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The Martin DSS-15M and DSS-17 Black Smoke are new entries into the Martin line. Both are Slope-Shoulder Dreadnoughts with unique vintage-inspired finishes that conjure a historical look and sound. The DSS-15M Street is an all Mahogany model which features a Distressed Satin Finish and Katalox (Mexican Royal Ebony) Fingerboard and Bridge. The DSS-17 Black Smoke includes a Sitka Spruce top and Mahogany back and sides and Satin Black Smoke finish offset with Mother-of-pearl Fingerboard inlay, Antique White Binding, and Ivoroid Pickguard.
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Martin Slope Shoulder Comparison
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Fender Performer Series
These new additions to the Fender line, the Performer Series Jazzmaster and Stratocaster have innovative features that are keeping Fender headed towards the future. Most notably, The American Performer Series guitars include Yosemite™ single-coil pickups. Designed for rich, expressive tones, the Yosemite single coils feature flat-staggered pole pieces to increase output and coatings that let the coil breathe while controlling feedback. They also feature Greasebucket™ tone circuitry to shape the highs without adding bass. The Stratocaster features a push-pull pot on the second tone control that activates the neck pickup, letting you access neck/bridge and "all on" combinations. The Jazzmaster features a vintage, Strat style tremolo bridge.
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Fender Performer Comparison
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My Favorite Things: Episode One - Lazarus
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A New Lease on Life – The Story of Lazarus the Epiphone
“These things said he: and after that he saith unto them, Our friend Lazarus sleepeth; but I go, that I may awake him out of sleep.” - John 11:11
Among my collection of guitars lives a very special mid-‘70s, Japanese-made, Epiphone Sheraton FG-570BL jumbo, named Lazarus, who resides on a stand in my living room. Lazarus falls into a category of guitars that I often refer to as “decoys,” as it is a relatively inexpensive guitar that is sturdy and perhaps more expendable than a high-end guitar (though I have a hard time ever thinking of a tool or an instrument as "expendable"). At a glance, this guitar is a very humble riff on a J-100. It features: a super jumbo body, a spruce top, maple back and sides, and fairly simple cosmetic appointments. Of course, it also has a worn-in patina to go with the various bumps and bruises that it has acquired in its advancing years, such that it might not immediately stand out in a room full of guitars. The tone, however, is surprisingly robust, defined, and balanced, making the guitar very satisfying and inspiring to play. I reach for this guitar all the time, and I have composed many a tune on it (for example, the instrumental “Leaving Paris” from my band’s first album was sketched out while playing Lazarus on the front porch in the wee hours of a calm summer morning). Subsequently, if I’m to be completely honest with my sentiments, Lazarus has more personal value to me than many of the more "desirable" guitars in my collection, and he has contributed to my life more than I probably realize.
I first encountered the guitar that would become known as Lazarus many years ago when it was brought into our store by a customer who was hoping to trade it along with another guitar. Sadly for the customer, both guitars were in extremely rough shape and were thus not acceptable as trades (the repair work necessary to make them sellable would have been prohibitive). When confronted with this assessment, the customer elected to abandon the guitars. In such situations, we often salvage what parts we can and dispose of the rest; or, if the instrument can be made even remotely workable, we might fix it up to be its best and then donate it. So, as many great love stories go, I initially dismissed this Epiphone because of its condition and the fact that it was not the style of guitar that I’d usually embrace. Indeed, the guitar had a laundry list of serious issues: the open strings were buzzing so badly that the guitar was unplayable, the headstock was split lengthwise along the tuning machines, the bridge was horribly split and ruined, it had numerous loose braces, the bridge plate had substantial wear (such that strings’ ball ends were pulling through), the back was separating from the body, the neck heel was split, the frets were totally worn out. But then, on a hunch, I put a capo on the first fret and heard the guitar’s voice for the first time, and discovered that the instrument had a genuinely alluring tone, even with completely dead strings. I was moved by its voice and I immediately resolved to save this guitar, which was otherwise resigned to a grim fate involving the dumpster.
Needless to say, the process of restoring this guitar was involved! Given the guitar’s condition, I thought it a fitting candidate to use as a test subject while educating myself firsthand about the nature of various repairs. Under the patient guidance of Jeff Henry, who was kind enough to advise me on more complicated procedures (e.g., fret work, creating clamping cauls for bracing, etc.), I was ultimately able to get the guitar up and running. Overall, the experience was very rewarding and informative—I definitely acquired a new found appreciation for the skills required to do quality repair work—but, I am most proud of my personal touch, which is the guitar’s new bridge. As stated above, the old bridge was horribly split and utterly unusable, so I made a new bridge out of a spare piece of rosewood. I then decided to personalize the bridge with some engraving, similar to that which I had done on a friend’s guitar, known as “Lucky” (but that’s another story!). It was in sketching out the engraving that I had the inspiration to name the guitar “Lazarus,” as the name seemed quite apt at the time. In the end, my repairs were adequate (though not the best looking); and, with some strings and a setup, Lazarus sang out anew!
