“Patches” played on Lap Style on Gretsch Gretsch Resonator.

[mikeholland]

Patches played on a G9231 Gretsch Resonator Guitar. Tuning EBDGBD low to high. Recording with a new SE X1R ribbon microphone. Backing created with a Tenor Ukulele and a Ukulele style bass. Interestingly…. YouTube Copyright Protection has credited this to "Singing the Blues". Because it is credited to a particular song The feedback form does not allow me to say it is actually another song!

[bonzo]

Very nice! Wish I could do that! 👍👍

[Michael Messer]

That is very nice playing. I know the original recording intimately having listened to it for 40 or so years, and I know Sebastian Muller & Ken Emerson's recent recording, and you have captured a very nice feel. It sits well and suits your style.

I am a big Sol Hoopii admirer, I love his music. And of course Bob Pauole of Jim & Bob was an extraordinary player.

It may be of interest to you that a few years ago I speed corrected the Jim & Bob recordings that were running too fast. I wrote the liner notes for the Grass Skirt CD, but I was never happy with the mastering of that release because it was always an assumption that Bob was tuned to A, whereas in a few of his recordings on that amazing day, he was tuned lower in G#, so one day I set about getting the tracks running at their correct speed and pitch.

Nice playing!

Shine On
Michael

[mikeholland]

Thanks for the kind comments bonzo and Michael.

I was really interested to hear about your involvement and thoughts regarding the Jim and Bob CDs. In particular the point about noting the tuning was in G sharp not A. Was this tuned that way or are original recordings not run at the correct speed?

I was very late getting involved with this music of the acoustic steel guitar golden era. I could always hear there was something special about these players but the more I got involved, and the more I could play, then the more I realised just how good and special these players were. The touch and feel of Sol Hoopii, Dick McIntire, Bob Pauole, Andy Iona etc are just incredible and hold so much beauty. We are fortunate that there are a few players like Sebastian Muller who are recording this music so well that we now get an opportunity to hear how great this music would sound if recorded today.

Also Michael I am really appreciative of your input and knowledge on the subject of resonator steel guitars. There have been a few times on this forum you have given your sage wisdom and it has come as a welcome relief to all the gossip and opinions that usually appear in music forums. I just purchased a Ribbon mic to record the resonator guitar and it does sound better to my ears. Less aggressive high end and a much smoother sound.

I will always be on the look out for an original National squareneck Tricone, but I think the prices have moved even further away from my budget. So we must all work with what we have and get the best out of it.

kindest regards,

Mike

[Michael Messer]

Mar 14, 2024 17:36:06 GMT mikeholland said:

Thanks for the kind comments bonzo and Michael.

I was really interested to hear about your involvement and thoughts regarding the Jim and Bob CDs. In particular the point about noting the tuning was in G sharp not A. Was this tuned that way or are original recordings not run at the correct speed?

I was very late getting involved with this music of the acoustic steel guitar golden era. I could always hear there was something special about these players but the more I got involved, and the more I could play, then the more I realised just how good and special these players were. The touch and feel of Sol Hoopii, Dick McIntire, Bob Pauole, Andy Iona etc are just incredible and hold so much beauty. We are fortunate that there are a few players like Sebastian Muller who are recording this music so well that we now get an opportunity to hear how great this music would sound if recorded today.

Also Michael I am really appreciative of your input and knowledge on the subject of resonator steel guitars. There have been a few times on this forum you have given your sage wisdom and it has come as a welcome relief to all the gossip and opinions that usually appear in music forums. I just purchased a Ribbon mic to record the resonator guitar and it does sound better to my ears. Less aggressive high end and a much smoother sound.

I will always be on the look out for an original National squareneck Tricone, but I think the prices have moved even further away from my budget. So we must all work with what we have and get the best out of it.

kindest regards,

Mike

My pleasure, Mike. Thank you for your kind words.

I am convinced that Jim & Bob recorded a few of their pieces in G#. Take 'By The Waters Of The Minnetonka' for example - slowed down to G# it sounds more natural and real, rather than rushed like a comedy silent film. I do not believe that it has anything to do with the original recording, it was pitched to A on the Grass Skirt album by the guy that oversaw the mastering. I was quite upset when I heard it because there will not be another opportunity to put it right for a long time. Everyone assumes that if they're hearing G# that it should be speeded up to A because that is what Bob Pauole is rumoured to have tuned to. Actually he varied the pitch, well he certainly did on that day of their only recording session. Bob was an incredible player, his tone and touch are just extraordinary.

It is a great shame that those players have not been properly recognised by historians. It may be a race thing, or they have slipped through the cracks and have been overlooked. They were among the greatest guitarists of all time, that is without doubt a fact.

