EdwardMarlowe

I recognise those fretmarkers. Can't place them exactly, but I'm sure I remember this from a series of 'more affordable' (think:LP Studio) guitars Gibson did maybe twenty years ago. I'd have suspected something off at a 'real' Gibson being offloaded at £150, though.... seems too cheap to be real, even for a model not likely to be the very most in -demand. I know Vs aren't especially fashionable now, but...

First experience of flats is with a Brandoni P bass clone I bought a couple of years ago. Lovely stuff; I'll certainly consider trying them for guitar in future.

No photos.... actually, I've never used a traditional pedalboard as such, just put the pedals I was using on the floor.... Collection includes: early Russian Big Muff (green one; still boxed in the wooden box they came in - I gather it's quite collectable now), Dunlop Phasor (blue box, early 90s RI), JD Cry Baby, a nice Boss-clone OD I found on eBay, Boss BF-3, Boss Tuner, Boss Power Source, Spark mini boost, one of those Chinese mini-Klones... maybe one or two others. Also my main amp is a Vox AD120vt with the VC12 pedal board, though I've never much used that as of yet.... As the years have worn on, nice as it is to have that variety of sounds available at home, if I were to get the chance to play out again, these days I'm much more into just a basic sound rather than using as many effects. When my flat is finished redecorating to the Higher Power's standards, I plan to set up the VC12 and all properly to still use at home, but I'm increasingly leaning towards the idea of getting myself just something like the AC version of those Vox nutube heads, and a 2x12" cab, and adding just a few minipedals to a small board - boost, drive, reverb, trem, echo. Basic rockabilly/psychobilly sound. Tmpted by one of the Dunlop mini-FuzzFaces (the Hendrix model), though that's far more ac ase of "oh, shiny!" than having any actual use for it. I'll throw up a photo of that when I get it together, I'm sure. Tempted to sell the rest of the pedals, as in reality the VC12 and the amp have some great effects should I want to play with those at home, but.... there's something sentimental about pedals for me. Maybe if ever, one day, a boxed Russian Green muff shoots up even further in value. For now, it has a lot of sentimental value as it was my first pedal and I put a lot of hours in chugging away with that plugged into a little 10watt 'Park Son of Marshall G10R', then a Fender Performer 1000 in my bedroom at my parents' place in Ireland in the early-mid 90s... but if it got to be worth enough that it could buy me that Player Strat in Tidepool, well, maybe....

Looks pretty cool. Guyatone started in Japan way back; in the 70s they were making cheapo beginner guitars similar to some of the stuff Eastwood does now. About twenty five years ago the brand was revived as a maker of mini-pedals. (I have the Tremolo, it's very nice - the VT2. Can see one in the Wikipedia page entry - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guyatone#Demise_and_rebirth). Interesting they're back in business, and more than just pedals again, too. I'm a big fan of obscure stuff like this that sounds great; sort of thing that can be a real 'secret weapon' used right.

eH.... in no particular order.... Chuck Berry, Link Wray, BB King, Dick Dale, Eddie Cochran, Joe Moretti, Scotty Moore, Mick Jones, Steve Jones, Johnny Ramone, Jimi Hendrix, Bob Dylan, Kurt Cobain, Jack White, Phil Chevron, Jake Burns, Sean O'Neill.... Probably think of a few more later.

Seen all too often on eBay: 'noname generic beginner electric guitar with FREE GIBSON PICK!'

THose Yammy SGs were always great, especially when wielded by Sean O'Neill or Jake Burns.... Making a semi-version makes me think somehow of Brian Young's Gretsch...

Yip, that Charvel is the original piece that Eastwood have revived. Nice alternative to the Ric, with, imo, a touch more 'attitude' and absent the Beatles associations.

Surely something every one of us has daydreamed about at some point - being approached by someone to make your own dream guitar as a signature model. What would yours be? I think I have narrowed mine down to two, both Fender... 1] The Stratocaster - alder body, available in LPB, CAR, and metal-flake LPB, the latter only available left handed (as a lefty player, I'd love to be in the position to turn the tables a bit!). Modern polyurethane finish, not nitro (I like my guitars to look 'new' even when gigged hard, not like relics). Three singlecoil pups, perhaps Fat50s, 7-way switch (middle 5 the standard positions, 1 neck and bridge, 7 all three on), two-post vibrato with the bent-steel saddles (for me the best compromise between modern stability and the vintage look). Dice knobs, coloured to match the body. 21 fret maple board neck, hi-gloss front, satin back. Radius possibly 7.25. 42mm at nut. Either a hard or soft V profile, maybe something in between. 50s headstock, with the spaghetti logo, but the 'Stratocaster' changed to read 'Marlowecaster' - on my personal guitars, the 'Fender' would read as 'Edward', in the same font, with the 'custom comfort fit replaced by 'Edward by Fender'. Machineheads - 50s style. Overall, not too dissimilar a guitar to the Classic Player of a few years ago. My next guitar will be a Player Strat; I'm tempted to look into fitting a soft v neck to it. 2] The Telecaster -really, an Esquier - ash body, or LPB with black guard; TV Yellow (buttercream seems Fender's closest to it?) option for lefties only - complete with Steve Jones style pinup decals. 21 fret neck, maple board, glossy front, satin back, v-shape, 7.25 radius (for same feel as the Strat neck). Single pup, something as P90ish as will fit in a traditional Tele bridge - three-saddle, of course. Chromed brass. Replace the selector switch with a two-way on/off, plus volume and tone. Basic idea behind these: My perfect Strat as the 'can-do, all round' guitar, and the Tele as the closest to an even more utilitarian, Fenderised LP JUnior type for when you just have to have something that's a bit unsubtle.... I also always fancied a P-bass with a body the shape of the Gibson RD Artist, but that's a whole nother story!

