while I did my 40 min drive each way drive. Now I'm a huge Steven King fan. Before I got into AB’s, I would have never even tried to start reading some of his thousand page bricks. With the X2 feature on itunes, I can catch up on my "reading"

Anyone else tried or thought of trying Audiobooks?

Thanks again everyone for the opportunity and really looking forward to this week.

John

[darwinohm]

Welcome John. I really like the early reports. Lucnh is still on the horizon and will probably be my usual sandwich.

How we get into G&L's is an interesting topic. I had been a Fender guy for years. I picked up a couple of high end Ovations for Ginny as she was interested in learning to play. I branched out in the electric dept to a couple of Gretsches. I am sure that I had 7 or 8 guitars by the time I even heard of G&L. I had looked at a couple at a G&L dealer who didn't stock many. I saw a G&L Legacy on CL and the owner was looking for an ASAT or a Tele to trade for. I had a pristine 1997 American Tele and I met him and looked at the Legacy. It was a Legacy Hss in transparent Red and was as new. It was a no brainer. I didn't plug it in as we met in a parking lot. When I got it home, I did a good setup on it, cleaned it up and this was an as new guitar. The workmanship, fit and finish were as good as it gets. I plugged it in and tried it and was quite surprised as I had several American Deluxe Strats and this thing did everything thing a Strat could do and even more. What stands out to me about G&L is that the body woods they use are some of the best I have ever seen for a guitar in this price range. I now have 14 G&Ls, 13 of them 6 string and 1 L-2500 5 string bass. I have also owned an ASAT Special tribute and it was a very nice guitar. I think the Tributes are an outstanding buy for the money especially used. I have been watching a flamed carved top Tribute ASAT Special for some time and may pick it up in the future. It is a bit heavy but I can get over that. Glad that you found one that you like.

I don't have a lot of time to read and generally do not get into books as it takes time to finish them. I tend to read articles as they do not require the time to complete. Keep working on that guitar John, and you will be surprised as you move to new levels. It isn't always visible while you are practicing but at points in time you realize that things are becoming easier and you become much more proficient. There is no substitute for practice. Thanks for stepping up this week!-- Darwin

[repoman]

Hi John
Thanks for picking up the LR duties. Its almost lunch time here but still don't know what I'll be having yet. Maybe some of the leftover turkey we did in the crock-pot Saturday.

I got my 1st G&L many moons ago. At the time I was playing Ibanez but was looking for something different. I tried out a bunch of Fenders and a few Gibsons and others but just couldn't find anything that thrilled me. I was at a small shop in RI when the salesman asked if I'd heard of G&L and let me try his Broadcaster. I instantly knew that was what I was looking for. They only had a couple of other G&Ls in stock. I think one was Interceptor, I honestly can't recall the others. But I loved the sound of those big MFDs on the Broadcaster. They weren't making Broadcasters anymore so I took a chance and ordered an ASAT Special. Loved that guitar from the day it arrived.

I got started on audio books about 10-12 years ago. We take several long road trips(10+ hours) each year to visit family. We started out with some short stories for the kid to listen to just to try something different to pass the time. As she has gotten older we find that there are some really good stories that the whole family enjoys listening to when traveling. Finding a good audio book is now part of our routine whenever we plan a road trip. I used to have a pretty long daily commute and listened to some audio books in the car and train. Now my commute is about 15 minutes so not much of that anymore.

Keep on practicing. It's never too late to start. I know a couple of guys that didn't start until their 40s.

Jeff

[sam]

Howdy John,

Nice start for the week, looking forward to more. Lunch round here probably tea, yogurt and an apple. Trying to stay with the healthier eating program this year.

As a long time Fender and telecaster fan I became aware of G&L through some guitar magazine in the early/mid 80's and thought I wanted to see what Leo had done now. After getting my hands on a used SC-3 at a music store around '84 I was hooked on the necks and the MFD's. Being a T body fan it wasn't until the Broadcaster / ASAT came out that I was on the search and got my first in the early 90's with a ASAT signature. Now, a few ASAT's later I'm still hooked. Nice tribby ya got, there may be a trib ASAT special on the horizon for me!

I do read quite a bit but have not tried audiobooks and would like to give them a try, especially with my commute and travel schedule. Our library has a nice selection of audiobooks so I have no excuse, you have sent me to get on this week and see how it goes.

