July 1st - Happy Canada Day

[blargfromouterspace]

Hi all. Thanks Elwood for a week chock full of cool photos

My Canadian friend tells me its Canada day today, hope you Canadians are having fun. What does the day involve? I'm guessing beers, log-rolling and fireworks!

Last week I finished university, hopefully forever. I get the results in exactly two weeks time. The last couple of months have been extremely stressful and I'm so glad that that stage of my life is behind me. Now that I've got nothing to do, I've come down with a bad flu - I'm sore all over, tired and can't play guitar for more than 5 minutes at a time without my hands aching. So while I'm holed up at home I'm enjoying reading a book and listening to music - just relaxing. And, of course, looking for work in the field I studied (electrical engineering). I'm sure nobody enjoys that - rejection after rejection after rejection.... It looks like I'm going to have to go back to painting houses for a while, which I'm not exactly keen on doing, to make ends meet. How did you get your first job after uni/college/prison???

Poll Question - Early G&L Reissues
Prices for the SC1 and L1000 are high - I recently saw a L1000 sell for just shy of $1500. Would you be interested in a reissue?

Can't have a lunch report without a photo, so here's one taken on Thursday when the GF and I were taking my parents dog's for a walk. It's the middle of winter here, and it was such a nice day that a walk along the beach (my parents a stones throw away) was too good an idea to pass on. It looked nicer than I'd ever seen it, all environmental factors had aligned for a perfect winters day. Melbourne is situated at the top of a large bay, so it's never very rough on the water but this day it was smooth as a lake, the water was crystal clear, and the air was much clearer than usual too. I like being able to go the beach and be one of the only people there, makes me feel good.

[LeoFThe Champion]

Hey Blarg,
Congratulations , yes it's not an easy time in trying to get a job. It is a lot easier with that degree . I just fell into mine and I've been there for 20 years. The economy in the late 80's was similar to now , not an easy one but you have to keep believing . It's amazing how the body collapses once it has done what is needed. Fantastic to hear the Wunkay sold for $1500 I have a 1984 Hog that is the most mint guitar ever ,seriously . My guess is it was unplayed and somehow got ski jump , so it still wasn't played. Still I wouldn't sell it for $1500.
Looking forward to your week
Anthony
PS lovely dog

[glvourot]

Love the photo blarg ! I'm thinking " Winter " in Melbourne still looks like shorts weather.... Lets see, Canada day most people just hang out and toss a few back, clog the parks and watch the obligatory fireworks display. I will be at work. Which is ok because its really hot here right now and I'll be working in a cooler all day

I never went to university and have been in the same job for 25 years. Your hard work will pay off, good thing you have a fall back to see you through. I'll drink to departing Flu virus'es .

[darwinohm]

Jamie, the next phase in life hopefully will be less stressful that the preparation. Congrats. and you will get that job. It takes time but don't worry about it. I grew up in a time where jobs were abundant, it was a question of what to do. I am thankful that I don't have to do it over. I wouldn't change much anyhow.

I am jealous of the winter scene. It looks like summer to me. Beautiful pooch!

I am not necessarily looking for old reissues but they would be cool. I have owned many basses over the years and have never had a bad one. It just occurred to me this weekend that the current bass I use is the best feeling ever. I was tired and sore and that baby felt like a glove. I am looking forward the the new Asat bass coming but the one I currently use is superb. I have a single pickup Stringray 5 which will take care of the single pickup setup. -- Darwin

[Goat]

Have you thought of working for yourself? I pretty much always have, and couldn't imagine working for anyone else now. Although I'm a crap boss to have!
There are 2 1981 L1000 Basses on UK ebay at the moment - a lefty in natural at £1295 (original case) and a red one in a non-original case at £1150.
I only ever hear good things about them, but whether that is a good reason to reproduce them now I'm not so sure. I hear good things about most G&L basses!
Melbourne winter looks crisp and delightful. Doggie looks happy!

