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My first Blog Post - New Build

As my first blog post on CBN, I'd like to share the results of a busy weekend just gone:

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Still a bit of tidying up here and there to do, am still not satisfied with the inbuilt amp/speaker combination (not enough volume), but will try with maybe a different speaker and/or amp.

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Pickups and pots.

Read an in depth interview with a guitar tech, he worked with Emmylou Harris for 11 years, as wells many other renowned musicians. His take on boutique and high end pickups is the designer winds/designs the pickup with the intention that the best sound is at full output, as connected directly to the jack. He therefore had the guitars at full volume, and would use the mixing board to cool them down if necessary. Makes sense, the pickup designer has a specific sound in mind, and wound accordingly. As far as pots go, they simply dump unused frequencies to ground. He also had some good advice to avoid scratchy pots. One is to not store a guitar with the pot where it was when done, for example turn the pot all the way left, or off. If it stays to long at a certain point, corrosion can develop at that point. Also he recommends "spinning" the pot knobs stop to stop at least a dozen times often to keep them clean. An electrical cleaner/lubricant is also recommended every once in a while. Any other tips or feedback?

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My second fret slot cutting jig is complete.  My driver for building this jig is that I am manually challenged to cut vertical fret slots. This jig will ensure my fret slots are vertical. This second version has some helpful enhancements.

Rather than have a depth stop on the fret saw, this capability is built into the jig. This more easily accommodates a supply of varying thickness fret boards. More later on this. 

There is hopefully sufficient info here to produce and build your own design. As always, please do feel free to ask questions or suggest improvements. Apologies for the excessive spacing in this post - I have tried but could not get it any tighter. It seems to display better on mobile devices..

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Here is a high level view of the finished jig.

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Here is a view with a fret saw and fret board in place.

Inexpensive toggle clamps securely hold the board in place and allow one to focus on the sawing.

THE BASIC STRUCTURE

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To start, there are five parts to the basic structure:

- 2 sides both the same height

- the jig base; the sides must be parallel to each other

- the top piece

- the support base (plywood or hardwood is recommended, not particle board which may warp)

Hardwood is recommended. If you are screwing anything together, hardwood will not have the give that softwood or plywood may have, which may upset the accuracy of the jig.

A sixth part, the stop piece, clamps down on the shims that set the depth of the cut. Wing nuts hold down the stop piece.

Screw or glue the sides to the jig base.

Drill the peep hole (optional) in the top piece.

If the depth stop is being installed, drill the holes in the top piece now. And to ensure the bolts can be installed afterwards to hold down the clamp, drill holes in the jig base large enough to accommodate the bolt head to allow the bolts to be fed into the top piece from the bottom of the jig base.

Screw or glue the top piece to the sides. You have completed the basic structure.

The next step is Very Critical Step Number One. Using a table saw or chop saw, cut the assembly in half with the cut at a perfect right angle (90 degrees) to the sides and base of the jig. 

SCREWING THE JIG TO THE SUPPORT BASE

9353918861?profile=originalFor the depth stop, install the two bolts now before you screw the jig base to the support base. If not done yet, drill holes in the jig base large enough to accommodate the bolt head and feed the bolts into the top piece. These bolts are needed to clamp down the stop piece.

Use four screws for each side. Place the screws towards the edge of each side. Ensure the heads are below the top surface of the jig base.

First, align and screw the left side (or right) to the supporting base. Easy enough.

Second, align and screw in the other side. This requires patience and accuracy. This is Very Critical Step Number Two.

Fold a piece of paper over the teeth of the fret saw. Bring the remaining side over to the first and place the blade between the two sides. The saw must be snug, not floppy, but not tight. The paper allows clearance so you can fit and remove the saw easily during operation once the second side is screwed in place.

I used screws to temporarily tack the right side in place until I got a fit I was happy with. It took a few shots. I then drilled pilot holes into the jig base and supporting base and screwed in the permanent screws. 

HOW DEEP A SLOT DOES THE FRET SAW NEED TO CUT?

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This photo shows the stop piece which clamps down on the shims. The height of the top surface of the stop piece establishes the depth of cut.

