The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #1

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    We're all proud of our guitars, those extensions of our selves and the instruments of our souls.
    But it's the stories they tell if they could speak.
    Of those, it's the stories of being gifted or being passed down a guitar that I'd love to hear about.
    For those for whom your guitar carries a song of love, of memory, of a gesture you'll forever hold when you pick up that instrument and make music, please share your story and remember the way you were touched when you got your guitar from somebody who knew what it would mean.

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #2

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    I met the late great Chicago jazz/studio guitarist Fred Rundquist for the first time on January 30th, 1979. I went up to Chicago to buy a used Bill Barker 17 inch archtop Fred was selling for me and Bill Barker told me to go buy the guitar is was a fine one. I took it home that day in a massive snowstorm and my grandfather went with me I was 17 years old.

    While I was there Fred happened to pull out a huge cutaway D'angelico New Yorker he owned. I was sunburst and I was just struck in the magnificent guitar is was I remember that day for sure. So I left with the Barker and I still own that Barker today it is a fantastic guitar in near mint condition or close. Barker had made the guitar for himself when he made a batch of guitars 8 years previously but as usual someone came along and bought. Then they had to sell it and that is how I ended up with it. The guitar has a slightly wider neck at 1 3/4 and the coveted dearmond 1100.

    However, in the back of my mind I had that D'angelico New Yorker as a guitar to own. Over the years I got to know Fred well and even took some lessons from him. I would drive up to Chicago and spend a few hours. Well then I got my first real job in 1984 and I called Fred and said I wanted to buy his New Yorker. It was not for sale as such but Fred had another New Yorker he played that was a 17 inch made like Johnny Smith's. I made him a respectable offer said I would pay cash and come up and get it. He said sure I sell it. I was overjoyed.

    I drove up and got the guitar and it really is everything I wanted. Like the Barker I got from Fred I still have this guitar and it possess a wonderful rich sound. I am not sure how Fred acquired it but it was made for a fellow in 1949 and I made contact with his son and wife about 3 years ago. His wife was still alive in her 90's. Apparently, he did not own the guitar a real long time less than say 7-8 years my guess. This D'a has the coveted dearmond 1100 on it too. Once I was travelling through Nashville and showed the guitar to George Gruhn, it was not for sale but I wanted to just show him the guitar. George like it very much and said sounded great and Fred would not play a guitar that did not sound good. He knew Fred as Gruhn was originally from Chicago.

    So that is my story of the two guitars and the events that seem to be a work of the divine. I realized a long time ago that going forward I would be able to see and play many great archtop guitars but probably not really play any that were ever going to necessarily be better guitars. I think I will go play them this afternoon, not that I don't but just a bit more than usual.

  4. #3

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    In 1938 my friend Ed was living in Chicago and working as a dancer in the WLS Barn Dance radio show. (I guess the dancers were for the live audience since you certainly couldn't see them on the radio!) He bought a 1936 Martin 000-18 guitar from a guy there for $25.

    By 1971 my parents were divorced and Ed was dating my mom. He mentioned that he had an old guitar that he never played and would I like to borrow it? Even then I knew that Martins were good and old Martins were even better. I said YES! They got married and had a happy life together and I never had to give the guitar back. I've had it for 50 years now. I don't gig with it but have used it on countless recording sessions and acoustic jams. It's in really good condition and I haven't heard a better sounding flat top! I think this one's going to be with me til the end...

    Speak for your guitar - Your stories of a time someone gave you your guitar-img_2686-jpg

    Speak for your guitar - Your stories of a time someone gave you your guitar-img_2685-jpg

  5. #4

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    When I was growing up, my parents didn't want me to have anything to do with guitar. In grade school one year I had to play violin in the orchestra and in high school I played trumpet in the marching band, but no guitar until I was in the Army. I was stationed at Ft. Lewis in Washington state my first year, 1970. I went to Seattle with a friend who played guitar. I don't recall the name of the music store we went to, but it was in the heart of downtown and were having a sale. I knew nothing about guitars. He bought a Martin D-18 and I bought a Goya that cost $100 or so. When I came home on leave, my parents were horrified that I spent so much on a guitar. My friend's D-18 cost around $250.

    Anyway, I continued with the guitar, ended up playing full time in a trio that played supper clubs, Holiday Inns and other hotels, resorts, etc. before tiring of the constant touring and getting out to do other things, but still continued to play guitar.

