Anyone relates to the early habit of fighting your instrument? (but later thru the years retire towards the opposite) I play a Tele and its not all that uncomfortable but it does keep me aware of its "existence" so to speak... Mr Kessel at the end tells how when you forget about the instrument and can concentrate on playing music.
Love Barney Kessel, but here he demonstrated some "Instrument Voo-Doo Affliction" . The whole spiel about the pickups- materials no longer available i the world, etc- that just isn't true. I suppose it's human nature to want to believe we're special, that we have things that no one else has... Barney's genius came from Barney. The guitar meant very little. He proved this many times when he played other guitars.
Man, I wonder where that guitar is today? What a jazz players dream guitar. I remember reading that after Django's death,his wife had given Les Paul one of his guitars. I bet it would go for more than Claptons 'Blackie' or an EVH Frankenstein combined. I bet there is someone out there that would pay over a million or more for Barneys guitar.
the strings are made from strands of unicorn mane, the tuner heads are made from solid diamonds, the body is carved from the cross that jesus died on etc etc etc what a legend
Intense? Ask any of the greatest guitarists about their gear and they'll get that glimmer in their eyes and take you down the narrow, winding, deadly road of gear talk. The road of no return upon which many have perished of utter boredom listening to a guy drone on for hours about how awesome this pickup is, or that tuner is, only to have him say "But none of that matters. It's just about the music."
True, but you know that deep inside... we're all gearwhores to some extent.
His statement bears repeating for the benefit of wannabe jazz guitarists. "The guitar is a tool to play music ... and I think about being a musician rather than a guitar player." An amazing mindset comes with maturity, the absence of the need to impress: "It isn't about me, it's about the music." If we're musicians our focus should be on the music and how we can use the guitar to play the best music we can, not demonstrate how clever we are or how many tricks we know.
@bobburford It's true. Even Django Reinhardt didn't care what guitar he played. Whatever one he used became an extension of his soul. It's the artists imagination, not the instrument!
I recall seeing Djangos guitar on view in London. He played it with a warped neck & an action half an inch off the neck. Bridge was held together with tape.
How many can copy Django unless they have a perfect, hand made instrument.?
I dyed my hair for a few years...and the beard two. Only color that looks real is the very lioght brown, which you can leave on a little longer and have it go darker. Once you hit 55, however, a dark color just looks like you dropped your head in a minwax wood stain can. Plus, the damn stuff can cause severe allergic reactions...shortness of breath..(real shortness) and bumps on the bottom of your feet, and some precancerous facial cells will act up sooner than later. Stop now...
The pickup is a Charley Christian pickup, developed back in 1936. The screws sitting in the center of the body below the pickup raise and lower the pickup. The original 1936 Charley Christian also had a custom shaped pickguard that complimented the angled profile of the pickup with a lot of flair. The 1936 model was not a cutaway. Barney had the items added to this guitar, which means he probably added openings on the back to access the interior. Beautiful custom job.
Mr. Kessel (and boy am I thrilled to see this) is showing a mid thirties Charley CHristian guitar. I've got one coming off a sale on ebay ...(This is jan 2011) and am truly excited. Mine is a 1936 model. I've been trying to get more info on the pickup, and here it is. There are sellers that sell a new charley christian style pickup with it's hard corners...new..one for archtop and one for fender. Now I can ask those guys if the pickups are cobalt and copper or not.
@TrueMason Yeah Barney does come across intense. Unfortunately his eys stick out a bit, and he could be two minutes from falling asleep and still have that look. He does have instructor built into his genes. RIght now, late Jan 2011, some of Barney's guitars (The Kays) are on ebay...and his family wants tons O' dough. Too bad they aren't selling this.
@sclogse1 Other than for collection purposes, you probably wouldn't (or couldn't) really play them very well, as they were all custom built for Barney's specifications. If you attempted to modify them in any way, you would immediately decrease their value.
@rayjr62 TheGibson ES 350 was a miuch stronger built gutiar than the 150 CC. Easy to see why he transferred the pickup. I seriously bet that his 30's Charlie Christian ES 150 had developed major cracks in the top and the sides, and could no longer handle the string tension.
I played it.The sound was identical to Barney playing it.His amp and pick.So no mystery there.But he was an inspiration to me earlier in life.Here is a tip he gave mew."If you're having difficulty playing a line,try playing it on one less string."I had had problems playing SABROSA on LP The Other Chet Atkins.I tried his advice and lo and behold...problem solved.
I went to a weeks seminar in Newcastle England and had breakfast with him each day.He was an inspiring person to be with apart from his musical convictions.He had an extra knob on the guitar which a french guy had convinced him would do something or other.He got us to close our eyes and hear the difference.I could not. Next year,the knob was gone.He had decided that it did nothing.(Emperor's new clothes syndrome?)
