Got my Gibson L-5 Wes Montgomery today

[fritz jones]

Did Benson use a Guild on Stanley Turrentine's album Sugar?

[jzucker]

Did Benson use a Guild on Stanley Turrentine's album Sugar?

probably. It doesn't sound like a gibson, that's for sure. If it was the guild, the top end was rolled off quite a bit.

[rpguitar]

Each one sounds and feels like my favorite when I'm playing it.

This happens to me all the time, which is why I can hardly imagine selling about 10-12 of my guitars.

"Love the one you're with."

[Patrick2]

[QUOTE=jzucker;544580]Right now, i'll probably keep both. I actually find myself playing the Guild more than the L5. It has a brightness and crispy attack that's missing from the L5. Plus, it's got a little more acoustic property to the tone whereas the L5 sounds more electric. And the guild has a vintage feel to the tone that reminds me of a bygone jazz guitar era. The L5 sounds great too, they are very different.

Each one sounds and feels like my favorite when I'm playing it.

And this . . . . is the desease!!

[Stringswinger]

Benson was using his Guild AA at the time of the Sugar recording. I would bet that was the guitar we hear on that iconic record...

Someone needs to ask him!

[m_d]

Happy to hear that!

Right now, i'll probably keep both. I actually find myself playing the Guild more than the L5. It has a brightness and crispy attack that's missing from the L5. Plus, it's got a little more acoustic property to the tone whereas the L5 sounds more electric. And the guild has a vintage feel to the tone that reminds me of a bygone jazz guitar era. The L5 sounds great too, they are very different. Each one sounds and feels like my favorite when I'm playing it.

[fritz jones]

guilds are pretty great. i like the cheaper than gibson and short scale 17" vintage ones

[Blues Fuse]

Benson did an interview in "Vintage Guitar" back in 2010 where he indicated that a lot of his CTI recordings were done on a Guild X-500. He specifically mentioned that "Sugar,"FH's "First Light," and Lou Donaldson's "Alligator Boogaloo" were done on an X-500. He said that "Bad Benson" and a couple of other albums which he didn't identify were done on a D'Angelico New Yorker that he bought for $1000.

[2bornot2bop]

Benson did an interview in "Vintage Guitar" back in 2010 where he indicated that a lot of his CTI recordings were done on a Guild X-500. He specifically mentioned that "Sugar,"FH's "First Light," and Lou Donaldson's "Alligator Boogaloo" were done on an X-500. He said that "Bad Benson" and a couple of other albums which he didn't identify were done on a D'Angelico New Yorker that he bought for $1000.

On First Light GB used an X-500!? Insert jaw dropping icon here

[2bornot2bop]

Hey Jack, are you still searching for a $3500 Gibson BK? Here you go:

https://portland.craigslist.org/mlt/msg/5087150713.html

[silverfoxx]

Jack,

I have found that putting a wood bridge on my L-5 WESMO decreased the sustain and increased the acoustic sound, but in the end I liked the TOM sound better (sustain IS important), so the wooden bridge came off.

Congrats on the NGD

Cheers,

Marc

Hi Marc,
I have replaced the TOM bridges on my L5CES & L4CES with African Blackwood bridges
hand made by Bill Gagnon in Oregon, they give a warm tone ,but no apparent loss of
sustain ,but perfect intonation also. I decided on the change because the TOM bridges,as
good as they are, produced an undesirable metallic "ping". In fact all of my Archtops have
wooden bridges now. ( except for a ES350T . I'm also pleased for JZ as he now has the
the ultimate Jazz Guitar IMHO.

Best,
Alan

[silverfoxx]

Right now, i'll probably keep both. I actually find myself playing the Guild more than the L5. It has a brightness and crispy attack that's missing from the L5. Plus, it's got a little more acoustic property to the tone whereas the L5 sounds more electric. And the guild has a vintage feel to the tone that reminds me of a bygone jazz guitar era. The L5 sounds great too, they are very different. Each one sounds and feels like my favorite when I'm playing it.

Jack, you're far from alone with this dilemma , when I use the GB100, it's the cat's whiskers.
The L5CES , nulli secundus, a L4CES ditto,the Guild Benedetto Masterbuilt X700, on a par with
the Gibsons , oh .. then the ES175DN VOS ,,,, like Patrick said its a disease, and contageous !!

Best,
Alan

[Patrick2]

Jack, you're far from alone with this dilemma , when I use the GB100, it's the cat's whiskers.
The L5CES , nulli secundus, a L4CES ditto,the Guild Benedetto Masterbuilt X700, on a par with
the Gibsons , oh .. then the ES175DN VOS ,,,, like Patrick said its a disease, and contageous !!

Best,
Alan

Yes . . but while this is true, it's also true that there is a wonderful sensation of rediscovery when you go back to a guitar that you might not have played for a few weeks/months. Not long ago, I mentioned to Mark (MartyGrass) Goetting, after playing my Gibson-esque sunset sunburst Heritage Wesmo that I'd forgotten just how remarkable that guitar is. It could easily become #1 over the 1994 blond Heritage and the 1994 L5CES . . (which are currently tied for the #1 position as #1A and #1B irrespectively).

Then, just when I think the guitar currently in my hands is better than the others, I float on over to something else and have that "holy sit!" moment. Nice!!!

The only two guitar that I haven't truly discovered yet are my newest . . the Heritage Super Golden Eagle and my 1995 Guild Artist Award. I do play them but only sporadically. I suspect that I'll be playing the Guild AA more frequently after I do the pup swithout. The current pup is really depressing. But, she does sing beautifully when played acoustically.

Sigh . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . .

[arnie65]

I bought one of the first "Wes" L5's in 1993 for $3,200 with tax here in Florida. It was the one feature at the 1993 NAMM, and I just looked at what they're going for nowadays, unbelievable!







Cheers,
Arnie...

[nickyboy]

I have fooled with TOM's and wood bridges on many of my archtops. Here are my conclusions:

On Carved top guitars with built in pickups, TOM's rule. The loss of sustain with the wooden bridge is a deal killer because the increased acoustic sound with the wood bridge is too negligible to be worth it. Lets face it, when the pickups are mounted to the top, the top simply does not vibrate enough to give you the full on acoustic archtop experience. The TOM gives you sustain, excellent intonation and a slightly brighter tone, which is OK with a full bodied spruce top guitar. The one thing that TOM's do with an archtop is present some overtones on the unwound strings. I solve this problem by putting a piece of foam between the bridge and the tailpiece under the two unwound strings. I have TOMs on my L-5 WESMO and my Super 400.

On carved top guitars with floating pickups, wood bridges rule. The TOM robs some acoustic tone, and these guitars do not have the same sustain as guitars with built in pickups no matter what you do. They are acoustic guitars and have their own vibe. My 5 carved top archtops all have wood bridges.

On laminated guitars with a maple top (ES 175's and their ilk), both types of bridges work well. The TOM gives you more sustain and better intonation, the wood bridge gives you more warmth (which can be desirable on a maple topped guitar). I have TOM's on three of my laminate archtops but have a wood bridge on my 63 175.

YMMV...try both on all archtops with a trapeze tailpiece and see what works for you...

Glad I read this - It confirms my finding! I found that a wooden bridge on my Le Grand eliminated the overtones that seemed to cause feedback..It also dramatically improved the acoustic sound. I really didn't think it would make such a difference. Certainly more volume! In fact, I wasn't really sure if I liked the Le Grand until the wooden bridge addition. I love it now.