Guitar Jam

Taylor Announces a Line Reorganization

Press Release
Over the past three decades, Taylor Guitars has established itself as a market leader in acoustic/electric guitars. The instant success of company president Bob Taylor's recent innovations in the acoustic and electric markets with the GS and T5 have inspired a bold new restructuring of the Taylor line for 2007 into three distinct instrument families – “Acoustic,” “Acoustic/Electric” and “Electric” guitars.

TAYLOR ACOUSTICS

Taylor’s Acoustic line has blossomed with the success of the Grand Symphony (GS) acoustic guitar. The GS won Music Inc. magazine’s “Best in Show” award at Winter NAMM 2006, and MSR magazine’s award for “Best Acoustic Guitar” at Winter NAMM 2007. The GS’ big, bell-like sound has surprised even Taylor fans who thought they knew the “Taylor sound”. All gloss-finished Grand Concerts in the Acoustic line have a new slotted headstock, and a “level” pricing structure inspired by the GS Series, so that a player’s choice of guitar may be based on personal preferences for tonal qualities, rather than on the affordability of a particular wood combination.

Taylor 12-strings are represented in the Acoustic line by two new satin Grand Auditorium 12-strings and by the Leo Kottke Signature Model, one of the best-selling acoustic 12-strings of all time.    

Taylor's patented Expression System (ES) acoustic pickup is an available option on all Taylor Acoustics.

TAYLOR ACOUSTIC/ELECTRICS
      
Taylor pioneered Acoustic/Electric guitars, and flagship models in its Acoustic/Electric category, such as the 814ce and 310ce, are among the most widely imitated guitars in the world. Taylor Acoustic/Electrics won the Gold in Acoustic Guitar magazine’s 2006 “Players’ Choice Awards". It was the second time Taylor Acoustic/Electrics have taken the Gold in this category, the first being in 2000. (The Players’ Choice Awards are held every two years; winners are chosen by readers who participate in a poll published in Acoustic Guitar magazine.)

All Taylor Acoustic/Electrics come standard with cutaways and the award-winning ES, which received a prestigious 2004 Mix Foundation TEC Award in the category of "Musical Instrument Technology."  The Taylor ES was the first-ever acoustic pickup to win a TEC Award in the 25 year history of the Awards.

TAYLOR ELECTRICS

The heart of Taylor’s Electric category is the revolutionary T5, a chameleon-like axe that won both “2005 Best New Electric Guitar” and “2005 Product of the Year” awards at Winter NAMM ’06.  New in the Electric category is the T5 12-string. Built with Taylor’s proprietary T5 electronics, the T5 12-string may be plugged into either a P.A. system or an electric amp, and can go from clean acoustic chiming to soaring electric textures (and a wide range of sounds in-between), with the flick of a five-way switch.

Standard and Custom models are available. T5 6- and 12-strings are available in an array of arresting finishes, including natural, sunburst, and metallic colors; Premium and Exotic top upgrades are also available (Exotic tops on Custom models only).    
    
There also are big changes for Taylor’s mid-priced guitars. The company has completely revised its 200 Series and is now offering two Dreadnoughts (210 and 210e) and two Grand Auditoriums (214 and 214e) built with Indian rosewood laminate backs and sides, and glossy tops of solid Sitka spruce. Guitars in the 200 Series come with Taylor hardshell cases.
    
Taylor’s original mid-priced 100 Series has expanded to include two new Grand Auditoriums, the 114 and 114e, in addition to the popular 100 and 110e Dreadnoughts. All 100 Series guitars have sapele laminate back and sides, solid Sitka spruce tops, and come with a rugged, lightweight Taylor gig bag.

All 100 and 200 Series guitars with electronics, signified by the “e” in the model number, come with the “ES Element” — a new proprietary under-saddle pickup design from Taylor.

In addition, as of 2007, dealers may order deluxe Presentation Series (PS) guitars in any Taylor body shape and with a variety of different inlays at no extra charge. Brazilian rosewood, Mexican cocobolo, Hawaiian koa, Big Leaf maple, and walnut are all Premium tonewood options for PS guitars

The 2007 NAMM Show Wrap-Up

By Ken Volpe
It’s Monday morning and I’m on a plane from LA back to NYC. The 2007 NAMM show was incredible. Before I get into the dynamics of the show I’d like to share with you about my trip out to LA. 

