The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    My drummer was in the floor. I woke him up after the intro and he went crazy for 2 minutes..

    yep, just like a typical real drummer!!

    hahaha

    cheers

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  3. #27

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    That was great Joe. I can agree with the notion that JS's can bring out the best in a player. I just wish that the one I had (a'65) sounded half as good as yours. I'd a kept it if it did. I loved practicing on it, the neck and all, but it just didn't give up the sonics we all crave from them.

    Keep on keeping' on.

  4. #28

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    All your guitars sound great. No, wait, you sound great on all your guitars. The guitars make no sound on their own. But that particular guitar really flatters your playing- which is interesting because IME the Gibson Johnny Smith is not particularly forgiving. If you eff up, it's out there for everyone to hear. So you're gettin' it right.

  5. #29

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cunamara
    All your guitars sound great. No, wait, you sound great on all your guitars. The guitars make no sound on their own. But that particular guitar really flatters your playing- which is interesting because IME the Gibson Johnny Smith is not particularly forgiving. If you eff up, it's out there for everyone to hear. So you're gettin' it right.
    Cunamera, Thank you buddy.
    you know it’s funny..
    my new 175 actually helped me clean up my technique. It is one of those guitars that points out a mistake a mile away. I was forced to go straight down with my fretting before I realized I should move the strings over. The Gibson Johnny Smith uses every bit of the neck width, all the way up. Bad technique will push you over the edge on this guitar. That’s probably why when I grab a guitar, it almost always reach for my HJS18 or the 165. They are really forgiving.
    Thank you bro.

    Quote Originally Posted by Jimmy Mack
    That was great Joe. I can agree with the notion that JS's can bring out the best in a player. I just wish that the one I had (a'65) sounded half as good as yours. I'd a kept it if it did. I loved practicing on it, the neck and all, but it just didn't give up the sonics we all crave from them.
    Keep on keeping' on.
    Jimmy,
    thank you buddy. I’m sorry about your Gibson Johnny Smith experience.
    I personally have never had a turd. That would suck! Because I wouldn’t keep it and I certainly couldn’t sell it. That’s scary.
    Kinda makes me feel like a coward. Most of the guitars I’ve had came from people I know and trust. Vinny, Mikey, QAman, MartyGrass.. All afficienado’s of fine guitars. You won’t get a turkey from these guys.
    Thanks, Joe D

  6. #30

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    The Gibson Johnny Smith uses every bit of the neck width, all the way up. Bad technique will push you over the edge on this guitar. That’s probably why when I grab a guitar, it almost always reach for my HJS18 or the 165. They are really forgiving.
    if i'm reading you right,

    you could tighten up the string spacing with a narrower slotted nut and/or bridge saddle slots...

    no reason to miss notes (or even think you might) because of too little low E-high E neck width clearance

    cheers

  7. #31

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    Quote Originally Posted by neatomic
    if i'm reading you right,
    you could tighten up the string spacing with a narrower slotted nut and/or bridge saddle slots...
    no reason to miss notes (or even think you might) because of too little low E-high E neck width clearance
    cheers
    N, i think I got use to it so I am not changing a thing.
    JD

  8. #32

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    just something to keep in mind..can be done... narrowing spacing on wood bridge saddle slots is really very easy..and can be sanded out if ever unhappy with

    better than worrying/thinking if you have too little room...it makes one shy of really going for it!

    make the guitar serve you... (barring crazy horrible mods of course!)

    cheers

  9. #33

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    Joe, that was awesome! You're the kind of player the GJS was made for. Thanks for sharing this!

  10. #34

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    It’s funny, I tried and tried and tried and I couldn’t get it. I am almost convinced he threw a 2nd guitar in there, ala Lulaby of Birdland.. There is no way the was one man playing one guitar.
    Thank you buddy. I appreciate it.

    SS, you should try out a Norlin.. they have those nice volutes you like so much.. they come in handy when you are hanging the guitar on the Stringswinger... the neck sits perfectly between your thumb and 1st finger!
    thanks buddy.
    It's like sustaining that high A in the third and fourth bars of Autumn Nocturne on the Eb9+11 chord- it can't be done, but JS did it!

  11. #35

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    Great stuff Joe!

  12. #36

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405

    SS, you should try out a Norlin.. they have those nice volutes you like so much.. they come in handy when you are hanging the guitar on the Stringswinger... the neck sits perfectly between your thumb and 1st finger!
    thanks buddy.
    Sounds amazing, as always, Joe. You were the one that inspired me to Evo Gold my ‘68 GJS, and I can’t thank you enough for that.

    Fortunately, the GJS never had a volute, no matter what the era of Gibson ownership.


  13. #37

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    Quote Originally Posted by citizenk74
    Joe, that was awesome! You're the kind of player the GJS was made for. Thanks for sharing this!
    thanks c74 I appreciate it buddy.