    When my mother died, she left each of us a small sum of money recently and when a 1995 Gibson Citation came to my attention, I took much of that money and bought it (the discussion surrounding it is elsewhere in these forums). So ultimately, though in life my parents didn't want me to play guitar, they ended up buying me the finest guitar I have ever played.

    Tony

  6. #5

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    Freddie Runduist! What a great, great player. There were a number of inspiring players on the Chicago scene playing equally inspiring luthier-built instruments (Freddie and Frank Portolese on Barkers, Jack Cecchini with a Koontz, and Dave Baney with his D'Aquisto come to mind...)

    I was in Chicago in the early 90's. At the time, the Jazz Showcase was in the lobby of the Blackstone Hotel, they'd put the musicians up upstairs. I had gotten to know Jim Hall at a seminar, and when he'd visit he'd generously invite me to hang out and play tunes in the afternoon. I even got to play his famous D'Aquisto!

    A few years later, I relocated to NYC, and Jim took me to meet an up and coming young luthier, he thought we could build our careers together. I've been playing Stephen Marchione's special instruments for over 25 years. Here's a clip that brings things full circle, putting the Marchione in action with a frequent collaborator of Jim's, George Mraz.





    PK

  7. #6

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    Quote Originally Posted by tbeltrans
    When I was growing up, my parents didn't want me to have anything to do with guitar. In grade school one year I had to play violin in the orchestra and in high school I played trumpet in the marching band, but no guitar until I was in the Army. I was stationed at Ft. Lewis in Washington state my first year, 1970. I went to Seattle with a friend who played guitar. I don't recall the name of the music store we went to, but it was in the heart of downtown and were having a sale. I knew nothing about guitars. He bought a Martin D-18 and I bought a Goya that cost $100 or so. When I came home on leave, my parents were horrified that I spent so much on a guitar. My friend's D-18 cost around $250.

    Anyway, I continued with the guitar, ended up playing full time in a trio that played supper clubs, Holiday Inns and other hotels, resorts, etc. before tiring of the constant touring and getting out to do other things, but still continued to play guitar.

    When my mother died, she left each of us a small sum of money recently and when a 1995 Gibson Citation came to my attention, I took much of that money and bought it (the discussion surrounding it is elsewhere in these forums). So ultimately, though in life my parents didn't want me to play guitar, they ended up buying me the finest guitar I have ever played.

    Tony
    Fort Lewis! Living 70 miles to the north, I know it well! So, you didn’t tell your parents that in 1970 that $100 was nearly 1/2 a month’s salary?

    Great story T! I went in 1973. Right out of high school. Best move I ever made. Hawaii was my first duty station. Tough duty!

  8. #7

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    I often buy inexpensive used instruments, fix them up a little bit, and gift them to students who are learning here where I teach (it's a very poor neighborhood)

    It feels great.

  9. #8

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    That ‘36 000-18 looks mint ^^^^

  10. #9

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    When I turned 16 years old, unlike many others of my age, I did not want my parents to buy me a moped. Instead I wanted they buy me a guitar. So, we drove up to a big music store in Leiden, the Netherlands, where my parents bought me my very first guitar. That is over 50 years ago. It was an Aria A440 concert Spanish or classic guitar. See the picture
    I went to the "muziekschool", a school to learn music. Learning to read and play classical music. Together with a neighbour friend, we soon after formed a band. He played drums and I got my first electric guitar. Above all, we made a lot of noise. It did not sound any good, but we had great fun and were dreaming of a carreer as a real professional band. Of course that dit not happen. At least not for me. My neighbour was more succesfull though. He is now a teacher drums at the conservatiorium. I went to study mechanical engineering, but still play in an amature big band and enjoy that very much.
    The picture show my guitar and me, some 50 years ago, I still have that guitar somewhere. It has retired years ago.Speak for your guitar - Your stories of a time someone gave you your guitar-92170742_3049715161726134_6971443984036003840_n-jpg

  11. #10

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    Quote Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
    I often buy inexpensive used instruments, fix them up a little bit, and gift them to students who are learning here where I teach (it's a very poor neighborhood)

    It feels great.
    Done this a couple of times.. it does feel great. Probably more needed where you're at than any place I've lived. Good for you. Wish I could pass a few on to you for the purpose.

