My father was very fond of working with wood. He had a lot of different saws, lathes, and various other tools in his shop. Dad worked with wood; I play guitar. This is my tool box. It is a blessing to own such a wonderful collection of instruments; it is the sole extravagance in my life.

I grew up in Rochester, NY in the late 1960s. At that time, there was a well-known instrument collector and dealer named Eldon Stutzman who ran a little shop called the Guitar Center. I bought my first Martin (a Brazilian Rosewood D28) from him for $399. Mr. Stutzman was the one that gave me a bug for instruments that has never let go.

I know a lot of fine guitarists who only own one or two instruments. There are others I know who own many more. The number of instruments someone owns has no bearing on the quality of one's musicianship. The only thing that matters is what you do with them.

I have spent a great deal of time learning about instruments, and I have pretty strong ideas about the ones that really work for me, as well as those that don't.  From my standpoint, this is the perfect collection: a combination of classics, some oddballs, and a few new designs. I use some of these instruments regularly, and others very infrequently. Some are quite valuable, and others are not....I could care less--they are all for playing.

Good instruments have their own stories, and their own personalities. I believe that they are like one half of a soul. The other half comes from the fingers, heart, and head of the player.

I have posted numerous reviews of these instruments(as well as some others no longer in my possession) on the "Harmony Central" website (check out my links page). HC is a great place to read up about a particular instrument or amplifier before you buy.

If you have any questions or comments, feel free to e-mail me at steelstringer@gmail.com

ELECTRIC GUITARS
The two instruments I have owned the longest are my 1963 SG Special ("Rosebud'), and my 1958 ES-175 ("Herbie"). I got the SG in December of 1971. It was a House of Guitars ( Rochester, NY) special for $200. I had saved $!00, and made a sales pitch to my father for the remaining $100: a combination 18th birthday, Christmas, and early high school graduation present. Dad went for it—and I’ve had that instrument ever since. I found the ES-175 sometime in 1974—it cost me $400. It was sitting, unused, in an attic for about twelve years. For a brief period in the late 1970s, I sold both of these instruments to my friend (and one of the finest NYC area Jazz/Brazilian guitarists) Paul Meyers. Paul moved on to a Howard Roberts, and I got both back for keeps. These two remain my most favorite electrics. Not for sale—for any price!  

My main solidbodies are traditional single coil designs. I have two built by Blade--a "Texas" Strat and a "Delta" Tele; both are rock solid, well built instruments that sound great for all kinds of music. They have excellent pickups, and rosewood fretboards. For whatever reason, they are hard to find in the US; they seem to be most popular, and more widely distributed in Europe. I am a very pleased owner of a Bill Nash "Timewarp" Tele. It looks and feels like it's from the 1950s, and is fitted with Lollar pickups. It's amazing!  I also play a 40th anniversary Fender Standard Stratocaster. For double coil sounds, in addition to my old SG, I use a Parker PM20.

In addition to my ES-175, for jazz I use an Eastman AR-800CE archtop. It has a 16” body (which is very close to the size of  the ES-175) and an oval hole ( ala. the Gibson Howard Roberts) design. Eastman makes amazing instruments for the money; they cost a fraction of any other handcrafted archtop out there. I also play a Gibson Wes Montgomery L5 model. It's absolute perfection, and I needn't say much more than that!

I also have some sweet thin hollowbodies. First is a Cort "Jim Triggs"--a fine instrument with two humbuckers and a Bigsby. It reminds me of a cross between a Gretsch and Guild Starfire I had in high school, and I got it for $250--a lot less than a vintage Starfire or Country Gentleman would cost. I have two Carvin instruments--an AE-185, and an Alan Holdsworth "Fatboy", which is essentially a tele shape, with a hollow body, but no f-holes. It has two twin coil pickups with pole splitters, and a twenty-four fret neck. It has a very unique look and sound, and it works for any kind of music. I have two semihollows as well: an Epiphone Elitist ES-335, and a Burns Steer. The ES-335 is every bit as good as the comparable Gibson model. The Steer is one of the strangest looking instruments I've owned, but it's a grade one guitar in every way.

I own a number of other electric instruments: for bottleneck/slide styles, I have my old Hagstrom II (Rosebud's companion on many, many gigs over the years), a Washburn X22 a Johnny Reb tele, and a 1950s Fender Lap Steel. I also own a Brian Moore i-guitar, which drives a Roland GR33 synthesizer. Bringing up the low end of the sonic spectrum: a Danelectro baritone, short scale Samick and Fender basses and an Ashbory bass.