The night before my flight I got about an hour of sleep, due to a digestive adventure. I left the house on Thursday, at 5:30am in balmy 12-degree weather, to pick up my Guitar Jam Daily cohort, Nick Friese. We get to JFK airport and board our plane.  Right away it is apparent that our flight is packed with NAMM attendees due to the all the long hair and guitar cases. I have the window seat and next to me is a gentleman who builds custom motorcycles for a living. He is a large man with a strong odiferous vibe.  In addition, he is rather flatulent for the entire trip…the SBD variety I might add. Okay, enough about his offerings. Seated to his right in the aisle seat is a somewhat famous rocker who has obviously been through the mill. He makes Keith Richards look like a J. Crew model. Anyhow, it was apparent he was partying the night before and was not done yet. Early into the flight he threw back a few Bloody Marys and was soon down for the count. So basically I was penned in my seat. I decided that my only option to brave the next 6 hours was to go into a temporary cocoon state. Not one of my finer moments.

Finally, we arrive at Long Beach airport and get our rent-a-car and head to see Day 1 of the show. As soon as we get to the show we grab a NAMM guidebook and starting planning out which of the 1500 exhibits we will attempt to visit. Nick and I both have a lot of ground to cover so we decide to split up.  My first stop is to see my friend Mitch Colby at the Vox/Marshall booth. We do some catching up and he shows me all their new cool products.  After visiting a few more booths Day 1 is coming to a close. Nick and I head out to dinner and discuss our Friday game plan. 

We get to the show around 11:00 am for Day 2 and the fun starts right away. Throughout the day I see some amazing gear and hear some of the world’s most prolific musicians. I stop by the Salwender International booth to see my friend Uwe and check out the display of Diezel guitar amps, Glockenklang bass amps, Vigier guitars and more. My favorite visual is the Diezel Herbert head and matching 4 x 12 cab in white tolex. 

Then I swing by VHT to visit to check in with Stevie and Victoria amps to see Mark. Both of those guys have done a fabulous job in building up their respective amp companies. 

As many of you know, I run Ultra Sound Amp sales in NYC. We are a leader in boutique amp sales.  So one of the many things that is great about NAMM is that I get to catch up in person with my business associates. 

That evening I go out to dinner with Uwe and Trip Wamsley, who is the Glockenklang bass amp sales rep and a great bassist. After dinner, we stop by a local high-end music store, Tone Merchants, to hear guitarist J.M.R. He is a fantastic talent that happens to also be doing some of the Eventide booth demos at the show. Unfortunately, we had to leave early and missed Guthrie Govan.

Saturday, Day 3 is by far the most crowded day. There are separate areas away from the booth that feature live music. There, I had the privilege of hearing greats like Willy Porter, Greg Koch, Nils Lofgrin, Jeff Kolman, Guthrie Govan, and many others throughout the day. I also carve out a couple of hours to do my pro-audio perusing. I stop by Chandler Ltd. and see my buddy Wade Goeke. He shows me the new Germanium EQ and a few other goodies. Wade is an absolute genius and I love his products. For recording guitar and other tracks Chandler gear is beyond great. 

After the show it’s off to a quick dinner and then onto  Tone Merchants again to see some more live music. Tone Merchants has a store front with a lot of high-end gear and a stage with seating for live acts. Playing that night were Trip Wamsley, Christophe Godin, Ed Degenaro, and others. Some really kickin’ music I might add. After that Nick and I head up to The Baked Potato to catch the 11:30pm show of Mike Landau with The Jazz Ministry. You can read a review of this outstanding performance here.

We get back to the hotel at 3:00am to catch a little sleep. It’s Sunday morning and it feels like I’ve been hit by a truck. Even though I am suffering from serious sleep deprivation, I don’t really care because I am having so much fun. 

Day 4 is known as Tumbleweed Day, due to the fact that there are far less people roaming around. I do my final rounds, check out some more gear, say goodbye to my friends and depart the show. I head up to Van Nuys to visit Jim at Tyler guitars. He shows me around and we yuck it up for about an hour, talking about Guitar Jam Daily and an upcoming interview that I will be doing with him - stay tuned for that! His shop is truly amazing and he produces some of the world’s best electric guitars. If you have played one you know what I mean. After Jim’s I stop by an old friends house to watch a little football and catch up. Then it’s back to Anaheim for my final NAMM dinner with Nick. At dinner we meet some new friends from Pavel Musical Instruments. Really great people.

