2022 Summer Philly Guitar Show - the lefty Report

 

We took our twice-yearly religious pilgrimage to the guitar show. It's always best to go an hour or two after they open, at very least, because the line is beyond belief, and slow. As I pay, it flips me out that the blonde lady taking my money used to be a little squirt of a child, running around behind the table. Yeah, I've been going to guitar shows for quite a while. This one is run by Bee-3 Guitars.

It was a bit smaller than normal and the hall was changed. Whoever put up the signs has a drinking problem, so it took us a while to find the right hall. It was fun, as these things are supposed to be. There was something for everyone, from beginner Hello Kitty guitars to $45,000 vintage Stratocasters. Lots of new and old amps, from the latest Line 6 digital to the oldest Fender tweed Champs. Pedals, pickups, straps, screws, pickguards, and soda. There were even women. The history of women and guitar shows is long and storied. It was only really fun when booths hired hotties to walk about with guitars, but it went downhill from there. Sometimes you can spend hours looking at guitars without seen a single woman. Sometimes there are many. I was shocked talking to a female vendor, MUCH younger than me, about one of my guitars. The girl knew her stuff. It was nice to see someone who knew her stuff and was a female. It's only recently that this has started happening and I say go for it, provided you know your stuff. I'm speaking strictly professionally. As more people go to the shows, they bring their wives.

I was laughing with a vendor about a really expensive Komet head he had, and he suggested I throw 'the girl' in. The girl was Mrs. lefty, who thought it was hilarious. Other women might not. That's one of the reasons I married her. Mrs. lefty was very popular at the show. I stood back and watched people looking at her; it was kind of funny. I knew if I wanted something, all I had to do was send her to get it. I may get ignored, but she doesn't.

There was a huge used pedal dealer. I spent some time looking over his inventory and asked his opinion on how a certain artist got a certain tone - was it an envelope follower? He said yeah, that guy uses all sorts of distortions and filters. Ok then, I guess you don't have anything to sell me. He sure had a lot of pedals.

As far as lefties go, this was considerably better than the last show, where there was approximately one. While I didn't fall madly in love with any of them, there were two I liked, a Taylor acoustic and a Fender AVRI Strat with a killer soft-V neck. After discussions on this neck and a 58 Strat neck, I'm told I want a softer V neck - not regular V. My only choice in Fender is to go through Custom Shop (or find an affordable lefty 58 Strat - yeah, right).

Here's what I saw...

SG and Les Paul

a pair of Univibes with cases - pure unobtainium

Fender Masterbuilt SRV Lenny - $12k

you don't see a lot of lefty Bigsbys

lower line Martin

Tele, AVRI I liked, Player Strats

Taylor 214 CE xx12Uwhatever - great guitar, great neck

older lefty P-Bass

60th Anniversary Strat

how many lefty Gibson ES335s do you see?

used Martin DT1216GT(?)

Orville Les Paul

J-Bass

tiny Marshall

breathtaking inlay on Gibson J200

Ricks, Strats

John Lennon Epi

check out the color on this newer Tele

If you haven't been to a guitar show, you need to attend. If you have, you need to attend again. 

Guitar Show Calendar

BEE-3 Vintage guitar shows

2016 Fall Philly Guitar Show

As it is written, we battened down the hatches, battened up the car, and got off to the Philly Guitar Show, Fall version. As is traditional, is it held nowhere exactly near Philthydephia. Also traditional is making that stupid location reference. Ah, where would we be without tradition?

For health (and sanity) reasons, Mrs leftystrat could not make the trip (she had to wash her hands and couldn't leave for a few hours). The weather was just at the point where a jacket wasn't necessary for us over-padded medium-size manly men. That strange light was in the sky again.

The state has always done interesting things with the roadways in Pennsylvania, the PA Turnpike and Rt 422 being real Standouts of Stupidity. Although PA residents aren't actually sure of WHAT the state does with roadways, we are assured and reminded via almost monthly increases in tolls. Just to make things a little more interesting, the use of EZ-Pass combination tracking device and toll payer is being Highly Encouraged, in the form of many EZ-Pass lanes and a diminishing number of cash lanes. The turnpike exit in question (I am not kidding - this is the butt of jokes nationwide) is King of Prussia. The area has undergone such a ridiculous amount of growth that there have been many road-surgeries to widen ramps and install more toll lanes. This creates yet another excuse for Bad Driver Behavior. There are about fifteen lanes, fed by several distinct ramps, which causes people to veer, cut off, and race at high speed to any of the jumble of strangely-plotted EZ-Pass or a few cash lanes. The only exceptions to this are at rush hour (5:30am - 6pm), when it's the largest parking lot in the state.

Naturally, the exit from fifteen toll lanes boils down to two actual lanes, thus weeding out the men from the women, the children with BMWs purchased by their parents, and any 18 wheelers that can't accelerate fast enough. And people going to guitar shows. Hopefully you took the correct ramp, because if you didn't, you will simply never get to your destination or home. You'll be doomed to wander King of Prussia for several years, or until the next State Improvement that will take five years to build a small ramp that is already overcrowded when it is opened (like all roads in the area).  While you're lost, all roads may or may not lead to the King of Prussia Mall, one of the biggest in the country. Also one of the strangest, due to an asymmetric layout, where the first floor isn't set up like the second floor, plus there are actually three malls joined together by a caterpillar the size of Rhode Island.