An adjustable stop allows varying depth of cut. If your fretboards vary in thickness, this is very handy.  I have access to scrap mahogany and ash boards which are  very close to standard fret board thickness. What I don't have is access to a planer to ensure they will all be exactly the same thickness. And occasionally with purchased fret boards, again they may be a different thickness.

If all of your fret boards are and will be identical thickness, screw a permanent depth stop of the required thickness in place to get the slot depth that is needed.

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This photo shows how the stop piece does its job.

The position of the stop is set by adding veneer shims to ensure the fret slot depth will be exactly what is needed. One side is sufficient; the frame of the jig will guide the blade and keep the blade vertical.

The prototype model used screws rather than wing nuts to hold down the stop piece and the shims. This proved a bit of a nuisance and this solution should be easier to deal with.

THE PEEP HOLE

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The Peep Hole was added to help align the cut line with the slot in the jig. It's doable without the peep hole but this allows a bit more light on the area. 

WHAT CAN YOU USE FOR SHIMS

Veneer is an obvious choice. It is about 0.6 mm, 1/32 inches. 

I have a supply of tongue depressors which are about 2mm, 5/64 inches thick. 

Stack the shims as needed. To fine tune the thickness, layer masking tape or painter's tape on the shim. This will increase the thickness in small amounts to get the thickness you need.

SECURING THE JIG WHILE CUTTING

There is a temptation to clamp the jig down to the workbench to secure it. Depending on where the clamps are placed, this may cause the slot which guides the blade to spread open. It is better to secure the support base to a work surface using bench dogs. My simplistic solution, as I have a very old work surface for a bench, was to drill two holes through the support base into the work bench, and drop in a 2 inch common nail to prevent the support base from sliding around. 

I hope this has been helpful. Please feel free to ask any questions or offer improvements.

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Pickup mounting options

Hey... long time member, infrequent commenter here. Some time ago,I read an entry about mounting a 3 pole pickup under the sound board and then placing three small (3/16?) magnets on top of the soundboard and over the poles as a way to extend the magnet field. I also recently noted a Dave Lynas build where he apparently mounted a flatpup under the soundboard with success. I am very interested in these approaches,and any information or guidance in this area would be appreciated  Thanks

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Buy, Sell, Trade

Are there any rules or protocols for members to buy, sell or trade materials and products?  Do we just post them in the pictures section?  I see several members here making fine slides, artwork, guitars, etc., but no information on how to contact them.  Likewise I have some boxes I'd like to sell but I have no idea where to post them.  Most other hobby sites I belong to have sections just for this.  Thanks.

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Turning song writing miseries to fun.

Ahh... song writing. Sometimes, it flows and sometime it doesn't. And when the white page we all hate gets to be infuriating, what can we do?

Well, I was tired of being a shoddy songwriter and decided to do something about it! So I fired-up my favorite drawing and illustration program and got to work. And after many evenings trying to figure out how to make a system that actually works (and listening to many songs noting the words that struck me as useful), I was able to finish the project.

So here I bring you the one and only Blues Song Writer. The only game that will convert those writing chores into more fun!

The game is simple. The only things needed are four dice, a blank sheet of paper and a pen.

After much trial and error (this is version 5 and there might be more), I've come up with a game that seems to work. You throw the number of dice indicated in each category, tally-up the numbers and select the corresponding value. That's it, it's that simple. Once you have all the categories, then comes the hard part: writing the song. I tried to sort the values so that the easier themes come up more often, this took me a long time. The game can be used alone as an inspiration aid or with as many people as you like. It can be fun just seeing who will get stuck with the hard to write selections.

For those who are interested in wasting a bit of printer ink to try it out, here is the link to the file on my Google Drive Blues Song Writer Download

As with all what I do, your comments and suggestions are welcome. Since the project is a work in progress, I'm open to modify the game and do some updates.

I hope you will enjoy.

And happy tunes to you.

François

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Dead Man's Hand

I wanted to do a non-kit build for the first time (and wanted to go fairly primitive), so I mostly just grabbed stuff I had lying around.

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The body is a small (about 8x5) cigar box I picked up for 50 cents at a yard sale, painted green, and decoupaged a poker hand onto.