@arp1978: However, he's not showing one of his signature guitars (which are no longer made--they were manufactured between, I believe, 1962-73--and never sold very well), he's holding his Gibson ES 350, which he played for a number of years later in life.
@thailow117 : uh, wrong. the 150 doesn't have cutaways, for one. like aarfeld said, that is a modded gibson es-350. i believe he played that guitar for the majority of his career.
@thejazzman8 dude, no. it's an original 350, which has a laminate top and one p-90. barney added the charlie christian, changed out the fretboard, and added a new bridge, knobs, etc. not a gibson custom. its a 350.
Barney was one of the best ever. He is certainly one of my all-time favorite players. That C,C, pickup of his sounds awesome. We miss him and his wonderful musicianship.
@metalcore929 with a screen name like "metalcore", why would anyone expect you to like anyone who didn't have 6 feet of hair and an Ibanez with a monkeygrip?
As a kid from the Midwest, I was blown away by Barney's playing on Julie London's "Julie is her name" album with Cry Me a River. In the early 60's I headed for LA to look up Barney. I was lucky enough to get in a small group class. Barney was brutal! "You don't even know your scales yet!" After many years, it was sad to hear that Barney had a stroke and couldn't play. However, my good friend Johnny Zorro visited Barney regularly and kept him connected to the guitar world. Barney's timeless!
I know that Barney said he was more interested in the music than the guitar, but I've been wondering for a long time what his guitar is. Any ideas? It seems to be a converted Gibson acoustic archtop (L-5 shape) but has a bound headstock with dot markers. Quite unusual. FWIW, just picked up a mint vinyl copy of his Limehouse Blues album from 1972, and his playing on that is knockout.
The guitar he's holding is a Gibson ES-350 with an older Charlie Christian pickup. Normally, the ES-350 came with P90 pickups -- Kessel's guitar was fitted with the CC pup. Many top 40's/50's jazzbo guitarists fitted the archtops with older CC pups preferring it's woody sound to P90s or humbuckers. These cats were reared on CC's sound and style. Much as rock players later played Strats for the Hendrix sound or Les Pauls for a Jimmy Page sound, the CC-influenced jazzers would play the CC pup.
Barney's favorite personal guitars that he played extensively, on his own records and world tours, are a 1946/47 Gibson ES 350 modified with a 1939 ES 150 Charlie Christian pickup. Another modification was the replacement of the factory rosewood fingerboard with an ebony board, with dot markers. And he replaced the original Kluson tuning pegs with open-backed Grovers.
I actually met Barney Kessel and said hello to him... didn´t know what to say more because I was doped with whiskey and some other unidentified toxics.
Interesting conversation with Hoopermazing and claptonfan. Clapton fan is right. Today we have in America the Vintage Guitar Market Bullshit. Rich Speculators driving up the price of old instruments just to creat false wealth and get money from assholes who don't know anybetter. Did Gibson or Fender go out of buisness? or is their a shortage of LesPauls No. Some moron say a
Wood guitars take on different acoustic characteristics as they age. Also, components, pup windings etc... can never be exactly replicated. Those are things that both speculators and musicians with very finely attuned ears are willing to pay for.
yes that's right... , but today a small English company is making those C.C. pickups , and not only looking like but sounding like , I'd fix one in my L50 from 36's payed 1000 $ and 350 pounds the C.C. pickup, that was my best deal ever .
Agree with him to some extent. Pick the tool that best suits you then use it to bring out the best of your talents. I've met my share of amateur guitarists blew big bucks on an expensive guitar and had no talent. They spend more time bragging about their instrument then they do learning how to play it well.
So what? It's their money. If some ham-fisted schmuck wants to drop $60,000.00 on a '68 D'Aquisto New Yorker and he can afford to do so, more power to him.
Think again, shit-for-brains. First of all, your comment didn't piss me off at all. Secondly, I've been playing guitar for 30 years. Moreover, I wouldn't spend more than--let's say--$2500.00 for a guitar. I have one that's worth much more than that, but it didn't even cost a grand when I got it.
The correct impetus for my comment is a general contempt for jealous losers who go about counting other people's money.
No, not if someone with great talent could put it to better use! I know a guy who is a guitar freak who has alot of great guitars, but he sells them to other people! Now that would be great, but BUNGLEJYME is absoulutely right, otherwise!
Being able to put something to better use as no bearing on property rights. If someone sufficiently well off wanted to buy a 350 year old $4 million Stradivarius cello and then toss it in a wood chipper, he is perfectly within his rights to do so.
Everyone knows that! But would it in any way make sense? You're not in any sort of way agreeing that a guitar is a tool to produce music. You think of it as a collectors item and you defend the people who buys a great guitar just so they can put it in a storage and never play it. The way you talk, it sounds like you're a collector and not a musician! You sure sound like a "Ham-fisted schmuck", to me. Prove me wrong!
