Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
<125>
Many folks have told me they did not read the book sequentially. No
harm there. The stories are roughly in the order in which they happened
to me, but only roughly. Other than that, order is not an issue.

I didn't write the stories for a specific audience. When I came to
technical music issues I tried to explain them briefly -- a
half-diminished seventh chord is a minor seventh chord with a flatted
5th -- and hoped that if it was not enough, that the folks who didn't
understand the explanation wouldn't be held back from understanding or
enjoying the story as a whole.

Yeah, the guitar that I blemmed was the Clarence White Martin. Well,
one could argue it shouldn't have been lying on the stage, but it was a
very small stage, and you've got to put your axe down somewhere. Off
hand, I've got to take full responsibility for it. I didn't set the
bass on it. I was moving the bass and just didn't lift it high enough
as it passed over the guitar.

When Tee read the story for the first time, he called me up and said
not to worry about it. It is one of MANY blems on a well-worn guitar,
and a small one at that. Still and all, it was not my proudest moment.

Tony's got a writer, Tim Stafford, also a fine and well-known
guitarist, working on Tee's biography. He want's to quote some of my
book for the biography, so that was very nice to hear.
  

    

Come to think of it, that Tony story explains a minor mystery I've
wondered about:  Here on the Well, someone mentioned that they'd heard
Clarence's Martin, and they said it sounded terrible; but I'd read
that that was the guitar Tony used on his Unit of Measure recording,
and it sounded fine to me.  Now I guess I understand -- the Martin
probably sounded terrible while it was still in that lengthy
drying-out period.
 
I love the wrap-around picture on the cover, with you way at the back.
I'm guessing that pic was chosen as a wry comment on how the bass and
bassists might not get as much limelight as they deserve?
  

    
Yeah, clever layout.
  

    
It was a good guitar, but it wasn't a great one.    Rice can make a Harmony
sound good.  Infact, it was only nominally a Martin.  Roy Noble, who made
two other guitars for Clarence, had done extensive work on it, including
replacing the entire fingerbaord with one he got from a Gretsch.   And as
Bill said, it was already pretty beat up.  Clarence used a number of other
guitars on his recordings, including the Nobles and a D-18.  DGQ was put
together in, what, 1975?  Clarence had only been about two years in the
grave and I doubt that his guitar was a Holy Relic yet.   Martin's Clarence
White reissue is only a so-so guitar (at least that's true of the tow I've
played), but the Santa Cruz versions, which have been modified more to
Tony's liking, are far superior guitars.
  

    
<127>
>Here on the Well, someone mentioned that they'd heard
Clarence's Martin, and they said it sounded terrible;

Hmmm. I wonder where and when they heard it that it sounded terrible.
I'd doubt that he used it for recordings or public performances during
its two year drying out period, though maybe he did.

>I love the wrap-around picture on the cover, with you way at the
back. I'm guessing that pic was chosen as a wry comment on how the bass
and bassists might not get as much limelight as they deserve?

I used it because it, uh, fit the bill. The book is not about me, it's
about other people, ... and me. So, that I'm not on the front is just
fine. And it does put PP&M on the front loud and clear. And EVERYONE
recognizes PP&M. So it served my purposes in a number of ways. I felt
very fortunate that Jon Sievert snapped that shot. He's a great
photographer and his book, "Concert Photography," is the bible for ...
concert photography.

Not getting the limelight as a bassist is not so important to me. I
know that most musicians with say two ears understand the importance of
the bass in popular music. And many non-musicians, concert goers,
appreciate this too.

It's interesting, I've learned things about myself during this
interview, things that keep coming up again and again. The limelight,
the money, fame and fortune, being on the cover of my own book ... are
not so important to me. But the pleasure of playing bass in ensembles
is. The human transaction is also important to me, which is why I wrote
most of these stories. They're about interacting with other musicians,
musically and socially. That's central to my life and my enjoyment of
it.

May I also say that I think this is a very fine group of folks
participating in this interview. There have been some disagreements,
but they have been cordial and respectful. It has never come to
name-calling. I'm on one list, a publishers' list no less, where
name-calling is virtually a daily affair. You'd think publishers were
more ... refined. Are all these interviews and conferences on the WELL
so gentlemanly?

And on the subject of gentlemen, where are the ladies? Is the WELL
mostly inhabited by guys, or is it just that this interview is turning
out that way? (I'm a bit of a newbie to the WELL.)
  

    
<129>
>Rice can make a Harmony sound good.
True.

>Roy Noble, who made two other guitars for Clarence, had done
extensive work on it, including replacing the entire fingerbaord with
one he got from a Gretsch.

Interesting. I didn't know that.

>Martin's Clarence White reissue is only a so-so guitar (at least
that's true of the tow I've played), but the Santa Cruz versions, which
have been modified more to Tony's liking, are far superior guitars.

I haven't heard the Martin Clarence White reissue yet. But I know that
Tony has worked long and hard with the SCGC folks to get his right.
  

    
>>>Are all these interviews and conferences on the WELL so
gentlemanly?<<<

Heh heh heh.

Put it this way. The conversations and conferences on the Well that
bring together people who respect other participants and other points
of view as much as they respect the subject at hand are typically
gentlemanly (and lady-ly, too). 
  

    
I see. OK.
  