[louis cyfer]

welcome to g&l john. i had a student of mine get his first guitar last week, and despite my best effort he ended up with a les paul 50's tribute. his other choice was a g&l tribute bluesboy. he liked the bluesboy, but he ended up deciding on the gibson. he passed on the american g&l asat classic and an f100 return edition. kids. he is 11, and i think the shorter scale length of the gibson appealed to him. i used to hate g&l, could stand the headstock. until i played a few when i was looking for a tele. that is when i knew i had to have one. or 2.
where are you in texas? on the map, if i look at the circle that is 2 hours away, there appears to be nothing there.

[glvourot]

Lunch today was a frozen pizza. ( I'll have good homemade soup tonight to counterbalance ).

When I was looking around for a guitar I was so sure I was going to buy a Gibson SG Standard. I played so many of them but never could find one I had to have. I had always liked Strats so I tried a whole bunch of Fenders. Again, nothing that I had to come home with. So I started researching G&L's. I had read up and decided that I really wanted to try an S-500. Deciding is easy, finding was the hard part. There are three G&L dealers in the greater Vancouver area. None of them had any S-500's in stock. For what ever reason I am in full buy mode that day. I was about to go home when I decided to go to the main branch of Long&McQuade which is not a G&L dealer. I walked into the used/rental section to see what they had. At this point I was back to thinking about an SG again, so I thought I would rent one for a week to see haw I liked it.

It was fate. And I am a card carrying non-believer. Hanging up on the wall amongst the Lp's, Sg's , Strats, I notice the tell tale headstock. I do a double take, " you have got to be kidding " I say to myself out loud. There it was, a US triburst S-500. I took it down, looked it over plugged it in, played it and that was it. It had been traded in the day before and just put out on the floor that morning. I got it for $799.00

So on the day I wanted to buy and couldn't find an S-500 , I found an S-500. That was last december and since then I have added an SC-2 which I really like as well.

[meowmix]

Lunch. Not sure yet.

For me the G&L bug was when I started to look for a guitar to buy, tried this, tried that, but when I put my hand around the G&L, I could immediately tell it was one solid piece of equipment. Also, the S500 had the option of more toggle positions. I am all for more options. 4 G&Ls, 3 S500s and 1 Climax Bass. No plan to get any more. I have the guitar, I have the amp. It is the source that needs working on. Recording engineers will tell you to get the source right first. In part I agree, it is not the sound out of the amplifier as the source, but the notes on paper.

[Michael-GnL-Michael]

Hello John,

Lunch: French toast with a side of bacon.

I used to enjoy going to the dentist. Sounds odd but I liked keeping up on things. It is usually when you neglect them that it becomes a bad experience. I liked the care I received. I liked the people. My old dentist was BB King's dentist and a great guy. I moved and though I like my current dentist the circumstances are different in many aspects and it is usually inconvenient to make an appointment.

I listened to a couple of audio books during my years of commute but I never jelled with the format. It works better for me if I like the voice and style of the reader of course. I am not taken away like I am when I actually read the book myself. I thought I could utilize that wasted opportunity and learn a foreign language so I was following exercises in my car for a while. You cannot learn a language doing that though. It is too context limited. Unless someone speaks to you using the phrase in the exact context, at least my, your memory is not triggered with a complete understanding of the communication. It is robotic repetition without focus on communicating a meaning. You really must have interaction with people to get a language down, as far as I can tell. I still do not speak Italian after years of intermittent bantering with CDs, my chosen project.

I was out of the instrument loop for years after I stopped playing. When I decided to buy another guitar I read around and learned about G&L. It made sense. I found a Legacy that I liked locally and bought it while I was cold/rusty doing the best I could. The "bolt" did not hit me until after things started coming back to me and I continued to look and learn about G&L guitars here (literally) and there. I was attracted to the ASAT tone and was in a better position to judge when I sought one out. I had played mostly using a Les Paul. I avoided Telecasters at that time. My tastes changed and as soon as I played an ASAT the bolt hit me.

[blargfromouterspace]

Hi John. Keep on practicing! One of the things I remember most about beginning guitar is the pain.

I was struck by the quality feel of G&Ls, from the very first Tribute I played. When I finally got my first G&L, a USA Classic S, I was blown away. Still am.

I haven't bought audio-books, but do enjoy reading. I picked up a copy of Cormack McCarthy's 'No Country For Old Men' just the other day which I plan on reading on a 30 hour (!) car trip this coming weekend

[Ahryn]

Good questions Elemeno, great for opening up a crowd.

Anywho, I guess the moment G&L mojo really hit me is when I started researching them online, I love Teles but every Tele in my price range always had something I wanted to change, throw in different PuPs or changing this or that.

And of course you can't lurk TDPRI (or GBL for that matter) with out finding little hints of what G&L is so I listened to a few sound samples and came to a realization, G&L came stock with the sound that I was chasing after.