I have no interest in proving you wrong, asshole. You're of no consequence to me whatsoever.
Of course a guitar is a musical instrument. Don't be obtuse. That said, private property is private property. If someone wants to use a 1922 Gibson L5 as a hat rack, that's their business.
I fail to understand why it's any concern of yours what others do with guitars they've bought and paid for... unless it's out of envy, i.e. unless you're a hater who can't afford a decent ax of your own.
Oh I beg your pardon. I'm Swedish and someone just explained to me what "ham-fisted schmuck" means. I apologise for that one. Still, I wonder if I can get you to agree that it's kind of a shame that so many great instruments are taken out of circulation?
No he does not have the right to do it. So why not give the ricih everything. People have a responsibility with things like that. You're wrong my friend. Great works of art should be protected from rich arrogant assholes who would throw a Stratavarius in a wood chipper. Rights do not mean liscense. Even here in America.
If the person in question has a bill of receipt, he/she has the absolute right to do as they wish. There is no provision in the constitution of these United States for such an attenuation of an individual's property rights. Thus why Ted Turner is perfectly within his rights to colorize every black & white movie in his catalog, and why George Lucas is within his rights to continue the brutal ass-rape of the Star Wars legacy unabated.
I agree in principle, but something has happened in America, where the decadent have taken over and are slowly destroying everything here and denying access to the good things in our counry from everybody. I'm pretty conservative but sometimes, there are more important thing at stake than some rich assholes rights.
"there are more important thing at stake than some rich assholes rights."
I agree in terms of things that are essential to life, such as health care and clean drinking water, but not in regard to superfluous conceits like vintage guitars and 350 year old cellos.
one of my old teachers put a CC pikcup in a es-175 and he said the sound was amazing, but thre was a lot of feed back. i think you would have to find some kind of happy medium with the pickup or buy a cheap compressor pedal or something. then again i never heard barney or charlie feed back, so who knows? if you can find a CC pickup let me know the price....i'd like one too!
I think with an archtop feedback is pretty inevitable, but I've heard that the CC pickup is prone to the microphonic feedback- probably due to lack of insulation. I think Jackson Lollar makes one that is properly insulated though... have to look into it.
I have an older cousin who also plays guitar and he goes on and on about how much gear he has and how top of the range it is, but he can't make a guitar sing the way...well everybody else can.
My view is that guitar gear doesn't help you play better. It perhaps opens doors to new ideas, but at the end of the day the equipment doesn't play the guitar for you and therefore it's not a good substitute for your own playing.
i discovered barney kessel through pete townshend's very beautiful recording "for barney kessel" (from pete's first 'scoop' album). i am now happily a fan for life.... such gorgeous music...'to swing or not to swing'..'let's cook' and my favourite, 'some like it hot.'...all of his recordings for contemporary records are fabulous. thanks for this post!
Well spoken. Mr K!! Most of the early guitar greats played what they could their hands on and make wonderful music. This guy could whip up a bigger box of delights on a catalogue guitar than I could on a custom built mega-bucks job. The best guitarists in the world come from everywhere!
"I'm more interested in music than the guitar." Thank you. Which is why he was and remains such a great player. When asked what the most difficult thing about studio work was Barney responded "Finding a parking space." Thanks for posting this.
I love the way he talks about the instrument; 'It's a tool'. So many dudes get caught up in the whole 'arsenal of guitars' thing, they feel they have to have 6 different amps run in stereo, 30 pedals and 20 guitars. I saw Clapton recently and Doyle Bramall changes guitars every friggin' song. That got on my nerves. Get a box, and amp and as Barney says 'think about the music'!
Clapton is such a overrated player, anyway. He's passably competent at what he does, but if I hear one more person call him "the greatest guitar player in the world," I think I'll lose my lunch. I have never heard a single innovative note out of him. It's all tepid rehash packaged for the masses. Ugh!
Well, i see where you are coming from, Clapton hasn't brought the guitar forward in any form since the 60's however I have to say I do still enjoy his playing. It's a different kind of enjoyment though when i listen to Jazz guys like Barney, Wes, Tal etc. Those guys pushed the boundaries and came up with new concepts all the time. They were always moving the instrument forward.
@chooseyourblues You are SO right! I saw Carlos Santana change guitars every song for two hrs ...if only we could all afford to do this. Seemed really pretentious. Kessel was just amazing in every way.. beyond words.
nice guitar!! charlie christian pickup original im sure. barney gets a unique sound. i know seymour duncan makes a reissue cc pickup for around 300 bucks.
pompous mathafucka. Wes Montgomery could just borrow a guitar and do a live gig and it wouldnt matter. Pffff..