    

> Jon Sievert

Have you heard from Jon since he and Wendy moved to Mexico?


> Are all these interviews and conferences on the WELL so gentlemanly?

No, but we do pretty well compared to most other public forums.  The fact
that people pay to participate, and can't post anonymously, helps a lot.


> And on the subject of gentlemen, where are the ladies? Is the WELL mostly
> inhabited by guys, or is it just that this interview is turning out that
> way? (I'm a bit of a newbie to the WELL.)

The pickers here are mostly male, which may explain the gender imbalance.
  

    
Our women speak when spoken to.

(ducking)
  

    
Well, some of us have sort of androgynous pseudonyms.  ;)

Mostly lurking here, as I haven't read the book,
Christy
  

    

Bill, I've long wondered why the banjo never seemed to infiltrate the DGQ.
Any insights on that?  Was it just that at the time, Grisman didn't know
any available banjo players who did jazz or swing, or was it that Grisman
didn't feel the banjo had the right tone for the sound he was looking for,
or what?
  

    
<134>
Yes, Jon and I exchanged a couple of emails about the book which he
had just received. I should write to him again, see how they're doing.
  

    
<136>
Hi Christy, glad you're here. I see you're a composer. What kind of
music do you write, may I ask?

BTW, you (or anyone) can read excerprts from the book at
http://www.VineyardsPress.com
  

    

Is Sievert's humblepress.com address still good?
  

    
<137>
GREAT question, and one to which I do not know the answer, have never
heard the answer. In hindsight, a banjo, unless it were played by Bela
Fleck, would have made the group sound more bluegrass-ish, and I don't
think bluegrass was something he wanted the group to overtly sound
like. He knows plenty of banjoists, and has 'em in his current
bluegrass lineups, so I don't think that is it.

I'll ask David next time I see him.
  

    
<140>
Yes http://www.humblepress.com is still alive and well. 

It is Jon Sievert's publishing company, which has published two books
to date: "Concert Photography" and "Encounters with Bob Dylan: If You
See Him Say Hello." The latter was written by Tracy Johnson, and is a
collection of stories about fans' encounters with The Bard, including
Mimi Fariña, David Grisman, and many others. A very enjoyable book for
Dylan fans.
  

    
<129>
This from the Noble web site:

"Roy Noble rebuilt one of Clarence White's Martins after it had
suffered extensive damage. A new Noble Sitka Spruce top with an extra
large sound hole and new neck were fitted to the remains of his Martin
D-28 shell. The fingerboard was unadorned and no decal on the headstock
as requested by Clarence."

I've got an email into Roy about the instrument. I'll let you know if
I get a response.
  

    
<129>
This from Craig Alyn, regarding Tony Rice's Clarence White Martin:

My name is Craig Alyn, a long time friend, apprentice and former
business partner of Roy Noble with CB Alyn Guitarworks. I left
California and moved to Key West nearly 5 yrs ago, I do all of Roy's
graphics and set up his web site and take care of his websales. ...

Yes that is the Clarence Martin guitar.  I was hanging out at Roy's
when the guitar was brought to Roy. Clarence found out about Roy from
Al Ross (who also managed Eagle Music @ the Ashgrove in Hollywood) and
Doc Watson. 

The Gretsch fingerboard happened to be the only fingerboard around the
shoppe at that time, so it got used in rebuilding Clarence's Martin.
The new top also had a larger soundhole, because the original top had
been damaged from cigarettes and probably picking attacks. Roy was in
his mid 20's when worked in Clarence's guitars. My Brazilian Noble
serial # 67 was built during the same time period of the repair & when
Roy built two guitars for Clarence

In the upcoming December issue of Acoustic Guitar Magazine there will
be an extensive article about Roy Noble with photos of one of the two
guitars Roy built for Clarence. That guitar was finally found earlier
this year when it was bought by a collector and blue grass fan from
Japan.

Roy is not the talkative kind, but a most brilliant inventor and
luthier, besides much of the 60's is a blur to him as it is to me. 
Direct any questions you have to me.

Looks like there will be an "Official Clarence White Guitar" based on
the Noble guitar in the Acoustic Guitar magazine. Roy and I have been
talking with John Delgatto of Sierra Records about this for a few
years, he is the trustee for Clarence's daughter Michele Bledsoe.
Problem was that John, Michelle and many other people thought Roy had
died in the fire that destroyed his workshop many years ago The Baldy
Bros had the license and then there was the CF Martin release. So next
year the guy who rebuilt Clarence's guitar and built the guitar
Clarence White used on all the Byrds and most of the Kentucky Colonels
albums will finally get the due respect he deserves.

Craig
Blackhawk Design Group
PO Box 1482
Key West, Fl 33041
  

    

You can read about "Encounters with Bob Dylan:" right here in this
conference: <inkwell.vue.74>
  

    
How do you damage a top with cigarettes?
  

    

(See <inkwell.vue.107.382> for confirmed info on my 12/2 Mill valley gig)
  

    
<146>
>How do you damage a top with cigarettes?

By throwing 'em at it hard, filter end first, at close range?
  

    

smokin' em ...
  

    
My Noble was #72.   Craig, Clarence, and Al Ross (who was part of a killer
band called evergreen blueshoes) were the guys who convinced me that Nobles
were great guitars.