Recordings made with D’Aquisto acoustic archtops

[Spook410]

I think this Jim Hall record was made with a D'Aquisto archtop, often double tracked (acoustic and electric signals for "self-duets")

Really love this tone..

[Oscar67]

Really love this tone..

Beautiful. Just beautiful.

[wintermoon]

Didn't Jim have 3? The laminate single built in Guild humbucker he recorded extensively with, and the Avant Garde, but I think he had another acoustic DAQ he used on at least one cut on his Commitment lp, Down The Line, iirc it's pictured on the back cover.

[Herbie]

As a side note to the conversation I suppose Joe Pass and the producer wanted that acoustic ES-175 sound to the record because they didn’t reamp those tracks after loosing (or spoiling) the originals.

Reamp technique has been known for long, here it is claimed that it was used even in Les Paul’s early multitrack recordings.

The dry acoustic laminate sound is quite interesting, maybe not my favourite, but I somehow understand its qualities.

[daveg]

Didn't Jim have 3? The laminate single built in Guild humbucker he recorded extensively with, and the Avant Garde, but I think he had another acoustic DAQ he used on at least one cut on his Commitment lp, Down The Line, iirc it's pictured on the back cover.

Assuming that the DAQ seen on the Commitment sleeve was his and not just a photo of A DAQ (has he been seen playing it?) then he must have had three. There are two mentions of Jim Hall in the D'Aquisto ledger. Could the second have been an acoustic? The sound of the acoustic is "different" on the Commitment track to the sound of the later acoustic tracks. The sound of the Avant Garde is almost like flat wound strings are being used.
DG

[D'Aquisto Fan]

Assuming that the DAQ seen on the Commitment sleeve was his and not just a photo of A DAQ (has he been seen playing it?) then he must have had three. There are two mentions of Jim Hall in the D'Aquisto ledger. Could the second have been an acoustic? The sound of the acoustic is "different" on the Commitment track to the sound of the later acoustic tracks. The sound of the Avant Garde is almost like flat wound strings are being used.
DG

Yes, I'm pretty sure Commitment was recorded with Jim's 1974 NY Special. Even amplified, it's a different sounding guitar than his laminate with the Guild humbucker, which came many years later. The Avant Garde has a completely different voice as well, as can be heard on Dedications and Inspirations. I believe Jim also owned an earlier version of Jimmy's laminate. That guitar is in Japan. And I personally know of a NY Special that Jimmy was making for Jim Hall in 1980-1981. It has the unique feature of more shallow rims, like Jimmy's laminate guitars, but it's a fully carved NY Special. Also, the binding wasn't scraped, much like Jim's later laminate. Apparently towards the end of the build, Jim Hall changed his mind, perhaps wanting a new laminate instead. Jimmy offered that guitar to Gary Murway, who immediately snatched it up when he learned that Jimmy had been building it for Jim Hall. In Jimmy's ledger, this guitar is listed as "New Yorker Special Jim Hall."

[daveg]

I just realised that the D'Aquisto photographed on the Commitment sleeve is also on the sleeve of Jim Hall - Live! (Or is it?). The colour is different and the binding is scraped on the Live! Cover.

Commitment:


JimHall Live!:


DG

[D'Aquisto Fan]

I just realised that the D'Aquisto photographed on the Commitment sleeve is also on the sleeve of Jim Hall - Live! (Or is it?). The colour is different and the binding is scraped on the Live! Cover.

Commitment:


JimHall Live!:


DG

I don't know the answer. My assumption is that it's the same guitar, but photographed differently. Maybe the binding was scraped later??

[jads57]

So this is a really interesting subject because there really aren’t that many recordings of these fine instruments that one can point to. These instruments were mainly used for acoustic purpose, which limited their appearance as a featured soloist.
Perhaps Johnny Smith, or similar era players used these with orchestras of the time.

And once’s plugged in or electrified the actual acoustic qualities were made somewhat moot by the electric sound. And even though Gibson L-5 and Super 400 went the Electric route, they had much thicker plates and less acoustic properties.

[Cunamara]

FWIW, Jim used his ES-175 on "Live" and also on the later Vols 2-4 releases, according to the photos from the gigs in the latter CD booklet. Some time between the gigs and the photo session, I guess Jim got his D'Aquisto. For a stretch of time he took both to gigs as he was getting used to the D'A. I'd not be amazed that someone here knew Jim and has exact knowledge.

[bluejaybill]

Not to derail the thread, but I've always wondered what Jim Hall used on the Bill Evans recordings. It doesn't really sound like a 175 to me, any idea?

[wintermoon]

Not to derail the thread, but I've always wondered what Jim Hall used on the Bill Evans recordings. It doesn't really sound like a 175 to me, any idea?

Almost certainly his 175, sounds like it to me and I'm not aware of him playing anything else after he got it from Howard Roberts until his DAquisto. Even more unlikely is it that he'd use an unfamiliar guitar to record with.