Welcome To My Guitars Page!

This is just a place where I've posted some pics of me with some of the guitars I've possessed...still have some of them, others I've let go to someone else who could use them more than I could.

And this is where it all begins. I began playing guitar at the age of 8 (1963) when my Dad purchased his 1963 Gibson Country & Western flattop model, which is in the center of the photo to the right. At the age of 8, a full-sized flattop guitar was enormous on my small lap and I had to learn to adapt to playing more up on the neck as opposed to over the sound hole because my arms just weren't long enough. But that didn't deter me as Pop showed me how to play three chords, C - F - G7, in the progression for Streets Of Loredo by Marty Robbins. I probably drove everyone in the house crazy playing that song over and over for hours on end, but it wasn't long afterward that I learned other chords from watching others play. There were particular weekends where several of the folks my dad worked with would get together and have a hootnanny (we call it jamming these days) and I learned quite a bit from watching those sessions. For some reason (maybe because I seemed to take over my Dad's guitar) Pop sort of withdrew from playing the guitar very much and I wound up with his guitar...in spite of the fact that he and my mom purchased several others for me over the course of time. I kept going back to that 1963 flattop...it was in my soul and no matter what song I would be trying to learn, somehow I always used "the Ole Gibson" to learn it. The one thing I regret is that it was not taken care of properly when I was younger. It was always kept in a flimsy case, which was replaced at least three times because we moved around a lot, but in 2000 my wife, Tess, bought a nice hardshell case for me to put it in. That does nothing now for the cracks in the finish, but it still sounds great! I have thought about having it refinished but I balk on that idea because I'm afraid it will ruin the great sound which comes out of it now.
After having sold all of my electric guitar equipment in 1975, I had almost 30 years of not ever playing electric guitar music, short of plugging in my accoustic-electric models. So in the Spring of 2004 my wife inspired me to get back into playing electric music. The first purchase was the Gibson SG Standard (far left) which felt so natural to me having previously owned a Les Paul. Although I've had to work on my chops, the licks have been coming back to me and I have been able to learn songs that I have only thought about learning because I had no electric instrument to play them on. It's been a real treat for me, so much so that Tess bought me a second electric guitar, a Hamer SATQ (3rd from left). Although it is an imported model of the Hamer Sunburst it plays great, not too much different from the Les Paul. I swapped the generic humbuckers that came on it for a set of Seymour Duncan '59's and the sounds that come out of it now are simply incredible. Recently I was in our local music store and they had another Hamer Sunburst SATF on sale so I picked it up and played it. I was so impressed with how well it played that I left the shop with it (2nd from left). It took a little bit of pursuasion on my part to Tess, but she agreed to let me have it. In fact, the silver Strat copy (4th from left) and the black Bass (far right) were purchased at the same store along about the same time. My wife is an awesome lady! Since that time she has picked up the red and blue Strat copies and added them to the collection. She even bought the stands that all these guitars appear on in these pics.
And Now For A Bit Of Nostalgia

This was my first guitar, given to me by my parents for Christmas 1965. I was 10 years old at that time and had already been playing on my Dad's 1963 Gibson Flat Top pictured below from the time I was 8. Imagine an 8 year-old learning to play chords on a guitar that is almost as big as he is...HAHA!

By the time I got this Silvertone I was playing Beatles songs by ear from the radio. On the bottom right of this pic is my sister's phonograph on which I managed to destroy several of my Beatles 45's and a few LPs by moving the tonearm back and forth throughout the songs to learn how to play them. If I could only have those records back I would be worth a lot of $. It's a shame that we didn't have music on audio cassettes or CDs back in those days.

 

 

My First Guitar

1965 Silvertone 1448

 

 

1967 Conquero Bruno Violin Bass

This pic has been a long time coming...I have given up on trying to locate the pic of my band in which this bass appears, but a kind soul on the internet answered my request for a pic of his which is identical to the one I had. Thanks Gene! Although it isn't a Hofner, it was close enough for me, I just wanted a bass guitar with the violin shape.