ACOUSTIC GUITARS
My main acoustics are two mahogany guitars, (a Collings D-1, an a Martin 000-16 cutaway), and two rosewoods, (a Martin HD-28 ["Sunflower"] and a Collings DS-2H ).  I won the HD-28 at Winfield, Kansas in 1980, when I took 2nd place at the National Fingerpicking Championship. It took a few years for it to come around, but at the age of 28 now, it’s got a fine voice. The DS-2H is a 12-fret model, with a wider fretboard, and an open headstock design. It has an enormous sound, especially for flatpicking. The rosewoods tend to have a more complex tone, with more overtones and sweetness. The mahogany instruments mike a bit more cleanly, and have a drier tone. My 000-16 (made in 1989; the body was redone at the Martin factory in 2008) has a well-balanced tone that works for just about anything. The Collings D1--my other overall favorite for the best gigs---is as good a mahogany D as I've seen anywhere. It is amazing, and as it ages, I can only imagine how much better it will sound. Both of the Collings instruments are incredibly well made, and they are reliable travellers. I bought the D1 with gift money from two very dear friends at my church who remembered me in their wills-- I have their names on a little plaque inside the soundhole. I also have a beautiful Santa Cruz FS cutaway with a cedar top and rosewood back and sides—it is used strictly for fingerstyle. It has a very striking appearance and an exceptionally dry voice.

If I have what I term a "plug and play" gig, I use a Parker P6 that has piezo and magnetic pickups, and another (rosewood) Martin 000-16 that adds an internal microphone as well as the two pickups to the variety of sounds. The Parker has one big advantage in that it sports an XLR output; the Martin sounds a bit warmer because of the internal mike. Six of one; Half a dozen of the other...

I also own a Takamine E30 nylon string; I'm no classical player, but if I need to make nylon string sounds, it fits the bill perfectly. I have an amazingly loud Gitane Macceferri copy--a fine acoustic guitar for swing. For 12-string, I have played the same huge-sounding Guild F212-XL since 1975. My 1960s era Harmony Sovereign is like a little time machine--it was the model (although not the actual guitar) that I learned how to fingerpick on; my other fingerpicker is a "Baby" Alvarez. For slide styles, I play a Regal RD1 National copy, and a 1930s era Kalamazoo (approximately 0-size) flat (bulging, actually) top. For lap style, I have a mid-1970s Dobro and an inexpensive Weissenborn copy. For high string, I use a Rogue D size. I also have a Rogue acoustic bass guitar. (Anything with the name Rogue on it is a ridiculously good value.) My old Martin 000-16 body was transformed into a baritone guitar with a neck made by Wes Lambe.

I have various kinds of piezos installed in most of my acoustic instruments, and I also use magnetic pickups occasionally. My first choice is always a good microphone; nothing sounds better than notes with air around them.. At other times, for practical reasons, it will be a mike with a piezo signal added. (If you are an experienced performer, you probably know what I mean by “practical”) If I have to go with a piezo signal--either alone, or with a microphone-- I will use a pre-amp or blender to make it sound as warm as possible. For a simpler setup, I'll use my "plug and play" Martin or Parker: easy to use, takes very little time, and it sounds pretty good. I also like to employ a Fishman Aura that imparts an amazingly authentic acoustic texture to magnetic or piezo pickups.

MANDOLINS AND OTHER INSTRUMENTS
My second instrument is the mandolin. I was very lucky to get a Nugget A5 around 1986. I got it (previously used) directly from Mike Kemnitzer (the builder) for $750. Like I said, I am lucky—it would cost a great deal more now. I got the bug for Nugget when I saw Tim O’Brien play his A5 in Hot Rize, circa 1977. I am the proud owner of a Sheba A4 made by Gavin Baird to the specs of Peter Ostroushko, my favorite picking partner. It has a warmer tone, whereas the Nugget has more bite. I also play a Trillium octave mandolin made by Robert Abrams, who lives in New Hampshire, and a mandola made by Brian Dean, who lives in Quebec. Both of these men make exceptionally fine instruments—I recommend their craftmanship without any reservations. Additionally, I have a three banjos and six ukeleles(i have ukulele fever these days!), a cuatro, an autoharp, two electric mandolins, and a dulcimer. I also own a fiddle, which is played mostly in private, thank God. (Sounds like Nigel Tufnel's in the house?)

AMPLIFICATION/OTHER
For amplification, I like both tubes and solid states. For tubes, My main amp is a Tone King Imperial. It's the perfect tube amp for me--versatile, and incredibly well-made and great sounding. I also have two Blackheart tube amplifiers--a one-watt Killer Ant, and a 3/5 watt Little Giant. For solid state, I use an Evans AE100 (made right here in North Carolina) a Jazzkat, and an Acoustic Image Clarus paired with a Raezer's Edge 12" speaker. For acoustic amplification, I use a Roland AC-60. For the infrequent bass gig I use a Roland Cube Bass 30. As far as toys, doo-dads, and stomp boxes go, I have more than enough—let’s just leave it at that. The two sounds that I like the most are compression and delay.

If you would like to see a photo of something not pictured here, feel free to e-mail me.

"Herbie" is my 1958 ES-175. I bought this instrument in 1974 for $400. Those days are long gone. Like Rosebud (see below), this guitar will never be for sale--at any price.

One of my Blade guitars--the "Texas" Strat. One of the features I like about this guitar is the simplicity: One volume control and one tone control. And of course, it sounds and plays great.