MrOdinakos 1 month ago
Anyone relates to the early habit of fighting your instrument? (but later thru the years retire towards the opposite) I play a Tele and its not all that uncomfortable but it does keep me aware of its "existence" so to speak... Mr Kessel at the end tells how when you forget about the instrument and can concentrate on playing music.
14luisalonso 1 month ago
"And how do you feel playing that guitar? Well pretty much like being in heaven"
WhiteNacho 1 month ago
where ever this guitar is its priceless.
dezertfox4323 1 month ago
A Jewish southerner who plays black music like genius. What a beautiful world.
waldo2384 3 months ago
Love Barney Kessel, but here he demonstrated some "Instrument Voo-Doo Affliction" . The whole spiel about the pickups- materials no longer available i the world, etc- that just isn't true. I suppose it's human nature to want to believe we're special, that we have things that no one else has... Barney's genius came from Barney. The guitar meant very little. He proved this many times when he played other guitars.
LandonInFlorida 4 months ago
Comment removed
LandonInFlorida 4 months ago
Man, I wonder where that guitar is today? What a jazz players dream guitar. I remember reading that after Django's death,his wife had given Les Paul one of his guitars. I bet it would go for more than Claptons 'Blackie' or an EVH Frankenstein combined. I bet there is someone out there that would pay over a million or more for Barneys guitar.
quailblaster 6 months ago
Barney Kessel=LEGEND!
A real Jazz musician of a mould no longer made or at least barely seen. Touch, feel, expression and tones like cream.
EVERY guitarist of EVERY generation should listen to BK regularly; I do!
BK Jazz guitar rules!
FenderJaguarmaster 6 months ago 2
Ｍｙ ｇｕｉｔａｒ ｍａｄｅ ｂｙ ｗｏｏｄ ａｎｄ ｔｈｅｎ ｏｎｃｅ ｉ ｐｌｕｃｋ ａｌｌ ｂｒｏｋｅ．Ｍｙ ｇｕｉｔａｒ ｖｅｒｙ ｇｏｏｄ．
guitarlearner89 6 months ago
the strings are made from strands of unicorn mane, the tuner heads are made from solid diamonds, the body is carved from the cross that jesus died on etc etc etc what a legend
ciaputa 8 months ago
@ciaputa Orville Gibson himself wanked and came in the neck mortise before they glued it up.
waldo2384 3 months ago
what a fucking ace
lordOFbrooklyn 10 months ago
Barney Kessel was also a Kay Endorser (Kelvinator Headstock)
bayloft 10 months ago
Intense? Ask any of the greatest guitarists about their gear and they'll get that glimmer in their eyes and take you down the narrow, winding, deadly road of gear talk. The road of no return upon which many have perished of utter boredom listening to a guy drone on for hours about how awesome this pickup is, or that tuner is, only to have him say "But none of that matters. It's just about the music."
True, but you know that deep inside... we're all gearwhores to some extent.
thearmofbarlow 11 months ago
His statement bears repeating for the benefit of wannabe jazz guitarists. "The guitar is a tool to play music ... and I think about being a musician rather than a guitar player." An amazing mindset comes with maturity, the absence of the need to impress: "It isn't about me, it's about the music." If we're musicians our focus should be on the music and how we can use the guitar to play the best music we can, not demonstrate how clever we are or how many tricks we know.
bobburford 1 year ago
@bobburford It's true. Even Django Reinhardt didn't care what guitar he played. Whatever one he used became an extension of his soul. It's the artists imagination, not the instrument!
I recall seeing Djangos guitar on view in London. He played it with a warped neck & an action half an inch off the neck. Bridge was held together with tape.
How many can copy Django unless they have a perfect, hand made instrument.?
taildragger53 10 months ago
I dyed my hair for a few years...and the beard two. Only color that looks real is the very lioght brown, which you can leave on a little longer and have it go darker. Once you hit 55, however, a dark color just looks like you dropped your head in a minwax wood stain can. Plus, the damn stuff can cause severe allergic reactions...shortness of breath..(real shortness) and bumps on the bottom of your feet, and some precancerous facial cells will act up sooner than later. Stop now...
sclogse1 1 year ago
The pickup is a Charley Christian pickup, developed back in 1936. The screws sitting in the center of the body below the pickup raise and lower the pickup. The original 1936 Charley Christian also had a custom shaped pickguard that complimented the angled profile of the pickup with a lot of flair. The 1936 model was not a cutaway. Barney had the items added to this guitar, which means he probably added openings on the back to access the interior. Beautiful custom job.
sclogse1 1 year ago
You'll never see another 1946 guitar with a 1939 Charley Christian pickup. Note the nuts in the center of the body..they raised and lowed the pickup.
Get outta here.
I like the way the pickup matches his bow tie.
Hmmmmmmmm.
sclogse1 1 year ago
You'll never see another 1946 guitar with a 1939 Charley Christian pickup. Note the nuts in the center of the body..they raised and lowed the pickup.