Nobody in my neighborhood played bass, much less possessed one. So I asked my dad if I could trade my Silvertone for a bass which I found downtown Ft. Worth in the musical instrument department of Leonard Brothers department store. It was sooo cool to me because I thought it would be great to have a bass like Paul McCartney's. This one came close as it is shaped like a violin. I played it for a few years and sold it to a fellow band member when I got my electric 12-string.

Although this is NOT the actual instrument, this IS one that is identical except the one I had was a darker shade of red...maroon actually. I can't seem to locate the only photo I have of me holding it in the group shot of the band I was in back in '69. Also featured in that band photo is my Violin Bass guitar which I had sold to another member of the band so that I could have some money to go in with my parents to buy this 12-string.

Ok, the name of the band was Witches Brew and we never really got the band off the ground. We did have a couple of gigs but nothing to get very excited about. Heck, we were all 9th graders.

 

 

1968/69 Electric Hollow Body 12-String

 

 

1963 Gibson Country & Western Jumbo Flat Top

This is the one I first learned to play on. My Dad bought this guitar new in 1963, I think he paid like $250 for it *COUGH*, which might as well have been $2500 by today's economy. This photo features me as a 17 year old punk who thought he was really "BAD" because he played 2 premiere Gibson guitars, this one and the Les Paul featured below. Actually this one was still my Dad's, but he eventually let me leave home with it a couple of years after this photo was made. I LOVE my Dad...who wouldn't? This guitar still plays really great, and to this day it is still lovingly referred to as "the Ole Gibson." Although it isn't as pretty as it was when it was new. It has literally been around the world a few times in a cardboard guitar case. I now have a hardshell case for it, thanks to my wife. I knew she was going to be the right woman for me because she actually bought that case for me before we were married. I LOVE my wife!

Oh but I was bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bu-bad to the bone with my Les Paul! I went to work and paid for this one myself! In 1972 you could get a Les Paul Deluxe for just over $400. Recently I saw one just like this one on display in a glass case and the price tag said $2300. Needless to say I wanted to cry because I sold this Les Paul a few years after I got it for $400. At least I got the majority of my investment back, figured since it was used I should deduct $10 from what I paid for it.

I was really inspired to have a Les Paul after having seen Ronnie Montrose playing with The Edgar Winter Group in 1972. Ronnie, as did many professionals, played a Les Paul. I never could play it like him though :(

 

1972 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe

 

 

1971 Yamaha Classical

I am very greatful to have parents who enjoyed keeping me happy with new musical instruments. This 1971 Yamaha Classical was yet another guitar they gave me for Christmas. All my guitar playing friends at that time were playing Yamahas so my dad didn't want me to feel left out I guess (perhaps he got it for me with hopes that I'd leave his Gibson Flat Top alone, but fat chance of THAT happening).

I kept this one for about 15 years before I sold it to an Army Buddy in Germany who didn't have a guitar to play in his barracks. After I got my Ovation (featured next) this little guitar saw very little playing time and mostly just sat on the guitar stand collecting dust. I was quite happy to give it a new home where it would get a lot of attention.

In 1984 I made friends with a guy who played Ovation guitars. He played an Adamas, and wouldn't you know he had this 1984 Shallow Bowl Collector's Model on the side just sitting there in the case. He always insisted that I play this one whenever we played together, and eventually I bought it from him for about half of what he paid. I began playing this guitar when it was new and played it for 8 more years before going back to my Gibson roots and buying my Starburst. I held onto this guitar for about 2 years after I got the Starburst and ended up selling it to another friend who told me that it was his "Dream Guitar." It played really nice and had a great sound, but there was just something about Gibson that was calling me back to get a new one to be my main guitar.

 

 

1984 Ovation Collectors Edition

 

 

 

1992 Gibson Starburst

This 1992 Gibson Starburst Flame is the one I use now as my primary chord-banging guitar. It has a pickup similar to the one my Ovation had so I could plug it in and get a little loud if I wanted to. That comes in very handy for when you are performing. I remember trying to play into a microphone with my (Dad's) flat top and fighting the feed back and trying not to bump the mic boom when I get to jammin' really good.