The neck is a piece of wood I pulled off a garbage pile. The bridge and nut are a couple of "bats" ("one-hitter" pipes for you know what) that I bought for a different build that went bad. I used a violin type friction peg to tune the single string, which was just an old high E string I had discarded from a regular guitar when I changed strings on it.

The only power tool I used was a drill (for the sound holes, the string hole at one end of the neck, and a pilot hole for the friction peg at the head (I used an awl to get the hole right for the peg, but broke two pegs before I got it big enough for the peg to go through and small enough for it to have grip and hold tuning).

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Yeah, it's rough. The neck is already splitting at the head, as the wood is old, cheap, and dried up from sitting around for years before I picked it up and said "hey, a guitar neck."

But hey, it makes noise. And I like it.

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Strait Headstock versus Angled Headstock

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I have been building these fun little stringbuddies for a fjew years now Here at BCB.
But for the first time i had to docter one of my favorit players, cose the Top string tended to run off while in high gear playing, becouse of the strait head i came up whit solution no 1 in the picture on the left. in the middel one ,the headstock is angled so the string problem was whit the tuning of the strings while the pressure on the tuners got to high so i plased a pin for tension release guidens. And the therd(3) is my favorite the slotted headstock gives me the most smooth playing and durable use of my crafted instrument, what is your exspirience consurning the Headstock Toppic?
Your Friendly BCB CBG Builder from Holland !

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3 string Story guitar

I'm asking for short stories to put in this weekends build for a fund raiser help boost Picks go-fund-me. True short stories that we all have as a part of our lives. I'll place pages like a thin booklet on back panel that exhibit a few top stories. The guitar will raffle off on the 16th Feb. message me if you're in. I'll have photos up Saturday on 9th.

Here is my story and an example:

Thief in the night!

At the time, I thought I was well suited for wilderness living but that’s based off overnight camping and a few weeks on the trail. I understood the basics such as how to set dry camp or survive extreme weather conditions. What to pack and all that.

One weekend I decided to head to base camp and set up for the family before all the weekenders came in and spoiled it. I was about 3000 feet in the Cuyamaca’s southern California. Beautiful oaks, manzanita’s, sage and rolling streams. I had a van loaded with everything. I had the fire, the stove and a big juicy T-bone stake all seasoned with pepper, garlic butter sided up with a bake potato and veggies.

I thought of something else I might need and no more than 30 seconds passed, I felt something had changed in the camp. I slowly turned and took my time allowing my eyes to zero in on whatever it is.

There sitting at the table eating my steak was the biggest raccoon I’ve seen to this day. He looked like an over fed child of eight. I yelled at him- HEY! What do you think you’re doing?

For a moment he just held an unconcerned stare as if to say! Isn’t it obvious, I chewing.

Then he was gone and so was my dinner.

Thank you,

smilingdog1  AKA rookie camper

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..genuine road-hardened delta blues outlaws. ..southern soul meets blues funk

...BIOGRAPHY
...the times and travels of an american blues band.

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Funky Blues & Southern Soul - volume 1

"Billy Jones brings back the Thrill. No one who I can think of has taken a truly contemporary look at traditional blues with the musical and lyrical intensity of Billy Jones. A refreshing blast of the really great sound of Healing Blues, Jazz, Funk Music. Loaded with Rich Blues Tradition. B.B. King, Muddy Waters, Even Johnny Winter Flavors. I'd recommend 'Funky Blues & Southern Soul - volume 1' to any avid blues listener and I look forward to hearing more from the reclusive Billy Jones. This guy is the real deal and this is a great CD!"
...here is a biographical interview of Billy Jones that was written by Dave Harrison. ..chief blues writer for BluesNdaBlood Magazine.
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Dave HarrisonBorn into the segregated south, he was exposed to the driving beat of the Blues when he was still an infant. In the crib, he could hear it as it permeated the walls against which he slept. This sound which spoke to him gave him an early direction in life which he has pursued to this day.
 
