yoslate Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 I have an interesting opportunity this evening. Peter Frampton's in town tonight for a show supporting two fine local charities. Good stuff! We're playing the charities' pre-event for the Frampton gig. Should be 1000-1500 people there. Also there will be the traveling Gibson display, you know, the big truck full of Gibsons, and promo material.... And there's a front page article in the local paper this morning about a guy I used to play with, who's a Gibson collector (eighty-five Gibson Historics...he's nuts), and hosts a local Gibson confab much in the spirit of PSP, and whose foundation sponsors shows in town, by Gibson endorsees. Gibson stuff will be all over the place.... Think I'll gig the 150 20th, and the 535 tonight...nod and a wink kind of thing.... Always enjoy being a bit of an iconoclast!
Steiner Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Sounds like you're carrying the Olympic torch. Break a leg (string?)!
Gitfiddler Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 That's great!! Enjoy the moment...and show the world your Heritage! Oh, and if possible, get pics of the event and your contribution. Break a leg...not a string.
FredZepp Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 EXCELLENT !! I love the way that you think, Rob. To have some Heritage guitars on stage will add some positive mojo to the event. In any case, just to have those Parsons Street guitars there for all to see... and inquire about... is a great idea.
schundog Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 I love it. They'll be scratching their heads for weeks wondering how you got such great tone out of that "off brand" guitar, haha. "Dude, where do those things COME from, man?!"
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 I have an interesting opportunity this evening. Peter Frampton's in town tonight for a show supporting two fine local charities. Good stuff! We're playing the charities' pre-event for the Frampton gig. Should be 1000-1500 people there. Also there will be the traveling Gibson display, you know, the big truck full of Gibsons, and promo material.... And there's a front page article in the local paper this morning about a guy I used to play with, who's a Gibson collector (eighty-five Gibson Historics...he's nuts), and hosts a local Gibson confab much in the spirit of PSP, and whose foundation sponsors shows in town, by Gibson endorsees. Gibson stuff will be all over the place.... Think I'll gig the 150 20th, and the 535 tonight...nod and a wink kind of thing.... Always enjoy being a bit of an iconoclast! Very cool. My friend Sean Fichter used to tour on drums with him. I always told Sean, when he get tired of it, refer me (with a chuckle of course). Have a great gig Rob. Peter is a helluva nice guy.
DetroitBlues Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Awesome! Rock that place out with the Heritages!
yoslate Posted August 10, 2012 Author Posted August 10, 2012 Grrrrrrr! In the interest of full disclosure: I was just changing strings on the 150, really looking forward to showing that one off tonight. For the third time on this guitar, one of the tulip buttons on the Sperzel tuner has wallowed itself out on the shaft. I don't have time to switch out to a set of Grovers I have...which I really don't want on that guitar anyway. Like the aesthetic of the buttons, and the gear ratio, but I'm done with those Sperzels! So...dammit...no 150 tonight!
Gitfiddler Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Grrrrrrr! In the interest of full disclosure: I was just changing strings on the 150, really looking forward to showing that one off tonight. For the third time on this guitar, one of the tulip buttons on the Sperzel tuner has wallowed itself out on the shaft. I don't have time to switch out to a set of Grovers I have...which I really don't want on that guitar anyway. Like the aesthetic of the buttons, and the gear ratio, but I'm done with those Sperzels! So...dammit...no 150 tonight! Borrow Brent's 20th...or Skolnick 150!
brentrocks Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Borrow Brent's 20th...or Skolnick 150! Ill be right there....
koula901 Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Yup, your trusty 535. Enjoy the gig! Sounds like a good one.
brentrocks Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 This is all fine and dandy...but... "Do you feel like I do?"
chico Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Good luck tonight Rob. Frampton is a good guy and though he'd never bite the hand that feeds him he surely knows about THE HERITAGE meanwhile, the lemon burst with all that checking... TAKE IT!
SouthpawGuy Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 Stick a Heritage in that guys hands, get him to do a Carlos.
Steiner Posted August 10, 2012 Posted August 10, 2012 MY sperzels went out too. Lucky thing BrentRocks sold me a set with chrome buttons. I just had to replace them. I have some pearloid buttons if you want to swap. I'm starting a dead Sperzel pearloid button collection. Say hi to Pete for us.