In addition to the Starburst, I still have the 1963 Flat Top, as well as a Yamaha 6 string and a Yamaha 12 string that I play just to have some acoustical variety. This one has a really sweet and crisp tone and is a lot of fun to play. The cut out gives you just a little more reach up the neck for pickin' them high notes.

Yes, I'm standing in the crosswalk on Abbey Road in this shot. NOT!

..."and she's buy-aye-ying the stairway to heaven..."

You talk about expensive...This little hummer will knock a serious dent in your wallet! Not to mention make your neck and shoulders ache. I thought the Les Paul was heavy! But the versatility of the double neck is a great thing. And the electric 12-string has a unique sound and is great if you're an old Byrds fan like myself...'60's music was so pure. (By the way, this isn't really my guitar, but I sure look good holding it don't I?)

With the music today many guitar players have gone with guitars with single-coil pickups, such as the Fender Strat, but I still prefer the "throaty" sound of the humbuckers that Gibson uses. (Ok so I'm still partial to Gibson...sue me!)

 

 

Gibson SG Double Neck

 

 

Gibson SG Standard

Well, the double-neck SG isn't mine, but THIS Vintage Cherry SG Standard IS MINE! After not owning an electric guitar for almost 3 decades I finally got back into the electric guitar business with one of my own...thanks to my lovely wife Tess! What seems so amazing to me is how well I could play electric licks on this guitar. I suppose much of it has to do with the fact that I'd been playing lead guitar bits on an acoustic since I sold my Les Paul in 1975. But this guitar is so darn easy to play it isn't even funny. Couple that with a really nice effects processor, the Korg AX1500G, and this guitar makes me sound like I know what I'm doing! I love it! I love my wife! I love Rock n Roll! I considered getting a Fender Strat instead but I just love humbuckers so I opted for this one. Tess eventually picked up some Strat copies (featured below) which I enjoy playing.
It's funny how I've always been a Gibson guy, yet I have also sort of had my eye on Hamer (pronounced Hay-mer) guitars since the early 1980s. Martin Barre (Jethro Tull) switched from his vintage Les Paul to playing a Hamer for a while and his was the first one I ever saw in action. This little beauty, another one that my sweetheart Tess bought for me, has a very nice quilted maple top with what is called a honeyburst finish...but this particular model is referred to as the Sunburst by the Hamer company. This is a very ornate guitar with abalone inlays completely encircling the body, fingerboard, and the headstock. I have not grown tired of playing the SG, but I have found it quite difficult to put this one down very often as it plays every bit as good as the SG, or the Les Paul I once had. This guitar got equal time with the SG on my latest CD.

 

 

Hamer Sunburst Quilttop

 

 

Hamer Sunburst Flametop

With digital cameras it is many times difficult to capture a good clear shot of the flaming maple top on this guitar, but they are there so you'll just have to trust me on this one. If I were to put any of my guitars up against a Gibson Les Paul it would have to be this one. The neck on this guitar is incredible, and this is still an imported Hamer! I will eventually convert the pickups on this one like I have the Quilttop and put some Seymour Duncan '59's on it, but for now it still sounds pretty good with the generic pickups.

Some day I will have a Hamer made in the USA! If these imports play this nice, I can only imagine how awesome it would be to play an American! I would really like to try an Explorer model, but I am always drawn back to the basic Les Paul Double Cut design.

As I had Tess make these updated pics with some of the more recently acquired guitars, it occurred to me that I have never had my picture taken with the Yamaha 12-string. So, here it is. There is nothing at all fancy about this guitar except that it sounds really nice for the amount of money which was paid for it. In the 1970's all of my guitar-playing buddies were playing Yamaha guitars because they were quite inexpensive and they had a really great bright and crisp sound. Yamaha continues to be inovative and they still make some really nice acoustic guitars which sound really nice.

Behind me you can just see the right side of my Yamaha DGX-200 electronic keyboard. This thing is essential and very handy in making backing tracks for my home-cooked recordings. Yamaha kicks booty!

