Guitar Center Coupons!

I like a good deal when a see one. Even better when they come with friends.

Guitar Center is trying to get you in the door and get guitars out the door with:

• Free Shipping on thousands of products at Guitar Center.com
  
• A Memorial Day Week end Sales Event - 15% off coupon!
  

Maybe it's the good time to order some of the guitars we mentioned here in the past:

• The Gibson Les Paul Standard Traditional Pro in vintage sunburst
• The Gibson Les Paul Florentine with Bigsby - Limited run series
• Any of the Gibson limited run series (Tribal V, Holy Explorer, Eye...)
  
• The Gibson Custom Shop Robby Krieger SG
• Any Gibson SG (they are in promotion these days)
• An Epiphone Wilshire re-issue
• A Gibson Les Paul Studio in those nice faded finishes
  

Even if you are not in the market for a new guitar, it can be a good time to upgrade your pickups to DiMarzio, refill and stock on your Ernie Ball Regular Slinky strings, treat your bass to a Gallien-Krueger, add a Tascam to your home studio, or just show off in a Gretsch or Bigsby t-shirt.


And it would be hard to say no to the
B.C. Rich Classic Deluxe Eagle Electric Guitar Dragons Blood below at less than $750!



In any case, I think it is worth checking GuitarCenter.com or walking in a store this week end!

American Idol 8 - Did Adam get 'axed'? (part I)

I only really watched two episodes of American Idol Season 8, including the final yesterday. This still got me to start a short series of posts on guitars/guitarists guest starring on the show.

First, like probably everybody else watching yesterday, I was surprised that underdog Kris Allen won over Adam Lambert who seemed untouchable (even Google predicted wrong!).

My first reaction to that was that he should probably not have played with Kiss!!! Sharing a stage with them always seem like a wrong idea -regardless of the show/concert/event/gas station lavatories...

Adam Lambert and Kiss (Credit: Newsday)

Paul Stanley shirtless at 57 is probably the scariest thing Kiss has done on stage in their whole career. That alone must have got all the teenage drama queens and soccer moms to vote twice for Kriss Allen. Oh, Paul: you're not the starchild anymore and this was lame guitar crashing (did your tech unscrew the neck?).

Back to talking guitars, is it possible that Lambert got axed....because of Gene Simmons' Axe bass guitar? I am always surprised by these weird custom instruments and I did some research. This Axe bass in its original form is actually as rare as it is lacking good taste. Interestingly, it was made by Kramer in the 70's with those looked after aluminum necks that were Kramer's trademark.

I found a bit more on this site dedicated to vintage Kramer guitars:

The Gene Simmons Axe came in limited numbers and consisted of a guitar and a bass. The Axe was, well...an old English Executioner styled axe! Both the guitar and bass had a single pickup, 1 vol, and 1 tone. Simmons signed a number of them. (...) It's estimated that there are less than 500 out there. The guitar is actually quite more uncommon than the bass. The Gene Simmons axes only lasted a year and are highly collectible. There are many models out there that claim to be original, but the truth is, if they aren't signed by Gene, then they aren't legit. Additionally, the signature needs to be sealed under the clearcoat in order for to be original.

Funnily, doing my research I also found this VH1's Rock Honors Kiss video of Scott Ian playing such an axe in a supergroup made of Slash, Tommy Lee and Ace Frehley fronted by Rob Zombie. Definitely NOT my cup of tea... but hell, I'm blogging about American Idol, so what the heck!



OR... you can have a look at my selection of really awesome guitars by the Gibson Custom Shop.

Joe Perry's Billie is a Gibson BB King Lucille -just a tacky one

I didn't know Joe Perry's main guitar nowadays (not sure if anyone is trying to keep count) is a Gibson BB King Lucille -with a few modifications.

Readers of this blog know that the Gibson Custom B.B. King Lucille is on my list of iconic guitars by the Gibson Custom Shop.

