Mark Whitfield's guitar. What model?
Sylvain Lair
Hi fellow guitar players,
On his last album, 7th Ave. Stroll, Whitfield is photographed with a huge
Gibson archtop. What model is it?
Thanks,
--
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Sylvain Lair * Sans la musique, * Without music, *
sl...@iti.qc.ca * la vie serait une erreur * life would be a mistake *
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Une Approche Collective de la Guitare Classique
The Classical Guitar: A Collective Approach.
http://www.iti.qc.ca/iti/users/slair/
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jame...@aol.com
Sylvain writes.....
"On his last album, 7th Ave. Stroll, Whitfield is photographed with a huge
Gibson archtop. What model is it?"
I believe the liner notes describe it as an L-5 Custom.....
Best regards,
James (still practicing) Dawson
olidu...@aol.com
it seems to be an gibson L-5, blonde, but it must be custom made because
the pick up is floating (attached to the neck) and not screwed to the top.
the volume and tune controls are attached to the pickguard and not to the
top. but the neck, inlays and shape are just like the normal Gibson L-5.
Oliver Dunskus, Steinkribbenstr. 7, D 40597 Duesseldorf, Germany
Author of "THE WES MONTGOMERY DISCOGRAPHY 1948 - 1968"
Write to me about Wes !
Rennie Selkirk
In article <19961112164...@ladder01.news.aol.com>
olidu...@aol.com writes:
> it seems to be an gibson L-5, blonde, but it must be custom made because
> the pick up is floating (attached to the neck) and not screwed to the top.
> the volume and tune controls are attached to the pickguard and not to the
> top. but the neck, inlays and shape are just like the normal Gibson L-5.
I have seen this guitar up VERY close, as well as asked Mark
about it. Completely acoustic, with a Johnny Smith floating
pickup. It has "Custom L5" on the trussrod cover and though I
didn't ask Mark how he went about obtaining it, it clearly
isn't a standard model.
Rennie Selkirk
Felix Wiedler
olidu...@aol.com wrote:
>
> it seems to be an gibson L-5, blonde, but it must be custom made because
> the pick up is floating (attached to the neck) and not screwed to the top.
> the volume and tune controls are attached to the pickguard and not to the
> top. but the neck, inlays and shape are just like the normal Gibson L-5.
I think, most "newer" L-5 models (60's and later?) later have "Custom"
on the truss rod cover. As far as I know, it was very common to factory
order an acoustic L-5C with a floating JS (Johnny Smith) mini-humbucker
or BJB (Bruce J Bolen) single-coil pickup, since there was no big demand
for purely acoustic archtops in the '60s and '70s. By the way, Lee
Ritenour uses a sunburst L-5C with floating pickup on his "Stolen
Moments" and "Wes bound" albums.
Felix
--
Felix Wiedler, Winterthur, Switzerland
http://www.pctip.ch/pctip.felix.html
Richard Roberge
Sylvain Lair wrote:
> On his last album, 7th Ave. Stroll, Whitfield is photographed with a huge
> Gibson archtop. What model is it?
Hi,
Mark told me he was approached by Gibson to endorse a new L-5 model. Until
then he had been using an Ibanez L-5 copy with a floating pickup.
Mark told Gibson he'd endorse a 'Wes Montgomery' tribute model. He spoke to
Gibson about certain specs for an L-5 type guitar. The guitar you see is an
early Custom Shop prototype, of what could eventually be Gibson's Wes
Montgomery Tribute L-5.
Mark is such a nice guy that all he wants is Wes to get the (part of the)
credit he deserves for the L-5's widespread acceptability.
Let's hope Wes' Family approves the use of the name!!! - ???
-Rich
Jim Kroger
In article <328D0A...@slip.net>, Richard Roberge <rob...@slip.net> wrote:
I wonder how this would differ from the current "Wes Montgomery" L-5CES?
Jim
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Jack A. Zucker
Richard Roberge wrote:
> Let's hope Wes' Family approves the use of the name!!! - ???
>
> -Rich
Robert, this guitar has been out for about 2 years. I recently
sold one that I had bought about 6 months ago. Washington Music
sells them for around $3600 or so.
-Jaz
--
>
> Jack A. Zucker | ESP Music
> j...@gwis.com (or) | Voice: 216 349 5881 (home)
> Jack....@software.rockwell.com | Voice: 216 646 7796 (work)
> | Fax: 216 646 7766 (work)
Jim Kroger
I will bet that you can not get a new Wes for $3600 from them now. Also,
the Wes was introduced in 93. Tom what's-his-name who wrote the Super 400
book claims to have had a hand in getting the custom shop to make them.
Jim
In article <328DBD...@gwis.com>, j...@gwis.com wrote:
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Gary Persons
In article <328D0A...@slip.net>, From Richard Roberge
<rob...@slip.net>, the following was written:
> Let's hope Wes' Family approves the use of the name!!! - ???
I doubt if that will be a problem since there is already a Wes model -
the agreement may have even been made prior to Wes' death (in 1967? I
forget.)
!^NavFont02F01070007IG91HHO1173
--
Gary Persons
Glendale, CA
gper...@earthlink.net
Using OUI PRO 1.5
Available from http://www.peaktopeak.com
Giri Iyengar
Sal Giardina (in New Orleans) built Mark Whitfield a guitar. I don't know
if this is the one you're talking about. He's currently building one for
Masakowski.