 

 

1970's Vintage Yamaha 12-String

 

 

Johnson Stratocaster Copy

It's funny how sometimes you see something in your local music shop that you KNOW is just a copy of something much better, but you just go ahead and buy the copy anyways. I have never been fanatical about Fender guitars but a lot of really great guitarists play them, and some hardly play anything else. So it just seemed like a good idea to add a strat (even a copy) to the collection. Surprisingly, this little guitar plays pretty nice. It has 3 single coil EMG-designed pickups which offer the full range of Strat tones. Howard, the salesman at the shop, set this thing up for me as if it was his own. He made the action fast, and he fine-tuned the intonation for me. I'm still adjusting to playing this thing because I had grown accustomed to resting the heel of my picking hand on the bridge of my non-tremelo equipped guitars...something you can't really do on this one without slightly bending the pitch of the strings.

Some of you are probably looking at this and whincing as you shake your heads. But sometimes you find some pretty neat items on an ebay auction and since my wife is an avid ebay shopper, she always thinks of me! I just LOVE my wife!

The price was right on each of these Strat copies, purchased about two weeks apart...actually the blue one was an accidental purchase as my wife unintentionally placed a bid on it...and won! These are not the best guitars in the world as they wouldn't stay in tune when I first got them, however I put some Fender/Schaller tuners on them and that nade a very big difference. A little lowering of the saddles and some intonations adjustments made these things play pretty nice...and that humbucker pickup really screams! Very little investment involved but they work.

 

 

A Pair Of Phat-Strat Wanna-Be's

 

 

A New Rock & Roll Face! This was worth every bit of work!

A funny thing just happened. I have had the new tuners on these two guitars for less than a week and I have found a new home for one of them already! The young man in this pic is named Mario and he was at my house recently and just fell in love with the Blue Strat. "That's an awesome-lookin' guitar, Mister Larry! Can I hold it?"

During the time Mario and his family were with us, Mario hardly took his eyes off of it. After giving it some thought I asked Tessie how she would feel if I gave this guitar to Mario and she agreed it was a great idea. I only wish I could have had a picture of him when he found out he would be leaving our house with this guitar...he lit up like a Christmas tree and was totally excited..."wired" is a better term. The reaction was worth the investment I put into this axe.

Here is yet another Johnson Strat which just happened to arrive at our house while Mario's family were packing up their vehicle for their trip back home...funny how this worked out, one guitar is on it's way out just as another one arrives to replace it.

I have enjoyed playing the silver Johnson so much that when I saw this one on the internet for a rediculously low price I showed it to Tess and she bought it. I like this one, it plays very nice, has great action and intonation, and I really like the maple fingerboard. With the EMG Designed pickups it gets the full range of classic stratocaster tones.

There is yet ONE MORE Johnson on it's way...it's a Catalyst with a red quilted maple top...more about that when I post the pic later...

 

 

Johnson Cream Color Stratocaster Copy

 

 

 

Johnson Catalyst California Strat

Did I mention that my wife really loves me? Well here is yet some more proof of THAT...the new Johnson California Strat! This thing has a very nice quilted maple top with a transparent red finish. It is the first guitar I've ever owned with a Floyd Rose tremelo system with locking nut and I really like it! It's fun doing dive bombs with it and still being in tune to continue playing!

It also comes equipped with two humbucking pickups which are not really the best in the world, but they don't sound too bad either. I am not sure if I wil upgrade these to Seymour Duncans...that may be something I will do on down the road but for now I am enjoying playing it just the way it is. With the three position pickup switch I can get some pretty interesting sounds with it. I LOVE YOU TESSIE!

I am NOT a bass player by any stretch of the imagination, but I HAVE owned a violin bass when I was a teen (I have not been able to find any pics for this site). I have been using my Yamaha keyboard for the bass lines in my recordings but now I have a bass guitar to use instead. It is only a 3/4 scale but I figured that since I am not a bassist that it really wouldn't matter on my recordings, particularly since I don't have the ear to tell the difference.

