Original D'Angelico guitars (pre-1965)

[Stringswinger]

And you are correct. It's an original.

I went out and saw some live jazz and this same guy was there with this same guitar. He even let me play it. It's an old original D'Angelico.

I found another video on YT that is an original for sure also.

That DA is in the right hands. Great player, great guitar (none better) and Kudos to that cat for sharing his axe with the public.

[Chadjohneto]

[QUOTE=AKA;1181018][QUOTE [They have equality in Detroit, and are more than happy to kill you regardless of skin color!

I once did a funk gig in Harlem many years ago (early 80's) where the drummer said "whatever you do, don't go outside without one of us with you!". I was the only white guy in the band- did the gig with a '60 ES 345 and a pre-CBS Deluxe Reverb btw! Those were fun and exciting times.[

QUOTE]

Guys,

I know it is unintended, however I must say the references above have clear racist connotations. The basic inference is “black people are dangerous and they will kill you and steal your stuff”. As a person of African descent I hear and see a lot of similar discussions and it is a drag. Again, I know it is unintentional, and is generally not recognized except by [millions] of people like me. Please think about it.

Switching gears, a close guitar friend in the Bay Area had the the foresight to purchase a couple of DA’s years ago - a beautiful Excel and a Style B. Sadly, he passed away about 5 years ago and his 30+ instruments were divvied up among his 3 brothers. The Excel and Style B have been hanging on the wall overlooking the SF Bay for a while. The owner does not not play and they are gathering dust. I can play them at will, but have not inquired regarding purchasing either. I will ask if there is an interest in selling them and if so, I’ll past this information along.

AKA

My business attorney’s office is in the Masonic Temple in Detroit. Great vibe and revitalization in that area. Also a great cultural cross section of people lifting up their community.

[JazzIsGood]

EDIT- Further research showed this was not the same guitar. It just was a blonde cutaway with the exact same neck repair in the same spot.

[Stringswinger]

[QUOTE=JazzIsGood;1271553
Is there any guitar purchase more dangerous than a D'Angelico??!![/QUOTE]

Buying any vintage guitar for a significant amount of money is "dangerous". All the due diligence that you can do may still not be enough. And there are individuals, both dealers and private sellers who lack a functioning moral compass. Caveat Emptor.

Like all things in life, you pay your money and you take your chances. I have researched my three genuine DA's as much as I could. Having owned them for many years at this point, I can say that the pleasure they have brought me has been well worth the cash I gave to acquire them. At this point it is all pure profit.

[Dennis D]

For that lucky member actually looking for an original D'A, maybe be the surest way to stumble upon one would be to first decide on who you should have build you a
substitute - Trenier, or Campellone, or ?

Then send that builder a legit real money deposit.....

Then things being as they are, sure as the day is long, a D'A will appear out of the woodwork. : )

Either way, good luck !!

[Stringswinger]

For that lucky member actually looking for an original D'A, maybe be the surest way to stumble upon one would be to first decide on who you should have build you a
substitute - Trenier, or Campellone, or ?

Then send that builder a legit real money deposit.....

Then things being as they are, sure as the day is long, a D'A will appear out of the woodwork. : )

Either way, good luck !!

Having played a few Treniers, I can say that they are fine guitars, but they are NOT D'Angelicos.

And there is quite a bit of risk commissioning a custom guitar. What if you don't like it? (It ain't like Guitar Center where you can bring it back for a full refund). And what if the builder dies or is incapacitated before your build is complete? Let's face it, buying guitars is a bit of a risky business.

[ThatRhythmMan]

Having played a few Treniers, I can say that they are fine guitars, but they are NOT D'Angelicos.

And there is quite a bit of risk commissioning a custom guitar. What if you don't like it? (It ain't like Guitar Center where you can bring it back for a full refund). And what if the builder dies or is incapacitated before your build is complete? Let's face it, buying guitars is a bit of a risky business.

I have played several Treniers. I would agree that none was a D’Angelico, but one that I have at the moment that’s about to go to a new home captures a significant portion of Jimmy D’Aquisto’s magic. It’s one of Bryant’s Excels, and it’s a phenomenal guitar.


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[skykomishone]

Steve Andersen did the technical drawings of a D'A, a '48 New Yorker,
For the Luthiers Guild of America, himself being one the greats....,
Archtop Guitar Plans – Guild of American Luthiers
Archtop Guitar Plans – Guild of American Luthiers

[deacon Mark]

I have played 2 Treiners and they were fine guitars. More D’aquisto that Dangelico but very fine instruments. They do not sound like a real Dangelico as others mentioned. You cannot make a new guitar 50 plus years old that has been played many 100s of hours.

You could copy a 1939 Super 400 to the exact almost but it still will not have 84 years of playing in it. We are buying a guitar, history, and a legend it has risk for sure.