Kuz Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 PF plays a 335 for at least half his show anyhow..... Let him hear what a REAL semi sounds like!!! Go get 'em Rob!!!! Peter is a great guy from everything I hear and read. I will be interested to hear what he says about the 535 and Heritage!!!!
fxdx99 Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 Sounds like a really cool gig. Have fun (know you will) with it, Rob!
tulk1 Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 Rebel with a Cause. If only with one Heritage. Still ... representin'
Guest HRB853370 Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 PF plays a 335 for at least half his show anyhow..... Let him hear what a REAL semi sounds like!!! Go get 'em Rob!!!! Peter is a great guy from everything I hear and read. I will be interested to hear what he says about the 535 and Heritage!!!! Hopefully Rob will get to talk with him. Would it not be cool if he approached Heritage about a PF signature model?? In Black? Maybe a 157??
Kuz Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 Hopefully Rob will get to talk with him. Would it not be cool if he approached Heritage about a PF signature model?? In Black? Maybe a 157?? I think the boys at Parson street already made him one of those..... but a Gibson that was made MANY decades ago.
yoslate Posted August 11, 2012 Author Posted August 11, 2012 Interesting day. First, for clarification: We were playing inside, next door to the amphitheater Frampton was scheduled to play. Rain and angry skies all day moved Frampton inside, into an adjacent theatre. We were playing an exhibition hall throwdown for the Rotary club and the public, the Rotary Club being involved in a charity tie-in to Frampton's show. Our place had the big video screen displays of all Rotary's "good works;" new cars from local dealers, on display; a catered VIP area; a stock car from Petty Enterprises, as they have a hugely successful camp for exceptional kids; beer, wine, and food vendors; and the Gibson traveling showroom, attended by local Guitar Center personnel. A veritable aircraft hanger...huge. I know some of you guys have played venues like this. The worst acoustics I've ever encountered! We were on a booming elevated temporary stage. Concrete floor...did I mention it was huge? Reflective walls. And a fabric ceiling, which I thought might help a little, but it was suspended so far above us, it didn't matter. Several people said the sound guys did a good job of taming it out front, if one stood right in line with the PA, but onstage, I've never heard anything like it. Kind of a perpetual subsonic boom, accompanied by what sounded like giant rotating galvanized buckets filled with shards of broken glass.... I could distinguish nothing on stage! I couldn't even hear myself, not because of volume...we were turned down. I could sort of hear me, when I soloed, from behind the PA column. Not a good way to monitor what's going on. So, given the acoustics, that beautiful 535 tone was completely lost to me in a wolly, woofing nothing. I sounded like Matheny, with his amp under a mattress. So I had to play the Lester for most of the two sets, the solid body just cutting better...not well...just better. About Frampton's set...one set, two hours and fifteen minutes.... I thought, "Yeah, he's always been a good player, and there's the story of the Custom, and Humble Pie and the Camel, and the hits...." We've all seen The Re-treads on tour, seemingly trading on distant history...poorly, the "Star" surrounded by terrific support players, young enough to be his grandkids, making him sound better than if he was actually good. Frampton had surrounded himself with fabulous players! And it was all they could do to keep up with him. He's a terrific pop/rock songwriter! Strong hooks and melodies, great changes, all that! We've had a bunch of "best player" threads on the HOC, and I don't think Peter Frampton shows up very often on them. Something about his "Popstar" legacy precludes that, for some reason. But as a player, last night, he was downright...fierce! Yeah, they played "the hits" because the room wanted them, but he also did some stuff from the Grammy winning instrumental album Fingerprints...extending solos, trading with the others in the band, and just generally killing it! Even covered Black Hole Sun. But the big thing for me, is that he still plays the '54 on tour. Played it for about half the numbers. I'm sure he gets the pick of the litter, the other Pauls and 335's he plays, but the tone of the old Paul is truly distinctive! Just...better! Just incredible!
skydog52 Posted August 11, 2012 Posted August 11, 2012 Nice report Rob. Sorry to hear acoustics where bad where you played. I am sure you sounded better than you thought. You are a great player! Even though Frampton was a huge pop sensation I always thought he had the chops and I enjoyed his Fingerprints album. I read an article awhile back and he stated when he was trying to "come back", he realized he was a guitar player first before all the pop popularity and what came with it kind of went to his head. Only human. Thanks
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