[ellengtrgrl]

Congrats with finishing up at the university Blarg! I remember when I was done with my schooling for both Engineering Degree #1 (Nuclear Engineering - a very dead field, and I knew so, when I was graduating), and Engineering Degree #2 (Manufacturing Engineering - which got me into my present job as a Quality Engineer), saying that I felt wrung out was an understatement! Good Luck in the job search! BTW, cute puppy! The shoreline looks a lot like the shoreline of Lake Michigan (I grew up less than a mile from Lake Michigan, in a small city in Wisconsin called Manitowoc, and as a result, spent a fair amount of time, down by The Lake).

Regarding the poll - an SC-1 would be way cool to have, but considering it's limited appeal to many players (many players don't like single pickup guitars, much less ones without a neck pickup), it wouldn't be a good seller as a regular part of the product line. Once you got past those of us who'd like to have an SC-1, the remaining ones would end up being dust collectors on dealers' walls.

[Kit]

Jamie, congrats on getting your degree. My degree was also in electrical engineering, although I'm decades before your time. It turned to be good for me, I enjoyed my work and it made me fairly financially secure. Here in the US universities have a placement center that matches up students with employers, I found my job through a campus interview.

I am hopeful that you will find employment in your field in the near future. You may get some funds painting houses in the meantime, but keep at the employment opportunities and a door will open up.

Kit

[Philby]

Hi Jamie,

Congratulations on making it through your course. Sorry to hear that you're feeling poorly and can't celebrate an end to your university career. Sounds like you're making the best of a bad situation though.

I graduated from university at the height of the late 80's recession and couldn't even find a job to apply for. So I went back and did honours. And still couldn't get an interview (this was chemistry btw). So I went back and did a PhD. That was a dumb move. All it did was make me very specialized in a field that has been dying a slow death in Australia (pharmaceuticals). I ended up having to move around to find work, but once I was in the work force things got easier. Unfortunately science and engineering jobs are always the first to go when the economy turns. I could still find myself unemployed after 20+ years in the industry.

If you can't find anything in electrical engineering, you could do worse than a short post grad course in business or finance. Those industries seem to value the core sciences background - especially maths and a basic ability to think logically. It's a bad time to be looking for a job in the sciences in Aus right now, with most of the employing industries heading off shore. The bass player in my last band had a masters in electrical engineering, specializing in alternative energy (wind, solar etc.). Last I heard he's in Ecuador building wind turbines for the Ecuadorian gov't. It's a tragedy that Australia has no alternative energy policy or industry to speak of given how much sun and wind we get.

I'd like a surf green SC-1 with maple board if G&L was re-issuing them.

[blargfromouterspace]

Anthony - do you plan to repair the L1000 with "ski-jump"?

Glvourot - Looks like shorts weather, but it ain't, at least by Australian standards. Its a similar day today, its 15C here at the moment, above zero Hope you manage to let your hair down after work.

Darwin - What is the bass you're currently using?

Goat - I'd love to work for myself but without any practical experience in an industry where if something goes wrong lives are at risk it'd be a bit hard to get work. A friend of mine has started his own company in a town 400km away, so I'm going up the road to see him next week.

Ellen - 2 engineering degrees!?!?! You're crazy! That's a hell of an achievement, hope your salary reflects it

Kit - Its great that you guys have a placement center. We have to do 3 months work experience in order to receive the degree, and have to find the work ourselves. Even offering to whore myself out for free didn't get me a spot in a company last year.

Phil - I'd consider doing a PhD if it came with a paycheck. I'm going to stay well away from finance - the GF worked in a bank for a couple of years and I can't remember meeting one bloke from her work that I didn't want to punch/strangle after 30 minutes. Totally agree on the alternative energy thing. We've got so much space to put it all too. But, while people can make money digging coal out of the ground its not going to happen. One of the professors at uni said that with present technologies, solar could provide all of Australia's power from a 30 square km of land. Tragic really.

And hows this beauty?

[gitman001]

Hey Jamie,

Thanks for the Canadian shout out!! We had a great holiday spent with family and friends.... and yes a few pints

Congrats on finishing school, I have no doubt that great things are on the horizon for you. It must feel real good to be finally be done.

