Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin Bass Review

Aloha!

Most every bass player on the planet over the age of 40 can picture Paul McCartney playing his Hofner bass as he stood up in front of The Beatles. I have never had the desire to own one of these instruments, though I have often wondered how well they play. After trying out their super bargain basement version Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass I still have to wonder, as there is no way he played something this crummy if he had any other choice.

These unique basses go back 60 years, when they were designed by Walter Höfner in 1955. The 500/1 Violin Bass is the one that McCartney plays, and they are still being made in Germany, with price tags that approach $5000 ($3500 street), and they must be at least pretty good for that kind of money. Now, the Ignition Series instruments like the one I am reviewing are made in China, and judging by this example they are miserable chunks of crap.

If you take a casual glance at this violin bass, it has the same shape and style as the original. It has a spruce top and flamed maple sides and back. It is available in sunburst or black, though why would you ever get a black one? McCartney didn’t play a black one. There is simple white binding on the semi-hollow body and a “mother of toilet seat” pickguard to give it a classier look.

The set neck is made of maple and beech with a rosewood fretboard. This 30-inch scale neck has 22 frets and little dot markers set into it. The neck is not bound and the nut is 42mm wide, and it has a relatively thin profile so those with smaller hands might be happy.

On to the hardware and electronics. Tuners are open-geared nickel-plated Waverly copies and the bridge is rosewood with what looks like little chunks of frets set into it. There are two humbucking pickups that are wired through a volume and a tone knob. There are also three switches: bridge pickup ON/OFF, neck pickup ON/OFF, and a rhythm/solo switch.

This all sounds pretty good, but when I looked at how this thing is put together and how it sounds things go south in a hurry.

The finish on the body is poor, with fisheyes and dirt in the paint. The binding is sloppily applied, with finish running over the edges of it, and a portion of it looks like it is already coming loose. Everything about the neck is terrible. The frets are not level, and the edges have such a large ramp on them that the E and G strings easily come off the edges of the fretboard when digging in a bit. The headstock end of the fretboard looks like it was cut with a chainsaw and you can see the chipped end in the gap between the fretboard and the very crudely cut nut. On to the electronics! This thing sounds terrible. The pickups have almost no output, and the tone knob seems to do nothing at all.

It plays terribly too. Because the nut is cut so high the action is incredibly high on the first few frets, and the intonation is especially bad on these. Intonation is universally bad on the rest of the frets, and there is virtually no way to get this thing so that most of the notes on each string are in tune.

Pretty much the Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass is a toy, as it feels and plays like something you would get with your Guitar Hero video game. If you have to get something that looks like this and use it for more than a wall decoration, Rogue makes something similar that is acceptable. Or you can pay a few thousand bucks and get a German-made one…

Should you go against my recommendations, at least you will not be paying a ton of money. The Hofner Ignition Series Vintage Violin bass has a street price of $349 (List $499), and no case is included. Do not say I did not warn you, though.

Mahalo!

George Henry Martin: January 3, 1926 to March 8, 2016

You were truly a Beatle. Rest in peace, sir.

Berndon Kirksaether and the Twang Bar Kings – The Voodoo Sessions, Live at Down Under | Album Review

Berndon Kirksaether & the Twang Bar Kings – The Voodoo Sessions, Live at Down Under

Roller Records

www.rollerrec.com

4 tracks / 20:49

I do not get very many blues albums to review out of Norway, but the few that have made it to my desk have been very good. One of these is the latest disc from Berndon Kirksaether & the Twang Bar Kings, The Voodoo Sessions - Live at Down Under. This EP is their fourth release, and it is a healthy dose of burning and moody blues-rock.

Three members of this group are from CIA, a solid blues band that hit the Norwegian scene in the early 1990s. On The Voodoo Sessions Live at Down Under you will find Berndon Kirksaether and Erik Gabrielsen on guitar, Stein Tumert on bass, and Roy Hanssen behind the drum kit; everybody gets credit for vocals on this effort.

This four song EP was recorded live at Down Under in Mjondalen, Norway and it includes three originals and one awesome cover tune. It is apparent that these guys are fans of 60s and 70s AOR swampy blues-rock, and this sound seems to be working for them. You will hear a bit of this when the band kicks off this set with “Mama Roll Over” which builds slowly into a powerfully dark anthem. The sound is very clear for a live album and it is mixed well so that none of the instruments are buried. The vocals are throaty and the lyrics are in English with no trace of an accent, in case you were wondering – they are from Norway, you know…

Next up is another original, “Some Kind of Voodoo,” which is six minutes of psychedelic fun. Berndon and Erik are able to coax synth-like sounds from their highly processed guitars, and there are neat vocal harmonies in play here. Hanssen shows great restraint and lays back on the drums throughout, mostly hitting the toms and adding cymbals in as needed for effect.