This was one of those deals at the local music shop that I just couldn't pass up. The guitar came with a small bass amp and gig bag, and was not very expensive at all. We paid almost as much for the hardshell case we bought for it as we did the guitar and amp. But the bottom line...it works for me...that's my story and I'm sticking to it. ;)

 

 

Johnson 3/4 Scale Bass

 

 

Galveston Double Neck Guitar!

Even though I have played the Gibson and Epiphone double neck guitars which didn't belong to me, I never have had one of my own until we received this gorgeous Galveston double neck guitar. The picture doesn't do this one justice because that quilted maple top looks like it is on fire when you see it in person.

I am updating this page about 30 minutes after we opened the box and took it out...of course the first thing we wanted to do was take a picture. I have only played around with it a little bit, but as I have the creative juices started flowing. After settling a few setup issues this guitar will play like a dream. The action and intonation of the 12 string seems really good, but the 6 string is in need of a little work. It has 2 humbuckers for each neck and sounds real good.

This guitar looks much better than it sounds and plays, but it IS a novel guitar to have. I enjoy playing it, and that's about the most important thing about it.

My wife found this guitar in one of the local pawn shops. It was brand new, the plastic was still on the pick guard and pickups, and she got it for a song. The old saying about getting what you pay for doesn't seem to apply to this guitar as it really doesn't sound too bad and it plays alright. It's DEFINATELY not a Fender, and my home-built is a much better Tele than this one. But this one just feels good to hold and play around on because of the flag! The best thing by far was the price, and if I told you what it was you'd be laughing your rear-ends off...let's just say it was less than $100.

 

 

Trinity River American Flag Telecaster

 

 

ESP LTD EC-100QM

This was an incredible deal on an inexpensive guitar that has great playability and lots of guts when it comes to sound. I was not too familiar with ESP guitars, although I knew people like James Hetfield and Kirk Hammet from Metalica have been using them. I first played this guitar at my friend Swampman's house as it belonged to him until recently. He sent me a message on Myspace and asked if I would be interested in buying it from him, and for the price he offered to sell it I just couldn't pass it up. I have made a few minor tweaks on it, mostly in terms of setup, such as adjusting the action and intonation, and this thing plays and sounds every bit as good as any Les Paul I've ever played. THAT is a pitty, but as far as I'm concerned it's Gibson's own fault. But that is another story to be told.
My latest addition...the Hamer Standard with Cherry Sunburst funish! I have been really taken by Hamer guitars for quite some time and I have really been enjoying the two Sunbursts I have. I have always been intrigued with the Explorer body style and have had my eye on a Hamer Standard for some time now. Although this isn't an American made Hamer, I know I'm going to enjoy it because my other Hamers are imports as well. And all I can say is that if the imports are this nice, I can only imagine how heavenly the American-made Hamers are to play...and for the price they should be! I can feel myself slowly drifting away from Gibson electric guitars when I play my Sunbursts...this one will be divine.

 

 

Hamer Standard STDFT-CS

Some Home-Built Projects

 

 

Helicaster Home-Built Concept

Ok, here is one for the eyes of people who are into unique concepts. Since I fly helicopters for a living and I have 4 Stratocaster Style guitars, I thought it would be appropriate to create The Helicaster!

Using the basic design of the front fusalage of a Bell 206 Jetranger and the electronics, bridge, and pick guard concept of a Strat, and the Jackson neck with reverse headstock, this will surely turn some heads and make people say..."What the HECK is THAT?"

This guitar is still in the concept mode for now. The pic to the left is really a fake...I shopped it to see what I would look like playing the Helicaster. I think it looks pretty cool, actually. Before I make an attempt at this one, however, I have another project to build first:

I became inspired to build my own guitar after having changed the pickups in my Hamer Quilttop, so for about 12 months or so I looked at different possibilties...mainly ones that will require the least amount of experience and expertise. I just received the body for my Telecaster and I began aquiring the rest of the parts a little at a time until I had everything I needed to assemble it. I used a Tele neck from Mighty Mite with a maple fingerboard and gold Kluson style tuners, and gold hardware on the rest of it with a pair of low-cost pickups from Guitar Heads, with gold cover on the one at the neck position. Tthe only thing I found most disappointing about this project is that I had to use a pick guard with this particular body due to the way it is routed...maybe one day in the future I can build a rear-routed model so all the wood can show.

