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Originally Posted by Max405
cheers
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03-07-2021 11:23 PM
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Joe, I know that you love the Epiphone, but there is a marked difference with the L5
it sounds superb, another great rendition my friend. Just to advise 2b, it appears that
Gibson is still making the L5 but only three of the Crimson Custom Luthiers remain
and they work in a small corner in the main workshop. Delivery is now approx 18 months,
it seems Gibson ignores the wishes of the many, despite the Archtop being the foundation
of their success.
It is little wonder that independent luthiers like our good friend Mark Campellone have a
2 year waiting list and many Gibson Afficionados defer to Mark for a superb instrument.
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Joe, that's a very challenging piece. I'll bet Johnny Smith did many takes before the final recording, which I think was done in his living room.
To be truthful, the tone you produce is richer than Johnny put out in his Legends album. His sound is thinner. I know what I write is sacrilegious, but that's what I hear. The L-5 with one or two mounted humbuckers is as good as it gets.
I hope your restless soul has found a home in this instrument. While it's fun to play the field, you won't do better. Long ago Paul Newman, at the height of his fame, was asked about the temptation of Hollywood women and his longstanding marriage to Joanne Woodward (50 years). He said, "Why would I go out for hamburger when I have steak at home?"
Thanks for the inspiring videos. Never stop.
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MG,
Thanks for your post. I've been thinking about you. Maybe your ears have been ringing.
I wont stop making videos. I love doing it. Especially of the Johnny Stuff. He has been gone for almost 7 years! Yet I peel back another layer of his masterworks every day and remain amazed. Listen to "Sophisticated Lady" later when you get a chance.
I learned something about sound while doing this video. There is a marked difference in sound when I pick in the middle of bridge and pickup. Its the "Plinky" zone. But my brain was making my picking hand go backwards when I was doing the descending strokes.
I think that because I found my Joanne Woodward back in 83' I make up for that for being terribly unfaithful to guitars.
Believe it or not, I am getting better. The L5 stays. Last week I was teetering, but the 165 is staying. The GB100 absolutely stays. There is one more.. It is between a Johnny Smith of some kind, a Tal or a high end Solid Spruce topped D'Angelico replica. The DA replica thang is basically my desire to play a guitar that to me, is symmetrically perfect. I will never be able to swing the real one that I want, and if I did get one, I'd be deathly afraid to own it.. My fear would be that a piece of it would break off just by me looking at it..
Thank You MG.
JD
Originally Posted by Marty Grass
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Originally Posted by silverfoxx
After speaking with our pal Stringswinger last week, I decided to play the 165 all last week. By the end of the week, I fell back in love with the 165. Mainly because of how smooth it is acoustically.
Then Saturday morning, while trying to revive my Polytone, I pulled the EER off the wall and tested the amp out with it.
Now I know why I was teetering with the 165 in the 1st place! The EER is really an excellent guitar. A half an hour later, I was still playing the EER acoustically. I just kept playing it... And playing it. The only thing wrong with it, is the rattling of the Gibson ABR-1 bridge that I put on it!
But when I pulled out the L5 Sunday to record, it hit me. The L5 is the "L5" for a reason. Its like why a 911 is a "911". Why Elvis is "Elvis". Why a Rolex is a "Rolex"..
The L5 is just like Johnny Smith.. Incomparable..
Thank You buddy..
JD
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Well done Joe! The L5 tone is just unmistakable. I know what you mean about it inspiring confidence. When I pick up my L5 I think "If I just don't play something horrible, this guitar will make it sound great!" It's amazingly forgiving, in a strange way. It seems to muffle my mistakes and amplify my good moments. I think it likes me.
Yours definitely likes you!
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I am reminded of this saying as I listen to masterful playing. The amateur practices until he gets it right. The professional practices until he cannot get it wrong.
The guitar as an instrument is not so difficult. The mind is. Controlling distractions and avoiding repetition of what we are comfortable with, pushing the limits, that's what's hard.
Great job, Joe. You really do inspire me.
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Good going Joe !
As always it's a treat to hear you play ! Needless to say, I love the sound !
Take care.
Dennis
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Very nicely done Joe! There has to be a better adjective than "Challenging" to describe that though! Your WesMo sounds lovely!
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Originally Posted by lawson-stone
You are right. It is forgiving. Or maybe it just projects what you play better. It doesn't require extra.