Eventually you may or may not stumble onto Rt 422 West, so-named because it doesn't go east. Well, at least until you come home. The state was much more subtle about improvements on 422. Here, to keep attention away from the unbelievably poor condition of 2 two lane highways, they simply installed bumps every few car lengths. Who is going to comment on a few Cadillac-sized holes when your ride goes BUMP..BUMP..BUMP. It's sheer brilliance in a way that should qualify for an award at the National Alliance of State Stupidity Awards. I was passed by a very loud Harley with two very loud riders, straight out of Central Casting. They were mad that I was only going 20 over the speed limit. Seconds later they completely disappeared, probably into a hole under a bump, where they have to keep paying rising tolls every day.

Are we there yet? Are we there yet?

Opening the main doors is fun - you never know what you're going to see. Whatever you see, it's great because this is the damn guitar show; two times a year that I'm likely to have left the house and seen guitars and amps and Stuff. Drop a few bucks in the Greyhound Rescue hat. They always bring a dog or two and they're beyond mellow for dogs that have been thrown out after they're no longer useful for racing. Support your local dog rescue group - all of ours have been rescues.

There were lots of things to see and try out, which was a great improvement over the summer's deathly feeling. All vendor spaces were occupied, including some surprises. You could see all kinds of vintage guitars, incredibly vintage guitars, celebrity-owned guitars (Danny Gatton, Johnny Winter, etc), amps, effects pedals and even a few new things and cheap stuff for beginners. There was a really popular guy who had unfinished guitar bodies but also small (6") bodies, hollowed on top to put picks or business cards in, as well as guitar-shaped cutting boards. Accessories galore.. handmade leather straps, garish straps (my favorite), colored strings, and very interesting people.
 Word to the wise: go for fun. If you go to purchase something, know what you're looking for and what it's worth.

Let's get down to some good old-fashioned visual stimulation, or , as I call it, Guitar Porn...

this is a 1956 Telecaster in mint condition - 3rd year for Teles

yes, it's backwards, but if I had one, it would be in this finish exactly

DHR is a large lefty dealer, which chose to only bring a few non-standard guitars

Danny Gatton (RIP) Fender prototype

1979 Les Paul - weighs more than my car but a hell of a player

1979 Rick 4001 bass

very old Gretsch, maybe a Chet Atkins model

newer Martin - a little stiff

very used Martin

ever been frightened to be near an amp? even before you saw the price? This is more of a megalith than an amp. Orange/Matamp stack.

Reverend had a ton of guitars, plus a pair of lefties. Good value, good guitars, just not for me.

saw a number of Taylor 314s. As a rule, they play better and have better top end than Martins.

a Fender '52 repro Tele, unlike the American Vintage series '52 Tele, also half the price. I'd still go with the the American Vintage for the baseball bat neck.

Last but never least is my dog, Marshall (aka Muppet Paws), and the amplifier named after him (Marshall Code 25).
They both shred but my Marshall shreds tissues.
They both scream but my Marshall screams for people food and dog cookies.
Marshall the Amp is covered in black tolex. Marshall the cocker in black fur.
The amp has a 10" speaker. The dog has two large flaps covering his ears.
We are unsure about getting him an endorsement from Marshall Amplifiers but hope for at least a cover shot and story.
Missing from the shot is a 1974 Marshall half-stack, formerly on tour with UFO and possibly Robin Trower.

And there you have it - the show, minus most of the backwards (right-handed) guitars, which comprised 99.5% of the show.

The Little Old Band from Texas Plays New Jersey

Saturday night it was off to New Jersey to see ZZ Top.  Family and friends got me tickets for a recent birthday.  Really good tickets.  When we got there, we were shocked.. we sat about ten rows back from the stage.

Since we don't spend much time in New Jersey (thankfully and in spite of being born there), our first stop was Mapquest.  There's always an adventure with Mapquest; perhaps we like the pain.   Here's a tip for anyone living in Pennsylvania who has to use I-76: don't.  I-76, otherwise known as the Surekill Expressway, is a disaster.  Any time of night or day, there is a traffic jam.  There are several rolling traffic jams.  There are sporadic traffic jams, as well as traffic jams just for the hell of it.  The most special traffic jams are leftyJams.  These are the traffic jams that pop up whenever I need to drive on the Surekill.  They're the worst and they're a certainty, whether it's Saturday night at 7pm or Sunday morning at 4am.

The best thing that could happen to PA highways would be spontaneous combustion, followed by the building of real highways.

Crossing into New Jersey was a blast too.  While the highways are less congested, the drivers could use a bit of spontaneous combustion.  Some of their driving skills would be more appropriate for an Indy car race, others for a demolition derby.

The venue was the Revel Casino.  I had never heard of it and didn't even know it was a casino until Mapquest.  Funny thing about Mapquest: they gave street-by-street directions, which directly opposed the Atlantic City signage for the casinos themselves.  We decided to go with signage, which proved correct, if not confusing.

