... But does it Jazz ??

[djg]

Is that a Parker Fly?

i'm not sure what it is.

[mr. beaumont]

Man, another great clip.

Definitely a Fly.

[DMgolf66]

Man, another great clip.

Definitely a Fly.

I love that older clip on the red/crimson Les Paul.

[djg]

Man, another great clip.

Definitely a Fly.

his youtube channel is a treasure trove

[mr. beaumont]

Speaking of "does it jazz," we'll find out if an Ibanez AZ does, getting one in a few weeks, my first strat-ish guitar since my first electric guitar in 1992.

[Stringswinger]

When people talk about a jazz sound, they usually mean something like Wes, Kenny B., Barney K, Jim Hall etc. Not that they sounded alike, but arguably in the same general ballpark. All archtop players.

But, it depends what you call jazz. Texas Playboys? Steely Dan? Grateful Dead? I think they all played music that meet my definition of jazz.

And, I think, it depends on how much sustain you need to play your style.

jazz on a Tele -- see Ted Greene.

jazz on a Strat -- see Lorne Lofsky

jazz on a flat top -- can't recall the name, but there was a well known player.

I've never heard anybody sound like Wes without an L5. But, I've heard great jazz on every kind of guitar.

Gabor Szabo played a flat top. Arguably every great Gypsy Jazz player on a Selmer-Maccaferri is playing a flat top (I know, most of those guitars have a bent top, but they are pretty flat compared to an archtop).

Let's not forget: Jazz on a Classical - see Charlie Byrd

[Bobby Timmons]

Some guitars work better than others for jazz, they're not all equal (hello kitty strat). But the range of what can sound good is way wider than only traditional jazz guitars.

[L50EF15]

Any of classic postwar electrics (Tele/Les Paul/Strat/ES-335/SG) will give a great jazz tone if you string them as they would have been from their respective factories when they were new designs: That is, with flatwounds 12-53. Remember, while there were plenty of players who would replace the high E with a banjo string (James Burton for one) from the mid to late 1950s, in-period, a 12-53 set was considered "light gauge".

Of course, you can get a good traditional tone with lighter strings. But I have found that most of my electrics (MIM Tele, two Les Pauls and an Epiphone Casino) stay in tune longer, and intonate better, with 12-53 flatwounds (D'A Chromes). That notorious "Les Paul G-string out of tune" thing is pretty much eliminated this way. The Tele has 11-50 only because the slots at the nut aren't wide enough for 12s.

All that said, I am sure that one can get a jazz tone from, say, a Jackson or Charvel. I mean Guthrie Govan does pretty well here with a similar guitar, albeit there's a fair bit of Strat-ish quackiness in spots:

[pauln]

John McLaughlin debut album as bandleader,
he played a flat top with a sound hole pickup.
Extrapolation (1969), picture from back cover

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

When we visited Gitterbug in Finland, his son lent me his jazziest 7 string so G'bug and I could play some tunes together. I think the strings were hair, and it had a Floyd Rose plus a locking nut. The pickups were what I can only call "hot" - I think they actually scared the SBUS. Yes, jazz is possible on a guitar like that - but I don't endorse the effort. We had a lot of fun with it, but there's a definitely a limit to what you can do with a heavy metal tool.

[jim777]

Speaking of "does it jazz," we'll find out if an Ibanez AZ does, getting one in a few weeks, my first strat-ish guitar since my first electric guitar in 1992.

I wish you the best of luck with her, the ones I've played are lovely instruments.

[jim777]

When we visited Gitterbug in Finland, his son lent me his jazziest 7 string so G'bug and I could play some tunes together. I think the strings were hair, and it had a Floyd Rose plus a locking nut. The pickups were what I can only call "hot" - I think they actually scared the SBUS. Yes, jazz is possible on a guitar like that - but I don't endorse the effort. We had a lot of fun with it, but there's a definitely a limit to what you can do with a heavy metal tool.

You look great with that Universe Dave, such a legend! But it does have the Blazes you don't like, a different pickup would have helped but still a great picture!

[Spook410]

I like Ralph Towner best on a high end 6 or 12 string flat top. Same for the late/great Michael Hedges. And there are players using ever type of solid and semi out there that I really like playing all sorts of musical styles. However, I'm glad many of the players we associate with classic jazz guitar applied archtops to their craft. An archtop has a unique sound envelope that seems very well suited.

[nevershouldhavesoldit]

it does have the Blazes you don't like

It’s not the Blazes that I don’t like, Jim. It’s that Ibanez put one in the AF207. If ever there was a mismatch between guitar and pickup, this is it. I assume they did this rather than sourcing an appropriately jazzy pickup for a very limited production archtop because it saved them time and money. But they didn’t take any other shortcuts I can find on it, so it remains a mystery. They even put a custom gold cover (without exposed pole pieces) on it, which wasn’t cheap.

Ah….the inscrutable East!

[Woody Sound]

Is that a Parker Fly?

Yes. It sounds like he's using the piezo pickup, or at least a blend of it.

[ScarTissue]

This kinda might be half - off - topic , but this guy started a cult and religion. Jazz on 8 string. Now, I saw few guys do jazz on 7s , but never on 8 string djent guitar.