[Hammertone]

Carpe Diem, baby. Any of our NYC, Philly, or NJ members could have picked this one up for a song a month or so ago. Publicly advertised, in excellent original condition after resting in its case for over 40 years.

[Dennis D]

Carpe Diem, baby. Any of our NYC, Philly, or NJ members could have picked this one up for a song a month or so ago. Publicly advertised, in excellent original condition after resting in its case for over 40 years.

.....That always seems to have been as big an issue as any - D'A's have at least occasionally ' appeared ' on the east coast, but very seldom anywhere else.

And it's about the same with D'A-capable luthiers too, if not more so. I started to think about just who I'd even trust to work on a D'A if I'd ever found one.

Oh well......

[afopais]

[JazzIsGood]

Nice video.

I still don't fully understand the pricing on these but I'm getting closer.

Watch List | Reverb

There's a bunch on the east coast right now. A nearly flawless '62 for 75K, and a few non-cutaways for 30-40K.

The one in Baltimore with no pickguard is 55K and has been sitting for 7 years, is that possible or is it an old listing???

Check out the all original one in Hawaii, never been repaired at all and the old pickguard is still barely hanging on. I haven't seen many with that old pickguard still or not re-sprayed at all. I wonder if the salty air had any effect.

Does anyone know what is the deal with the bad plastic for binding and pickguards? Is this something that eventually got worked out? Are there years where the plastic got better and didn't degrade? I see a '67 D'Aquisto for sale and it seems to not have plastic issues.

I hope to make it to the east coast later this year and do some shopping in person.

[Stringswinger]

Nice video.

I still don't fully understand the pricing on these but I'm getting closer.

Watch List | Reverb

There's a bunch on the east coast right now. A nearly flawless '62 for 75K, and a few non-cutaways for 30-40K.

The one in Baltimore with no pickguard is 55K and has been sitting for 7 years, is that possible or is it an old listing???

Check out the all original one in Hawaii, never been repaired at all and the old pickguard is still barely hanging on. I haven't seen many with that old pickguard still or not re-sprayed at all. I wonder if the salty air had any effect.

Does anyone know what is the deal with the bad plastic for binding and pickguards? Is this something that eventually got worked out? Are there years where the plastic got better and didn't degrade? I see a '67 D'Aquisto for sale and it seems to not have plastic issues.

I hope to make it to the east coast later this year and do some shopping in person.

All three of my DA's have the original binding, but only one has the original pickguard. In fact the replacement, Gibson style guard that came on my 48 Style B began to out gas and away it went, so that guitar is now on it's third pickguard.

My understanding is that with binding and pickguards, it is hit or miss. Sometimes they don't degrade, but often they do. That said, I am pretty sure that properly replaced binding or pickguards have little effect on tone or playability. Collector value is a whole different story.

[wintermoon]

Nice video.

I still don't fully understand the pricing on these but I'm getting closer.

Watch List | Reverb

There's a bunch on the east coast right now. A nearly flawless '62 for 75K, and a few non-cutaways for 30-40K.

The one in Baltimore with no pickguard is 55K and has been sitting for 7 years, is that possible or is it an old listing???

Check out the all original one in Hawaii, never been repaired at all and the old pickguard is still barely hanging on. I haven't seen many with that old pickguard still or not re-sprayed at all. I wonder if the salty air had any effect.

Does anyone know what is the deal with the bad plastic for binding and pickguards? Is this something that eventually got worked out? Are there years where the plastic got better and didn't degrade? I see a '67 D'Aquisto for sale and it seems to not have plastic issues.

I hope to make it to the east coast later this year and do some shopping in person.

The 52, 47 and the one in Fla have replaced tuners, the 47 has a set of mid to late 50s Imperials
as a general rule the late 40s to mid 50s DA's usually have bad binding, pickguards that are typically replaced or need it, but not all
I've seen plenty of examples from the 30s and 40s w/ perfect orig guards though many have been replaced or need it.
many late 50s early 60s DAs have ok binding as John was using a newer batch by then.
some D'Aquistos into the 70s and 80s have bad binding also.

[sgcim]

The 52, 47 and the one in Fla have replaced tuners, the 47 has a set of mid to late 50s Imperials
as a general rule the late 40s to mid 50s DA's usually have bad binding, pickguards that are typically replaced or need it, but not all
I've seen plenty of examples from the 30s and 40s w/ perfect orig guards though many have been replaced or need it.
many D'Aquistos into the 70s and 80s have bad binding also.

Yeah, the pick guard and the binding went on my '35 D'A. Roger Borys loves that guitar so much, he made a pickguard for it for practically nothing, based on a picture of it from the 30s..
I left it with Carlo Greco for six months, and he did a number of things, including replacing the binding (which was turning yellow and peeling off).