So, as I sit here on my return flight back to NYC I realize that I can’t even begin to describe what an incredible experience NAMM 2007 is…actually I think I just did!  The gear and the eye-candy are wonderful, but the best parts are seeing all the live music and checking in with old friends. Even though I am a bit sad that the 2007 NAMM show is over, I am happy that the 2 seats next to me are not occupied. 

Live Review: Mike Landau with The Jazz Ministry at The Baked Potato

By Ken Volpe
I have been a huge Mike Landau fan since 1992. Being an East Coast guy, I have never had the chance to see him play in a club setting. After a long day at NAMM followed by dinner, my Guitar Jam Daily partner, Nick Friese, and I drove an hour to catch the 11:30pm show at The Baked Potato in North Hollywood.

The show was billed as “The Jazz Ministry.” The band was Abe Laboriel on bass, Abe Laboriel Jr. on drums, Greg Mathieson on keyboard and, of course, Mr. Landau on guitar. The show consisted of a handful of tunes, each featuring extended jams with all four artists.

In the middle of the show the band took a short break to allow Abe Sr. to minister to the crowd about gratitude, a Godly perspective and a heartfelt appreciation for the audience. I have had the privilege to hang out with Abe Sr. in the past and I must say that he is truly a holy man filled with God’s spirit both in his music and in his being. He is one of life’s true rare gems. 

As the show progressed, I got the sense that we were all in the presence of true greatness. All four musicians seemed to be totally in the zone with an indescribable synergy. 

Mike’s playing was very dynamic, versatile and pretty much perfect. Even though he has extraordinary ability with his hands, he only displayed his chops when the tune or emotion called for it. Musically, he seems to always be in the right place at the right time with the right notes or the right space. Mike used one of his prized Fender Strats and a Gibson SG. He used a Custom Audio Electronics amp with a host of pedals and a Lexicon digital reverb. His guitar tones ranged from smooth to sweet to raging with countless textures in between. Another amazing thing about his tone, is that even though I was only five feet away and he was turned up pretty loud, I never cringed from loudness, harshness, or ill sonic artifacts. 

The band’s grooves were all top shelf courtesy of Abe Jr. In addition, his interaction, fills, and solos were jaw dropping. The guy is so loose when he plays that is it as much fun to watch him play, as it is to listen to him. 

Abe Sr. did a handful of solos that covered a range of techniques, and built up in awesome intensity. When he gets going, his entire body becomes a rhythmic display in it’s own right. In all his bouncing around and movement, his bass headstock never makes contact with any nearby band mates or up close audience members. You have to see it to believe it. 

Greg Mathison’s organ and keyboard parts were perfect layers of sound for the other 3 players. And when it was time for Greg to solo, you were left speechless.

On the final song, Abe Sr. and Abe Jr. pulled off this musical interaction that could only happen between a father and son. Nick and I, and a few other guys that I spoke with all agreed that we had not seen interaction like that very much in our lives. 

I felt truly blessed to experience The Jazz Ministry. After the show, I got a few hugs from Abe Sr., and he introduced me to Mike. He was extremely gracious and agreed to do an upcoming interview with me for Guitar Jam Daily. In addition, he is sending one of our staff his latest Live CD for us to review. 

In my humble opinion, I believe that Mike Landau is without a doubt one of the best living electric guitarists on the planet. 

PRS Announces New Chris Henderson Guitar

Press Release
Chris Henderson has been using PRS guitars for many years while recording and touring with Three Doors Down. His exact guitar is now offered as the new Chris Henderson Signature Model. 

This Singlecut guitar is available with three humbucking pickups, flame maple top, 10-top flame or 10-top quilt. The electronics include a push/pull switch to activate the middle pickup. The pickups are 250 Treble and PRS #7 Bass with no cover.

An adjustable stoptail and a special Chris Henderson truss rod cover are standard.

NAMM Gallery: Day 4 - Sunday, January 21st

It was the final day of The NAMM Show. Everyone was a bit weary from three days of working the long days on the show floor, the evening activities, and late night drinks at the Hilton bar. But the faithful were still there en masse, as were we. So here’s a look at moving day.