As far as the poll goes... I think you know my answer Just give us an SC-1 already! Its only a pickup route for Pete's sake!!!!

Have a good one,
Scott

[KenC]

#$&Q@* time outs!!!! I won't try to recreate the post I just lost. I'll just skip to the G&L topic:

I would love to see the SC-1 and L-1000 reissued on a limited basis for those who haven't been able to track down originals. I would just ask G&L for the following:

- Make the SC-1 with a soft maple, slab body. Anything else just wouldn't have the right vibe.
- If the same type of mahogany that was used in the early '80s can't be sourced, then limit the L-1000 to swamp ash bodies. 'Hog would be nice, but it would need to be the shoulder-straining ten pounds per body variety to be true to the originals.
- Neck profiles would need to match the originals. My SC-1s and SC-2 are not identical, but they are all on the chunky side. Maple fretboards are a necessity for a true SC-1 vibe. The L-1000 neck would need to be wide, shallow and glossy to make the bass feel and play like a 'Wunkay.
- The circuits would need to be true to the SC-1 and the first-generation L-1000 electronics. IMO, the interplay between the volume and tone controls elevates the SC-1 above all other single-pickup guitars in terms of sound and versatility. It would be wrong to put an L-1000 decal on any bass that doesn't have the gut-wrenching, room-shaking low end of the original treble cut ("OMG") circuit.
- To be true to the spirit of the originals, G&L would need to stick with the limited color options from the early '80s. A Gold Flake SC-1 with a color-matched headstock may be a beautiful guitar, but it just wouldn't really be an SC-1...

BTW, congratulations on finishing your degree!

Ken

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi Jamie,

Congrats with finishing the academic minutiae necessary to obtain a degree. I remember well the day I handed in my thesis (my 28th birthday) and spending the day at the printer. In The Netherlands you don't write a thesis, they want you to publish a darn book with a minimum priunt of 500 copies, with 300 going to the library of the department! All to be paid by you of course!

In the early '90s, it was pretty hard to find a job in academia. I basically had a post-doctoral position lined up at Indiana University Cyclotron Facility, but then the US congress intervened, sent out so-called 'Tiger Teams', and closed the money faucet. Fortunately I won an Italian scholarship from the Instituto Nationale di Fisica Nucleare with my own choice where I wanted to continue my research. That's how we ended up in Sicily, living at the foot of Mt. Etna near Catania, eating well but getting frustrated beyond belief on how business was conducted there.

So after a year and a half, when I noticed an open position at the University of Washington (Go Dawgs!) in the Physics Today, I collected the required letters of recommendations, wrote my research plan and application letter and sent it off. Next thing that happened was bittersweet. About a week later my mother in law passed away and we had to fly back to NL. You know these airline magazines in the pocket of the seat in fron of you? Well, AlItalia's issue of that month contained an article on Seattle in it with a picture of the Space Needle, town, and Mt Rainier in the background, similar to this picture:

"That's where I would like to live!" my wife said right away. So she was pleasantly surprised when I informed her that I had applied at a lab in exactly that town. "But you applied at Kurt Snover!" she answered. I had some fun explaining her Kurt Snover was the researcher I had sent my letters to, not a city in the middle of nowhere!

And the rest, as they say, is history.

As and answer to your G&L question, I am one of the people having answered 'No'. Both the Wunkay and the SC-1 are great instruments and appear in the marketplace often enough that those truly interested would be able to get one. Funny thing will be that the price of a reissue might actually exceed the price of the genuine vintage article! So be careful what you wish for.

- Jos

[Fumble fingers]

congrats on getting the degree !! ..... for me there are other G & L's I would like before a SC 1 , but I have never played a original SC 1 so I don't know what I'm missing , so I voted no also

I sure like my SC 2 though !!