I dont know. All I know is, its nice to have one. No B.S.. Especially at the prices we are all seeing right now. If I waited any longer, I would have been highly discouraged.
Thanks, Joe D
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Originally Posted by Marty Grass
I remember my father telling me I was becoming "Complacent" after I learned "Mood for Day" and then took a while to learn a new song.. This coming from a person who barely knew how to play an E Chord.. Now, I am glad he pushed me.
The mind really is the obstacle.
And MG, one more thing. Thank you for what you did for a mutual friend in the past 24 hours.
That was cool.
JD
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Originally Posted by Dennis D
JD
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Originally Posted by Midnight Blues
I am wanting to jump into Sophisticated Lady, but I need to wait a while so I could polish up on the 35-40 other songs I've been neglecting.. And the funny thing is.. Alot of them are Joe Pass songs. If I dont play them for a while, they just fade away.. Amazing.
Thanks Midnight Blues.
JD
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Originally Posted by Max405
All the best to you & yours !
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Joe - for bridge rattle I keep a sheet of thin cork for re-padding woodwinds. I just snip off little bits of cork and use them to pad the vibrating bits of the bridge. Un-obtrusive and cheap. Sometimes a little parrafin, too. Silence is sometimes golden!
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When I was cleaning/polishing the ABR1 the little wire came off the back. It was a joy to get it back on (not). I guess I messed up and didn’t put it back on correctly.
I might buy a bunch of Nashville bridges and use those.
Thanks for the cork tip C74.
JD
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yes Joe D, those little retaining wires are a common source of rattling on abr-1's...there's a ton of info on bending them with the tip of a screwdriver so they don't rattle...google rattling abr-1's
luck pal
cheersLast edited by neatomic; 03-11-2021 at 01:36 PM.
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Originally Posted by Max405
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Originally Posted by neatomic
Originally Posted by Marty Grass
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Originally Posted by Max405
What all Gibson tun-o-matic bridges do in time if you use heavy gauge strings is the adjustment screws bend from string pressure as they are made of brass rendering intonation impossible when that screw bends. Yes the new version is way better but all tun-o-matics have a shelf life with heavy strings. I have seen a aftermarket one made of stainless steel but you need the gold plate on a L5.
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Originally Posted by Marty Grass
Great job, Joe! I started trying to figure that song out once it was so hard to keep anything straight after about the fifth bar that I gave up on it. I may have to give it another shot! Dropped D tuning, I am thinking?
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C, I try to write these out so I dont forget them.
I plugged this into Excel, and then made a PDF. I hope you (or anyone else) can find some use out if it.
Once again thank you for really nice things you say. Johnny is an inspiration to many around here. I hope he or any of his family who are still around looks in once in a while and notices that we will not let his legacy fade away.
Not while I can still put my paws on fretboard, that's for sure!
Thanks,
Joe D
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Great to hear you play that beautiful L5! First time I've heard this tune and was completely mesmerized watching you pick and change positions with such speed and accuracy.
When I was a teenager in the 1960s, my first guitar teacher introduced me to a method book by Matteo Carcassi (1792-1853), containing Carcassi's etudes for classical guitar. Instead of classical finger style picking, I played suitable pieces with a flat pick. This required a lot of difficult "pick shifting" and moving up and down the neck. Every once-and-a-while I go back to that book for a sort of "picking boot camp".
Thanks again Joe. Hope all is well
On the COVID front, after nearly a full year of quarantine, my wife and I will receive our first vaccination this afternoon.
Happy Landings!
Tony D.
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Yes!
Tony is always nice hearing from you. And hearing you guys are doing good makes me feel even better.
I hope it goes smoothly for you and your beautiful girl later on today.
Please stay in touch.
Thank you and I have to check out Carcassi's etudes for Guitar.
Thank you my man.
JD
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Joe, you inspire me, brother. I see and hear you play, and I think, man, I wish I could play like Joe! You work hard at it, and it really makes me stretch a bit, listen a little more carefully, aspire to be a better player. I'm sure that's true for a lot of the folks around here, and it's true when I watch other talented and gifted players video's that get posted on our forum. But with you, we get to partake, interact, and share in the magic. That's very cool. Thank you. Please, keep on doing it. And Johnny Smith has a huge amount of material to work with!
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