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Topic: Joaquin Murphy's Bigsby surfaces |
Jussi Huhtakangas
From:
Helsinki, Finland
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Posted 18 Sep 2006 9:39 pm |
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Hey everyone, I'm posting this for a friend who's not a member, but he contacted me sometime ago about this extraordinaire guitar. Please read:
"The first console Bigsby steel guitar which was built for Joaquin Murphy has been found. This instrument has been missing for nearly 50 years. It is dated 1946, and is as far as we know, the earliest Paul A. Bigsby made instrument in existence, it was Murphy who first asked Bigsby to build guitars. This instrument documents Bigsby's extraordinary skill and craftsmanship even at the earliest stage of his guitar-building career. Of course every Murph fan here on the forum knows what it looks like, it's the guitar Murphy is most often pictured with. The importance of this guitar goes way beyond the fact that it was Murphy's. It was the first guitar ever to have features we now see in all modern pedal steels; console stair-step cabinet with metal endplates, separate raised necks instead of just fretboards on top and keyheads instead of just slots for keys. This Bigsby/Murphy Triple Eight Steel embodies not only an extremely important era in the American art of steel guitar, but the first major work of one of the 20th century's most influential post-war guitar builders. Furthermore, this was the guitar that really caught other players interest and got Bigsby into guitar building business, his next customer being the legendary Merle Travis, whom after meeting Joaquin was introduced to P.A. and requested a guitar solid in construction so that it would "sustain like a steel." Bigsby was a one-man operation who influenced other and much larger scale manufacturers like Leo Fender, Ted McCarty, Chuck Wright, etc. I could speculate even more, but you'll get the picture."
The current owner is a Bigsby enthusiast , and is looking for a possibility to have this guitar permanently displayed in a museum of some-kind, possibly the Nashville Country Music Hall of Fame where it could sit next to Travis' electric for good. It's in remarkably great shape, sounds like million bucks, and even has the original Bigsby made hard case. The PU's are of the earliest Bigsby design, resembling the Ricky horseshoes. I don't have a chance to post a recent picture here on the forum, but I can email one to someone who could do it for us."
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Andy Sandoval
From:
Bakersfield, California, USA
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Posted 18 Sep 2006 10:00 pm
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| Jussi, This is awesome news and I know I for one would love to see this great piece of history. Email the photo to me and I will post it. |
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Jussi Huhtakangas
From:
Helsinki, Finland
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Posted 18 Sep 2006 10:20 pm
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| Andy, you got mail!! |
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Andy Sandoval
From:
Bakersfield, California, USA
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Roger Kelly
From:
Bristol,Tennessee
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 4:51 am
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| Quote: |
| The current owner is a Bigsby enthusiast , and is looking for a possibility to have this guitar permanently displayed in a museum of some-kind, possibly the Nashville Country Music Hall of Fame where it could sit next to Travis' electric for good. It's in remarkably great shape, sounds like million bucks, and even has the original Bigsby made hard case. |
I hope the owner will think hard and fast about Donating the Bigsby Guitar to any Museum without getting assurances, in writing, that the Guitar will be displayed in a prominent place. But even with assurances from the Museum, they have the right to do as they want as it pertains to the items donated to them. I would suggest that he "Loan" them the guitar for display and if they don't honor your request, as it pertains to displaying the instrument, you can simply remove it from their possession.
I won't go into the problems that I had with the "Birthplace Of Country Music Museum" when I donated Billy Bowman's Marlen Pedal Steel to them for display some years ago and eventually had to repossess it due to the Curator's lack of interest on displaying Billy's Guitar, after I was given assurances that this would be done. Billy's guitar is now in the possession of his brothers.[This message was edited by Roger Kelly on 19 September 2006 at 05:57 AM.] |
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Michael Johnstone
From:
Sylmar,Ca. USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 6:25 am
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Since Murph hated Nashville,everything it represents and like P.A.,was really an L.A. guy who put West Coast steel on the map,why shouldn't it sit in the Gene Autry museum of Western Heritage?
http://www.seeing-stars.com/Museums/AutryMuseum.shtml
I could make that happen BTW. Or you could simply let me take care of it and display it here at the Joaquin Murphey hall of Fame in Sylmar Ca..... -MJ- |
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b0b
From:
Cloverdale, CA, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 6:33 am
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| I got an email this morning directing me to this page about the subject. [This message was edited by b0b on 19 September 2006 at 07:34 AM.] |
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David L. Donald
From:
Koh Samui Island, Thailand
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 7:11 am
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It might be better being left to
a left coast home, the Autry Museum fits.
