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What amp was that? And what happened to Electar guitars?
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07-19-2017 03:00 AM
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Do the logos on the Electar guitar he is holding and the logo on the top of the amp (next to the amp handle on the Epiphone head) look the same to you?
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I may be wrong but I think that Electar was the name for Epiphone amps....
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Interesting. But there were Electar guitars as well. I'd be interested in the full story between Epiphone and Electar.
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While that's a very early model, Electars were made to be a pair: guitar and amp. Al Caiola, somewhat later on, used the Electar combo, which had amp controls on the guitar, as well as primitive effects, as I recall. Love that huge Emperor at his feet, when I studied with Bill Leavitt, he had one, and it shook the building when he hit it hard.
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Just checked Walter Carter's book on the history of Epiphone:
Epiphone introduced their first line of electric guitars under the brandname of "Electraphone", changing it to "Electar" shortly after because Rickenbacker guitars were marketed under the "Electro" brand name so to avoid legal hassles with Rickenbacker they dropped Electraphone.
eta: acoustic archtops were marketed under the "Epiphone" brandname.Last edited by TOMMO; 07-19-2017 at 08:53 AM.
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"Love that huge Emperor at his feet"
That's a masterbilt Deluxe, the Emperor was introduced a year or two later.
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Here is the model Van Eps was playing:
It recently sold on Reverb. It's a 1937.
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Looks a bit odd. I doubt it would have been his first choice. Fun to try out, though.
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Why three nobs?
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Hmm? I don't know what the knobs are all about.
I do know that Van Eps was devoted to Epiphone. The Stathopoulos bothers were friends of his and they built instruments for him, including his famous 7-string instrument. He stayed with Epiphone, I think, until they were purchased by Gibson.
As folks know, Van Eps was approached by Gretsch. Gretsch came out with a 7-string "Van Eps" model electro-acoustic. It was more-or-less a 7-string Viking, in terms of appointments.
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Here's George burnin' on his Epiphone 7-String Deluxe:
Here's George playing his Gretsch Van Eps model on a TV taping of some sort. The video and audio are a bit dodgy, but you get the idea:
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Okay. Been researching. GVE's Electar is probably a '35 or '36--i.e., single volume knob model. In '37 the Electar came out with three knobs--i.e., one volume and two tone knobs (bass and treble). Wow!
Here is a '37 (with the original pickup) being played (or mis-played--you decide). Notice, the two tone knobs make considerable in the tone of the pickup. Notice also--the guitar sounds damned good.
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What an idiot...
Incredible sustain on those chords. It seems a much better instrument than I initially thought it might be, despite the guy's playing.
Interesting. Thanks, Greentone, I've been educated.
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Rob,
I must tell you that I met GVE ( with Peanuts Hucko on clarinet ) in the early 1990's playing a
gig in the William of Orange pub South London. Had a chat with him, an absolute gent.
showed him some of his old arrangements, which he was thrilled to see ( I could never play them)
An absolute masterly player, with hands the size of shovels. Young players in the audience were
open mouthed in disbelief at this octogenarian playing a seven string with ease.
You are probably aware that he made a number of recordings with Howard Alden, another
favourite player ( and a friend of Stringswinger here) who I also had the pleasure of hearing and
meeting on a tour of the UK some years ago and who has recorded with our own Dave Cliff.
just my 2p
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Great to see and hear this beautiful instrument. If only I could unsee the idiot in the "Pink Taco" t-shirt...
Originally Posted by Greentone
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I bet a guy like GVE could make a diddley-bow sound like an angel's chorus. Originally Posted by Rob MacKillop
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Ignore his schtick, Rob ... Phil is one hell of a player. Originally Posted by Rob MacKillop
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Originally Posted by silverfoxx
Great story, Alan. George and Howard together is or was as good as it gets/got. Both great players. I wish GVE had stuck around long enough to see what Steve Herberman is doing these days. I'm sure they would have got along swimmingly.
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Okay, he might not be an idiot, but why oh why does he seem to want to appear to be one? And he's not alone. Many guitar reviewers seem to think we are as interested in them as we are in the guitars. Not so. Originally Posted by Thumpalumpacus
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In my book, GVE is to guitar what Art Tatum is to piano.
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The photo of GVE appears to be an Epiphone promo shot from c. late 1935 when the company launched the first Electar instruments along with the enlarged DeLuxe and the new Emperor.
The DeLuxe in the photo is likely one of the first new 17 3/8" models - with early features such as fan-shaped fretboard inlays, and a trapeze tailpiece instead of the large tailpiece which became standard until the introduction of the Frequensator in 1937.
The Electar Spanish guitar with only one control knob was the earliest version. Below a picture.
The Electar amp in the photo is also an early model - as mentioned most of these came without volume or tone control, see pic.
Felix
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Not trying to justify, but at least "pink taco" is a line of amplifiers. Maybe we could all chip in and buy this guy a
"D-bag" tee, I think he'd wear it well.
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Say, Mr. Pink Taco/D-bag is actually Phil-X. He is guitarist in Bon Jovi. He has been demo-ing guitars for FrettedAmericana for some time. He is competent, but has a decidedly limited repertoire. You simply have not lived until you have watched and listened to Phil-X perform "Lola" by the Kinks on an I swear by God 1924 Lloyd Loar Gibson L-5:
(Please tell me that D-bag put no scratches on the guitar as he wailed away with his flatpick.)
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My opinion is unchanged. He comes across careless and irreverent under the circumstances. Originally Posted by Greentone
Say, Mr. Pink Taco/D-bag is actually Phil-X. He is guitarist in Bon Jovi. He has been demo-ing guitars for FrettedAmericana for some time. He is competent, but has a decidedly limited repertoire. You simply have not lived until you have watched and listened to Phil-X perform "Lola" by the Kinks on an I swear by God 1924 Lloyd Loar Gibson L-5:
(Please tell me that D-bag put no scratches on the guitar as he wailed away with his flatpick.)
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Has anyone tried the JHS Clover preamp pedal?
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