  12. #11

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    First real guitar. Framus. Christmas. I surreptitiously visited the closet in my parents room every day of December to gaze upon it until finally receiving it. Best present ever. Still have it.

  13. #12

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    I was in the school orchestra from about age 10 thru graduation playing a violin that had been built by a distant relative. In 1960, my mother's brother, who was staying with us while going downhill with lung cancer, passed away but before that he taught me three chords on his 1936 Martin 0-17. When he passed, my grandmother gave me the guitar as I was the only one who ever seemed interested in it. I learned on that guitar and it went through the folk music days of the 60s and on into the late 90's, but it needed more work than I could afford to put into it so I sold it for enough to buy a Martin D18v. In a way, I'm sorry I don't have it, but I have nobody to pass it on to, so, hopefully, someone else is enjoying it. I've managed to get over any sentimentality about stuff because I have no heirs and none of the nephews in my wife's family care about anything, so I'll probably sell it all out at some point and get a cheapo that the old soldier's home staff can steal when I'm gone.

  14. #13
    Quote Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
    I often buy inexpensive used instruments, fix them up a little bit, and gift them to students who are learning here where I teach (it's a very poor neighborhood)

    It feels great.
    I did that while I was at Ibanez. Orphaned damaged and rejected "seconds" were put into a huge aircraft hanger sized warehouse storage area. Once a month we were allowed to buy instruments. I'd wander through there in the weeks before buy day and mark the locations of guitars I wanted to repair. I was the luthier on the work crew so there wasn't anything I couldn't fix. Some were excellent professional guitars once I was through with them. I gave them all to talented young players who had more ability than bucks to buy a worthy guitar with.
    I love the idea of passing on guitars to players who can form a partnership and do them justice. Good Karma conduits.

  15. #14

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    While in Graduate School, a friend offered to me a guitar he got as a kid. Someone gave it to him and he never played it. It was considered somewhat of a junk guitar at the time (1984).

    Years later I restored it to useable condition. Most importantly I angled the straight bridge so it could play in tune (with a wound third).
    I re-strung it, touched up the frets and used DeOxit on all the switches and pots. It actually sounds really nice:

    Speak for your guitar - Your stories of a time someone gave you your guitar-inrer-mark-cipher-jpg


  16. #15
    Quote Originally Posted by icr
    While in Graduate School, a friend offered to me a guitar he got as a kid. Someone gave it to him and he never played it. It was considered somewhat of a junk guitar at the time (1984).

    Years later I restored it to useable condition. Most importantly I angled the straight bridge so it could play in tune (with a wound third).
    I re-strung it, touched up the frets and used DeOxit on all the switches and pots. It actually sounds really nice:
    WHOA! Funky, beautiful and an instant classic! Wow. And great story. Thanks!

  17. #16

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    Quote Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
    I often buy inexpensive used instruments, fix them up a little bit, and gift them to students who are learning here where I teach (it's a very poor neighborhood)

    It feels great.
    I didn't have to "gift" the guitars I was constantly repairing for the kids at the school where I taught guitar classes; the kids stole them!
    You can see one of them on you tube in the videos that one of the most talented girls 'took', I kind of let her take it home for a few semesters...
    She used it on the subway playing the hip-hop/R&B tunes she wrote and sang.
    I advised her to go to college for Musical Theater, and the next thing I knew, she was playing a major role in the National Touring Company of "Hamilton".

  18. #17

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    Quote Originally Posted by sgcim
    I didn't have to "gift" the guitars I was constantly repairing for the kids at the school where I taught guitar classes; the kids stole them!
    .
    That sounds like the NYC I grew up in!

  19. #18

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    I officially inherited my father's '35 D'A one Christmas morning, when my parents wrapped it up in wrapping paper, and put it under the Christmas tree.