Get outta here.
sclogse1 1 year ago
Comment removed
sclogse1 1 year ago
Mr. Kessel (and boy am I thrilled to see this) is showing a mid thirties Charley CHristian guitar. I've got one coming off a sale on ebay ...(This is jan 2011) and am truly excited. Mine is a 1936 model. I've been trying to get more info on the pickup, and here it is. There are sellers that sell a new charley christian style pickup with it's hard corners...new..one for archtop and one for fender. Now I can ask those guys if the pickups are cobalt and copper or not.
sclogse1 1 year ago
k Barney is way too intense here
TrueMason 1 year ago
@TrueMason Yeah Barney does come across intense. Unfortunately his eys stick out a bit, and he could be two minutes from falling asleep and still have that look. He does have instructor built into his genes. RIght now, late Jan 2011, some of Barney's guitars (The Kays) are on ebay...and his family wants tons O' dough. Too bad they aren't selling this.
sclogse1 1 year ago
@sclogse1 Other than for collection purposes, you probably wouldn't (or couldn't) really play them very well, as they were all custom built for Barney's specifications. If you attempted to modify them in any way, you would immediately decrease their value.
rayjr62 1 year ago
@rayjr62 TheGibson ES 350 was a miuch stronger built gutiar than the 150 CC. Easy to see why he transferred the pickup. I seriously bet that his 30's Charlie Christian ES 150 had developed major cracks in the top and the sides, and could no longer handle the string tension.
sclogse1 1 year ago
fucking awesome
johngoo343 1 year ago
Comment removed
heroehat 1 year ago
Comment removed
heroehat 1 year ago
I played it.The sound was identical to Barney playing it.His amp and pick.So no mystery there.But he was an inspiration to me earlier in life.Here is a tip he gave mew."If you're having difficulty playing a line,try playing it on one less string."I had had problems playing SABROSA on LP The Other Chet Atkins.I tried his advice and lo and behold...problem solved.
geoffmenzer 1 year ago
I went to a weeks seminar in Newcastle England and had breakfast with him each day.He was an inspiring person to be with apart from his musical convictions.He had an extra knob on the guitar which a french guy had convinced him would do something or other.He got us to close our eyes and hear the difference.I could not. Next year,the knob was gone.He had decided that it did nothing.(Emperor's new clothes syndrome?)
geoffmenzer 1 year ago
Love those chicken head knobs.
coal4life 1 year ago
in case anyone doesnt know it's a Charlie Christian pickup, and it weighs a freakin ton
thejazzman8 1 year ago
he speaks exactly like he plays. deliberately and with complete knowledge of what's going on. also, great beard.
TrueSchmoo 1 year ago
legend
Mobyman690 1 year ago
I kind of get the feeling he's tryng to sell a "Barney kessel signature model".
Such a great musician though.
arp1978 2 years ago
@arp1978: However, he's not showing one of his signature guitars (which are no longer made--they were manufactured between, I believe, 1962-73--and never sold very well), he's holding his Gibson ES 350, which he played for a number of years later in life.
aarfeld 1 year ago
@arp1978 only that this is an es 150. he was rarely seen with his sig. models, neither the gibson, nor the airline tuxedo.
thailow117 1 year ago
@thailow117 : uh, wrong. the 150 doesn't have cutaways, for one. like aarfeld said, that is a modded gibson es-350. i believe he played that guitar for the majority of his career.
conradpaul 1 year ago
@conradpaul looks like an l-7c but the dot inlays make it an odd creature...gibson custom job.
thejazzman8 1 year ago
@thejazzman8 dude, no. it's an original 350, which has a laminate top and one p-90. barney added the charlie christian, changed out the fretboard, and added a new bridge, knobs, etc. not a gibson custom. its a 350.
conradpaul 1 year ago
@conradpaul good thing he didn't take out a PAF I guess, that would be a crime
thejazzman8 1 year ago
@conradpaul by definition it's not a 350, thats just how it started life
thejazzman8 1 year ago
@thejazzman8 keep telling yourself that. by the way, paf's hadn't been invented when that guitar was built.
conradpaul 1 year ago
@conradpaul duh....and if you think taking pafs out of one guitar to put into a les paul is ok you should be committed
thejazzman8 1 year ago
"It sounds exactly like I heard it in my mind."
arp1978 2 years ago
He was BRILILIANT
michaelhutchinson 2 years ago
thank you for this upload, great to get the opinion of such a great player.
matthewcross 2 years ago
We guitar players should think more along these lines. I still love this guitar and in Barney's hands...well...he was great!
kenkarsh 2 years ago
Barney was so cool.I saw him play in Austin 1979,and afterwards he took time to talk to me about this very guitar.
rockitflash 2 years ago
Barney was one of the best ever. He is certainly one of my all-time favorite players. That C,C, pickup of his sounds awesome. We miss him and his wonderful musicianship.
mikjazz 2 years ago
HA!! you might think so but id love to see you try and play some of the beautiful songs that he did.