It is pretty cool to have it come up for air now.
After all this time.
Very pretty instrument. |
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Barry Blackwood
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 7:18 am
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| As per another related post here on the SGF, possibly Mr. Bigsby should be nominated for the SGHOF as well .... [This message was edited by Barry Blackwood on 19 September 2006 at 08:23 AM.] |
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Bill Hatcher
From:
Atlanta Ga. USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 7:26 am
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| Anyone know the selling price of the instrument? |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 8:45 am
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| The Holy Grail surfaces. wow!!! |
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Billy Wilson
From:
El Cerrito, California, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:02 am
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| What years did JM play this steel? Since this is the first Bigsby then the lap model, which I think Chas has, was a later guitar? |
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Mark Edwards
From:
Weatherford,Texas, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:09 am
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| It's a blessing that the folks that have had possession of it in the past have taken good care of it. Beautiful guitar, love that Birdseye maple. |
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Jussi Huhtakangas
From:
Helsinki, Finland
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:23 am
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Billy, Murph had this from -46 to -58 when he traded it back to Bigsby. Retrofret has pretty accurate story there, I didn't realize they had it on the website already since, as far as I know, they don't have the guitar there yet. BUT, they will have it in a week or so when I happen to be on an east coast tour and in NY, so guess who's paying Retrofret a visit in their shop in Brooklyn. They have Lefty Frizell's J-200 w/ Bigsby neck there too, will be tough to decide which one to strum first 
[This message was edited by Jussi Huhtakangas on 19 September 2006 at 10:33 AM.] |
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Mike Black
From:
New Mexico, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:24 am
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zzzz
Last edited by Mike Black on 12 May 2011 2:30 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mike Black
From:
New Mexico, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:25 am
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zzzz
Last edited by Mike Black on 12 May 2011 2:30 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Ron Whitfield
From:
Kaaawa, Hawaii, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 11:37 am
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I'd be stoked to have just that very cool Vol. knob.
Were they common for Bigsby instruments?
I can't recall seeing one like that before. |
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Michael Johnstone
From:
Sylmar,Ca. USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 12:13 pm
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| I don't think the Autry would pay for such an artifact since most all of the stuff in there is still owned by the contributor and everybody involved likes it like that. I'm connected enough to the inner sanctum of the Autry thru my association with The Riders Of The Purple Sage and other cowboy music and movie activities to get such an exhibit seriously considered though. I'd envision it in a large glass case with a collage of pictures,Spade Cooley movie posters,etc and text telling who Murph and Paul Bigsby were and why they are still so important. Hell,I might even put the 1951 8-string Ricky G-Deluxe Murph owned the last 5 years of his life in there with it. Another cool thing you could do is have an audio kiosk built into the exhibit with 10 or 12 of his best solos in an audio loop complete with Spade announcing the incoming solos: "Awww Joaquino!". BTW,I own the tapered Bigsby bar Murph is holding in the fringed shirt photo shown above and it's got some serious mojo coming off of it when you hold it in your hand.I might even contribute it to the exhibit to make it complete. -MJ- |
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 1:18 pm
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| Some sort of pedal device on the middle neck? |
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Lee Jeffriess
From:
Vallejo California
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 5:39 pm
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Jussi, what do you mean the pick ups are the earlier Bigsby design?,are you refering to the early type string covers?.
Lee |
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Jussi Huhtakangas
From:
Helsinki, Finland
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Posted 19 Sep 2006 9:27 pm
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| Yup! Anyone ever compared the guts of these early ones to the later ones?. [This message was edited by Jussi Huhtakangas on 19 September 2006 at 11:18 PM.] [This message was edited by Jussi Huhtakangas on 20 September 2006 at 12:27 AM.] |
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chas smith R.I.P.
From:
Encino, CA, USA
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Jody Carver
From:
KNIGHT OF FENDER TWEED
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Posted 20 Sep 2006 1:14 pm
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Chas, what is the knob on the 1st neck for?
Tone, Volume? |
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