[darwinohm]

Jamie, my bass is a Carvin made from KOA and it is a fantastic bass.-- Darwin

[Lefty]

Jamie, my bass is a Carvin made from KOA and it is a fantastic bass.-- Darwin

Carvin manufactures some awesome instruments!

[cuzwilly]

congratulations on you degree. I almost didn't make it though high school.Hope you find a job you like. nothings worse than working at a job you
hate for 30 years but pays to much to quit.
cool dog he looks happy.
SC1 heavy strings tuned to open G nothing better for playing slide and Keith Richard licks.

[ellengtrgrl]

Anthony - do you plan to repair the L1000 with "ski-jump"?

Glvourot - Looks like shorts weather, but it ain't, at least by Australian standards. Its a similar day today, its 15C here at the moment, above zero Hope you manage to let your hair down after work.

Darwin - What is the bass you're currently using?

Goat - I'd love to work for myself but without any practical experience in an industry where if something goes wrong lives are at risk it'd be a bit hard to get work. A friend of mine has started his own company in a town 400km away, so I'm going up the road to see him next week.

Ellen - 2 engineering degrees!?!?! You're crazy! That's a hell of an achievement, hope your salary reflects it

Kit - Its great that you guys have a placement center. We have to do 3 months work experience in order to receive the degree, and have to find the work ourselves. Even offering to whore myself out for free didn't get me a spot in a company last year.

Phil - I'd consider doing a PhD if it came with a paycheck. I'm going to stay well away from finance - the GF worked in a bank for a couple of years and I can't remember meeting one bloke from her work that I didn't want to punch/strangle after 30 minutes. Totally agree on the alternative energy thing. We've got so much space to put it all too. But, while people can make money digging coal out of the ground its not going to happen. One of the professors at uni said that with present technologies, solar could provide all of Australia's power from a 30 square km of land. Tragic really.

And hows this beauty?

Oooh! Quite Noice!

As for the 2 engineering degrees - that was more out of necessity than anything else. There just were no jobs in nuclear engineering, and I was sick of working on a factory floor, doing assembly work. As it is, I already had most of the basic engineering coursework (mostly mechanical engineering related, with some electronics, and math galore), so I didn't have to start from ground zero.

[KenC]

Since we're posting photos...



Happy GASsing!

Ken

[Philby]

Phil - I'd consider doing a PhD if it came with a paycheck. I'm going to stay well away from finance - the GF worked in a bank for a couple of years and I can't remember meeting one bloke from her work that I didn't want to punch/strangle after 30 minutes.

Testify brother!
It seems you need a personality bypass to work in the finance industry. And some form of conscience bypass in a lot of cases also.

Choice SC-2, that blue one.

[blargfromouterspace]

Jos - Great story, sounds like everything fell into place eventually. Glad you ended up somewhere you both like. 500 copies of a thesis is ridiculous! We were unhappy having to print three full colour, bound copies. I don't expect anyone who doesn't have to grade mine to ever read it.

Ken - I agree to your terms. And thats an envy inducing pair of guitars.

[zapcosongs]

Since we're posting photos...



Happy GASsing!

Ken

Bastid (again!!!) Ha!

Those are two beautiful examples of early G&L goodness.

I've never played an SC-1, but I do have an SC-2, so I'm half-way there in a lunatic way. Just a great, great guitar. It's kind of interesting to compare the SC-2 to my '86 ASAT, given that the pickups and the bridge are pretty much the same. Still, they are so different - though both are maple-bodied with maple neck and fretboards. I've often wondered how the circuits of these two might be different, or am I hearing the different body shapes...????

I don't play bass at all, though I have two, one of which is an L1K (the other an early SB-2). What a great instrument! This one clearly needs to be reissued. Both the instruments Blarg features today seem to me to demonstrate that when it comes to the number of pickups, less can indeed be more.