45onelove45 2 years ago
This comment has received too many negative votes show
This guy seems like a total dork.
metalcore929 2 years ago
Not nearly as much as you do, sir.
mrtwang32 2 years ago 8
maybe a bit, but if you want to hear a true original, self-taught master, listen to as much barney kessel as you can. the guy is incredible.
cj1982 2 years ago
@metalcore929 with a screen name like "metalcore", why would anyone expect you to like anyone who didn't have 6 feet of hair and an Ibanez with a monkeygrip?
drumuitar 1 year ago
As a kid from the Midwest, I was blown away by Barney's playing on Julie London's "Julie is her name" album with Cry Me a River. In the early 60's I headed for LA to look up Barney. I was lucky enough to get in a small group class. Barney was brutal! "You don't even know your scales yet!" After many years, it was sad to hear that Barney had a stroke and couldn't play. However, my good friend Johnny Zorro visited Barney regularly and kept him connected to the guitar world. Barney's timeless!
smilinjack11 2 years ago
I know that Barney said he was more interested in the music than the guitar, but I've been wondering for a long time what his guitar is. Any ideas? It seems to be a converted Gibson acoustic archtop (L-5 shape) but has a bound headstock with dot markers. Quite unusual. FWIW, just picked up a mint vinyl copy of his Limehouse Blues album from 1972, and his playing on that is knockout.
guitardunc 2 years ago
The guitar he's holding is a Gibson ES-350 with an older Charlie Christian pickup. Normally, the ES-350 came with P90 pickups -- Kessel's guitar was fitted with the CC pup. Many top 40's/50's jazzbo guitarists fitted the archtops with older CC pups preferring it's woody sound to P90s or humbuckers. These cats were reared on CC's sound and style. Much as rock players later played Strats for the Hendrix sound or Les Pauls for a Jimmy Page sound, the CC-influenced jazzers would play the CC pup.
archtopeddy 2 years ago
An ES-350 with a dot neck?
guitardunc 2 years ago
I found the following at website All About Jazz:
Barney's favorite personal guitars that he played extensively, on his own records and world tours, are a 1946/47 Gibson ES 350 modified with a 1939 ES 150 Charlie Christian pickup. Another modification was the replacement of the factory rosewood fingerboard with an ebony board, with dot markers. And he replaced the original Kluson tuning pegs with open-backed Grovers.
archtopeddy 2 years ago
Thanks archtopeddy. That solves that mystery!
guitardunc 2 years ago
@guitardunc it´s an gibson es-350,
krullebol4 2 years ago
Thanks krullebol4.
guitardunc 2 years ago
I actually met Barney Kessel and said hello to him... didn´t know what to say more because I was doped with whiskey and some other unidentified toxics.
CreativeManiac 2 years ago
Interesting conversation with Hoopermazing and claptonfan. Clapton fan is right. Today we have in America the Vintage Guitar Market Bullshit. Rich Speculators driving up the price of old instruments just to creat false wealth and get money from assholes who don't know anybetter. Did Gibson or Fender go out of buisness? or is their a shortage of LesPauls No. Some moron say a
zinnington 2 years ago
Wood guitars take on different acoustic characteristics as they age. Also, components, pup windings etc... can never be exactly replicated. Those are things that both speculators and musicians with very finely attuned ears are willing to pay for.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
Yeah!
claptonfan1000000 2 years ago
yes that's right... , but today a small English company is making those C.C. pickups , and not only looking like but sounding like , I'd fix one in my L50 from 36's payed 1000 $ and 350 pounds the C.C. pickup, that was my best deal ever .
alecaleblues 2 years ago
Agree with him to some extent. Pick the tool that best suits you then use it to bring out the best of your talents. I've met my share of amateur guitarists blew big bucks on an expensive guitar and had no talent. They spend more time bragging about their instrument then they do learning how to play it well.
BUNGLEJYME 2 years ago 5
So what? It's their money. If some ham-fisted schmuck wants to drop $60,000.00 on a '68 D'Aquisto New Yorker and he can afford to do so, more power to him.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
I think I know why my comment pisses you off. It's because you are one of those ham-fisted shmucks with lots of money and no talent.
BUNGLEJYME 2 years ago
Think again, shit-for-brains. First of all, your comment didn't piss me off at all. Secondly, I've been playing guitar for 30 years. Moreover, I wouldn't spend more than--let's say--$2500.00 for a guitar. I have one that's worth much more than that, but it didn't even cost a grand when I got it.