Visit the Day 4 NAMM Gallery >

NAMM Diary- Day 3: Super Saturday

By Nick Friese
Day three: NAMM started off no differently than the other two days – Ken and I were late as usual. Between trying to find the spot in the room where the wi-fi worked, dealing with my computer that was crashing from all of the audio files and hundreds of photos from the show, and then, oh yes the time needed to actually write something down, kept me from exiting the room at the desired time.

Then there was the parking nightmare that we’ll spare you from. But let me just say don’t try and drive to the show and park a car on Super Saturday, unless of course you’d like to run a few miles to the event.

You see this was the day of all days that we should have been at the show early. Saturday at NAMM is the peak day of the four-day event and if you want to beat the crowds for driving, parking, visiting with the manufacturers, schmoozing with the celeb musicians you should do it early. If not, it’s like Christmas shopping on 5th Avenue on Christmas Eve.

So getting there late added to the pressure I was already feeling to cover enough ground for a productive day.

The first thing we did was connect with Guitar Jam’s own Jim Basra and head into the Fender Frontline stage for a session with Nils Lofgren and Greg Koch. Nils came out and played and sang a very potent version of “All Over Now,” complete with an incendiary jam with Greg that had us all bowing to the Guitar Gods.

Visit Fender’s NAMM site for video on all of the performances during NAMM. They had quite a line up over the four days.

After spending quality time at the Fender stage, I took a trip downstairs to see what was doing at the PRS booth. I knew something was up as I saw a line of people stretched out the length of the hall. This is always a sign at NAMM that there’s a celeb in the house. So I just walked past the front of the line and up to the booth and caught Mark Trimonti of Alter Bridge holding a signing for buyers and visitors alike. He seemed to really enjoy the attention. It was nice to witness the genuine gratitude he showed towards his fans.

Super Saturday was the day of guitar and other music bigs on site. GJD ran into Yngwie Malmsteen, Nikki Sixx, Bootsy Collins, Stuart Copeland, Brian Wilson, Neil Schon, Nils Lofgren, Mick Mars, George Lynch, Warren DiMartini, Johny Highland, Mick Taylor, Taylor Hawkins of the Foo Fighters, Amlack and Moonie of Steel Pulse, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Hubert Sumlin, Eddie Kramer, Pat Travers, Pat Bergeron, Guthrie Govan, and the list goes on…

The day moved by so fast and it was nearing 5:30pm and it was time to head up to Guitar Jam’s own Ronny North’s demo at Mills Acoustics. Ken and I arrived just in time as Ronny was getting plugged in for his demo. After a few giddy yapp’s from Ken and I off he went. And let me say this, Ronny is one of the most amazing players I’ve seen. His hands are so soft, lighting quick, and fluid. I can easily say he has some of the best hands I‘ve seen working a guitar. And he makes it looks so effortless while he’s playing and has a riff bag that is a bottomless pit.

After his quick set Ronny told me that he had to go to a meeting with Dean Guitars and that we’d meet up later for dinner.

Unfortunately our diner didn’t work out because Ken and I had to run to a party at Tone Merchants. Tone Merchants is a high-end shop that has a stage in the back of the store where they hold regular jams by big names in music biz. I could write a whole column on that experience at Tone Merchants, but will leave that up to Ken who will be publishing his post NAMM column in a few days.

After spending a few hours at Tone Merchants we were off to hear Mike Landau at the Baked Potato in Universal City. The show was about an hour drive from Tone Merchants, and if Ken wasn’t such a huge Mike fan, I would have simply bagged the 11:30pm show and crawled into my bedbug-infested bed at the Ritz Travel Lodge.

Instead I had a good power nap, then waited outside the Baked Potato in 30-degree weather, for oooh about 45 minutes without a coat, well, I was finally up people!

Yet another story to read in the days ahead by Ken Volpe - as Mike’s show was a baptism for the ultimate guitar tone. He’s amazing. Killer tone. No questions. Landau was well worth the battle with fatigue, the hour drive, a long wait in the cold, and the cramped space inside the Potato, because it turned out to be a very special night for the performers and the crowd. 

Super Saturday certainly lived up to it's name.