It is great that you dedicate your time to learning this music. It is important that it continues and is passed down through the generations. There are not many, but some great players out there doing this stuff. JC Grimshaw on the Isle of Wight is a lovely acoustic Hawaiian player. Apparently, according to his brother Jimmy, Stevie Ray Vaughan dabbled with this style too. There was a time when I was really serious about it and I always play something Hawaiian in my shows. I also drifted into the early Dobro players, Clell Summey, Brother Oswald and Josh Graves, because they were playing what they called "Island Guitar" mixed with some banjo style in country music, so I really like that early Dobro period.

Mike, I have emailed a link to you of By The Waters Of The Minnetonka in my Dropbox. Help yourself. I used the email you joined the forum with.

Onwards!

Shine On
Michael

[mikeholland]

Thanks for the recording Michael.

Such a joy to listen to. The recording sounds wonderful…. Alive and vibrant. Perfect! Listening to this you not only realise how good Bob is but also the great back up guitar playing of Jim’s. 

I have only ever really played the spider bridge type resonators. All the great players of the time appear to play National Tricones. But when I listen to this recording, and other recordings from that period…….. if you were to ask me what instrument they are playing I would have said it sounds like a metal bodied biscuit bridge resonator played lap style! These recordings just have a sound of their own.

Thanks  again for your sharing your knowledge with us….. it is very much appreciated.

Mike

[Michael Messer]

Jim and Bob are possibly my favourite guitar duo of all time and genres. Their recording of Song Of The Range is exquisite. The two guitars sound beautiful together. The tricone sounds angelic and Bob's final solo is nothing short of other worldly. Such beautiful slide playing



Not sure why they put a photo of Sam Ku West on their video!

For those that don't know them, here's a couple of pics of Jim Holstein & Bob Pauole





Shine On
Michael

[mikeholland]

Thanks for the pics Michael. I have just ordered from Les Cook a CD of the Genial Hawaiians and a couple more CDs from that period.
many thanks for the recommendations.

Mike

[zero]

Mar 14, 2024 19:16:37 GMT Michael Messer said:

Mar 14, 2024 17:36:06 GMT mikeholland said:

My pleasure, Mike. Thank you for your kind words.

I am convinced that Jim & Bob recorded a few of their pieces in G#. Take 'By The Waters Of The Minnetonka' for example - slowed down to G# it sounds more natural and real, rather than rushed like a comedy silent film. I do not believe that it has anything to do with the original recording, it was pitched to A on the Grass Skirt album by the guy that oversaw the mastering. I was quite upset when I heard it because there will not be another opportunity to put it right for a long time. Everyone assumes that if they're hearing G# that it should be speeded up to A because that is what Bob Pauole is rumoured to have tuned to. Actually he varied the pitch, well he certainly did on that day of their only recording session. Bob was an incredible player, his tone and touch are just extraordinary.

It is a great shame that those players have not been properly recognised by historians. It may be a race thing, or they have slipped through the cracks and have been overlooked. They were among the greatest guitarists of all time, that is without doubt a fact.

It is great that you dedicate your time to learning this music. It is important that it continues and is passed down through the generations. There are not many, but some great players out there doing this stuff. JC Grimshaw on the Isle of Wight is a lovely acoustic Hawaiian player. Apparently, according to his brother Jimmy, Stevie Ray Vaughan dabbled with this style too. There was a time when I was really serious about it and I always play something Hawaiian in my shows. I also drifted into the early Dobro players, Clell Summey, Brother Oswald and Josh Graves, because they were playing what they called "Island Guitar" mixed with some banjo style in country music, so I really like that early Dobro period.

Mike, I have emailed a link to you of By The Waters Of The Minnetonka in my Dropbox. Help yourself. I used the email you joined the forum with.

Onwards!

Shine On
Michael

[zero]

First time I heard that CD I thought the Chimpmunks were signing Jim & Bob. I do have 2 of their original 78s (though they are pretty beat-up.) and all 4 of the songs I have are mastered at the wrong speed on the CD. I don't have the CD but it is on YouTube.

Here are the 4 songs mastered at the correct speed. I used the Internet Archives files because theirs were in a little better shape, but still not great. Transferring 78 is pretty simple when it comes to the speed. They can vary some but not as much as you would think. I almost never tweek them at all, there is just no need to.

On the video I was happy with Hula Blues, the other 3 songs were a bit of a struggle to get a good sound from 78s in rough condition.

[Michael Messer]

Those sound great and are the same as my remastered tracks.

I won't go into it again, but the guy that remastered the stuff for the Grass Skirt CD really screwed it up.

Shine On
Michael