The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    There's Pete Bernstein w his Zeidler, Grasso w his Trenier, not sure if Mark Elk is still gigging w his D'Aquisto.
    I can't think of anyone else at the moment. There's a lot of love for Campellones here, anyone of note gigging one?

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    Quote Originally Posted by wintermoon
    There's Pete Bernstein w his Zeidler, Grasso w his Trenier, not sure if Mark Elk is still gigging w his D'Aquisto.
    I can't think of anyone else at the moment. There's a lot of love for Campellones here, anyone of note gigging one?
    Ed Cherry plays a Wilkie.
    Mark Whitfield and Mike Moreno play Marchione’s.

    AKA

  4. #3

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    Not sure exactly what you mean by boutique, but Julian Lage with several guitars, Jimmy Bruno, Frank Vignola, Howard Alden, Bucky Pizzarelli, and many more have played Benedettos, back when Bob was building alone. John Pizzarelli plays a Moll, Bruno and Vignola are playing Sadowsky, Bruce Forman has a Sonntag. Just off the top of my head in a couple of minutes. Oh, and Mark Kleinhaut plays a Painter, IIRC.

  5. #4

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    Quote Originally Posted by wintermoon
    There's a lot of love for Campellones here, anyone of note gigging one?
    NYC guitarist Daan Kleijn played a Campellone for a long time. More recently, he's been playing a Westville guitar.


  6. #5

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    Howard Alden - Benedetto
    David Allen - Victor Baker
    Sheryl Bailey - McCurdy
    Peter Bernstein - Zeidler
    Steve Cardenas - Valle
    Nick Costley-White - Trenier
    Bruce Forman - Sonntag
    Pasquale Grasso - Trenier
    Gilad Hekselman - Moffa
    Toninho Horta - Westville
    Sid Jacobs - Ribbecke
    Hilmar Jensson - Moffa
    Daan Kleijn - Campellone, Westville
    Mark Kleinhaut - Ribbecke
    Larry Koonse - Borys
    Julian Lage - Manzer, Collings
    Lage Lund - Schottmueller, Westville
    John Merrill - Zeidler
    Pat Metheny - Manzer, Slaman
    Mike Moreno - Marchione
    Jim Mullen - Case/Crockett
    Wolfgang Muthspiel - Moffa
    Miles Okazaki - Slaman
    Tom Ollendorff - Moffa
    Nigel Price - Fibonacci
    Phil Robson - Case
    Will Sellenraad - Trenier
    Yotam Silberstein - Benedetto, Westville, Valle
    John Storie - Marchione
    Jesse van Ruller - Westville
    Mark Whitfield - Marchione
    Anthony Wilson - Monteleone
    Last edited by David B; 07-30-2022 at 03:13 PM.

  7. #6

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    Robert Conti and his Saul Koll archtop.
    Mark Knopfler and Monteleone. He actually wrote a song about it.

  8. #7

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    Rosenwinkel - Moffa, Westville
    Lionel Lueke - Schottmueller
    Lage Lung - Schottmueller
    Miles Okazaki - Slaman

  9. #8

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    Quote Originally Posted by Gregc57
    Robert Conti and his Saul Koll archtop.
    Mark Knopfler and Monteleone. He actually wrote a song about it.
    Knopfler is certainly well known and Monteleone's certainly are boutique. Winner!

  10. #9

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    Pete Shelley and his Gordon Smith:

    They're handmade in a workshop that's like a garage – very artisanal. I mean, the way that most guitars are made nowadays, they send off the specifications to a a firm in China and they send back a container-load of them. So it's more bespoke than that, there's a lot of detail – they used to hand-wind their pick-ups and that. The instrument I had was the body off one guitar and the neck of another – they had examples there and you could pick the ones you wanted. II liked the shape of one but I liked the feel of the neck of the other, so they married the two together. The last one they made me was just a couple of years ago – you see, I don't use tone controls, I never have. I've never seen the point of them: they just make everything sound more 'muffley'. And I don't really adjust the volume; I only use it as an on-off switch. So instead of having two controls, volume and tone, it's just got volume. Custom-made guitars can be very expensive but Gordon Smiths are quite reasonable.


    Ever Fallen in Love: The Lost Buzzcocks Tapes
    Pete Shelley, Louie Shelley.
    London: Cassell, 2021.

  11. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by David B
    Hilmar Jensson - Moffa
    Apparently he has a Westville also since April of last year (according to Westville Facebook page)
    Well known boutique players-bf837898-38ae-4b63-b69f-156dc4172b02-jpeg

  12. #11

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    Mirabella players include:

    Steve Salerno
    Fabio Mittino
    Ray Matuza

  13. #12

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    Ted Ludwig plays Wilkie and Manzer guitars


  14. #13

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    Artists | Benedetto Guitars
    Lots of Benedetto players these days.
    I play one too, but I don’t seem to be on the list
    Keith

  15. #14

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    Teemu Viinikainen – AP Paasonen guitars

    Jocelyn Gould – Benedetto

    Jocelyn Gould has been called “a leader in the next generation of great mainstream jazz guitarists” by Howard Paul, CEO of Benedetto Guitars.”

  16. #15

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    Gilad Hekselman - Moffa - VB
    Tom Ollendorff. - moffa

  17. #16

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    Ben Monder, Ibanez






    Written tongue in cheek as a reminder to myself reading this list of enviable makers that the best git is the one you have. Didn’t someone once say something about shutting up and playing it?


    Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

  18. #17

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    So how many great luthier built guitars does it take to make us happy? Lol!

  19. #18

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    Bear in mind that back in the day, great players lined up to buy (at full retail price) the guitars of John D'Angelico and Jim D'Aquisto.

    Bob and Cindy Benedetto changed that by giving their guitars to great players at a very reduced cost (or is some cases as a gift). It is hard today to tell if a well known player is using a boutique guitar because they love it above all others or because it makes financial sense.

    Howard Paul's Benedetto company gives well known players a 25% discount (I was offered that deal some years back and decided not to become a "Benedetto Player"). Before his death, my pal Rick Turner offered me "artist pricing" on one of his guitars (I decided against it. I prefer playing a Gibson archtop for my gigs).

    About 15 years ago, I recorded a few tunes with Bruce Forman (we were doing some gigs together and recorded an EP CD to try and get more gigs. If anyone reading this has an interest in that recording, PM me). He used his Sontag, a guitar he loves and often performs with. But Bruce also performs with his L-5 and as of late an ES-350 that used to belong to Barney Kessel.

    While I love a high dollar guitar as much as anybody, I saw Tony Bennett a few years back and his guitar player, Gray Sargent was playing a Godin guitar and sounded great. Bireli Lagrene would sound better playing a Squire Strat than I ever would playing a Monteleone. That said, I am sure that I would sound better on a Monteleone than on a Squier Strat! At least I hope I would.

  20. #19

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    Quote Originally Posted by Stringswinger
    ………About 15 years ago, I recorded a few tunes with Bruce Forman (we were doing some gigs together and recorded an EP CD to try and get more gigs. If anyone reading this has an interest in that recording, PM me). He used his Sontag, a guitar he loves and often performs with. But Bruce also performs with his L-5 and as of late an ES-350 that used to belong to Barney Kessel.
    I believe Bruce also played an Ibanez for a while? I recall seeing him at Jazz at Pearls a couple of times with it.

  21. #20

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    It would be quicker and easier to list the well known players who DON'T play boutique guitars. :-)

  22. #21

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    Nothing wrong with advertising, and getting your product visible by having well-known players use them. Gibson has been doing that for a century or so, giving players free guitars and their own signature models.

  23. #22

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    Quote Originally Posted by AKA
    I believe Bruce also played an Ibanez for a while? I recall seeing him at Jazz at Pearls a couple of times with it.
    Yes, he did, for quite a few years. I remember that there is some story around that guitar that I just don't recall anymore with any confidence. Vaguely I'm remembering that it was basically the prototype for the Joe Pass model, but I could be pulling that out of where the sun doesn't shine. He had talked about that in an interview that I read.

    EDIT: if I understand correctly, Bruce's Ibanez was made by the same guy who made the prototype Ibanez JP-20, later making the prototype for the Epiphone Joe Pass based on Bruce's guitar.
    Last edited by Cunamara; 07-30-2022 at 11:40 PM.

  24. #23

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    Quote Originally Posted by Cunamara
    Yes, he did, for quite a few years. I remember that there is some story around that guitar that I just don't recall anymore with any confidence. Vaguely I'm remembering that it was basically the prototype for the Joe Pass model, but I could be pulling that out of where the sun doesn't shine. He had talked about that in an interview that I read.

    EDIT: if I understand correctly, Bruce's Ibanez was made by the same guy who made the prototype Ibanez JP-20, later making the prototype for the Epiphone Joe Pass based on Bruce's guitar.
    Bruce Foreman's Ibanez is a prototype for a signature Bruce Forman Ibanez that never went into production. Bruce played that guitar for many years and it was refretted many times. I played at least one gig with Bruce where he was playing that guitar. It sounded great. But Bruce could make a cigar box with rubber bands sound great.

    @AKA: Albert, you indeed saw Bruce play that Ibanez at Jazz at Pearls in San Francisco back in the day. Bruce used to play that room with Vince Lateano on drums and Al Obidinski on bass. I have done quite a few gigs with both of those cats myself. They are the best of the best.

  25. #24

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    Can anyone here speak to how they decided to pull the trigger on a custom guitar? I have a Wesmo, Sadowsky JH, GB10 and 175 VOS in my collection, love them all, play them all and feel fortunate at this point in my life to have a bunch of great guitars to play, but I live in the sticks and have very rare opportunity to get close enough to a used model from any of the luthier brands listed to play, let alone spend time with to explore whether or not I would really value the extra cost, or truly connect with the guitar.

    Mine all have their unique and “known”classic voice, with the right amp, strings and playing approach, which keeps me happy, but I would be interested in how anyone here came to feel compelled to pull the trigger on a more expensive and custom model…..playing experience with a friend’s guitar? A visit to a luthier’s shop or high end dealer? Listening to a top player live and investigating? Motivated by a particular sound on a recording? Sought out by a builder for an endorsement? An idea about a particular tone wood combination, neck scale or size, pickup or style of playing?

    There must be some stories here. And yes, I know that most great tone and playing is limited by time and commitment, rather than the guitar itself (which is why I have been trying to limit my time here the past few months.)

    Stories, anyone, about finding YOUR dream guitar?

  26. #25

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    Quote Originally Posted by thelostboss
    Maybe what we need is a "list of guitar players using gear we can all afford, including those buying now AND starting out OR those on old-age pensions" thread?
    Lorne Lofsky
    All players using a tele