I tried a few out, saw a vid on PGS and got a quote, long story short I ordered my dream G&L and it even arrived on my birthday

Reading, I love to read but that wasn't always the case because I hated my librarian in elementary.

She did stuff like try to pit me and my brother against eachother by rewarding him for everything he did (reading wise) and nothing for me.

So she retired and with nothing to be spiteful about I got into reading, mostly Michael Crichton some Robert Heinlein, stuff like that.

[yowhatsshakin]

Welcome as an LR, Jeff. And you come out of the gate strong

Lunch was some left over risotto with mushrooms I made yesterday. Good stuff!

I got into G&L mainly through a guy by the name of Ron Stoehr who was the manager of a now defunct small music store in downtown Seattle called 'Zobrist'. First G&L I ever played was an orange ASAT Classic at his store. A couple of months later, with the ASAT already been sold, I got me a Legacy Special and ordered another 2 G&L in the year following, one a Butterscotch Blonde Classic which once and for all curred me of thinking I was an LP man. The guitars just felt right to my (big) hands and sounded great though about any amp they had there. I have the opportunity to do the comparison with several GC's nearby, but any of my ASAT's do not compare to any Tele I have played. Sometimes I try again only to usually be disappointed either by price point for the good sounding ones or quality of the similarly priced Fenders.

I'm not really into audio books; the only one I have is Keith Richards' 'Life'. But I am very much into podcasts. Keeps you busy too.

- Jos

[Elemeno P]

Thanks all for the great responses.

Really appreciate the encouragement on my playing. As cheezey as it sounds, it is a life long dream I'm fulfilling.

Looks like the ASAT was the foot in the door for many. I too really like the ASAT Deluxe. I read that they're very versatile. Hope to try one out soon.

louis c I'm in Yoakum, Tx about 5k population. They call this area the Crossroads due to it being around a couple of hours to San Antonio, Austin and Houston. We're also close to decent beaches.

[Elemeno P]

I do read quite a bit but have not tried audiobooks and would like to give them a try, especially with my commute and travel schedule. Our library has a nice selection of audiobooks so I have no excuse, you have sent me to get on this week and see how it goes.

Here's a great site http://www.booksshouldbefree.com/

[sam]

Way cool thanks!!

[zapcosongs]

Great start and welcome!

My relationship with G&L began (as many do) with a drink or four. I'm the guy who used to get quite beery and then explore the world's great possibilities on eBay. Long story short: I had for a long time thought it would be cool to find a P-90 equipped Tele. I thought I saw such a beast, bid on and won an early ASAT Special. Even before it arrived, I had a twinge of buyers remorse, as I realized that there were no P-90's in the guitar I had purchased. Still, I was trying to be hopeful.

The guitar arrived at my (law firm) office, and it was stunning in all it's Belaire Green glory. As I always did in the day, I took my new conquest to a great luthier down the street for a set-up before really trying it. The next day, I got a call from the shop. My guitar was ready. As I walked in to the small urban rowhouse guitar store, there was guitar music of an incredible tone in the air. Climbing the steep flight of stairs, I wondered what the heck was making that wondrous noise. Well, it was MY guitar, being played through a vintage Fender Princeton.

Just as I was getting my mind around my first G&L audio experience, the luthier welcomed me with an offer. He wanted my guitar, and offered me a couple of hundred bucks more than I had just paid. "No thank you, friend. Great set-up, though. And I wish I had your talent." Love has its price, but it's more than two hundred dollars - even 14 years ago.

Audio books: If I still commuted, I think I would be a fan. But I work (ha!) at home these days, and I'm raising two young boys. I read the Washington Post cover-to-cover every day though, and long for the time I used to have to read great books. - ed

[JagInTheBag]

Lunch was a hot ruben sandwich and beef barley soup made by favorite beer/cigar/sandwich shop The Deli Lama. Now if they only sold G&L's I'd have no reason to leave!

My relationship with G&L started when I was a teenager, I'd go in and demo the equippment that I could not afford- first time I played a G&L it was a black Legacy much like the one in your avatar, with plain white pick guard (not pearloid Louis) through a Rivera combo. That guitar's tone took me on a ride beyond my skills at the time, I just flowed with it, gut bucket blues! I looked up and the shop guy (who normally actively ignores people noodling on instruments) had his gazed fixed on me. In all sincerity he said, "She deserves a person that actually knows how to play her like you do."

The next day I went back to purchase the guitar after working out a way to pay for it, and it was gone.

I thrive on audiobooks for long car rides! Nook for the airplane, and the real pulp pages for home sweet home. "The Door into Summer" was one of my childhood favorite Heinlein books, though I have never listened to it.