[wintermoon]

All three of my DA's have the original binding, but only one has the original pickguard. In fact the replacement, Gibson style guard that came on my 48 Style B began to out gas and away it went, so that guitar is now on it's third pickguard.

My understanding is that with binding and pickguards, it is hit or miss. Sometimes they don't degrade, but often they do. That said, I am pretty sure that properly replaced binding or pickguards have little effect on tone or playability. Collector value is a whole different story.

I wouldn't consider a good rebind on a DA as a detriment financially or from a collectors perspective whatsoever, bad binding on them is pretty much expected.
I'd consider it a bonus as you're going to save $ by purchasing one that's been done well. However one that's been poorly replaced is worse than one w original binding that needs redoing. If someone thinks replacing deteriorating binding is difficult try one that's already been poorly done--not easy. Repairs on most things are easier than redoing a previous bad repair.

[deacon Mark]

My 37 New Yorker has the original pickguard no gassing at all. It is cool and had engraved etching on it. It is completely hit or miss but the ones in the early years better chance they don’t gas.

I would say over past 35 years I have made 25 replacement pickguards for owners. Some are a real PIA to make 7 layers of binding ouch? Mitering corners is challenging. These days if I make one I charge outrageous $$. Frankly when it quote the price not many take me up. That is ok they take up time.

[ThatRhythmMan]

This is the original pickguard on my 1933 snakehead D’A.

Regarding binding, I definitely agree that the key is that if it needs to be redone, it has to be done well. I have a New Yorker currently with Cris Mirabella for binding replacement. One could certainly find someone to do it less expensively, but he has done a lot of them and has a lengthy process that I really think will be the best over the long term for the ultimate preservation of these instruments.


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[D'Aquisto Fan]

This is the original pickguard on my 1933 snakehead D’A.

Regarding binding, I definitely agree that the key is that if it needs to be redone, it has to be done well. I have a New Yorker currently with Cris Mirabella for binding replacement. One could certainly find someone to do it less expensively, but he has done a lot of them and has a lengthy process that I really think will be the best over the long term for the ultimate presentation of these instruments.


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I agree completely. Cris is wonderful. And he's deeply passionate about preserving the legacy of D'A and D'Q guitars.

[Topper Roth]

OP, you may know this already, but Buzz Levine at Lark Street Music in Teaneck NJ has a 1944 non-cutaway New Yorker, refinished at some point by the builder, for a very reasonable price. In case you make the trip east ...

[ThatRhythmMan]

OP, you may know this already, but Buzz Levine at Lark Street Music in Teaneck NJ has a 1944 non-cutaway New Yorker, refinished at some point by the builder, for a very reasonable price. In case you make the trip east ...

That one really does need some binding work badly done, particularly the neck.


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[ARGewirtz]

OP, you may know this already, but Buzz Levine at Lark Street Music in Teaneck NJ has a 1944 non-cutaway New Yorker, refinished at some point by the builder, for a very reasonable price. In case you make the trip east ...

Guitars 'N Jazz in Summit, NJ lists 3 original DA's on their website:

1945 New Yorker $35,000
1954 Excel $16,500
1942 Style A $6,995

No idea why the price for the Style A is relatively inexpensive but you can call Marc or Lou at the shop and I'm sure they'll be happy to talk about it.

[Dennis D]

This is the original pickguard on my 1933 snakehead D’A.

Regarding binding, I definitely agree that the key is that if it needs to be redone, it has to be done well. I have a New Yorker currently with Cris Mirabella for binding replacement. One could certainly find someone to do it less expensively, but he has done a lot of them and has a lengthy process that I really think will be the best over the long term for the ultimate preservation of these instruments.


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Did you ever learn who ' Andy ' was ?

( I admit I had to turn my laptop sideways to see if there was any script in that p/g artwork, and sure enough there is. ) : )

[ThatRhythmMan]

Did you ever learn who ' Andy ' was ?

( I admit I had to turn my laptop sideways to see if there was any script in that p/g artwork, and sure enough there is. ) : )

This guitar was made for Andy Jackson. Jackson at the time played for Blanche Calloway and Her Joy Boys. Blanche was Cab Calloway’s sister and her fame preceded Cab’s. He started out playing banjo for the group like many of the early jazz guitarists. Upon transitioning to the guitar, he initially started out on a Masterbilt Epiphone Broadway and then ordered this D’Angelico. He later joined the Edgar Hayes Orchestra and Quintet, bands which at the time also included the later legendary percussionist Kenny Clarke. I’ve never been able to find out anything about Jackson or the guitar after about 1940. The guitar came into my possession in 2018, so there is a gap of almost 80 years in the guitar’s history.





Andy Jackson and the guitar can be seen here. That’s Kenny Clarke on the piano.


You can also hear him playing it here.

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