EVH Interview

[Johnny Mac]

It's made from seconds and routed with a screwdriver!

Perhaps when i get my new Feline Lion, if i use it for a cricket bat the value will go through the roof  :?

[Philly Q]

Perhaps when i get my new Feline Lion, if i use it for a cricket bat the value will go through the roof  :?

But possibly only if you revolutionise electric guitar playing, have a string of huge hit albums then fall out with a succession of singers before making music for porn movies and going on tour with your son. 

Plus knacker your hip joints by jumping up and down whilst extraordinarily drunk, and f*ck up your teeth and tongue by smoking a billion cigarettes and doing... I know not what. 

And go completely insane and delusional.

[Afghan Dave]

Plus knacker your hip joints by jumping up and down whilst extraordinarily drunk, and f*ck up your teeth and tongue by smoking a billion cigarettes and doing... I know not what. 

And go completely insane and delusional.

EVH = Stripped body + Replacement hips + Replacement teeth/bridge + Alcohol soaked liver > F**ked Up But Legendary Musician

EVH "Frankenstein" Guitar = Striped body + Replacement neck/bridge + Wax soaked PAF pickup > F**ked Up But Legendary Instrument

There's a certain synergy there...  :?  :lol:

[Johnny Mac]

 :lol: I know what if I start with the insane and delusional and work my way back!

Anyway that replica still isn't worth 15 grand i don't care how much 'work' has gone into it. Duplicating scratches and dings is hardly restoring classic paintings by Dutch Masters is it. I wouldn't be surprised if there was a CNC ding machine to do it!

[kevincurtis]

And go completely insane and delusional.

Normally Mr Q I look forward to your insights, but this is a trifle unfair - I'm not sure that he has gone insane and delusional, but even if he had, who are we to judge, I cannot imagine what it must be like to have been in the position he has, lets face it he's not the first person such an exalted position has affected (Mr Slowhand, SRV...all had their demons).

I also find its odd that when guys like Jonathan spend untold hours carefully crafting superb guitars everyone (rightly) heeps praise on them, but if someone spends untold hours recreating the most iconic guitar ever it's derided?

Personally, even taking away all the flash and trickery EVH is an amazing guitarist who has written some of the greatest music ever, if you don't like it, or the guitar he used fair enough, but cut the guy some slack.

[Philly Q]

It was meant mostly in jest, Kevin, but to be serious the "delusional" bit was referring particularly to his claims to have discovered a "cure" for cancer, which he was nevertheless not prepared to reveal to the world.  Together with his claims that his own cancer was nothing to do with smoking and substance abuse.  Having lost very close relatives to cancer, I think that's utter bullsh!t and, frankly, it annoys me.

As for the original guitar, I don't think anyone is deriding it, or disputing its iconic status.  I also don't think that anyone can dispute it's just a guitar made from a bunch of generic parts which, logically, should be no better than any other parts guitar.  Unless you believe in magic.  It's iconic because of who played it, not because of its intrinsic quality - if he'd played a Tele with Swiss-cheese holes drilled in the body the music would have been no different. 

What we are deriding is the fact that Fender/EVH are charging $30,000 for a guitar which is merely a copy of a guitar which cost, what, $500?  It's actually totally against the principle of what EVH was doing by building his own guitar in the first place.

[Twinfan]

I agree the price is mental, but I think Kevin is trying to say that it took a very skilled person to recreate the original.  You can't really argue that they've done a superb job building an exact replica.

[Philly Q]

I agree the price is mental, but I think Kevin is trying to say that it took a very skilled person to recreate the original.  You can't really argue that they've done a superb job building an exact replica.

Absolutely, there's a lot more skill gone into making an exact replica than ever went into making the original.  Especially since he had to work from photos (in which case I don't see how the neck shape/feel can possibly be right, but that's incidental).

But that justifies a Custom Shop Masterbuilt price, nothing more (IMO).  And rather than getting $$$$$ in his eyes, I think Edward should have said "no, it's just a cheap guitar, let's make an affordable version" - but maybe that's expecting too much.

For what it's worth, I thought the SRV, EC and RG Tribute Strats were rip-offs too.

[Afghan Dave]

...since he had to work from photos (in which case I don't see how the neck shape/feel can possibly be right, but that's incidental).

.....For what it's worth, I thought the SRV, EC and RG Tribute Strats were rip-offs too.

That "working from photos" thing foxed me as well. How can the neck be accurate in terms of feel?