Perry's Lucille is called Billie after his wife whose portrait is painted on the guitar. I'd say it's tacky and not very Rock n' Roll. But that doesn't surprise me from Aerosmith and its lead guitarist -they haven't produced great material (musical or else) since the 70's with the exception of Get a Grip in the 90's.

Painting and naming a guitar after your love interest. What do you think? Good? Bad? Nice? Second-hand leather motorist grade? Leave a comment below!

Joe Perry with his Billie Gibson BB KING Lucille Guitar

In case you too want to airbrush your significant other on top of a Lucille, check out those eBay listings. Careful though, some of those guitars have been signed by the King of Blues himself - maybe you don't want to paint over that!

Rock like Slash with the Gibson Les Paul Standard Traditional Pro

Just when the Gibson Les Paul Florentine with Bigsby was on my mind last week, I stumbled upon this beautiful new guitar from Gibson USA:
the Gibson Les Paul Standard Traditional Pro in Vintage Sunburst.

>> Good deals on Les Paul Standard Traditional Pro on eBay

Like the limited series Florentine, it comes in this nice vintage sunburst color (ebony and cherry sunburst are also available). The Std Traditional Pro's set up is a bit different but I like it all the same.

I especially like the zebra pick ups - '57 Classic in the neck and BurstBucker 3 in the bridge. It makes it scream "Slash guitar" to me for whatever reason. You know, especially the model he is pictured with on the Guitar Hero III game box :)

The neck is a 60's profile so it is slimmer than my dream guitar (the '58 re-issue). But I'm ok giving up a bit of the sound for more playability. This is one difference with the Florentine which has an asymmetrical profiled neck.

Another difference is of course the absence of bigsby. This is a LP Standard so classic Tune-O-Matic with stopbar tailpiece.

My main grudge with the Traditional line is that stupid name..."traditional"! So, if they have kept that on the truss rod cover, I'd change it for a black one or one saying "Standard" :)

Final point, the Les Paul Standard Traditional Pro comes plecked!* So the action must be awesomely flawless.

Now for the price, this Les Paul comes at a reasonable $2,000. That's cheaper than the Florentine - but it's not a limited series. Shipping is free at GuitarCenter.com this week so you should definitely order this baby now if you dig it as much as I do.


* Note: More about Pleck from the marketing material:

The Les Paul Traditional is the first model from Gibson USA to utilize the revolutionary Plek machine in setting up the guitar. The Plek is a German-made, computer-controlled machine that carefully measures each fret, along with the fingerboard height under each string, and then automatically dresses each fret, virtually eliminating string buzz and greatly improving the overall playability of the guitar. This pioneering process does in minutes what it takes a luthier several hours—sometimes even days—to accomplish. Every fret is accurately aligned, and the guitar is properly intonated, leaving the instrument "Plek'd" and amazingly playable.

Maybe you should check you credit before you go and buy this guitar?

Gibson Les Paul Florentine with Bigsby - a Limited Run Series guitar to get excited about (at last!)

Fantastic! The Gibson Les Paul Florentine with Bigsby has just been announced as the new issue in the Limited Run Series. What a guitar!

It seems Gibson got the message loud and clear about other models in the Limited Run not striking a chord with its fan base (puns intended). I had mixed views about the Tribal V, the Tribal Explorer and the Eye. Gibson fans elsewhere (and especially on Gibson.com forums) have been much more vocal and far less polite, especially about the Eye.

Back to this amazing guitar. I haven't yet tried it out but the looks and specs combine elements from other awesome Les Pauls:

1. The classic Custom Black Beauty's bigsby vibrato tailpiece.
2. The Standard's burst which reminds me of this killer honeyburst Les Paul Slash plays in November Rain.
3. The particular tuners that you'd find on a lot of 70's Les Paul Deluxe (like my '77 Goldtop or this '78 redwine I covered a while ago).
4. No pickguard!
   

Then it brings the florentine cutaway to the Les Paul, a crossover from the ES world and a very nice design touch. Don't you think that this pointy horn and the Bigsby give this guitar a mean look? And according to Gibson, "the Florentine Cutaway design comfortably enhances a player’s reach to the higher register of notes" - if true, it's even meaner I guess!