His early memories are of a juke joint from where he would draw inspiration; the images, and the folks he knew then are the stuff of his song. They gave him a mind-set that would drive him to perfect his craft as a guitar slinging blues man.
Billy Jones is betting that the Blues can experience a revival of interest. What is needed is a fresh infusion of imagination. And to capture a bigger share of the Black music market, what is needed is for the Blues to once again become relevant to the African American experience.
We spoke with him upon the release of his latest CD :
Funky Blues & Southern Soul - volume 1
Billy: "I was raised from the age of six months in my grandfather's cafe and boarding house, The Cedar Street Cafe - 903 Cedar Street - North Little Rock, Arkansas. The room that we lived in was directly behind the wall of the main ballroom where the juke box was. My crib was on the other side of that wall, so as a baby I would be laying there listening to Elmore James, Big Joe Turner, Jackie Wilson, B. B. King, Muddy Waters, Sam Cooke and all the blues and soul greats while the cafe customers played records and partied well into the night. My bed would vibrate on the bass notes. That was my first exposure to the music. I absorbed the music as I could literally hear it in my sleep. One of the first thoughts that I remember having was that I wanted to be like B.B. King and Elmore James."
"There was this dangerous juke-joint/nightclub place down the road from my grandfather's cafe called Jim Lindsey's Place. Many of the big "chittlin' circuit" stars of the day used to perform there like Howlin' Wolf, Sonny Boy Williamson and Bobby Blue Bland. Sometimes at night when everyone else was asleep, I would sneak out of the room and climb up high in an old chinaberry tree and watch what was going on over at Jim Lindsey's Place. I could hear the band from there and pretend that it was me onstage."
"All the pimps, players, dealers, hoe's and gangsters used to hang out there and someone was always getting shot or stabbed on a regular basis. Remember that this was the segregated south, so whenever someone would call for an ambulance for a shooting, or fight, at the club, they would send a hearse from the black owned funeral home instead of an ambulance. If the victim was still alive they would take them to a black doctor. ...If not, they would take them to the funeral home."
"Of course I thought that these were the "beautiful people" and I wanted to be just like them when I grew up. Especially the musicians, with their tight-legged, sharkskin suits and Stacy Adams shoes, their jewelry and the way they wore their hair in a process. And the women! ...the way they used to dress back then was so glamorous! And of course Bobby Blue Bland's Cadillac. ...No medical school for me dad... I'm gonna be a blues star."
"The house band for Jim Lindsey's Place lived in an upstairs room over the club, and during the day I would go over there and try to hang out around them. They could tell that I really wanted to be a guitar player."
"There was this one musician who played at the club named Red Harpo... he told me that he was Slim Harpo's brother. I believed him. Whether he was or not, one thing is true, Red could play the hell out of a guitar! ... There was an air of excitement about him. Women would fight over him. He would let me come up to his room sometimes and talk to him while he would sip "Golden Rod" wine on ice and play and sing for me and show me how to play the new hit songs of the day, while I soaked-in all the information that he was giving me about being a real musician."
"By the time I was fourteen years old, I was hanging out at 'Williams Pool Hall.' One day this older guy pulled up in a 1957 Chevy station wagon packed full of amplifiers, microphones and drums He came in. He had that same air of excitement about him that Red had. He said that he was in a band and he had a gig booked in Lonoke, Arkansas that night and that he heard me play guitar and they were looking for a guitar player. He said that his name was Hosea Leavy and that he and his younger brother Calvin Leavy would pay me $6.00 if I played with them and Willie Cobb, Little Johnny Taylor and Larry "Totsie" Davis that night. I didn't tell him that I had never played in a band before. I was fourteen years old and I was going on the road! I was trying to be cool and I agreed to go with him. But I was so excited to be going to play with a real band!"
"That was the first day that I went on the road with the Leavy Brothers Band, and the beginning of a lifetime journey into the world of the blues . I've been on the road ever since. So it was 'on the job training' for me."
Dave Harrison: Now, how old were you when you first picked up the guitar? How did you become this accomplished musician that you are today?
Billy: "It's hard for me to remember when I didn't have a guitar... it's just something that I've always wanted to do."
"Because I loved guitars so much, around age four, or five years old, my uncle Vernon had given me a little plastic toy guitar with a music-box handle that played 'Pop Goes the Weasel' when you turned it. It was instant love. I used to stand in front of the juke box with that little guitar and pretend that I was every artist whose record was playing. I was always running around holding that guitar. I don't think I ever put it down."
"I think I really started getting serious about it during the summer between the 5th and 6th grade.
I didn't play with the other children in my neighborhood that much. I hung around adult musicians and spent most of my time learning songs from records and trying to sound like the guys on the recordings. Sometimes I would hang out with the winos and perform for them. Some of my family thought I was weird. But music is both my occupation and my recreation. And I spent almost every waking moment playing it and studying and imitating the artists that I idolized. ...I guess that I was kinda weird."
Dave Harrison: How did you start to playing gigs traveling from military installation to installation entertaining military members and their dependents? Were you in fact in the military at the time?
Billy: "No. I was not in the military. I've always regretted that I didn't join the Air Force. I think that I would have liked it. This was during my twenties, after I had started my own band and was playing a lot of Rick James, Cameo, Funkadelic, Stanley Clarke, Hendrix, Bar-Kays, Commodores, Gap, Zapp, and that kinda thing. At that time I was being booked by this big-shot "Clive Davis" type guy named Gene Williams, who was really hooked-up with the Grand Ol' Opry and the Nashville scene and was managing Ferlin Husky, Claude King and Donna Douglas, who played the part of Elly Mae on the television show The Beverly Hillbillies."
"Since he couldn't book a black band in the Country Music Capitol of the World, he started booking me into NCO and Officer's clubs on Naval Stations, Air Force Bases, Army Posts and military installations all over the United States. I lived the military lifestyle without actually being in the military. GI women are great!"
"I learned a lot and made a lot of friends... to this day I have the highest respect for military personnel. They are great people. They work hard and they play hard... and they love hard."
Dave Harrison: Where did this traveling take you?
Billy: "To over 42 states... countless times.  ...and to Europe sometimes  ...and to many clubs and shows that were booked off-base when we were in whatever city. I did that for ten years. I loved it!"
Dave Harrison: How did you come to refer to your music as "Bluez"? Is this to differentiate your music from the music created by the record industry?
Billy: "Yes, it is...I have studied many types of music, including jazz, country, rock, funk, R&B, punk, new wave or whatever, and I wanted to incorporate some of the elements from all of these styles into my original music."
Dave Harrison: How long have you worked to infuse an urban element into your music? How has it been received by your audience?
Billy: "I never intentionally set out to "urbanize" my music. I just wanted to learn everything that I could about my craft and how to please the audience that was in front of me that day. It was just natural evolution. The reception has been overwhelmingly positive from the general public."
Dave Harrison: Presently a number of Black artists are working to merge Blues music with Hip-hop. This would include artists such as Billy Branch, Russ Greene, Chris Thomas-King, among others. In fact, R L Burnside even did his take on this cross-infusion of the Blues, which was met with mixed reviews. Do you see your music going in this direction?
Billy: "What these artists understand... and the reviewers and "experts" probably don't, is this:
Hip-Hop has evolved from blues and is very much a part of it.... Hip-Hop is the blues of today.
If you analyze the greatest hip-hop songs of all time, like "The Message" by Grand Master Flash and The Furious Five, or "How Do You Want It?" by Tu Pac Shakur ...(which is based on the bass hook from "Body Heat" by Quincy Jones), ...it's easy to hear that these songs are pure blues with African/Jamaican bass lines and drum beats. Of course, the stories that these songs tell are undeniable blues themes that reach deep into the heart of the African American experience. I love a little gangsta in my blues every now and then."
Dave Harrison: Do you agree with the assertion that the white artist has been more closely bound by tradition, whereas the Black artist has always been more progressive in their approach to the music, looking for the "next big thing"? This, perhaps, can be seen more in Jazz than in Blues.
Are these attempts at cross-infusion done more for the music, or is it being done for the rewards that the urban artist seems to be enjoying, the "bling"?
Billy: "Definitely for the music. I don't think that it has very much to do with the "bling".... little if anything. ...Of course any artist wants to be well compensated for their work... I certainly do."
 