The mocking here is just born out of disbelief at the inexplicable price rhetoric.

A price which is brought home more starkly in this case because the guitar is a hybrid - not ever really a Fender or an amalgamation of Fender parts (Clapton's "Blackie" was many strats mixed together).

I love EVH music. He is an icon. BUT

Any man who claims to have found a cure for cancer yet won't share it with the world is either a lying delusional F*ck-wit or the worlds most honest to goodness selfish immoral bast@rd.


It's either one or the other...  :?

[kevincurtis]

[

Any man who claims to have found a cure for cancer yet won't share it with the world is either a lying delusional F*ck-wit or the worlds most honest to goodness selfish immoral bast@rd. [/b]


It's either one or the other...  :?

He speaks very highly of you ;)

Regarding Eddie - Life just isn't that black and white. Having never met him, I can only give him the benefit of the doubt that the claim for a cure for cancer thing was born from the situation and his abuses of his mind via chemicals. If, stone cold sober and free from drugs he was still adamant that he had a cure he wasn't telling, then he would indeed by a misguided fool (I have also lost close relatives to cancer and know what an evil disease it is, so I am not treating this trivially).

Regarding the guitar - is Eddie getting money from the sale of it? If so it would have to be a very small drop in the amount that he must have. There is the research and finding accurate parts to factor in, but to my mind it is more art that functional instrument.

What would be an affordable one? You couldn't do the bad routing cost effectively, would you want one which had a cheap neck and body? Would you want a Floyd copy? A cheap pickup? Would you add to the cost by fitting a dummy pickup and selector (then not being so affordable)? Which basically means you are left with something like this as a sensible, affordable Frankenstrat:

http://bareknucklepickups.co.uk/forum/index.php?topic=14049.0

Personally if I had the money I would by the Fender one, as its a close to the real thing as I could ever get. I would also love to have a non alcoholic beverage with Ed, but probably wouldn't want to be his best bud... but mainly I just hope he gets back to doing what he does best...at least he's got plenty of spare guitars now so doesn't have to worry about that :)

[Afghan Dave]

Fair enough and each to his own.

I would have quite liked one of the EVH / Charvel Art Series guitars that were released a few years ago.

A brand "new" and Charvel built from the ground up to be what EVH intended to get to without all the experimenting that went into the original.

BTW

This made me giggle.

http://www.evhgear.com/accessories/

EVH Quote "This is what I use!" -- Next to a picture of him with a totally different strap  :lol: :lol:

[Afghan Dave]

"This is what I use"

[Bird]

I think I've said something like this before but oh well. A fender relic runs about $3000 (Cdn), which I think are great. But I don't see how Fender can justify the $25 000 price tag even though it is a more labour intensive process. Except that it's far easier to produce 100 guitar for 25 000 than it is to make 1000 guitars for $2500. Fender has been on this kick for a few years now producing this limited run and outrageously expensive instruments few can afford.

As for Ed I'm a huge fan of his style and he's one of my all time favourite players I just have to call a spade a spade... he's crazy. ;)

[Philly Q]

What would be an affordable one? You couldn't do the bad routing cost effectively, would you want one which had a cheap neck and body? Would you want a Floyd copy? A cheap pickup? Would you add to the cost by fitting a dummy pickup and selector (then not being so affordable)?

I'm not thinking dirt cheap, by affordable I meant a production version without the relic treatment.

Assuming the finish could be done as some kind of graphic, there's nothing about the guitar which should be inherently more costly than, say, the old Mexican Richie Sambora model.  The only truly unique features are the wonky routing and cut-off scratchplate, and it wouldn't be difficult to tool up for those (if you just copied the general routing shape, without the lovingly-recreated screwdriver divots!).

Or they could do a simpler version with the red/white/black finish, a bridge humbucker and no extra routing - like Kramer did in the '80s.

[Johnny Mac]

All respect to Eddie and his achievements in music, I love his playing but stinging his fans 30 grand for a bashed up dirty bitza of cheap parts is taking the piss. There is no limits to his branding these days. The guitar in its day was revolutionary and I would say these days priceless. I would have thought there is more skill in crafting a spotless brilliant sounding and finished instrument with all its nuances as opposed to scratching, damaging, nailing a coin to and sticking bicycle reflectors to something deliberately for aesthectics  :?
Still the feel in the outro riff in drop dead legs still makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up and i'd love him to do more of that rather than market these old donkeys.