Claescaster

Tag: Youtube

September 27, 2016

Rickenbacker 330

Rickenbacker 330 Made in USA 2000A Rickenbacker 330 in Fireglo, Made in USA April 2000

Last week I had Sr. Chinarro’s Rickenbacker 330 at home for some minor work. This was actually the first Rickenbacker guitar I’ve ever played, I tried a Rickenbacker 4003 Bass ones but that’s all. I’m not sure why I haven’t been more interested in the brand, they look amazing and a million awesome musicians plays Rickenbacker. Perhaps I got lured in to the Telecaster cave early on and never managed to find my way out. The Rickenbacker 330 was introduced in 1958 and it really feels like it was built in an old fashioned way, perhaps not entirely in a good way. I mean when the electric guitars came in the 1950’s all the different brands had to figure things out for themselves for not infringing anyone else’s previous patents, hence why saddles, pickups and constructions varied so much in the beginning. There are a few solutions on the Rickenbacker that feels a bit weird, like the saddle, pickguard or the fact that they have lacquer over the rosewood fretboard. The problem with this guitar was that it had groves in the fretboard that I had to fill in with lacquer, scrape and then buff out with sandpaper and metal polish, which worked really well in the end. I think I will stick to my Levin orchestra guitars when it comes to hollow bodies but I really enjoyed having this Rickenbacker 330 at home so I could finally try one out. I loved the neck, both thickness and the feel of it and the pickups sounds really great, it’s a very versatile guitar.

Rickenbacker 330 Made in USA 2000
Rickenbacker 330 Made in USA 2000

October 23, 2015

Guitar Moves

I’ve mentioned before that I really enjoy watching Guitar Moves, but this episode is really hard to beat, freaking Keith Richards!

September 29, 2015

Ibanez V 637

Ibanez Vintage 637 BS Made in Japan 1978Ibanez Vintage 637 BS, made in Japan by Fujigen Gakki in 1978

I managed to find another a Ibanez Vintage, just like the Ibanez V 300 BS that I got for my friend Miki back in July, but this time it’s a Ibanez Vintage 637 BS. I’m not really sure what the difference is between the V 300 and V 637 because they feel, look and sound very much the same but I assume this one should be a bit better since the model number is higher. Unless they used the old 600-series number for them in 1978 like the used on the Concord earlier and then changed in 1979 to a 300 series. Either way it’s a beautiful and very well sounding guitar. This guitar is now sold.

Ibanez Vintage 637 BS Made in Japan 1978Ibanez Vintage 637 BS Made in Japan 1978I only had to clean her up, polish the frets, oil the fretboard and machine heads and change the nut and saddle to bone and she was ready to go

April 22, 2015

Suzuki Three-S F-120

Suzuki Three-S F-120 Made in Japan #780721
A really well kept Suzuki Three-S F-120. Built in 1978 by Suzuki Violin Co. LTD in Nagoya Japan.

I recently found another Suzuki Three-S F-120. These are great little Japanese built guitars that I can highly recommend. Really sweet tone and pretty descent build quality for being so inexpensive. Of course they can’t compare to Morris or K. Yairi but next to Aria, Maya, Shiro or the normally Suzuki’s they are great. It’s a simple Martin D-18 copy built in 1978 by Suzuki Violin Co. LTD in Nagoya Japan. What always surprises me with these Suzuki Three-S F-120 is how light they are compared to a lot of Japanese dreadnoughts from the 1970’s that can feel pretty heavy and bulky. Unfortunately this one was sold straight away so I only got time to fix it up and make a Youtube video of it before it was gone. If you want to know more about different Japanese guitar brands then check my previous post.

Suzuki Three-S F-120 Made in Japan #780721
Suzuki Three-S F-120 Made in Japan #780721

Suzuki Three-S catalogue USA 1979
Suzuki Three-S F-120 in an old Japanese catalogue from 1979. It has spruce top, might actually be solid, with a laminated nato back and sides. Nato neck with a really dark rosewood fingerboard and bridge, it almost looks like ebony.

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March 27, 2015

How playing an instrument benefits your brain

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March 20, 2015

Video of the day


I love this clip, I have feeling that David Lindley have never bought a guitar himself, just borrowed other peoples guitars until they have forgotten that he has them and they become his.

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December 18, 2014

Grammer Guitar

The Grammer Guitar

As mentioned before, there are two guitars that I really would like to own. The first would be a Gibson J-50, ideally from before 1970. The Second would be a mid 1970’s K. Yairi YW-1000, the most beautiful Martin D-45 copy ever made. Having said that, I might have to add a third guitar in my list of holy grails, a Grammer Guitar. Imagine to find an original, before Ampeg took over, The Grammer Guitar RG&G, built by Billy and the boys in Nashville, Tennessee. Here you can read the history of the Grammer Guitar, it’s a pretty interesting story, especially if you like country music as I do. In the mid 1960’s Billy Grammer, a musician himself, decided to make an affordable flat top guitar for his friends in the Country music business. He took a Gibson J-45 and a Martin D-18 apart, studied their bracing pattern and how they were built and then made a copy with the best of both worlds, The Grammer Guitar. Maybe the reason I like them so much is because they remind me of my big headed Levin guitars from the 1970’s.

The Last Grammer Guitar made by RG&G The Last Grammer Guitar made by RG&G, built in 1968 on 715 Poplar Avenue in Nashville, Tennessee

I’m not much of a Joe Bonamassa fan but he plays a 1969 Grammer Johnny Cash model, I mainly respect him for taking his vintage guitars on tour and using them instead of just collection them. The Guitar Of The Week part on the Joe Bonamassa’s site is well worth a visit if you like old guitars.

361c60d0790243daad993f5778eb7fcd Joe Bonamassa’s 1969 Grammer Johnny Cash model, here is a Youtube clip of him playing it live

Here is Billy when he was young and awesome

And here is Billy when he is old and blind, but still kind of awesome

 

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December 4, 2014

Ian McLagan

Ian McLagan
On of my favourite rock stars, Ian McLagan, past away yesterday. His organ playing was a huge part for me in Small Faces and even more so in The Faces with Ron and Rod. I strongly recommend everyone to read Mac’s book, All The Rage, I enjoyed it way more than both Keith’s and Ron’s biographies.

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November 18, 2014

Chest Fever

Araceli and Claes, Chest Fever session, Barcelona 29-04-2012 © Claes Gellerbrink, photographs can't be used without permission

Last Saturday Araceli and I had another gig with Chest Fever. We recently bought a Bill Lawrence A-300 pickup so Araceli could play her favourite little Tanglewood Premier TW133 guitar and I fitted my L.R. Baggs M1 in my 1968 Goya Model 163 and was very pleased with the result. You can listen to the whole gig on Youtube.

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November 7, 2014

Fender Telecaster Japan TL52-75

Fender Telecaster TL52-75, ’52 re-issue, Made in Japan
Fender Telecaster TL52-75, ’52 re-issue, Made in Japan by FujiGen between 1987-1989

In loving memory of Nancy, my Fender Telecaster TL52-75, that was sold last night. I miss her already but I’m glad she went to a good home. She lives in Zaragoza now with Juan and I’m sure she will get more love than I could ever give her. Two guitars have left me in the same week, I think I’m still in shock, sad but kind of happy at the same time.

Fender Japan TL52-75

 

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