Mostly owned hybrids. Do have a great old c.72 Silverface Bassman 100 which I'm going to have to sell as the damn thing is just too loud for my needs. Main amp last decade has been a Vox Valvetronix AD120VT, the original AC30-sized blue cloth one. Great for home (rarely switch above 2x1watt). Still have the 2x12 extension cab as well, but that's going to be sold. I'm inrigued by these new 'Nutone' Vox heads, the tiny ones - quite like the idea of using one of those with a tweedy 2x12, maybe with a contraption or cover to hide the head so it looks more like a Fender tweed (but with the flexibility of being what it is and being able to use it direct into a PA or such).

Jake Burns played a Yammy SG for much of the classic Stiff Little Fingers stuff. The O'Neill brothers also played them in the Undertones, though iirc Sean defected to a Gibson LP when the money came in.

(Oh... and the switch in the look of a P bass, both scratchplate and headstock shape was, afaik, about making it look more like the bass version of a Strat, to sell it to bands which were at the time adopting Strats fast).

The CBS era big headstocks were all about making the logo more prominent. The 'normal' Strat headstock, afaik, was just a design variation from the Tele.

The 112 is an important guitar. Decent enough in its own right, but it's real contribution is how it forced everyone to up their game. Before it came out, most all entry-level guitars were ply. Then the 112 had that memorable "Just ask if it's available in a natural finish" ad, which stung Fender into actually revamping Squier over to solid bodies... I'd have considered one at a time if they'd done one in SSS.... my first electric, a Marlin, was HSS but it's not a configuration for which I care. not really afan of HBs at all, truth be told.

I'd like that very much. The only downside of being a left-handed player (apart from all the MORONS who like to claim the guitar "isn't a handed instrument" and such tripe) is when you read reviews of something that looks exactly what you're after.... and then inevitably it's not available left handed at all, or only in the crap colours (I'm so, so, so over black, white and burst....). Useful to have a resource where we can pool information on thatsort of thing - especially with Holiday music, it seems, now a thing of the past. Better for lefties now than at anytime can remember, though - Fender have improved a thousand fold, some brands like Godin who did *no* lefties have started, and there's the likes of Eastwood making stuff that was previously no chance actually available left handed.

Danos are nice for a right handed player. I'm leaning to the Revelation myself, though if I could justify the extra money and find one, the Eastwood 12 string Surfcaster is beautiful.

There is one guitar that I have some GAS for which is totally out of character because it is A] Vintage, B] Gibson, c] pointy and d] unobtainable..... Jimi's Black Angel custom flying Vee. Yeah, the actual one. Had a chance to play it (sadly not plugged in) once, and there was an undefinable yet undeniable magic in that thing. Normally hate Vs, but..... Not the only hero's guitar I ever got to handle, but the only one I could *play* (being a lefty). My GAS list is normally much less prosaic, focussing on stuff I can actually afford or might realistically buy, tbh - boring, I know. Currently it is: 1] Fender player Strat - maple board tidepool 2] Fender player p bass - tidepool & maple 3] Gretsch 5210 4] Godin 5th Av Kingpin (the non-cutaway, one-pup version) 5] Eastwood Surfcaster 12 string or maybe the Reveleation Jazzmaster-style 12string 6] Eastwood Mandocaster 12 7] Fender Tim Armstong acoustic with the cat inlays. Amps-wise, the new Vox ABS-bodied bass amp, and the little nutube head, the AC version (clean is too clean, while the 'rock' one sounds like a Marshall, which isn't what I want). Think that's about it. Not big on humbuckers or Gibsons generally. If Eastwood ever did their take on the Johnny Ramone guitar as a lefty, well then..... I tend to like guitars that aren't woody/flametop types, prefer solid colours, like oddballs but with areal retro sensibility; don't care for pointy metal guitars. Floyd Roses are dealbreakers for me.

I'm a man of (limited) wealth and (questionable) taste... I've been away from the guitar and bass for a couple of years, not much played or picked them up, but recent coverage of Fender's new Player series (including the elusive, affordable maple-boarded P bass I've wanted forever!) has tempted me back. Used to play out twenty-five odd years ago with a youth group praise band; did one gig with a spoof-grunge band as part of a show I co-wrote and played in at university, and was in a string of bands that never got out of the rehearsal room (The Horse Dentists actually made it to six rehearsals with an angry punk cover of Maggies' Farm that we planned to dedicate to Tony Blair had we ever gigged....). Used to post for years as 'Edward' on Harmony Central, but eventually a new revision of the site stopped accepting my Yahoo email address, and as I didn't want to use the work one.... A UK based site makes more sense now anyhow. Hope eventually to get organised enough to pick up a few lessons to improve my playing (self-taught, never was much of a lead player and have no real theory). got a few nice guitars - my old 1994 US Std Strat, 2006 CIJ 71RI Tele, Brandoni P bass that's basically a 62RI under the hood.... all staying. Few others that it's time to part with, including a couple of Westones (Thunder IA guitar and IA bass), and probably my 1998 Korean Epi flametop Les Paul. Got my eye on the Player series Strat in Tidepool (if it had a soft V profile on the neck it'd be close to my dream Strat), a Gretsch 5210, and something like a Godin kingpin or similar (one pup, no cutaway). Love to play out with a band one day for some fun, though being now fat, bald and middle-aged I'm the very anti-thesis of rock and roll cool.....