Now, in my years managing this business, I’ve encountered guitars in seemingly every conceivable state of disrepair: drowned, burnt, shot, run-over, frat boy’d…. And, while many of us on the playing side of the guitar-human relationship might simply expire following such grave maladies, I hope that the story of Lazarus will serve as a testament to the fact that these injured instruments can often be revived with a caring heart and a skilled hand. True, resurrecting a badly damaged guitar can involve a significant investment in terms of labor and/or cost, but the effort is almost always worthwhile in my experience, particularly as we tend to personify our beloved guitars (I, for instance, have long harbored impulses to assign a soul to certain inanimate objects and occasionally talk to them, though none have replied... so far!). Over the years, Lazarus has proven to be a good friend, even when I haven’t been the best friend to him—due to his history and his modest value, I have subjected Lazarus to more risk than some of my more pampered guitars, including camping trips, parties, and casual, borderline reckless handling. He endures as a constant reminder of how important it is to look for value in something before you discard it, how resilient instruments can be, and how an unexpected friend can change your life for the better. - L. Petsch March, 2019
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Lazarus hanging out with one of his sunburst brothers, who, in a freak coincidence, happened to appear on the day that Lazarus was filmed for our first "My Favorite Things" newsletter video.
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In the Presence of Wolves, featuring Maple Street's Chris Capitanio will be playing at Aisle 5 with Thank You Scientist and Kindo on Saturday, May 11th. Don't miss it! Tickets available HERE.
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The Atlanta Mandolin Orchestra will be performing at the Rockdale County Auditorium, Saturday, April 13th at 6:00 pm. 903 North Main Street, Conyers, GA. Contact Johnson Park Recreation Center at 770-278-7529 for details. Tickets available HERE.
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The Atlanta Guitar Guild presents The Atlanta Guitar Orchestra
Spring Concert on Sunday, May 5th at 3:00 pm in the Georgia State University Perimeter, Clarkston Campus Fine Arts Building.
3759-3773 Memorial College Ave, Clarkston, GA 30021
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Fiddler's Green Coffeehouse presents a full concert by comic singer-songwriter/guitarist Carla Ulbrich Saturday April 20, 8:00 pm, at First Existentialist Congregation of Atlanta, 470 Candler Park Dr. NE. Carla has been performing since the late 90s in venues including The Falcon Ridge Festival, Kerrville Folk Festival, Club Med, Eddie's Attic, The Minstrel, First Night and Nashville’s famed Bluebird Cafe. Her biggest musical influences were Sesame Street, camp songs, and cat food commercials. She has a love of the absurdities of ordinary life, a somewhat twisted viewpoint, and a way with words. Her songs cover topics from the mundane to insane: Waffle House, Klingons, psycho exes, how rich she would be if she had a copyright on the F-word, and so on. Carla has shared the stage with such luminaries as Cheryl Wheeler,
Vance Gilbert,
Modern Man,
The Bobs
, Bob Malone, David Massengill,
Lou and Peter Berryman
, The Austin Lounge Lizards, and Rev. Billy C Wirtz. Presented by Atlanta Area Friends of Folk Music (AAFFM). Admission: Minimum $10 general, $8 AAFFM and 1st E. Cong. Members; additional contributions appreciated. More information: www.aaffm.org (go to AAFFM Events) or 404-444-2334.
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NOTICE:
NEW REPAIR DEPARTMENT HOURS AND PRICING!!!
In recent years we've been fortunate to become Atlanta's go-to resource for repairs--thank you!!! As many of you already know, the impetus for us to build a repair facility was to ensure that we had the space and resources to properly vet and adjust our own inventory, in keeping with our continual effort to ensure that whatever we sell is a best quality example that performs to professional standard. However, balancing this mission with the additional workload generated by outside repair work has become a real challenge of late! In an effort to create more consistent staffing and better turnaround time, we have decided to close the repair department on Mondays, beginning Monday, April 15th. The repair department will otherwise operate as usual during business hours Tuesdays through Saturdays. Please note that we will also be revising our pricing, and new pricing will likewise go into effect on the 15th. We greatly appreciate your patience and understanding while we make this transition, which we hope will result in a better experience for all of you, our loyal customers. To mitigate the risk of any confusion or frustration, we will also be posting this notice on our website, in the store, and we will send a follow up e-mail the week prior to these changes.
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