For the rest, it is quite classic stuff du jour for a Gibson Les Paul Standard - still, top of the line:

• The body? "solid mahogany back topped by a AA-grade maple top with single-ply antique crème binding, smoothed with Gibson’s classic Vintage Sunburst finish."
• The neck? Mahogany with Gibson’s new asymmetrical profile and rosewood fingerboard.
• The pickups? A pair of Gibson’s renowned BurstBucker Pro offering "slightly higher output and allow amps to achieve a more natural break-up. They are packed with asymmetrical coils - true to Gibson’s original PAFs "

I am not ready to part with any of my expensive guitars now and I don't have the cash for this , but this expensive beast ($4,442 MSRP, $2,646 at Guitar Center) is one mean Les Paul I'd love to add to my collection - as a player and as a collector.

You can order it online:
Gibson Limited Run Les Paul Florentine with Bigsby Electric Guitar Vintage Sunburst*

1966 Fender Electric XII from The Plant Studio

Just spotted: this amazing vintage 12-string Electric XII guitar.

It is sold by an eBayer with serious tenure and feedback so I feel he can be trusted when he claims that this gutar comes from the closets of the "Plant Records of Sausalito recording studio, aka The Plant".

At roughly $3,600 as of writing, it is worth considering. There is a trade-off between this Electric XII guitar being not 100% original and quite worn and this guitar having some History (maybe on your favorite LP or song).

To note:

This guitar was modified by the replacement of the original tuners with Grover, changing of the Nut and the String Guide. The Tone Pot with knob was also replaced. (...)

BODY: Standard FENDER ALDER with 3 Shade SUNBURST finish-played to perfection.

NECK. Stock FENDER neck with small frets with Brazilian Rosewood FRETBOARD.

BRIDGE: Stock FENDER.

HEADSTOCK: Super cool Headstock.

TUNERS: The original FENDER tuners have been replaced with GROVE MINI ROTOMATIC which increase the playability, tuning, and performance of this guitar tremendously.

SWITCH: Stock 4 way rotary.

CHROME HARDWARE.

PICKUPS: Has two (2) STOCK FENDER pickups.

CASE IS INCLUDED WHICH IS NOT ORIGINAL FENDER CASE FOR THIS GUITAR.

The cosmetic condition is GOOD . There are MANY nicks, scratches, and scrapes on it.

1985 Fender Katana - rare and roadworn (Updated)

I originally posted here about a Fender Katana from 1985 which is no longer auctioned on eBay. I think the Katana is a nice piece of Fender history so just wanted to update this post.

>> Search eBay for Fender Katana guitars

The Katana is an attempt by Fender in the 80's to create a guitar that could speak to the hard rock crowd and compete with the Jackson's and Gibson Flying V's. Funny idea when you think that so much headbanging music has been made with good old Fender strats (Iron Maiden comes to mind).


I like Guy Mackenzie's assessment of the Fender Katana:

Built in 1986, made in Japan and cost £495 when new (...) - not a commercial success but rare and seriously underrated.

The Katana's specs (from an old eBay listing):

It features two high quality dual-coil humbucker pickups, a locking tremelo system with fine tuners, a thru the body neck with a truss rod, rosewood fretboard and an angled back headstock. The controls are a three position toggle selector switch, a volume pot and a very unique tone control in the fact that it clicks in the middle (or five position) allowing adjustment up or down. There are silver inlays on the body and headstock, also, the neck has triangular inlaid fret markers. It has twenty-two fat nickel frets, Fender die cast tuners, black tapered speed knobs and a push-in whammy bar. All came stock on this unusual axe. (...)

The Katana is a cheap vintage piece of Fender history. You can probably grab a Katana on eBay for around or under $500. At that price I'd go for it just for the fun of owning an odd guitar (with good craftsmanship).

Picture credit: The Guitar Collection