John Davis of The Lees of Memory, Superdrag, etc.
Phase Out
Excluding cables and power supplies, what 5 pieces of music gear would sustain your ability to be happy writing music for a lifetime, and why?
4-Piece Ludwig drums. I'm not too particular, any vintage or vintage-style kit with sparkle or some Ringo-type finish would be fine. I purchased mine from Jimmy Lester of Los Straitjackets in 2004. I love their snares, too. I bought this one from Fork's Drum Closet here in town. Cymbals from Fork's, and courtesy of Don Coffey Jr. & Yogi Watts.
Made In USA Fender Precision Bass. Just a rock-solid, perfectly-designed instrument that's suitable for any kind of music. Also responds nicely to being overdriven and things like that. Purchased in 1999 and heard on In The Valley Of Dying Stars.
Pre-CBS Fender Jazzmaster. Built in 1961, constant companion since '95, again thanks to Don Coffey Jr. He drove me to Atlanta to go look for it. Modified with a Mustang bridge in 2007. Pickup switch replaced several times. Pickups were original (from 1961) until just a few months ago, but I've had great luck with the Fender Pure Vintage '65 Jazzmaster pickups, thanks to Jeff Marple at Corner Music. They changed the sound of the guitar very little, I would highly recommend for anyone faced with replacing pickups in an old Jazzmaster.
Mellotron M4000D One of the ones like Nick's with the 24-Bit WAVs and all the Chamberlin sounds included, with the dual sound banks you can blend together. So, so amazing. Gives a small operation the capability to orchestrate.
A good-sounding tambourine. I like this one from Meinl Percussion. I chose it because it sounded the most like the tambourine on Bo Diddley's Black Gladiator LP.
Bonus Round: The Yamaha MT4X Multitrack Cassette Recorder. This is the Rolls Royce of cassette 4-tracks. I'm about to learn ProTools after decades of staunch resistance, but I'm good with this. I kept the same one in operation continuously for 22 years; it laid down on me in the middle of a pedal steel overdub, but I had an identical back-up machine (in perfect working order) thanks to my friend Ethan Luck, so I just swapped out the cables and kept overdubbing. Again, just a brilliantly-designed, highly durable and reliable piece of equipment. And of course we'd need a grip of Maxell XLIIs to go with it; the gold standard for home recording enthusiasts.
Windfall
What unexpected piece of music gear has inspired you the most?
Probably a surprise gift from my late friend Jerry Finn; a '69 Gibson SG. I foolishly smashed my '70 SG like an idiot and he took pity on me. He actually bought it from Brandon, then refurbished it a bit and ended up giving it to me. Such a generous act. A lot of the guitars on the ARIGATO! record were cut with this guitar. I generally go for more single-coil Fender tones in recent times, but if I need a humbucker sound I reach for this one. Thank you, Jerry, love you always!
Pine Away
What piece of music gear do you wish you still had, and/or perhaps something you regret not buying when you had the opportunity?
I had a 1967 Epiphone Casino in Burgundy Mist which I bought from Black Market Guitars on Sunset Blvd. in Los Angeles. I sold it to a friend years ago and now I kinda wish I hadn't. He borrowed it a couple of times and loved it so much, and it had been sitting in the case for months on end at that point and I just thought, "why not see it go someplace to be played?" It had so much character, and some killer P-90s. The finish aged into this weird rust color in places, I've never seen another one quite like it.
Wild Card
You’re an incredible songwriter and you’re constantly writing genre-bending tunes…what keeps you going?
Ah man, you're too kind! It's the ideas, the whole thing is powered by ideas. When they run out... it's over. But they ain't gonna run out today.
Final Thoughts
Any shout outs, plugs, or random tidbits of advice?
My advice? Never let anybody tell you what your music has to sound like. If you're following what you hear in your heart, then you can never fail.