When looking for songs to cover, it is hard to go wrong with Robin Trower, so “Mad House” is a pretty good choice for the number three spot. This is one hell of a jam that lets all four members cut loose, and it is nice to hear Hanssen and Tumert go a little crazy. This is the standout track from the disc, and at 3 ½ minutes my only gripe is that it is not long enough!

Closing out the CD is “When the Moon is on the Rise” which gets even more out there in the guitar sounds department with tons of reverb added in. Hanssen keeps a steady beat on the high-hat which helps to create a tremendous sense of tension throughout as it sounds like the band will explode at any moment, though they never do. This song would have fit in well on any of The Doors’ albums, which is good thing in my book.

The Voodoo Sessions Live at Down Under is a fun release from Berndon Kirksaether & the Twang Bar Kings and it is good to hear what they can do live. We can only hope that they make it over to the states soon so we can hear them in person!

Memphis Cigar Box Guitar #313 Review

Hello!

I have bought and sold hundreds of guitars and basses over the past 30 years, and out of all of them there are only two that I consider “keepers” – a Gibson Explorer that a friend of mine custom painted for me, and my Memphis Cigar Box guitar.

Memphis Cigar Box is owned and run by Matt Isbell, frontman of the incredible Ghost Town Blues Band. He hand builds cigar box guitars, bottleneck slides, and cigar box amps, and there is nobody else you would want to do this for you. Not only is he a craftsman, but also a real-live gigging musician so he will not sell you a guitar that does not play right or sound good. If you want a feel for what he does, there is an award-winning documentary that gives a nice summary of Matt and what he does.

The cigar box guitar we are looking at today is number 313, and it was build by Mr. Isbell last year and I picked it up from him at the 2015 Blues Blast Music Awards. For starters, it is a smart-looking instrument, with the inherent uniqueness that comes about from using an old cigar box for the body. He hand-shapes the necks and headstocks, so it does not look like something that I would have built in my garage, though I will build one some day – I already found a suitable box…

This guitar is a 3-string with a single pickup that is controlled through a volume and a tone control. The neck appears to be oak, with sealed black tuners, a galvanized bolt for the nut and a chunk of steel rod set into the bridge. The strings are anchored at the end of the neck that sticks out through the other side of the body. Matt did a great job of putting this one together: everything lines up nicely and is straight, and it is definitely a player. He would not sign him name on the back if this was not so!

When I got it home I started messing around with it, and was blown away. It is fun to play, and it sounds fantastic with just a little fiddling around with the tone and volume knobs. I picked up one of his bottleneck slides with the guitar, and though I have experimented with some old deep sockets I have out in the shop, I like the sound of glass better, to be honest.

If you want to pick one up for yourself, sometimes Matt has some in stock, but it is probably best to give him a call and tell him what you want so he can build one for you. They start at around 200 bucks for a basic 3-string with no electronics and go up from there. And when you think that these guitars are built by a small businessman who is supporting his family, and not a big company that is exploiting little kids in a third-world country, one of these is the real bargain and it is the most ethical and logical choice you can make.

Trust me on this – you do not need to try before you buy. Check out www.memphiscigarbox.com to see what Matt can do for you.

Mahalo!

Keith Stone – The Prodigal Returns | Album Review

Keith Stone – The Prodigal Returns

Self Release

www.keithstonemusic.com

11 tracks / 50:36

I am rarely disappointed when I get new music out of New Orleans, and Keith Stone’s debut solo album, The Prodigal Returns, is no exception – this stuff is dynamite! Stone is the real deal, born and raised in the Crescent City, where he learned his craft and cut his musical teeth. After a successful stint on guitar with Willie Lockett & the Blues Krewe, Keith and his wife Cindi left town in the mid-90s so he could get his life in order and he found a place in the world where he could use his musical gifts as a ministry to help others.

But Keith and his wife could not give up on his old hometown and after Hurricane Katrina tore the city apart in 2005, they did what they could to help out. That was not enough for them, and they ended up moving back to The Big Easy a few years later to start a non-profit that recruited thousands of volunteers and raised millions of dollars to aid in the much-needed recovery. It did not take very long for Stone to renew old acquaintances and work his way back into the local music scene, and many of these friends pitched in to help out on this album. For the core band Keith handles the vocals and guitars, producer David Hyde plays the bass, Nelson Blanchard is on the drum kit (as well as backing vocals and keys), backing vocals are provided by Elaine Foster, and Lacy Blackledge and Mike Broussard play the horns. That is not all, as you will find that there are a lot more friends that stopped by the studio.