The correct impetus for my comment is a general contempt for jealous losers who go about counting other people's money.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
No, not if someone with great talent could put it to better use! I know a guy who is a guitar freak who has alot of great guitars, but he sells them to other people! Now that would be great, but BUNGLEJYME is absoulutely right, otherwise!
claptonfan1000000 2 years ago
I'm sorry, but that's not how America works.
Being able to put something to better use as no bearing on property rights. If someone sufficiently well off wanted to buy a 350 year old $4 million Stradivarius cello and then toss it in a wood chipper, he is perfectly within his rights to do so.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
has, not "as"
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
Everyone knows that! But would it in any way make sense? You're not in any sort of way agreeing that a guitar is a tool to produce music. You think of it as a collectors item and you defend the people who buys a great guitar just so they can put it in a storage and never play it. The way you talk, it sounds like you're a collector and not a musician! You sure sound like a "Ham-fisted schmuck", to me. Prove me wrong!
claptonfan1000000 2 years ago
I have no interest in proving you wrong, asshole. You're of no consequence to me whatsoever.
Of course a guitar is a musical instrument. Don't be obtuse. That said, private property is private property. If someone wants to use a 1922 Gibson L5 as a hat rack, that's their business.
I fail to understand why it's any concern of yours what others do with guitars they've bought and paid for... unless it's out of envy, i.e. unless you're a hater who can't afford a decent ax of your own.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
Oh I beg your pardon. I'm Swedish and someone just explained to me what "ham-fisted schmuck" means. I apologise for that one. Still, I wonder if I can get you to agree that it's kind of a shame that so many great instruments are taken out of circulation?
claptonfan1000000 2 years ago
I never said it wasn't a shame. I said that the owner has the right to do as he or she sees fit.
As you're Swedish, we'll probably never see eye to eye. I'm from a much more dog eat dog, live and let die kind of country.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
No he does not have the right to do it. So why not give the ricih everything. People have a responsibility with things like that. You're wrong my friend. Great works of art should be protected from rich arrogant assholes who would throw a Stratavarius in a wood chipper. Rights do not mean liscense. Even here in America.
zinnington 2 years ago
If the person in question has a bill of receipt, he/she has the absolute right to do as they wish. There is no provision in the constitution of these United States for such an attenuation of an individual's property rights. Thus why Ted Turner is perfectly within his rights to colorize every black & white movie in his catalog, and why George Lucas is within his rights to continue the brutal ass-rape of the Star Wars legacy unabated.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
I agree in principle, but something has happened in America, where the decadent have taken over and are slowly destroying everything here and denying access to the good things in our counry from everybody. I'm pretty conservative but sometimes, there are more important thing at stake than some rich assholes rights.
zinnington 2 years ago
"there are more important thing at stake than some rich assholes rights."
I agree in terms of things that are essential to life, such as health care and clean drinking water, but not in regard to superfluous conceits like vintage guitars and 350 year old cellos.
Hoopermazing 2 years ago
Gibson es-350
the guitar IS just a tool but...you have to have the proper tool in order to do your best work.
Barney found his proper guitar long ago and stuck with it.
e541210 2 years ago 2
This sums up the way jazz guitar works...it's merely a tool to play music...but I really want that CC pickup :-P
aaronentresz 2 years ago
one of my old teachers put a CC pikcup in a es-175 and he said the sound was amazing, but thre was a lot of feed back. i think you would have to find some kind of happy medium with the pickup or buy a cheap compressor pedal or something. then again i never heard barney or charlie feed back, so who knows? if you can find a CC pickup let me know the price....i'd like one too!
cj1982 2 years ago
I think with an archtop feedback is pretty inevitable, but I've heard that the CC pickup is prone to the microphonic feedback- probably due to lack of insulation. I think Jackson Lollar makes one that is properly insulated though... have to look into it.
aaronentresz 2 years ago
Jason Lollar makes CC style pickups, he even makes them in humbucker sized.
alogusz 2 years ago
I had the pleasure of attending 2 of Barney´s seminars. He was a musical & intellectual giant, as well as being a lovely man.
perromanchado 2 years ago
Thank you Barney for the wonderful lessons you gave me in the early 70's. RIP. cliff in tokyo
cliffworks4321 2 years ago
thats a scary lookin dude.
tomatwood 2 years ago
very commited person this mr kessel
thailow117 2 years ago
when all the gear talk is said and done, you still have to play music. Most professional musicians I know share the same philosophy as Barney.
ionahoopii 3 years ago
completely agree!
I have an older cousin who also plays guitar and he goes on and on about how much gear he has and how top of the range it is, but he can't make a guitar sing the way...well everybody else can.
My view is that guitar gear doesn't help you play better. It perhaps opens doors to new ideas, but at the end of the day the equipment doesn't play the guitar for you and therefore it's not a good substitute for your own playing.
VampolkaXL 2 years ago 2
Thats awesome advice!
most young musicians need to take that
advice!!!
