Alembic Guitars Club
Connecting => Introductions => Topic started by: rockaday on May 13, 2012, 10:53:10 AM
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I used to own an Alembic acoustic guitar, a dreadnaught. I know, they supposedly don't exist but I had one and I wish I still had it. I bought it in 1971 or 2, out in California in a little music shop. I paid $300 for it. At one time, while still living in SF I called the Alembic showroom and mentioned that I had one of their acoustic guitars and was told, no, they've never made any. So I hopped in my car and took my guitar to the showroom where the guy looked it over and said, yeah, it was made here. It was signed on the inside by Doug Irwin, who of course famously made guitars for Jerry Garcia... In 1970 I went to GRD, Guitar Research and Design Center where I studied guitar building with Charles Fox and George Morris. When I got home with the guitar I'd built I unfortunately sold my Alembic so I could buy some tools. How I wish I'd found another way! It sold the very first day I put it on consignment. I thought I'd done pretty well, getting the $300 back that I'd paid for it! Now, with Ebay, I'm sure I could have really gotten a lot for it... but it wasn't so easy to sell things back in 1980... I may have a picture of it, I'll have to look around. It was very pretty and sounded great. The guitars that I've come to build don't sound half-bad either.
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Was it an electrified acoustic?
What kind of woods were used?
What was the shape?
I want to see a picture of such a rare instrument.
(Message edited by FunkyJazzJunky on May 14, 2012)
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I don't think hope I'm letting the cat out of the bag or communicating anything the good people at Alembic would rather not have communicated, but during my recent visit to the mothership there was a prototype body of an Alembic Acoustic guitar up on a shelf in the lobby that someone at Alembic (I forget who) created. I asked Mica about it and she indicated that they were toying with the idea of doing something in this area, but that at the current time its on the back burner due to the design work that would be required and the lack of free time they have to undertake such an effort. The body I saw looked beautiful from an aesthetic standpoint.
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Hi Jon, and welcome to the forum!
You wouldn't have by any chance worked at GRD along side with a fellow named Richard Alan Knight?!?
I own a guitar which he built in the early 80's:
(http://club.alembic.com/Images/397/133860.jpg)
It has a lot of GRD attributes, but the headstock is truly one of a kind. The documentation provided indicate that he finished the guitar after leaving GRD (cavity plate is signed and dated 1983). It is serial#1, and he indicated that he later built a bass and a couple of acoustics..... Any info would be appreciated!
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The name doesn't ring a bell, but it was a long time ago...
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As to the wood used on my Alembic, the body and neck were mahogany, the soundboard spruce. The fretboard ebony. The headstock plate was a burl. It had schaller tuners. The pickguard was an interesting figured wood but I don't know what. It was a dreadnaught, no electronics.
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Oh well, I had to ask..... That said, would you care to share any of your builds w/ the club?!?
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Here's an electric-acoustic hybrid I built. Mahogany body and neck. Cedar soundboard. It has Kent Armstrong pickups, lipstick style, And a Dan Armstrong 12-way switching system.(http://club.alembic.com/Images/397/133912.jpg)
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Another of my acoustic-electric hybrids, though this one has a block under the bigsby, so it's a bit less acoustic. The pickups are Filtertron style.(http://club.alembic.com/Images/397/133915.jpg)
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Very cool!
Thanks for sharing, Jon!!!!!
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I designed and built the body you saw at Alembic. I completed that prototype last week and it sounds superb.
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PICTURES!!!!!
(Please?)
Peter
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Still a work in progress, and of course announcements of any news will be on the Alembic Club first.
So no pictures at this time... Nothing to see here... move along...