NAMM Gallery: Day 3 - Saturday, January 20th

It is another day in paradise at the 2007 Winter NAMM Show. Today is Super Saturday and the show is running at full capacity. This is THE BIG day for the 81,000 buyers, dealers, manufacturers, celebrities, press, and visitors who are coming together to enjoy the greatest music show on earth.

Visit the NAMM Photo Gallery - Day 3 >

NAMM Diary- Day 2, Friday January 19th: Stars with Guitars

By Nick Friese
We got a late start again yesterday because both Ken and I were dealing with business calls, emails, and publishing matters in our suite at the Four Seasons Travel Lodge of Anaheim.

But we did make it out of the room around 11:30am and headed over to the show. As we were pulling into the parking lot closest to the Conference Center, we were stopped by the local authorities and then with one flash of our super powered press badge, we were waived in. 

Once inside the cavernous expo hall, I walked in whatever direction the currents of the crowd pulled me. And luckily enough they pulled me right over to the Marshall booth where low and behold Jim Marshall and Kerry King were hanging out and signing autographs. Two people could not look more opposite. But they were big time crowd pleasers and the meet and greet line went on as far as I could see

And this was the start of a day filled with stars, stars, and more stars with guitars.

After spending some time at the Marshall booth we headed over to Graph Tech for Kenny Wayne Shepherd’s performance with Hubert Sumlin and Bryan Lee. He was promoting his new DVD Ten Days Out: Blues from The Backroads with his ensemble cast. And the crowds were lined up for a sighting of KWS.

He was supposed to start at 12:30 and made a late entrance around 1:00ish. Hey we can cut him slack because he’s a star and has the right to make us wait. By this time the crowd had swelled so much that people were filling up the exhibitors booths surrounding Graph Tech.

Guthrie Govan from the Cornford booth was one of those exhibitors who were none-the-merrier about the crowd in front of his booth. He was worried about his one or more of his axes getting the chop from one of the KWS loyalists. So as the charitable chaps that we are, we played traffic cop to help save his six stringed kids.

As he does in his DVD, Kenny Wayne allowed Bryan Lee and Hubert Sumlin take the front and play and sign as he hung back and played side man and came in with a lead or two but he remained very respectful of his mentors who were seated net to him.

Scott Henderson and Guthrie Govan continued their conversation in the Cornford booth, while the KWS set was going on, about what one can only imagine – starting their own G2 tour?  One could only hope.

I took a look at my watch and it said hey get yourself and your 80lb backpack, notebook and camera over to Peavey for Joe Satriani's press conference for his new JSX Mini Colossal amp.  I got there and was quickly escorted into the inner sanctum.

(Note: Full audio from the press conference and demo will be available soon - please check back)

Soooo, it was only about 130 degrees in the Peavey glass encased sauna (Press Room) where the event was scheduled. The funny thing was all of the attendees outside had their noses pressed to the glass watching us as we slowly cooked inside. Now that’s a real spectator sport!

The net, net Joe didn’t play the new amp and left it up to the Peavey project manager to run the amp demo - a good player, but no Joe.  Oh well we can’t win them all.

But we continued to bump into more guitar greats throughout the day with the likes of Warren Haynes, Dick Dale, John 5, Kerry King, Greg Koch, Pat Bergeson, Guthrie Trapp, Neil Schon, Skunk Baxter, producer Eddie Kramer, just to name a few.

Towards the end of the day I went back into the Fender Frontline Stage to see Greg Koch and his trio perform. Yet another room that contained balmy desert temperatures – great for performers! In between tunes Greg Koch told us, in a way that only he can, that his next tune was sponsored by Right Guard - insert Greg sniffing armpit here.  You have to love him he’s a guy’s guy! 

The GK Trio burned through their set as expected. It was a complete display of guitar wizardry by Greg Koch and his band. I am simply amazed at how effortless his playing is and how big and great his tone is – not to mention the way he plays so tastefully. He’s one that has monster chops and never over uses them. Way to go!

So Greg tells us that he has a special guest coming out to the stage, one who used to be in law enforcement, hmmmmm…And yes out walks Andy Summers to play with the Koch band.

