Exotic 8-string lap steel on eBay

[Doug Beaumier]

The seller is in Hungary and he says this was built by a Hungarian musician back in the 1950s/60s. It's probably a one-off or one of a few. I don't know how it sounds, but it Looks stunning. If nothing else, it would make an excellent wall-hanger.

[Jack Hanson]

The sliding neck pickup on top of the strings looks interesting. Wonder if it was approved by the Kremlin.

[Jouni Karvonen]

That is a piece of Hungarian folk art:

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Link to the ad:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Extreme-rare-el ... 3cfad19f73

YouTubes from ad:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MyiubGtJdwA
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5iMa_qfBazk

[Andy Volk]

certainly inspires the imagination ....

[James Mayer]

That's the second one that has popped up on the web in the same week.

http://www.palmguitars.nl/

[Peter Jacobs]

Good news on the eBay one -- no fret wear.

[Doug Beaumier]

Yes, I noticed that "no fret wear" part. I also noticed the keyword spamming in title... the use of other brand names (Framus, Hofner) in an auction title to draw buyers to your auction. That's a no-no in the eBay rule book.

[Denny Turner]

In the videos, those players and the scene was top shelf. And it was great to see that the Hawaiian music / scene craze was popular and as well done as most places outside Hawaii. And I am really impressed with the design and decor of the subject steel guitar; A number of ammenities show that the builder knew well what he was doing.

But for the ebayer (whose ad was pretty good for a foreigner having a bit of difficulty with english language), ...I too am very glad there isn't any fret wear on that steel; Keeps from having to push down too hard on the bar!

[Doug Beaumier]

The pickups look a lot like Japanese gold foil pickups of that era, Teisco, Guyatone, etc.

[Keith Bolog]

Im sure this guitar was made by Gez Balogh, It has all his trademark accents:

Geza Balogh, award-winning guitarist, Hawaiian guitarist, teacher and instrument maker, was born on December 31, 1911 in Serbia, in the Tarcal Mountains near Novi Sad, in Vrdnik (called Rednek in Hungarian) in a mining family, as the third child. His absolute hearing is revealed already in his early years. At the beginning, he learned to play the Spanish guitar, and after acquiring basic music school knowledge, he developed his skills in a self-taught manner.
They performed with their guitar band in Novi Sad, on cruise ships and on the beach. In 1942, he moved to Budapest with his wife. He played in almost every jazz band in the 50s and 60s. He started playing guitar under the influence of his great role model, the American Les Paul. Founding member of the Tabányi band, Hawaiian guitarist and soloist. They regularly gave concerts both in Budapest and in the countryside. He performed with the most famous musicians and singers of the time, he played with, among others, With Aladar Pege, Jeno Beamter, Gyula Kovacs, Anni Kapitany, Kato Fenyes, Olivér Lantos, Katalin Karady, Violetta Ferrari, Marika Németh, Hanna Honthy, Márta Zaray, Janos Vamosi, Zoltan Svarba and Gyula Felker. In addition to playing music, he also acquired songs. After 1956, singer Erzsi Kovacs performed his song "If you would come back again..." almost every day, which was even recorded by Qualiton.
He is credited with the use of the only Hawaiian guitar and the publication of a textbook containing songs written for Hawaiian guitar in 1945 (title: Hawaiian-guitar school based on sheet music and diagram system, publisher: Marnitz Frigyes, Budapest, 1945). He also taught his two daughters to play the instrument, and even János Bródy, among others, took guitar lessons from him.
As an instrument maker, he made 6- and 8-string Hawaiian guitars, and he patented the guitar's electric pickup, the so-called "Balogh patent". He alone produced guitar pick-ups, which at that time were installed in the first box guitars of almost every beat musician of the time. He also made the guitar of Heinz "Bogi" Bogdán, the Hawaiian guitarist of the legendary band Béka. His self-made instruments have been very popular ever since, several of them were displayed on the stand of the Rockmuzeum in the museum held at Hangfoglazal held in 2013, and some of his instruments later became permanently available for viewing at the opening of the 2014 museum. Even in the last years of his life, he performed together with the Tabányi Orchestra.
He died on July 5, 1994. Both the Rock Museum and the MOM Park have since organized a Hawaiian guitar memorial party in his honor, at which his daughter Balogh Marika also performed playing her father's instrument.

[Michael Lee Allen]

Balogh is written about in several 1960s issues of the English B.M.G monthly. He's also pictured alone, with his instruments, and with student groups. Just about every European country had one steel guitarist back then who did all the radio and TV recording and taught.
MLA