West Coast Blues Thread, Version LUCKY 13.0---

[zappafrank]

Ok guys--- I have a song I wrote called Lucky 13, so it's obviously serendipitous that we start a new lease on WCBT life right here!

I don't know how to 'archive' other thread, or even if that's needed? If anyone knows the protocol, let me know!

The 44's--- anybody seen/heard them? Reminds me of the Red Devils. Sort of. Guitarist Johnny Main is a pretty intense player with lots of emotion. That I dig!

Might get to see Ron Thompson, if someone drags me out of my castle in a couple weeks--- I hope so!

Guitar Alert: The new Gibson Custom Shop ES330 is an unqualified hit, guys--- my good friend just got one, and it has blown me away---based on a 59'--bigger neck than my 65', with a wider nut--- it is an outstanding guitar! May be Gibby's best offering in a long time!

Discuss
AC

[jetlag]

AC, I dig the new reissue '59 330 too. A buddy of mine bought one right when they came out and loaned it to me for a few weeks. Great guitar.

[tweed135]

I'd like to have one. Do you guys like the stock Gibson P90's?

[valcotone]

Thanks AC for kicking off this round!

I tried a couple of the new ES-330s in Tokyo during a trip there and was mighty impressed... I think they LOOK great, feel great, and the ones I played sounded pretty good too. I wouldn't trade my oldie for one, but it's a great option!


RJ Mischo has a new album out on Delta Groove... has Nick Curran and Johnny Moeller, RJ Weber... sounds good so far (there are audio clips there)...


Also, is anyone into Ben Peters aka Benny & The Fly-By-Niters? I have 2 of his albums, Be Good Or Be Gone and Hey Now! Both are great WCB and jump-inspired disks and feature Austin players like Nick Curran, Damien Llanes, Ronnie Weber, Jon Doyle, Preston Hubbard, the Moeller brothers... they were both recorded by the Horton Bros. and have that great sound.

[valcotone]

Originally Posted by tweed135

I'd like to have one. Do you guys like the stock Gibson P90's?

I think the newer Gibson P90s are totally respectable, I've heard them in the 330 and in an R4 and they are pretty good. I prefer old ones, or Wolfetones, but I think they are doing better with the P90s than their recent humbuckers (from what I've heard).

[valcotone]

PSA... here's the link to bookmark for checking the most recent posts:

http://www.thegearpage.net/board/sho...8&goto=newpost

[Stringmaster]

WooHoo AC!!

[valcotone]

I know some of us are fans of BB & The Blues Shacks... well, Andreas Arlt has a new CD out... I found clips here... Bluebeat has it (and RJ's new one too).

[Poppa Stoppa]

Thanks AC!

Re: the ES330 reissue - glad to hear it's a good one. A band mate tried my '64 (boy did he make it sound good) and decided there & then it was the tone machine he had to have. He tried a reissue out but in the end went for a '68 that looks almost identical to mine, that he found on ebay. And boy does he make it sound good. I am kinda tempted by the reissue to save me taking out a fragile vintage guitar on gigs though...

Oh yeah - maybe George or one of you other guys can advise - my 330 has plastic saddles in the tunomatic, and they just fall out if a string breaks. What's the best way to stop them falling out & getting lost?

[Stringmaster]

Originally Posted by valcotone

I know some of us are fans of BB & The Blues Shacks... well, Andreas Arlt has a new CD out... I found clips here... Bluebeat has it (and RJ's new one too).

And it's a great one. Also check iTunes for download only versions of some early Blues Shacks recordings--they are kind of under the radar and excellent!

[mannish]

never heard of them and did not even realize Crosscut Records was still in business.....

Originally Posted by valcotone

I know some of us are fans of BB & The Blues Shacks... well, Andreas Arlt has a new CD out... I found clips here... Bluebeat has it (and RJ's new one too).

[TwoFeets]

Originally Posted by valcotone

I think the newer Gibson P90s are totally respectable, I've heard them in the 330 and in an R4 and they are pretty good. I prefer old ones, or Wolfetones, but I think they are doing better with the P90s than their recent humbuckers (from what I've heard).

The neck pickup in my Tokai is out of a Gibson R4; I picked it up for $35 out of the classifieds here. I've never felt like I needed anything else. Good pickup IMO

[Poppa Stoppa]

Originally Posted by zappafrank

The 44's--- anybody seen/heard them? Reminds me of the Red Devils. Sort of. Guitarist Johnny Main is a pretty intense player with lots of emotion. That I dig!

...well here they are covering a Red Devils song (and what's with all those distressed strats?):

[schultzvil]

Originally Posted by mannish

never heard of them and did not even realize Crosscut Records was still in business.....

Oh Yeah, Crosscut is still going strong out of Bremen, they kind of merged with Bear Family (amazing label- see the Freddie King box). Detlev Hogen is the heart & soul behind Crosscut, he's a good man and is way behind the 'Shacks. They've been going for more than 15 years, probably I think it's 20... and definitely are one of the first out and out WCB type bands in europe. Andreas "Ali" Arlt is a real dedicated student of the music, and a great guy to boot. I call him a friend. They've backed Tad Robinson, R.J. Mischo, Kid Ramos, and even yours truly many many times, and PACK them in with a schedule we'd all be envious of. Truly "have their shit together" as we used to say. Fronted by Andreas' brother, harp & vox & ladykiller Michael "Madi" Arlt. They've played Doheney twice, and killed it at East Coast Blues Festival, Byron Bay, Australia, in 2011 (check YouTube)- and that, folks, is the festival to end all festivals. The girls alone... oh, the humanity...
OK- man I'm happy to be a part of another round of WCB Thread! You guys are hard-core... and I like that.
I got a chance to get hands-on with the new 330 reissue at the Frankfurt Messe this year, and I have to say, at least unplugged, I was impressed. I'd become pretty skeptical of a lot of Gibson Historic stuff; it can be pretty disappointing compared to "the real thing" but they did seem to get noticeably closer on this one. The finishes alone look real good. Neck is nice, and I agree, the recent P-90s are passable. I just noticed in some other thread that they also released at the same time, and with the same degree of accuracy, a '59 ES 175, in single and double pickup versions. Only sunburst or aged natural. Single pickup 175 is a nice box...
Yes believe me, I know what you're all saying "we want a P-90" - and I agree- but you can't have everything, and I've made an odd peace with 'buckers these days. Real PAF style humbuckers can sound wonderful, sometimes even brighter than P-90s. One of our leaders used 'em-
Michael Mann... didn't hurt his playing much. Only downside with the reissue? $$$$$$$ dig, though. And a link to the blurb, which is fancy...
now I dig 330s, but this has really got my blood up...
http://www.themusiczoo.com/blog/2012...s-175-replica/ alex

[jetlag]

The P90s in the RI are underwound to 7K. I like them alot better than the stock 8K in the front position but prefer the stock 8K in the bridge position. Wish they would do it that way. I agree with Alex, the acoustic tone of the RI 330 is great. Plugged in it's a little bright and a little more solid body sounding than I had hoped for - I prefered my "bargain" '61 epi casino reissue that they have since discontinued. Which was disappointing because gibson did such a nice job reissuing this model - the neck, finish etc.