    Quote Originally Posted by sgcim
    It's like sustaining that high A in the third and fourth bars of Autumn Nocturne on the Eb9+11 chord- it can't be done, but JS did it!
    isnt that the truth.
    He always has an Easter egg in his arrangements. I swear that gentle genius wrote his parts with the thought in mind that anyone who tried emulate him would injure themselves. I really do.

    Quote Originally Posted by skiboyny
    Great stuff Joe!
    thanks skiboyny!!

  14. #38

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    Quote Originally Posted by ThatRhythmMan

    Fortunately, the GJS never had a volute, no matter what the era of Gibson ownership.
    Quite incorrect. I have played a GJS with a volute (it was a 78 IIRC) and I believe that JD's GJS does have a volute. The one thing that never happened to the GJS was the 1 9/16 nut.

  15. #39

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    Quote Originally Posted by Stringswinger
    Quite incorrect. I have played a GJS with a volute (it was a 78 IIRC) and I believe that JD's GJS does have a volute. The one thing that never happened to the GJS was the 1 9/16 nut.
    Thanks for that info, SS. It’s not the first time I’ve been wrong, and it already hasn’t been the last.

    I have had in my personal possession multiple Norlin era GJS guitars, and have seen many more. Not a single one had a volute. I wonder what the distribution of volute to non-volute was and how I was able to not run across one with a volute. I really was thinking that they had left the general specs of the GJS alone. I should have known better than to think that.

    In fact, I have the ‘76 pictured in my prior comment above right now (for sale) and just recently sold an ‘80, pictured here. It’s not the best pic, but you can see that it doesn’t have a volute either.


  16. #40

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    In answer to my own question, I looked at all examples of Norlin era GJS I could find currently listed on Reverb. So far, if you add the one I just sold, none of the nine have a volute, all with photo documentation. It seems most likely that GJS volutes are pretty unusual.

  17. #41

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    Yeah, my 76 GJS has a volute.
    I am not even sure if it makes a difference on the guitar. Its no problem for me at all.

    Another anomaly is I've seen the Johnny Smith guitars with pickups that have the screws on the neck side (like mine) and others with the screws on the bridge side. Not sure why that is. I've seen Wes Montgomery's own guitars had screws on both sides.

    Anyhow, Rhythm Man, Thanks for the nice words.
    I also saw in your picture that your tuners are really well kept. Some years, the plating was incredibly good. My tuners look like they were made yesterday. But, as far as tuners go, I think they are horrible. And I don't think there is any way to fix them. They are the tightest tuners ever. And a couple have play in them though. Luckily for me, I only have to tune the guitar once every 3 months. After a string change, they work in and turn really well. Then the next time you turn them, they stick.

    Oh Well..

    JD

  18. #42

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    Quote Originally Posted by sgcim
    It's like sustaining that high A in the third and fourth bars of Autumn Nocturne on the Eb9+11 chord- it can't be done, but JS did it!
    I think you are talking about this one..

    5 ( the sustained note)
    2
    0
    3
    1
    1

    Impossible..

  19. #43

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    Joe,

    I greatly enjoyed your "Tea for Two" clip. The JS, of course, sounds excellent...but I really enjoyed your nonchalant playing style. Go, man, go.

  20. #44

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    Quote Originally Posted by Greentone
    Joe,

    I greatly enjoyed your "Tea for Two" clip. The JS, of course, sounds excellent...but I really enjoyed your nonchalant playing style. Go, man, go.
    Thanks GT.
    That was the 5th take. I was starting to settle down by then..

    Now for the next week, I go through all the other arrangements I play and try and replace all the bits and pieces that fell out of the back of my head.
    I have pretty much max'd out my hard drive..

    Thanks, Joe D

  21. #45

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    Quote Originally Posted by ThatRhythmMan
    In answer to my own question, I looked at all examples of Norlin era GJS I could find currently listed on Reverb. So far, if you add the one I just sold, none of the nine have a volute, all with photo documentation. It seems most likely that GJS volutes are pretty unusual.
    Bear in mind that back in the 70's and 80's (when keeping a guitar "original" was not much of a concern), a lot of guys had the volute removed. My guitar repairman in those days was Ralph Novak of Novax fame. He once asked me if I wanted him to remove the volute from a Les Paul that I had just acquired. When I declined, he told me that if it got in the way, he could fix it. I have owned a few Norlin era Gibsons with the volute. I have never found them to be an impediment to my playing, but I do not like the way they look (and I love the Martin Volute). I guess the Gibson volute is like the Heritage headstock (which I happen to like), some guys are OK with them, some guys are not.

  22. #46

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    Yeah, my 76 GJS has a volute.
    I am not even sure if it makes a difference on the guitar. Its no problem for me at all.

    Another anomaly is I've seen the Johnny Smith guitars with pickups that have the screws on the neck side (like mine) and others with the screws on the bridge side. Not sure why that is. I've seen Wes Montgomery's own guitars had screws on both sides.

