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Stephen Patt
Seth Lover
Humbuckers and Other Lover innovations
The history of the musical instrument business is full of stories, from the drab to the miraculous. Some bean counters will busily push their way to the forefront, grabbing for a piece of history, while others quietly create. Seth Lover peers out at me from the doorway of his humble Southern California ranch house looking…
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Stephen Patt
Danelectro Free Speech
"Do You Feeeeel"?
Well, we’ve all had the fun of trying to mimic – even on the worst of nights – a Peter Frampton tune featuring the dreaded “talk box,” possibly even venturing into the dreaded Joe Walsh territory, and usually with lots of laughs and little success. The reasons for our failure could be many, including a).…
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Stephen Patt
Janiva Magness – Blues Ain’t Pretty
Blues Ain't Pretty
Well, I do agree, the blues ain’t pretty. But svelte torch singer Janiva Magness sure is a sight for sore eyes. In addition to belting out the blues and fronting her own band in Southern California, she plays that wacky percussion corset known in Zydeco circles as a “Da Rubboard,” or da Madonna (you get…
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Stephen Patt
Michael Landau
Raging Honkie
“Michael Landau is an undiscovered gem… one of God’s guitar players,” were the quiet words of praise by noted producer/guitarist Steve Lukather. “Hell, I grew up playing with him, and he’s really inspired me. Michael is absolutely one of my favorite guitar players in the world.” Meeting a famous studio guitarist face-to-face can be a…
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Stephen Patt
Pete Anderson – Dogs in Heaven
Pete Anderson is no stranger to these pages, having been featured in an interview, performance review, and record review for his first release on Little Dog. This time around, Pete has come up with a tasty offering in the form of a blues-tinged free-for-all that brings us Gun Dog, his tried-and-true backup band, the redoubtable…
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Stephen Patt
Jerry Miller
One Guitar Man
Jerry Miller was part of one of the most unique rock groups of the 1960s, the West Coast’s own Moby Grape. The band’s first album delivered a staggering array of brilliantly crafted songs driven by harmonies from heaven and a three-guitar lineup dangerous in its energy and innovation – Miller on first guitar, the melodious…
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Stephen Patt
Hipshot Products
Bass Extenders, Stealth Slide, and B Bender
What do Will Lee, Leland Sklar, and Bunny Brunel all have in common? Besides being bassists, they all use Hipshot Bass Extender keys, a nifty device that drops the E to a D with precision, and dare I say it, gusto (hey, what do John the Divine, Vlad the Impaler, and William the Conqueror all…
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Stephen Patt
Morley Sapphire Flanger
Flanger
Morley’s Sapphire Flanger is a cute little box driven by wallwart or 9-volt battery. The box itself is a bit clunky and odd, but klunky and odd are “in” right now. Our model did indeed deliver a “warm, fuzzy” kinda tone. The finish was a glittery blue, quite attractive. The speed setting was best left…
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Stephen Patt
Reverend Rumblefish Bass
Striking semi-acoustic
The Rumblefish is an electric bass model from Reverend Guitars, out of Michigan. This is a striking semi-acoustic in the best tradition of Danos and Silvertones, but has the finesse and feel of a $2,000 guitar – really impressive ergonomic body design, light and resonant due to its hollow design and phenolic composition, with twin…
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Stephen Patt
Hellecasters
Hell Revisited
The hottest thing going in genre-bending music during the past year has been the award-winning Hellecasters, whose first album on Mike Nesmith’s Rio Records Return of the Hellecasters raised a lot of eyebrows and the entire guitar world’s pulse rates with its eclectic high octane blend of Celtic, Country, and good old rock and roll…