Rickyyy001 3 years ago 2
i discovered barney kessel through pete townshend's very beautiful recording "for barney kessel" (from pete's first 'scoop' album). i am now happily a fan for life.... such gorgeous music...'to swing or not to swing'..'let's cook' and my favourite, 'some like it hot.'...all of his recordings for contemporary records are fabulous. thanks for this post!
massiveham 3 years ago
Well spoken. Mr K!! Most of the early guitar greats played what they could their hands on and make wonderful music. This guy could whip up a bigger box of delights on a catalogue guitar than I could on a custom built mega-bucks job. The best guitarists in the world come from everywhere!
Deebemc 3 years ago
The voice of reason! Thank you Barney.
Antarblue 3 years ago
There is everything about the atittude of a guitar player in his short words.
ritenour79 3 years ago
Words FULL of wisdom
DIMEBAGDIAZ 3 years ago 7
This comment has received too many negative votes show
I was expecting the Gibson double cutaway guiar real texan..most great musicians come from Texas
wisesatyr72 3 years ago
HA ya right, i'd say the majority come out of england. maybe lots of blues musicians.. but even then, clapton..
Vinny192 3 years ago
Well mate, people from England seems to know more and can make Amercian music sound spectacular, especially the Blues/Clapton/Rolling Stones..
I find that Canadians could make country music sound tremendous like Neil Young and the Band
wisesatyr72 3 years ago
There's great musicians born across the globe...the place of birth does not determine them as great musicians..you guys need to listen to more music
john4019 3 years ago 3
Im just saying that alot of musicians that I liked came from Texas which are not necessiarly country or downright boring..
People from Texas should recognized them
What you said was absolutlely right and Im not putting down anyone or being biased in anyway..
wisesatyr72 3 years ago 2
simply amazing..
rotolo 3 years ago
This should be the first thing every guitarist should watch when it's time to buy an instrument
SlikkTim 3 years ago 4
"I'm more interested in music than the guitar." Thank you. Which is why he was and remains such a great player. When asked what the most difficult thing about studio work was Barney responded "Finding a parking space." Thanks for posting this.
paynow 3 years ago
Very erudite, thoughtful player. I'm deeply saddened I discovered him this late and never got the chance to see him play.
BobNew 3 years ago
Beautiful. This is a jewel. Thanks for posting.
bluejazzcat 3 years ago 2
Chooseyourblues summed my feelings up perfectly.
Kids, listen to Barney Kessel and forget about the damn guitar...it's all about the music!
gtrumpnc 3 years ago 8
I love the way he talks about the instrument; 'It's a tool'. So many dudes get caught up in the whole 'arsenal of guitars' thing, they feel they have to have 6 different amps run in stereo, 30 pedals and 20 guitars. I saw Clapton recently and Doyle Bramall changes guitars every friggin' song. That got on my nerves. Get a box, and amp and as Barney says 'think about the music'!
chooseyourblues 3 years ago 21
You saved me lots of typing. Thanks!
zappr5 3 years ago 2
@chooseyourblues : well put!
Clapton is such a overrated player, anyway. He's passably competent at what he does, but if I hear one more person call him "the greatest guitar player in the world," I think I'll lose my lunch. I have never heard a single innovative note out of him. It's all tepid rehash packaged for the masses. Ugh!
fanniterrette 1 year ago
@fanniterrette
Well, i see where you are coming from, Clapton hasn't brought the guitar forward in any form since the 60's however I have to say I do still enjoy his playing. It's a different kind of enjoyment though when i listen to Jazz guys like Barney, Wes, Tal etc. Those guys pushed the boundaries and came up with new concepts all the time. They were always moving the instrument forward.
chooseyourblues 1 year ago
@chooseyourblues ; Fair enough. I know Clapton is loved the world over. I have never enjoyed him much, but I don't think he's a terrible player.
fanniterrette 1 year ago
@chooseyourblues Right on the money with yr comment....
Nigey 1 year ago
@chooseyourblues You are SO right! I saw Carlos Santana change guitars every song for two hrs ...if only we could all afford to do this. Seemed really pretentious. Kessel was just amazing in every way.. beyond words.
taildragger53 1 year ago
@chooseyourblues Doyle Bramall, from the looks of him lately, seems more interested in where he will be eating dinner after the gig than in playing.
rayjr62 1 year ago
@rayjr62
Is he fat?
chooseyourblues 1 year ago
@chooseyourblues very.
rayjr62 1 year ago
Cool... I've never had a chance to hear him speak (at length) much before. You can hear the Oklahoma.
He's an irreplaceable jazz guitar legend.
notbendable 3 years ago 3
nice guitar!! charlie christian pickup original im sure. barney gets a unique sound. i know seymour duncan makes a reissue cc pickup for around 300 bucks.
EddieVanhangover 3 years ago 2