Andy is yet another humble guitar God who proceeds to tell us how nerve racking it is to play at a NAMM show. He had a right to be a bit nervous coming on after a burning set by Greg. But he pulled out a very funky, cool jazz number (name unknown) and burned it up on his new “Andy Summers Telecaster,” an exact replica of his relic from the police days. Admittedly Summers couldn’t tell the difference between this new axe and the original upon first sight.

He continued to praise Fender throughout his set for it’s brilliant work on the new guitar, I mean old, new guitar. And we at GJD continue to praise them for such an excellent booth that is filled with stars with guitars.

One unfortunate incident that we failed to cover was Eddie Van Halen’s appearance and demo at the Fender booth late last night. In an unconfirmed report we were told that his demo occurred late in the day (a coincidence?) and he was completely blotto’d during the appearance. I think Eddie hasn't read Larry Dobrow's "An Open Letter to EVH" just yet.

Well it’s just another day in Disneyland!

Stay tuned!

NAMM Gallery: Day 2 - Friday, January 19th

The show doors opened again today at 10:00am and the crowds were out en masse for more demos, meetings, press conferences, performances, star gazing, and live workshops. Here are some of the star guitar players we ran into today and some of the guitars we were admiring. Enjoy!

Visit NAMM Gallery: Day 2 >

NAMM Diary – Day 2, Friday 1/19: Disneyland for the Music Industry

By Nick Friese
We made it to the show late yesterday after a number of business appointments and work outside of the scope of the NAMM show; Ken and I picked up our Press badges and headed into the massive exhibit space at the Anaheim Convention Center.

The place is bigger than Madison Square Garden. So just image a space larger than Madison Square Gaaahhhden filled with 1,500+ music exhibits complete with guitars, amps. drums, pianos, horns, and any musical instrument you can think of with accessories to match. Not to mention the 81,000+ attendees scurring around. It is a musical wonderland in the place where the magic dust was invented – Disneyland. NAMM is a four day pop-up Disneyland for the music industry.

Thus, at this point being only twelve or so hours into the note filled festival it’s meeting all of the pictures and expectations I’ve had – good stuff.

But enough with the preamble, let’s get down to what was doing at the show.

I spent the first half an hour staring at the Dean and Schecter booth babes. And have the pictures to prove it. Only kidding! But they were a draw for many of the buyers at the show to make their way into the Dean and Schecter lairs. Ken and I did watch the guys for a few minutes rubberneck and stop to a halt at each booth for photos and get the looks on their faces like “oh you know I really wanted to check out the new Dean guitars at the show.”  Yeah right.

It was time to duck into some of the booths sans babes and I headed into the PRS booth and ran into the man himself and chatted a bit and then we took a gratuitous photos in front of some of his new models – the Custom 22/12 and the Modern Eagle, and Hollow bodies. The booth was a full enclosure of pipe and black drape and had a line almost out to the smoking section of the Convention Center – outside. I snuck in through a side slot to avoid the line. Ok I know what you’re thinking, but I had places to go people!

The Martin booth was an impressive sight with the facade of the original North Street Factory with historic images paying tribute to the new Martin Museum and Visitor Center in Nazareth, PA. The booth includes a comfortable setting around headstock and sound hole shaped tables. But what really caught my eye was the $130,000 Custom “History of Flight Guitar” hanging from the wall. I was amazed that armed guards and dogs didn’t protect the guitar. The Wilson sisters also made an acoustic appearance for a short set.

Next stop was the Fender “factory” which was on the second floor, conveniently located at the top of the escalator, stage left. And on the right of the Fender welcome counter was an impressive sight with a big VIP Green Room - which I was not invited to enjoy! On the left was the Frontline stage. And that was the spot to hit first with Willy Porter and Greg Koch playing a very impressive set of Willy’s soulful acoustic ditties. After getting an excellent dose of masterful guitar work and great vocals from Willy we headed over to the custom shop display for a wash of Fender.

Inside the Fender exhibit we encountered the EVH Artist series ensconced in a glass case - with a sign that said “No Stairway to Heaven.” It was a scratch for scratch reproduction of Eddie’s Frankenstein guitar, a display of prodigious craftsmanship. The flashes from the dozens digital cameras capturing the sublime was as strong as a stage strobe. The EVH faithful were surrounding this once “Holy Grail of Rock,” paying homage to the one time Al l Mighty.

More to talk about but it’s time to run….see you in a few.

Stay tuned.