..Giri
Richard Roberge
Gary Persons wrote:
>
> I doubt if that will be a problem since there is already a Wes model -
> the agreement may have even been made prior to Wes' death (in 1967? I
> forget.)
After reading Jack's message I enquired with Gibson about the Wes model,
there wasn't one until Late '93. BTW, I was also told that getting permission
to use Wes' name took the intervention of several well-regarded-people from
the jazz scene. Mark was the catalyst for this.
Rich
Richard Roberge
The guitar Sal built for Mark is a great guitar (see the cover picture
for "Patrice"), but this Gibson is a different baby.
-Rich
olidu...@aol.com
i have a gibson l-5 wes montgomery and i compared it to mark whitfield's
model:
apart from the fact that mark's guitar is in natural finish ( the gibson
montgomery was only available in black, cherry and sunburst), mark's
guitar has a floating pickup, but the wes model has one pickup attached to
the top, not a floating one.
so mark's pickup construction is more like a gibson johnny smith.
i got my montgomery gibson for about $ 4.000,00 (DM 6.000,00) in germany
in march 1994. they told me it was cheaper because it's in cherry. the
sunburst version would have been a thousand marks more: about $ 4.800,00.
it is a beautiful instrument, but i wish it had a wooden bridge.
\
Jim Kroger
In article <19961122151...@ladder01.news.aol.com>,
olidu...@aol.com wrote:
] i have a gibson l-5 wes montgomery and i compared it to mark whitfield's
The guitar Whitfield has is probably playing an L-5 cutaway that either
came with a floating pickup or had one installed. That's what it looks
like. The Wes comes in blond too. I think the retail for the blond one is
at least one thousand more than the sunburts.
You can get a wood bridge for this guitar pretty easy. Ask on the group
here, somebody will tell you where to get it.
Jim
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Larry Grinnell
> i have a gibson l-5 wes montgomery and i compared it to mark whitfield's
> model:
>
> apart from the fact that mark's guitar is in natural finish ( the gibson
> montgomery was only available in black, cherry and sunburst), mark's
> guitar has a floating pickup, but the wes model has one pickup attached to
> the top, not a floating one.
> so mark's pickup construction is more like a gibson johnny smith.
>
It's a blonde Gibson L-5 C (cutaway) with a floating Johnny Smith/Bruce Bolen
pickup. The L-5 C is a special order model without a pickup cut into the body,
as in the L-5 CES (cutaway electric Spanish) and L-5 CESN (cutaway electric
Spanish natural finish) models, allowing it to perform superbly as an acoustic,
while still performing quite well as an electric. Just the thing for that
"big band" rhythm sound. Gibson's Custom Shop only builds a few a year on
special order.
Larry Grinnell
cats...@aol.com
In response to the person speculating that Mark whitfield's
guitar is a prototype of a Wes Montgomery it should be
pointed out that the album cover showing Whitfield
holding that archtop is pretty old. and that the Gibson
Wes Mongomery model has been available for a good
few years now. They sure seem pretty nice to me
though they feature only the neck pickup. The
price...sheesh...by todays standards it's pretty
reasonable and the guitar should be collectable
becouse of it's association with Wes.
Still, Jazzbox prices are bumming me out.
A mere fifteen years ago most gibson jazz guitars were
about 26 hundred bucks and throw in another hundred
for a blond. Is it time to think about building one's own?
Jerry
CLAY MOORE
cats...@aol.com wrote:
> Still, Jazzbox prices are bumming me out.
> A mere fifteen years ago most gibson jazz guitars were
> about 26 hundred bucks and throw in another hundred
> for a blond.
When I got interested in jazz guitar I could have bought an early
'50s ES 175 from a guy for something like $400. It was WAY more
money than I had at the time.
Clay
mark cleary
twelve. I think he paid $50 around 1973. I still have it and when I have
a gig that calls for something that does not feed back I use it, but
seriously the prices are getting pretty crazy. I jusst saw an add for a
new es175 with great wood for $3000. that is too much for plywood. mark
cleary
Lou Rossi
mark cleary wrote:
> My first guitar was a Lyle Copy of an L5 my father gave me when I was
> twelve. I think he paid $50 around 1973. I still have it and when I have
> a gig that calls for something that does not feed back I use it, but
> seriously the prices are getting pretty crazy. I jusst saw an add for a
> new es175 with great wood for $3000. that is too much for plywood. mark
> cleary
My third guitar was a Lyle ES-175 copy. It was used. I paid $60 fot it in
1973. I traded it at a local music store for some forgettable stomp box.
Although I have a Gibson Howard Roberts Custom and a handmade Ribbecke
on the way, I MISS THAT GUITAR!! Every now and then, when I'm feeling
especially limber, I kick myself in the arse for ever letting go of it.
Ciao for now,
Lou R
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I make no apologies for the noise I make.
For it is the noise of my heart.
-Lou Rossi, jazz musician
lrde...@earthlink.net
-----------------------------------------
Brad & Dona Bolton
My first guitar, when I was 14 1/2 years old (1964), was a mid-'50s
blond ES-175 with one p-90 pickup. Came with hard case and Ampeg M12
amp. My grandfather paid $150 for everything, in a Columbus, Ohio, pawn
shop. I remeber the guitar as not having the best jazz tone, however.
Brad Bolton