Resurrecting An Old Electric Friend....

[Spruce]

I built this puppy back in the mid-70's, and it's really hard to believe it's over 35 years old...

The design is basically a rip-off of the Alembic designs from back in the day...

Curly Bigleaf maple on the front, capped on top of (what was I thinking?) Philippine mahogany...
Koa neck-through body...

The Old P-bass pickup sounds great...

All the brass is totally tarnished, including the homemade tailpiece...

Anyway, I'm getting ready to do a CD of fiddle tunes played in a loud surf style, so needed this guy to be front and center...

[Perry]

It does indeed have that Alembic look. Fiddle tunes in a loud surf style sounds like fun. Too bad S.C.O.T.S already has the moniker Hillbilly Surf.

[Spruce]

A few more shots:

[mrmando]

A current fave CD is Let's Go Shleppin' by Meshuggah Beach Party. Jewish tunes like Havah Nagila and If I Were a Rich Man reimagined as surf anthems. Really fun.

[Spruce]

A current fave CD is Let's Go Shleppin' by Meshuggah Beach Party. Jewish tunes like Havah Nagila and If I Were a Rich Man reimagined as surf anthems. Really fun.

Wow, thanks!
My new favorite band...

[Mandobart]

A current fave CD is Let's Go Shleppin' by Meshuggah Beach Party. Jewish tunes like Havah Nagila and If I Were a Rich Man reimagined as surf anthems. Really fun.

Dick Dale does a mean Havah Nagila.

[Jim Garber]

I love the look of that aged brass... nice instrument, too.

[Spruce]

Thanks Jim...

I wasn't that good of a builder, but those were pretty easy to make...

Butcher block with a neck...

[pjlama]

Wow, thanks!
My new favorite band...

Wow, I'm totally stoked. My new favorite band too, awesome.

[Ronny]

+1... Terrific !

[mrmando]

Dick Dale does a mean Havah Nagila.

Wow. And here I thought the Meshugga boys were doing something original.

Anyway, it's great to see these photos of Spruce's instrument ... I have seen an old B&W photo from back when he built it, but these photos are much better. Looking forward to the new recording. "Jerusalem Ridge" just begs to be played as a surf tune. I hope you'll throw in "Road to Lisdoonvarna" or something else that's Irish ... I once rode around Ireland for a month with a surfer.

[Spruce]

"Jerusalem Ridge" just begs to be played as a surf tune.

You read my mind, bro....
Or vise-versa...
With a Farfisa solo...

[Jim Nollman]

So many great possibilities for surfin' fiddle tunes. I can imagine Julia Delaney and Shove the Pig's Foot. and give a listen to the voodoo sounding tune, Swannanoa Waltz.

It was kind of ironic stumbling on this thread. As you know, I just finished a CD of techno-deconstructed fiddle tunes, and I am thinking of doing another one. If so, Spruce, I definitely need to seduce you onto a ferry boat and into my studio sometime next fall with a few of your stellar instruments, maybe starting with that Lawrence Smart Mandola.

[Jim Garber]

Funny... I always thought the reverse was true too: playing some surf instrumentals as fiddle tunes. Of course, Walk Don't Run would be a triple play: jazz --> surf --> fiddle tune.

[Spruce]

Funny... I always thought the reverse was true too: playing some surf instrumentals as fiddle tunes. Of course, Walk Don't Run would be a triple play: jazz --> surf --> fiddle tune.

Mr. Moto makes a great fiddle tune....

[Pete Martin]

Mr. Moto makes a great fiddle tune....

What a great tune!

[Spruce]

Paul Johnson of the Bel-Airs wrote that tune when he was in his teens...

[Spruce]

Just found pics of a couple more mandos that my friend David Gans (of Grateful Dead Hour notoriety) took back in '76 or so....







I think I built about 15 of these things or so....

[Treblemaker]

Those things are sweet looking... You ought to build more!

[Pete Martin]

That is some Snakehead

[delsbrother]

Roughly, about how many splinters between that last pic and now?

[Joel Glassman]

Cool.
You adapted the "Stars Guitars" brass bridge Jerry Garcia
used on his Alligator Guitar:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y6/...s-hardtail.jpg
http://obie1.homesite.net/deadcd/ima...igatordetw.jpg
so did I:
http://www.mandozine.com/images/articles/pickup.jpg

[Spruce]

Cool.
You adapted the "Stars Guitars" brass bridge Jerry Garcia
used on his Alligator Guitar:
http://i2.photobucket.com/albums/y6/...s-hardtail.jpg
http://obie1.homesite.net/deadcd/ima...igatordetw.jpg
so did I:
http://www.mandozine.com/images/articles/pickup.jpg

Wow...
I was wondering where I got those....

[delsbrother]

Bruce (or anyone else in SoCal) - a perfect way to say goodbye to Summer:

Surf Guitar 101 Festival

[Spruce]

Oh man....
I'll be down there net week, but will miss that...
Next year....