"But the battle between the blues purist and the blues artist has gone on long before now. The artist wants to be artistic and create and innovate.... the purist doesn't want anything to change. No new instruments, no synthesizers, no drum machines, no new nothing. If Muddy didn't do it... it's wrong."
"But when Bob Dylan and Muddy Waters switched from acoustic to electric guitar the purists said that they were ruining the art-form. Look at all the great classics that were created because they ignored the so called experts."
"What the artist is trying to do is stretch the boundaries of the music and infuse elements that will appeal to a contemporary audience and to bring something new and relevant to the table."
"However, if these experts want to tell the artist what the song should sound like before it is written, there probably won't be much "bling" forthcoming. They won't sell many to people who buy cd's today. If an artist can reach the public and they love the music, then the bling will be just a pleasant side-effect."
"In order to compete effectively in the music business you have to stay on top of current events. That means that you have to have an understanding of contemporary musical styles and trends."
"I remember reading in a biography of Elvis that no matter where he was he was always listening to the radio in order to monitor musical trends and to hear what his competitors were doing. And he was Elvis!"
"Music is about constantly learning. ...and I want my music to appeal to a mass audience."
Dave Harrison: Is this image (the rewards) a creation of the "corporate entertainment business"?
Billy: "No, it is not... it's a creation of the hip-hop industry and the age of music video. It is an expression of what the young audiences wants to see. What they want to be."
Dave Harrison: Do you feel that the urbanization of Blues music is an effective way of reaching a younger market? To what market are you ultimately hoping to appeal?
Billy: "Definitely... it's the only way to reach the younger market."
"I want my music to appeal to everyone. That's what seems to be happening. The stories that I tell on this cd are true and universal. People across all genres are embracing the music."
Dave Harrison: In light of prevailing social and economic conditions that exist today, do you still feel that music can be a vehicle of change?
Billy: "I know that music can be a vehicle for change. Music is a gift from the creator who wrote the song of life. If you do it right it gets you on a level that is primal. And the right story can change the world."
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...these are some of my favorite quotes:
"Our greatest fear is not that we are inadequate, but that we are powerful beyond measure."
"We are the masters of our own destiny. We are the makers of our own fate."
"Without Courage ...we cannot practice any other virtue consistently."
“Know thy self and you will know the secrets of the universe.”
                  --------------------------------------
"True Greats...
Are Not Those Born With
Golden Spoons In Their Mouths
But Those...
Who Through Hard Work
Turn Their Own Wooden Spoons
Into Gold."
                  --------------------------------------
Funky Blues & Southern Soul - volume 1 ..is now FOR SALE at
...we love ya'll. ...go buy one!!
                  ---------------------------------------
YouTube:
ReverbNation:
Facebook:
 