 

 

Home-Built Telecaster Project!

 

 

UPDATE!

IT IS FINISHED!

I finally have this project completed! I had to drill holes in the body for through the body stringing at the bridge, and install the string ferules, and had a friend in a guitar shop assist me with making sure the neck and electronics were installed correctly. This thing plays like a dream and surprised the heck out of me! I am very pleased!

I opted for low-cost pickups to begin with because I was not sure I would be able to build a playable guitar, and I had planned to upgrade the pickups with some Seymour Duncans or Bill Lawrences it this thing played good. However, I am so impressed with the pickups I got from Guitar Heads that I will probably leave things as is. They sound really good, especially for the money...with shipping, I have about $40.00 total invested in them and they sound great!

Wouldn't you know that while I was in the midst of getting all of the parts rounded up for my Telecaster project, Tessie found an auction on ebay for this SG body. This project will be a bit easier to accomplish since this body came with all the pickups and electronics installed already. All I will need to add to this is a stop tailpiece, tunomatic bridge, a neck, and tuners. I am currently looking into purchasing a very ornately inlayed neck from a guy in Taiwan who does beautiful inlay work with mother of pearl and abalone...we are going to see if he can do eagle inlays for us.

I believe this body was manufactored for an Epiphone SG copy which you can find in most music stores these days. It only comes with two control pots, one for volume and one for tone.

 

 

Black SG Project Is Coming Next!

Some Other Toys, Effects & Other Gear
YAMAHA DGX-200 ELECTRONIC KEYBOARD
An excellent tool to have for making backing tracks as it allows you to store your music as you compose it. It has all the bells and whistles most electronic keyboards have such as pre-programmed beat and bass patterns, and a multitude of voices for the keyboard. It's been an awesome little toy for me.
There are probably a load of guitar effects processors out there that are better than this one, but for the price there are none that are as versitile with such a wide range of effects and amplifier models as this one. This has been one of the best additions to my gear for the purpose of making my own recordings. It is loaded with an array of varying distortion effects, flange, chorus, talk box, and wah-wah effects as well. You can shape your sound into just about anything you want with this baby, and it comes with a built-in guitar tuner which can be muted so you can tune-up on stage without anyone hearing it. I'm still learning how to use this thing but so far I'm having a blast with it.

 

 

Korg Toneworks AX-1500G

KORG DDD-5 DIGITAL DRUM MACHINE

Between this little beast and the drum kit programs on my Yamaha keyboard, I have been able to come up with some really cool drum beat patterns for making demo recordings. You can either use the pre-programmed patterns on board, or you can program your own, or even play live with this box...although playing live is a bit cumbersome.

The nice thing about this is it's portablility and you can plug it into your practice amp and compose, or just jam along. The only drawback is that it tends to have that thin "digital sampling" sound. I have since found something a little better from M-Audio and it is featured next. I still use the heck out of this little box, however.

