Heritage Eagle With CC Pickup Pics

Nicolai Foss

OK, here are some pics of my Eagle with the recently installed Charlie Christian pickup.

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Here it is shoulder to shoulder with my Aria D’Aquisto Avantgarde.

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Emily Remler Site

Nicolai Foss

I have never met a jazz guitar connaisseur who didn’t admire Emily Remler’s work. She produced a string of truly excellent records (my favorite is this one), and some great instructional material (I recommend this one, if you can get it). Unfortunately, as we all know, her promising career was cut short by her apparently drug-related death at the age of 32 (apropos, isn’t it the case that there have apparently and luckily been comparatively few jazz guitarists with a substance problem?). Here is very nice tribute site.

HT to The Jazz Guitar Life.Com Blog

La Gitane

Nicolai Foss

Although I love Django’s compositions, in my view, the best part of the jazz manouche repetoire are the waltzes. One of the greatest of the waltzes is “La Gitane” by the famous late Toulon-based manouche guitarist, Paul “Tchan-Tchou” Vidal.

Here is Manouche guitar ace Angelo Debarre playing La Gitane. Here is Joschko Sthephan’s treatment, less aggressive/assured than Angelo’s. Xavier Riley give it a try here. This is Rezar Dominguez’ try (seems they both play nylon-string guitars). The Italian take (notice the strange pompe). And finally the great Stochelo Rosenberg. (but the best version of them all is Tchan-Tchou’s own original version; you can find it on this – highly recommended — CD).

Wes Transcriptions

Nicolai Foss

OK, more transcriptions. Wes solos. “Satin Doll” is there. When I took lessons from Russian jazz guitarists Nicolai Gromin 25 years ago, he had his pupils learn that solo. I still remember it by heart.

Brent Stuntzner’s Jazz Guitar Transcriptions

Nicolai Foss

Check out Brent Stuntzner’s site, which is “intended as a resource for the aspiring jazz musician as well as a resource for the aspiring luthier.” He has a very nice page with transcriptions that are easy to print out (often a problem with transcription pages). Transcriptions include solos by Pat Martino, Howard Alden, Barney Kessel and others. You may also be interested in the lutherie pages, e.g., this one with lots of suggestions for readings.

Michele Ariodante

Nicolai Foss

In my Eddie Lang bleg I asked who today is playing in the Lang/Kress/McDonough style. Italian guitarist, Michele Ariodante replied, saying that he does. Indeed he does — check out Michele’s beautiful rendition of Carl Kress’ “Sutton Mutton.” And here he is with Andy Stein, playing the Lang & Venuti classic, “Wild Cat.”

Noticed the archtop Michele is playing? This a Gretsch Synchromatic similar to the one I offer for sale (see here). Submit a bid!

A Heritage Eagle Meets a CC Pickup

Nicolai Foss

I have had a Charlie Christian replica pickup (of the UK-made kind) installed on my Heritage Eagle. I picked up the guitar today. It looks wonderful and it plays wonderfully!!

The work was expertly done by Ole Kehlet, who had to use a whole day of work to install the pickup alone. Ole claims he is the only luthier in Denmark who is capable of doing it; apparently, this is how difficult that operation is.

Anyway, this has been terribly expensive, but it is worth every krone of it: This is the best pickup I have ever heard. When played through a small tube amp, It is completely “authentic” in the sense of getting very close to that Charlie or early Jimmy Raney sound. The sound is fat, dark, woody, and mellow. The only problem so far. is a bit of noise but reducing the treble does away with that.

I will post some pics of the guitar ASAP. Until I do so check out these pics of another modified Heritage Eagle

Pizzarelli, Junior

Nicolai Foss

Here is the appropriately titled “Eps Frets“.

Here is “Seven on Charlie” (homage à Charlie Christian) with John quoting”Solo Flight”

Oh, while we are at it, here is another great instance of chordal playing, this time with Pizzarelli, senior and Frank Vignola.

“Early Jazz and Swing Songs for Guitar”

Nicolai Foss

David Hamburger has put together this nice and inexpensive little collection of highly playable classical songs (with lyrics), mostly written prior to the Swing Era. The book includes St. James Infirmary, T’Ain’t Nobody’s Business if I Do, St.Louis Blues, Royal Garden Blues, Ballin’ the Jack (unknown to me but a funny piece), I Ain’t Got Nobody, Hindustan (a very pretty simple melody), Avalon, Poor Butterfly, After You’ve Gone, Rose Room (the prettiest melody of them all), Look for the Silver Lining, Indiana (I realized I had gotten Indiana wrong — arrrrrghh!), Limehouse Blues, and the seldomly played Till the Clouds Roll By. The songs are in both notation and tabs.

If you are into the Hot Club repetoire, and early jazz in general, this collection is indispensable. However, more modernist players should also benefit (after all, Joe Pass and Herb Ellis did Look for the Silver Lining, Barney Kessel has done Indiana and Poor Butterfly, Kenny Burrell did St. Louis Blues, etc.).