...biographical fact:
Billy Jones spent his teen and young adult years touring with, playing back-up guitar and being mentored by Calvin Leavy, Little Johnny Taylor and Larry 'Totsie' Davis. ...these are the original versions by the original masters that were written and recorded long before the cultural raiders and imitators came along.
All three of these great artists died penniless and unrecognized. ...and their life's works stolen to make fortunes for others.
Now ain't that the Blues?
...it is an honor to have been a musical soldier in their bands.
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Callifest 2019

I would like to take this opportunity to express my thank you to Richard Sundberg and all the others responsible for this fun filled journey. I have had a really bad last 2 weeks at work with lots of bad calls from house fires with a person trapped that was taken to burn center to a 5 month old in cardiac arrest. But each day when I got off from work I would read the antics being posted on the different video blogs. Dave Uncle John Vinnie all of us had unusual experiences on the way there. The videos posted were exceptional also. Thank you to everyone involved. You guys are the best.
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CBN things Not functioning

Went on FaceBook, and left them know, that things on this site arn't working. Chat is down, likes isn't working, can't get into videos, & if you make a post, then post it, and need to make a change to it, it won't let you.
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Amp advice

Hi. I saw an amp advertised near me, it's a Kustom KGA10 FX model. Anyone own one of these and would you recommend it? It's going cheap and sounds ideal for playing at home

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MS CBG No. 1. First build.

Well after talking about it for a year, I finally jumped in and completed my first build based on Shane Speal’s Poor Man’s Guitar instructions. Made a few mistakes but I guess they give it character. I’m surprised at how loud and good it sounds! Build 2 in planning!
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