The casino is nice.  It must be, as a coworker said it's going out of business.  The casino signage was largely nonexistent but we managed to tag along behind some other Top enthusiasts.


They started out with these folks projected on the screens:

and the girl....

the girl show up prominently thoughout the show, as one would imagine.

The view was stunning [click for larger versions]:

The venue was just the right size.  This is just behind our row:

Every tour the boys get new Custom Shop guitars.  This year they were purple:

Billy's Les Paul (not the famous Pearly Gates) had a beautiful top:

The Reverend BFG holding court:

They played Legs too.

FAHN!

So how was the concert?

Well, if the pics are any indication, it was excellent.  We were closer than we have ever been.  I have seen ZZ Top once before but this was Mrs leftystrat's first time and she was pleased.

The experience can only described as visceral, especially the sound.  We were getting smacked in the chest by the low end.  We got hit with every bass drum hit.  In spite of having only three instruments to mix, we were missing the bass a lot.  The quality of the sound was very high, though.

We would definitely go back to the Revel for any concert, assuming they stay operational.  The Borgata is another excellent venue.

The Rev Billy was in fine form throughout, fronting like only he can.  The boys pulled up a number of songs not heard live, such as Certified Blues from the first album.  I didn't make a list but they did Tush,  Blue Jean Blues, Heard it on the X, Gots Ta Get Paid, Chartreuse, Waitin' for the Bus, Jesus Just Left Chicago and ran for about ninety minutes with one encore.

Two young Asian ladies sat next to us.  Oddly enough, I quickly forgot about them but the wife was most interested, being a people watcher.  English was not their first language, perhaps not their second either.  They were obviously not huge Top fans, as they didn't know the words or the songs.  They seemed to watch everyone else for cues as to what to do.  The one thing I did see was the repetitive taking of vanity self-shots.  The crowd was largely thirty and up.  All the way up.

No serious amps were visible but there were a pair of Magnatones on each side, most likely for show.  All of Dusty's basses had reverse headstocks and a Tele-style pickup.  This year's purple Fender Tele that Billy used had a humbucker in the rear.  He also used the Les Paul, the Furry Guitar and an Explorer, which sounded slightly better than the rest.

Due to the nature of Billy's rig, whatever he plugs in is going to sound largely the same.  If you go to Premier Guitar's site and check out his rig rundown, you will see that each guitar is equalized to sound just like his famous Les Paul, Pearly Gates, then run through a Marshall preamp.

I got the t-shirt, the wife got the keychain.  An excellent time was had by all.  We're ready for the next tour, fellas....


Extreme gratitude to my crew for the tickets.

lefty Goes Guitar Shopping

I don't get out much.  When I eventually get out, I am reminded of why I don't get out much.

Today it was guitar and mall shopping with the wife, nephews and a niece.  First stop, Sam Ash.  Someone was wanking away and I looked over to behold a guy playing a lefty Firebird.  This is a totally unprecedented site, as Gibson has never made a lefty Firebird.  Even the Custom Shop refused to make one.  Apparently they changed their minds.

After the wheedly-ing wound down I took my turn at the Firebird.  I don't plug guitars in much anymore; it has to feel good and play well first.  This one felt decent.  It appeared to have two covered mini-buckers and was black.  The tag indicated it was a Firebird Special at $899.  I played a bit and it felt decent.  Might be a decent deal at a bit cheaper but it didn't call my name.

The problem with Gibsons is that I'm spoiled by my Historic Reissue Les Paul.  Nothing feels the same, which tends to save me a lot of money on Gibsons.  Nothing has compared to date, except the higher end reissues.  Since there's no chance I'll ever see one lefty where I shop, I'm safe.

They did have a number of lefties, which was a pleasant surprise.

Guitar Center was next on the hit list.  These stores were in New Jersey, so I don't get there often.  Upon opening the door, I spotted a lefty PRS, at the bargain price of $3514.  I picked it up, hit a few strings, and put it back.  It was ok but nowhere near the magic I keep hearing about when people mention PRSes.  And not close to my Les Paul.

There was an 80s lefty LPjr for $1700, which was ok.  A couple of Strats and a Tele and that was it.  Still more lefties than my local Guitar Center.

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My nephew was looking for another guitar.  His tastes are..... not as `refined' as mine.  He likes metal guitars with pointy headstocks.  As such, he picked up a few Ibanezes and found one with which he fell in love.  He bought himself a closeout 420 and his girlfriend bought him a Mustang I amp for his birthday.  They all loved my Mustang amp when I lent it to them; I had to ask for it back.  So he's a happy fellow at about this point.  No word on his landlord as yet.

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I saw an Epiphone 335 for a decent price.  Does anybody own one?  I'm afraid of the Epiphone name.  I had a Gibson 335 but sold it because it was a fight to play it.

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Walking through the mall, I came upon an Apple store.  I knew it was an Apple store because everyone was drooling and on their knees; wallets outstretched.  Nephew said it was an Apple store because people were saying, "I don't know what I want.  Just give me what everyone else is getting."