Hey Blarg, let me add my congratulations to those of everybody here. My story: When I graduated with a degree in law in the early 1980's, the economy here was really in the crapper. Because I was entrenched in the middle of my class (and not in the top 10%), finding a good (or any decent) job in my field was quite impossible. What I did is find a job at a big insurance company that didn't actually require a JD, but had clear opportunity for advancement. I did a good job, moved up fast, and eventually got hired away by a law firm who was looking for someone with insurance experience. So I guess I'm saying that the road will offer some curves and some unlikely ways to get where you ultimately want to be. When you get to a fork in the road, take it. Or not. I'm confident that you will land on your feet. Oh, and enjoy the ride! - ed

PS: Love the beach photo. Thank you for the beautiful diversion!

[LeoFThe Champion]

hey Jamie, yeah I will shave the neck and refret it. I have been talking to Gabe about the best frets to put into it. He has recommended taller than the original 80's had in it. I'll listen because Gabe has never let me down . I picked it up from South Carolina .
I'll show photos one day ,

[KenC]

Ken - I agree to your terms. And thats an envy inducing pair of guitars.

Jamie,

My offer still stands: when you do an American tour, leave your guitars at home and play mine. They could use a break from my hack playing! I just saw a YouTube video of Clairy Browne in Los Angeles, so you guys can't be far behind...

Ken

[KenC]

Bastid (again!!!) Ha!

Those are two beautiful examples of early G&L goodness.

I've never played an SC-1, but I do have an SC-2, so I'm half-way there in a lunatic way.

Ed,

My offer still stands: Drive one hour east on I-70 or the Beltway, and try a couple dozen of George and Leo's finest! Throw the kayak on the car and we can dodge motorboats on the Severn River afterward!

It's kind of interesting to compare the SC-2 to my '86 ASAT, given that the pickups and the bridge are pretty much the same. Still, they are so different - though both are maple-bodied with maple neck and fretboards. I've often wondered how the circuits of these two might be different, or am I hearing the different body shapes...????

They are absolutely different guitars. The ASAT has a bit more mass, but not enough IMO to explain the difference in sounds. Ultimately, I think the SC series is a state of mind. You get the "not quite there" feel and effortless playability of a Duo Sonic paired with the intonation of a long scale neck and MFD awesomeness, but the vibe overrides it all. A maple-body ASAT is absolutely solid, and embodies just about everything George and Leo learned about guitar building (minus in-between position snarkiness).

So I guess I'm saying that the road will offer some curves and some unlikely ways to get where you ultimately want to be. When you get to a fork in the road, take it. Or not. I'm confident that you will land on your feet. Oh, and enjoy the ride! - ed

Jamie: My career mantra has been a Hunter Thompson quote: When the going gets weird, the weird turn pro. There is something that may only be vaguely related to electrical engineering that you are uniquely suited for. It may be two or three jobs down the road, but when you find it problems that are incomprehensible for most people in that field will be no-brainers for you. Until then, never miss an opportunity to learn something new - even if it's learning that you don't like something. If you try hard enough, it will all tie together in the end.

Ken

[blargfromouterspace]

Thanks Ed, Ken, seems like good advice. And Ken, I will absolutely take you up on that offer one day - I may not be with a band, but I'd love to play them.

[Craig]

I'm kinda surprised (well, not really ) that no one mentioned the BABP L-1000 LE G&L did for the G&L Bass Forum at http://www.badassbassplayers.com in 2008-2009.
Prior to that, G&L built the BABP L-2000 LE (2007) and BABP L-2500 (2008) for them, as well. See List of G&L Rarebird Instruments (USA).

With the current Rampage, Solamente and Solamente Alnico models, it is very unlikely that you will see an SC-1 return snytime soon.

[sirmyghin]

Hey Blarg,

Sorry to hear you are having trouble finding work. Been looking since May myself, and it is pretty bleak. Starting to get to me. Fortunately I holed away a good bunch before my layoff. The biggest problem I have is not multiple rejections (although I did get 1!, and was happy just to hear something), or interested parties but no positions. Pulling some strings right now to see where it leads. My experience is rather diverse, but not specific, so some specialized areas, where I studied (like soils) aren't terribly interested.

As far as those guitars, maybe, we'll see. I have never really felt the call of the single pickup guitar.