The Prodigal Returns is bookended by a pair of tracks that are the essence of New Orleans. Credit for this goes to the inclusion of the legendary Dr. John on piano, Joe Krown on organ, Bruce “Sunpie” Barnes on accordion, Doug Belote on drums, and a horn section that includes Tim Stambaugh (sousaphone), Kevin Clark (trumpet), David Phy (trombone), and Cale Pellick (saxophone). The way that “Prelude” and “Just a Closer Walk with Thee” are presented makes them timeless, and the sound is just right with the snare, accordion, and piano perfectly set in the mix. In between these two tunes there is a well-rounded selection of songs in musical styles that represent a lot of what the town has to offer.

These other nine tracks are all originals, with Stone getting writing credit on all of them except for one that Hyde penned. These songs all show mature songwriting with catchy rhythms and lyrics that show that Keith is not afraid to get personal. They are all good, and here are a few of my favorites:

-- “First Love” is a smooth and dramatic blues song with a lot of space in the bass line and tight horns from Blackledge and Broussard. Blanchard shows a lot of versatility by filling in some tasty piano and organ work as Stone wails on the guitar and belts out the vocals.

-- “Cindi Leigh” is a sweet ode to Keith’s wife, and it has a cool New Orleans feel thanks to Sunpie’s accordion, and a little frottoir (washboard) and cowbell from guest artist Andy J. Forest. As an added bonus, Broussard nails a solo on his sax and Blanchard provides vocal harmonies as needed.

-- You cannot beat a cool and jazzy instrumental, and “Buster’s Place” delivers. Stone has a different guitar tone on every track and this is one of the tastiest ones that you will find on The Prodigal Returns. It mixes well with the horns, including a crazy good trumpet solo from Lacy Blackledge.

Keith Stone has crafted a wonderful tribute to New Orleans with The Prodigal Returns, and it is a slick journey through the many types of roots and blues music that can be found in his hometown. He has proven that he is a very good singer, songwriter, and guitarist, and he not letting any grass grow under his feet as he is already working on a new project with plans for touring later this year. But for now make sure you check out his new CD, as it is a winner!

2015 Rickenbacker 4003 Bass Review

Aloha!

Today we are looking at my third Rickenbacker bass: a brand new 4003 model I picked up recently.

The 4003 model bass was introduced in 1981, with many of the same features of the 4001 as well as a few improvements, including:

A. An improved truss rod system. The 4003 still uses dual truss rods, but now has nuts at both ends of the neck.

B. The 4003 has no capacitor on the bridge pickup. This allows full tone from the bridge pickup, which is rather tinny on 4001 bases.

Other these changes, the 4003 has all of the usual 4000-series bass features.

The 4003 has a bound neck-thru body, and a has a bound neck with the curlicue headstock tip. Other distinctive Rickenbacker features are the signature triangular fretboard inlays and wacky trussrod cover. They also have the dual trussrod system “for added strength and adjustability” and Schaller tuners. I am still not a fan of the thick clear finish that coats the rosewood fretboard on these.

The electronics need a little explaining. There are two pretty hot single coil pickups, a selector switch, two volume and two tone knobs. But, the way they are wired is kind of whacky. Rickenbacker installs a push/pull pot that routes the bridge pickup signal through a capacitor to suck out the bass tone, and I guess the idea of this is to make better use of the Rick-O-Sound feature.

Rick-O-Sound is a stereo output effect that allows the player to divide the pickup signals and send them two different amps. Ideally this would send the bridge signal to a guitar amp and the neck signal to a bass amp. The output jack plate on these basses has a jack for a stereo guitar cord (for "Rick-O-Sound"), and a jack for normal mono output. Meh.

This one is a 2015 model, finished in Jetglo (black). which is a little disappointing. The quality of the finish is not great, with a light orange peel over the whole thing, and it is not lustrous and rich. This is a brand new bass, and it should be beautiful, but they missed the mark. It showed up with a surprisingly good set-up, and plays better than any Rickenbacker bass I have ever tried. The neck is dead straight with a low action and no lift to the bridge (yet). The pickups have even output, though the pickup cover is a bit of a hindrance to my playing style.

This 4003 is pretty light for a neck-through bass, coming in at 9 pounds, 2 ounces.

