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Backstage Pass - Austin Summer NAMM Show Report |
with Ed Mitchell
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I nearly didn't get into America this
time. You see, the guys at customs in the
US have a little problem with the word
'journalist.' It doesn't matter what
you're reporting on, if you have a camera
and a press pass they consider you a
potential risk to national security.
That's why I found myself sitting in a
room full of Hispanics, waiting half an
hour to be 'processed.' "Why have
you come to America?" barked the customs
dude. 'I'm here to cover the NAMM show
in Austin,' says I. "What do you mean
'cover,'" he snaps while eyeballing me
through the Perspex window. 'Er, I'm going
to take some photographs and write stuff
about all the lovely new gear,' I replied.
To be honest, I was getting a bit anxious
by this point. It wouldn't be the first
time a magazine journalist was put
straight back on a plane and sent home.
Every time this guy asked his supervisor a
question, she shook her head. Eventually,
I was told I could go. But not before he
threw back my passport and said, "Why do I
always have to get the difficult ones?".
Charming.
Luckily, the NAMM show and its setting in
Austin, Texas has made the hellish journey
worth it. It's not a huge show,
certainly not on the same scale as the
Winter NAMM show in Anaheim,
California - or the city-sized show that
is the Frankfurt Musik Messe - but
there is still plenty to see. As promised
last month, I have put together some
images of some of the highlights of this
year's show, while I am still in Austin.
That means you're getting this news before
anyone else.
The highlight of the show so far, for me
anyway, was the Martin Guitar stand.
I spoke to the company's head of artist
relations, Dick Boak. Dick has been
working with Mark Knopfler,
Peter Frampton, Buddy Guy and
the late great Johnny Cash on some
stunning signature guitars over the past
few years. The fruits of his labours made
their debut at this show. Take a look at
some of the pictures of the Martin guitars
on this page. They include a one-of-a-kind
airbrushed Custom Martin with a
Texas-themed graphic created by Don
Oriolo of Felix The Cat Enterprises.
Look closely at the pickup truck's window
and you might just see Felix himself. I've
also included a picture of a Deluxe Martin
with gorgeous inlays by the Larry Sifel
who sadly died this year. This guitar is
priced at $109,000! And yes, I was allowed
to play it.
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The other highlight of the show is the
vintage-correct Gretsch Roundup
guitar. Back in the day these guitars
had 'Western' appointments like
fingerboard inlays carrying images of
cacti and Stetsons. They also had a
cool 'G Brand' burnt into the finish.
And when the Roundup was reissued in
the early 90s, many of the original
features were as they should be. The
only thing that was missing was the
strip of leather, held in place by
studs, on the guitar's sides. Well,
it's back! Look at the picture to see
this awesome looking guitar for
yourself. To finish up, I'll run
through some of the other news of this
year's Summer NAMM. |
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Fender has upgraded it Highway 1
Series guitars and basses with improved
pickups and hardware. For instance, the
Stratocaster model now has a hot bridge pickup
and the basses come with Badass bridges as
standard. The company also had the usual
mouth-watering selection of Custom Shop
guitars, including a model that comes with
bottles of Fender wine. It's only available in
Wine Red, natch. Should improve with age; play
only at room temperature. Er, that's enough
tortuous plonk jokes. Okay, so Fender also
showcased its rock guitar brand Charvel with
some cool 80s style rockers with stunning
custom paintjobs. There seems to be a real
shift back to rock guitars this year, with
classic 80s appointments like locking trems
and outrageous finishes being the way to go.
Pat Wright at Macs will be pleased.
Elsewhere, Boss debuted its new compact
pedal looper, the RC-2. This is the
smaller brother of the existing RC-50
model. The guy demonstrating it made it sound
well, ahem, boss, so it should make the more
experimental guitarists among you very happy.
I hope you've enjoyed this report and the pics.
It'll be business as usual next month with the
usual grumpy intro from me, and an interview
with a rock star. See you next month. if they
let me back into the UK. |
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| | Back
Issues of Backstage Pass... |
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You can now view back issues of
'Backstage Pass' below...
AUGUST 2005
- Interview with Noodles from 'The Offspring
SEPTEMBER 2005
- Summer Naam Report, Interview with Richie Sambora
OCTOBER 2005
- Interview with Les Paul, Playing tips from Brian
Setzer
NOVEMBER 2005
- Interviews with Jonathan Davies and Hugh Burns
DECEMBER 2005
- Interview with Steve Stevens
JANUARY 2006
- Interview with George Thorogood
FEBRUARY 2006
- NAAM Show Roundup - Deke Dickersons Guitar Geek Show
MARCH 2006
- Exclusive Joe Perry Interview
APRIL 2006
- Exclusive interview with Roddy Byers
MAY 2006
- Exclusive interview with Hank Williams III |
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McCormacks
Musical Instruments
Ltd. - 29-35
Bath
Street -
Glasgow - G2
1HT
Tel. 0141 332 6644 -
Fax. 0141 353 3095 - E-mail
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info@mccormacks-music.com
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