    Anyhow, Rhythm Man, Thanks for the nice words.
    I also saw in your picture that your tuners are really well kept. Some years, the plating was incredibly good. My tuners look like they were made yesterday. But, as far as tuners go, I think they are horrible. And I don't think there is any way to fix them. They are the tightest tuners ever. And a couple have play in them though. Luckily for me, I only have to tune the guitar once every 3 months. After a string change, they work in and turn really well. Then the next time you turn them, they stick.

    Oh Well..

    JD
    JD, my understanding is that Wes turned his PUP around on some guitars to try and brighten his sound. He also changed his wood saddle to a TOM and tied his strap to the headstock all in an effort to brighten his sound. Perhaps the PUP on your GJS was reversed at some time? Perhaps it was ordered that way?

    I have those same tuners (or a more recent facsimile thereof) on my 1997 Super 400. And indeed, they get tight under pressure (a design flaw perhaps?). I do like the little cranks on the tuners on TRM's picture. I had a 1982 Les Paul and a 1984 Explorer that had those cranks on the Tuners and they worked great. IIRC, they were made by Schaller.

  23. #47

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    So Joe’s GJS makes us 1 out of 10 we can definitively document as having a volute.

    I can’t speak for any with only pics on Reverb, but the ‘76 and the ‘80 pictured in my prior posts show no signs of refinishing, so I’m assuming that they never had volutes.

    The natural versions appear, as best as I can tell to have untouched stingers on the back of the headstock, but I suppose a well done refinish could look untouched in photos.

    FWIW, volutes are fine with me. Aesthetically, I’m very used to them since my first quality electric guitar was a 1980 LPC that I still own.

  24. #48

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    Quote Originally Posted by Stringswinger
    JD, my understanding is that Wes turned his PUP around on some guitars to try and brighten his sound. He also changed his wood saddle to a TOM and tied his strap to the headstock all in an effort to brighten his sound. Perhaps the PUP on your GJS was reversed at some time? Perhaps it was ordered that way?

    I have those same tuners (or a more recent facsimile thereof) on my 1997 Super 400. And indeed, they get tight under pressure (a design flaw perhaps?). I do like the little cranks on the tuners on TRM's picture. I had a 1982 Les Paul and a 1984 Explorer that had those cranks on the Tuners and they worked great. IIRC, they were made by Schaller.
    SS, My screws are on the neck side which I thought was correct, no?

    Quote Originally Posted by ThatRhythmMan
    So Joe’s GJS makes us 1 out of 10 we can definitively document as having a volute.

    I can’t speak for any with only pics on Reverb, but the ‘76 and the ‘80 pictured in my prior posts show no signs of refinishing, so I’m assuming that they never had volutes.

    The natural versions appear, as best as I can tell to have untouched stingers on the back of the headstock, but I suppose a well done refinish could look untouched in photos.

    FWIW, volutes are fine with me. Aesthetically, I’m very used to them since my first quality electric guitar was a 1980 LPC that I still own.
    I have no problem with volutes. I had one on my GB10 and it was cool.
    I'd kill to have a volute on a, I don't know, lets say a Citation or a Unity.. That is some sexy stuff right there..

    JD

  25. #49

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    "My tuners look like they were made yesterday. But, as far as tuners go, I think they are horrible. And I don't think there is any way to fix them. They are the tightest tuners ever."

    Joe, your guitar must've sat unplayed for a very long time and the grease dried up.
    those Kluson Sealfasts are about the best tuners Gibson ever put on a guitar.
    one of them on my '69 L-5 is getting very stiff after a few turns, but this guitar was played to death over the last 49 yrs.
    but I have a few extra sets laying around as well as some spare singles, so I'm covered.

  26. #50

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    Quote Originally Posted by Max405
    SS, My screws are on the neck side which I thought was correct, no?



    I have no problem with volutes. I had one on my GB10 and it was cool.
    I'd kill to have a volute on a, I don't know, lets say a Citation or a Unity.. That is some sexy stuff right there..

    JD
    Sorry, I misread your post. The neck side is correct. Maybe at some point, some guys copied Wes and turned their PUP's around?

    Regarding volutes, my 75 Les Paul had a volute, but it was smaller than most (I am guessing that Gibson had a small volute and a big volute. From what I gather, neither did what they were intended to do, namely preventing headstock breaks) and that volute did not bother me in the least. My 77 175 had a large volute that looked strange with the slim taper neck. I had an 82 175 that did not have a volute, but I had a 82 Les Paul Artisan that did have one (Perhaps the volute was discontinued in that year?) Both of my 78 Les Pauls had the volute, my 1970 175 did not. My 1980 Ibanez JP-20 had no volute, but both of my 1989 Ibanez AF-207's did. It seems that both Gibson and Ibanez had no hard and fast rules on the volute.