There are no playability or sound problems with this bass at all, but I am really not a Rickenbacker guy yet. The ergonomics are still awkward for me, but I am not surprised or disappointed, as this is what I have found before. After I am done with school I am going to get back into playing more and will try to make this one work for me.

These basses are not cheap, but then again they are made right here in sunny Southern California so they are paying higher labor costs. The 4003 has a street price of $2159 so they do not come cheap, but some online dealers do close them for quite a bit less. Make sure you shop around a bit. For that price, it does come with a hardshell case, but it is a flimsy plastic affair with latches that do not exactly want to hold well. They definitely could have done better.

Anyway, if you decide you want a Rickenbacker bass, and if you are not be hung up on getting a vintage 4001, you should pick up a 4003 instead as it is a more versatile and better built instrument. But really, you should try one out before you buy, as it may not be your cup of tea.

Mahalo!

The Knickerbocker All-Stars: Go Back Home to the Blues | Album Review

The Knickerbocker All-Stars: Go Back Home to the Blues

JP Cadillac Records

www.jpcadillacrecords.com

13 tracks / 47:00

If you were around Westerly, Rhode Island in the 1970s and 1980s you may remember an outstanding Sunday night jam at the Knickerbocker Café. Duke Robillard, founder of Roomful of Blues, would share the stage with unknowns and fan favorites to put on the weekly blues show. Unless you were local you probably never chance to experience it, but thankfully Westerly native (and producer) John Paul Gauthier put together an outstanding band to recreate some of what you missed. The result is the Knickerbocker All-Stars sophomore effort, Go Back Home to the Blues, on JP Cadillac Records.

The personnel line-up for this disc was a bit different than their debut album, Open Mic at the Knick. The core band included Mark Texeira on the drums, “Monster” Mike Welch on guitar, Brad Hallen on the bass, Al Copley on piano, and a horn section of Doc Chanonhouse, Doug James, “Sax” Gordon Beadle, and Rich Lataille. Frontman duties for the 13 tracks were split up amongst up amongst Willie J. Laws, Malford, Sugar Ray Norcia, Al Basile, and Brian Templeton. If you were putting together your own jump blues band you could not ask for a finer group of musicians!

Most of the tracks on Go Back Home to the Blues are covers, and there are a also a handful of originals that fit in perfectly with that vintage Knickerbocker sound. With a run time of around 45 minutes none of them are terribly long, which means the focus is on the song and you will not hear any endless solos here. The set kicks off with Bobby Bland’s “36-22-36” with Sugar Ray behind the microphone and Copley killing it (in a good way) on the piano. Right away it is obvious that this is a band full of pros and the horns (including guest artist Carl Querfurth on trombone) are well arranged which really makes the mood. Norcia also takes the lead on an Al Basile original, “Brand New Fool,” and Chuck Willis’ “Take it Like a Man,” which is one of my favorite tracks on the disk thanks to some wonderful saxophone work.

Brian Templeton takes on Roy Brown’s “Cadillac Baby”, and his voice is just perfect for this tune which is set over the awesome backline of Hallen’s double bass and Texeira’s drums. He also gets the nod on two Basile originals: “Go Back Home to the Blues,” which conjures up a little Cab Calloway, and “Annie Get Your Thing On,” a song that lets Monster Mike stretch out a bit on his guitar over a cool Latin beat.

Al Basile was the music director for this project and he actually gets to sing and play his cornet on one of his original tunes, and “Don’t You Ever Get Tires of Being Right?” is the best of the bunch. It has a rollicking beat, witty lyrics, and super-tight musicianship, so there is pretty much nothing else to ask for!

The fourth vocalist on the album is Willie J. Laws, and he ends up with some great songs to sing, too. These include guitar-intensive versions of Freddie King’s “You Know that You Love Me” and Guitar Slim’s “Something to Remember You By,” as well as the blistering rendition of Larry Davis’ “I Tried” that closes out the set. His vocals are hearty and fit perfectly into the mix, and I find it hard to get “He Was a Friend of Mine” out of my mind, as this ode to the wedding tackle is really out there!

The Knick is not gone, and it has moved into the future as the Knickerbocker Music Center, a non-profit center that celebrates and furthers the blues (and other music) in the community by serving as a fine performance venue and music education center. Proceeds from this album go to the center, which is a certainly a good enough reason to buy a copy, but it is also a fine set of jump and urban blues, which makes it the bargain of the year. Pick up a copy of The Knickerbocker All-Stars’ Go Back Home to the Blues and see what you think!