    That guitar had a long journey through history. It was made for one of John D's and my father's best friends, Duke Martin, AKA Hugo Cimarelli, who sold it to my father when he decided to get a more modern D'A model.
    Duke is the guy who designed the headstock art for the New Yorker model, and also did the most of the inlay work for John's guitars. He was a fine player according to my father and was very adept at single string soloing, unlike my father , who was strictly a 4/4 man.
    Back in the Depression, you did whatever you could do to survive. Besides playing that guitar professionally, he and my father tried to start a photography studio (that flopped), and later Duke became a jewelry designer.
    Back then, according to Roger Borys, John's guitars were built with the collaboration of all the different artisans of lower Manhattan, who John would work with to get the right materials to build his tailpieces, tuning pegs, frets, etc...
    My father would lug his D'A to all types of gigs, rent parties, dance band gigs, etc... If an apt. didn't have a piano, the standard instrumentation would be guitar, sax/trpt. and drums.
    His biggest gig was playing on NYE at Toots Shor's, where the people made them play "The Music Goes Round and Round" all night!
    When my father was drafted and sent to Okinawa in WWII, my Uncle Tony used the D'A to get out of being sent overseas by playing it all over the country at Officer's Clubs for the miltary brass.

    He took a few lessons from my father, and somehow managed to fake it well enough to spend the War in the US., although a vibes player told him once, "You don't really know what you're doing, do you?"

    My Father got married and had to get a day gig, but he always kept the D'A and his Gibson round hole with fake diamonds lying around the house.
    I eventually taught myself guitar on the D'A by using a Beatles songbook for organ to figure out chords. I could read music, because I played clarinet in school.
    My father met an old musician friend of his, who owned a music store nearby, and bought a new Dearmond RC-1000 for the D'A. I figured out how to put the RC-1000 on the D'A and got an amp, and
    I wound up starting my own rock band with kids from school. The D'A got a very authentic blues sound electronically.

  20. #19

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    The guitar itself wasn't a present, but it was one of the most important gifts of my life. I started playing at 9 on a $10 United Elitone flattop (proudly made in New Jersey!), and I moved iup to a new LG-1 two years later. When I was 13, I got a DeArmond soundhole pickup and a 5 watt Kay amp, so I could play local parties etc with 2 friends on piano and drums. My local dealer (Al Primavera, who owned Music City in Atlantic City) had taken an interest in my playing and was a tremendous help to my family and me. He taught me about proper care and maintenance. He got me my first fake book, which in those days (1959) was an act of faith for him - they were illegal and in very short supply. And he insisted that I borrow a decent guitar and amp from him when the occasion called for it.

    My band, which had a bass player by then, auditioned for the Ted Mack Amateur hour. Al sent me there with a solid body Gibson (Melody Maker, I assume - I don't remember the model) and a bigger amp than mine. When we got a steady gig as the opening act for radio station WMID's record hops and concerts, he found me a used Reverberocket and undoubtedly lost money on it by selling it to me at a price I could afford. And when the DJ who ran the show (Larry Keen, "the fat cat in recordland") got the station to pay for us to record a 45, Al insisted that I borrow a brand new SG and a bigger amp for our day at Virtue Studios in Philly.

    But the biggest gift he gave me (second only to his honest interest in helping me) was his support in finding the "right" guitar for me at a price I could afford. I'd reached the point of playing jazz well for a kid and knew a lot of standards - so I was competent enough to take on real jobs at the boardwalk hotels. He found me a decent but well used 345TDSV when I was 14 and sold it to me for peanuts, telling me it was so cheap because it was repossessed. I always thought it was a '59, because it showed a lot of use - pick up plating was half gone, etc. But looking at the old catalogs, it was probably a '60. The first 345 in spring '59 was a 345T and the SV was apparently a new model in the 1960 catalog.

    The problem I had was that "real" jazz guitarists didn't play thinlines, and I was too young and stupid to appreciate what a fine guitar that 345 really was. But Al understood how I felt and began the search for a good archtop that my family and I could afford. He sent me home with several nice ones, including a Vega and a Gretsch that were "close but no cigar". But when I got The Incredible Jazz Guitar of Wes Montgomery, I knew exactly what I wanted, and it was the incredible jazz guitar of Wes Montgomery on the cover of the album jacket....a 175. Within a few months, Al found me a used '60 175DN and traded me even for the 345. I had to take the 175 in the well worn hard case that had come with that Gretsch he lent me, but that was fine with me. I had the guitar of my dreams, and I never looked back.

    Without the support I got from Al Primavera, I'd have had a much harder time and wouldn't have achieved nearly as much as I did as a musician by the time I gaduated from high school. The heavily discounted guitars were a godsend, but the idea of mentoring young players was equally important and I've tried to pay that forward ever since.