M-Audio JamLab
Here's a really great tool for practicing your chops...the M-Audio JamLab computer interface which uses the USB port on your computer and allows you to practice with several drum tracks which were recorded live by a studio session drummer. This is a bit more fun than using a drum machine because you get the sound of a real live drum kit instead of the electronic sound. Click on the image at left for a video demo from the M-Audio website, it's worth a look.
Peavey Rage 158 Practice Amp
As I made my way back into playing electric music a few years ago, this little 15 Watt Peavey Rage 158 was my first amplifier aquisition. It's certainly not the best little amp in the world, but it isn't the worst either. The only drawback to this amp for me has been that it is short-handed in the effects department, ie., it has an overdrive feature but it's always dry as there is no reverb. This has been easily overcome by using my Korg AX-1500G. One of the absolute nicest features about this little amp is it's portability. It is lightweight, it can get quite loud, you can plug your CD player or computer sound output into it and play along with tracks, and it also has a headphone jack. I usually carry this with me to work and I have taken it offshore with me several times because it is so lightweight and portable. It continues to serve me well.
Roland BOSS DR-880 Dr. Rhythm Drum Machine
Here's a really great Christmas present...the DR-880 Rhythm box by BOSS. I have shelved the Korg DDD-5 and now I have some really great drum sounds which sound more like a human drummer instead of something inside of a box. This machine in so incredible as you can program it to play bass notes to your user-programmed drum beats, and is already programmed to play bass on the multitude of pre-programmed patterns which came with it. In addition to being a drum machine, it also has a BOSS GT-6 Guitar Signal Processor integrated in it...as well as a bass guitar processor. It is a real blast to just plug a guitar into and select a pre-programmed pattern and just jam along with. My first experience with this was at my Myspace friend's house, the Swampman, as this is what he uses. I will probably never use the DDD-5 again.
Korg D-3200 Digital Mcorder
Another fantastic present! For the moment I am still way behind in my learning curve in using this thing. This thing is MUCH bigger than I am. It has 16 tracks, plus 16 more virtual tracks for a total of 32 tracks. You can use it for mixing, mastering, and it has a built-in CD burner so you can burn your songs right to CD. I learned about this piece from my friend Swampman as well, but it wasn't until after I got one for myself that I learned what else it has onboard. Actually, this device could be everything you would need to make your own music as it has a built-in drum machine, as well as a guitar signal processor! For the moment I am quite happy just to learn how to record and mix vocals and instruments with it, but this machine has so much potential that it is mind-boggling. I also purchased a Samson Studio condensor mic to use with it and it works great! My music should begin to sound better really soon!
CRATE Power Block Amp & Crate 4 X 12 Speaker Cabinet

You know, there is so much about my equipment which I must attribute to my buddy Swampman. He also turned me onto this Crate Power Block as he had one of these in his music room as well. But, NO, I did NOT buy his...LOL. My wife picked this one up for me on ebay. It's 150 watts of raw power, baby, and it's only about 10 inches long and 5 inches tall! AND it is STEREO!

After we got the amp, my wife went back out beating the bushes to find the cabinet to go with it. It sounds great, but I have been using my Peavey Musician (100 watts) amp head on this cabinet which also sounds terrific, and I'm going to use the Power Block as an amp for my Korg D3200 recorder. This little amp head is so versitile it isn't even funny. The best part was the price as Crate has discontinued this particular model. Guitar Center, as well as other music stores, have had this on sale for $99, but my little darling sweetie beat the sale price by a pretty decent margin! Guys, it really pays to have a woman who not only loves you to pieces, but who can find good deals!

Even though I have posted pics of a Conquero Bruno Violin Bass and an electric 12-string guitar similar to the ones which I owned several years ago, I will continue to be on the lookout for that one blasted pic of my band where both instruments are pictured. I have made too many moves and packed/unpacked/repacked too many boxes over the past 3 decades (or so) to remember where it is, but if and when I find it, I plan to include it on this site.

I have been really fortunate to have parents who really care about me and my music. Although I drove them nuts sometimes with the style of music I like, they still put up with me and always encouraged me in my musical quests. Thanks, Mom and Dad! Now the heat is off them and my wife gets to "enjoy" the sounds I make. So far she hasn't complained and she keeps me supplied with new stuff so I think she likes what she hears...except that I recorded a song which she has grown to dislike because she hears it all the time on her job. She still puts up with me though! I love my wife!

This Site Is Lovingly Dedicated

To The One I Love And Who

Puts Up With All The Noise I Make

And Continues To Contribute To

My Love Of Music.

I Love You, Tessie!

Visit LC's Beatle's Tribute Page and hear some audio samples of some of his Beatles Cover Songs!

Click the image at left, or click here to visit LC's Beatle's Tribute page.

Visit LC's Composite Wings page and hear some audio samples of a few of his original songs from the Composite Wings CD!

Click the image at right, or click here to visit the Composite Wings page.

See & Hear Me Play On Line!

There are currently two locations where you may see and hear me play. I have accounts on myspace.com and youtube.com.

http://www.myspace.com/larrycurtismusic

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=SilverHamer

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