The Steel Guitar Forum

This guitar was originally bought new by Jim Lindsey...if he wants to jump in and tell ya'll the history, I'll let him...Mickey Adams ended up with it and was kinda his go to steel I think the last few years...anyhow, he decided to sell it, and knowing a little of the history of this guitar, and the friendship I've developed with both Jim and Mickey the last few years, I wanted and was fortunate enough to get.

This is the first opportunity I've had to play it in front of anyone...Jim shared his amp setup with me, so I was dieing to try it out in a room bigger then my music room...Hope you enjoy it...I love the sound of this guitar, and like Jim and Mickey think she's pretty special...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5cC7XNQTT48

Beautiful playing Dale. Sure sounds like (BIG "E")
Love that 2 tone on your Mullen too. Sure beats Black.

I really liked your playing Dale, sounded really good.

Thanks Josh and Carl...Carl that's as close to Buddy's version as I'll get...even know the notes he plays, he's impossible to duplicate...at least impossible for me...be was the "Man" back when, and I suspect in our hearts always will be...BTW, How'd you know my last guitar was black?...

Thanks Josh and Carl...Carl that's as close to Buddy's version as I'll get...even know the notes he plays, he's impossible to duplicate...at least impossible for me...be was the "Man" back when, and I suspect in our hearts always will be...BTW, How'd you know my last guitar was black?...

Well Dale, I guess at one time we all probably had a black one.
I did but I never liked black on a steel. My last steels have always
been Red and Blue, my favorite is Red and my wife's favorite is Blue.
One of my Mullen's is bright Red and the other is like Marble Blue.

Carl I had an all Black Pro lll in the mid 70's as my first Double neck, I then got a Blue Pro lll, and about 30 years later a really nice sounding Black/Gray Pre Royal D-10...and now this Natural with a Black top 1990 Gary Hogue clone...and hands down, this is the best sounding of them all...maybe a little Black on a guitar is okay...I know know Jim and Mickey think so!!!...

Nice steel tone and I really like the counterpoint you played on the song.

Godfrey Arthur wrote:Nice steel tone and I really like the counterpoint you played on the song.

Thanks Godfrey...I love the tone of this guitar too!!...I was using a Profex 2 on the two amps just behind me and facing each other, with a Session 500 straight behind me that I was running dry except for just a touch of Reverb...all three amps were mic'd and the sound your hearing is from what was captured and recorded off of the church sound system...That Counter point, in fact the entire song was taken out of DeWitt Scott's book and as far as I know was note for note what Buddy played back in the day...I don't normally play from tab, but not being good enough to be able to figure out every note in every position, and loving Buddy's version of this since I was a kid, I resorted to it, and except for a "Miss-execution” here and there have tried to commit it to memory.

I love this picture...amazing how these phone cameras take pictures these days...From when we played at the Hoodview Ore. SDA Church.

Dale...that seat looks familiar

It should Dave...I love that seat...wish I had two but only have one butt...lol

Dale Rottacker wrote:This guitar was originally bought new by Jim Lindsey...if he wants to jump in and tell y'all the history, I'll let him...Mickey Adams ended up with it and was kinda his go to steel I think the last few years...

Well, between occasional emails, phone messages and Facebook, there has been some interest generated regarding this guitar, so I'll take Dale's hint and hop in with some history on it (for anyone who might be interested in the background of this guitar).

The idea for this guitar actually popped into my head when Gary Hogue introduced me to Mullen guitars back in 1986. Junior Knight had gotten his Mullen first and when Gary Hogue saw it and played it, he had to get one, too. Gary called me to let me know he was getting a new steel and told me it was a Mullen. I'd never heard of one until that moment.

When the day came for Gary's new guitar to arrive, I drove down from Ft Smith, Arkansas to Dallas to check out his new toy. When he pulled that guitar from its case and set it up, I was thunderstruck. I fell in love with it and knew I had to get one, too.

I got my first Mullen in December 1987 (at Charlie Norris Music), a brand new red HWP model. I loved it, but couldn't get Gary's guitar with its dual pickups on each neck and black & blond color scheme out of my head ... I just had to get me one like that. So, it was either April or May in 1990 that I ordered a custom job from Del Mullen. The new guitar was to be an exact clone of Gary's, but with the polished package ... Gary's old guitar has the black anodized knee levers and the old style Mullen pedals. My new guitar would have polished levers and pedals. Another difference would be the setup. Gary and I used the exact same copedent, but his Mullen had 8 pedals & 7 knee levers. My new guitar would have 8 pedals and 9 knee levers.

We ran into an issue right off the bat ... I'm sure many will remember that big trucker strike going on in 1990 ... prices going up and things hard to get because of it. The wood inlay trim like Gary's that I wanted didn't happen ... Del was out of that trim and couldn't get any because of the trucker strike, so he chose that Sho-Bud LDG styled inlay for the guitar. A comparison of what ended up in the new guitar along with what I'd wanted is seen below:



This, of course, made the guitar even slightly less of a "clone" than the polish-package and added knee levers, but it was still a great looking guitar.

One other difference between that guitar and Gary's was in the matter of the pickups. I initially wanted 705s like Gary's, but Gary had told me about a new pickup Del was winding that was really close to breaking that "Emmons sound barrier". After talking with Del about it, I went ahead and ordered the guitar with stock Mullen pickups in it.

I'll never forget when it was finished and ready to ship, Del called me and said he had "good news and bad news" ... the good news was that the guitar was finished and ready to ship; the bad news was that he was tempted to keep it for himself and build me another one. Del had outdone himself on that guitar and when it arrived I knew exactly what he meant and why he'd like to have kept it for himself.

I've played a lot of fine guitars over the years and I've played a lot of Mullen guitars ... guys, I have to say that I have never played any guitar that played as fine as that 1990 "Hogue Clone" Mullen. In many ways it was not only the finest guitar I've ever owned, but also the finest I've ever sat down and played, barr-none. It's a wonderful axe.

How did the stock Mullen pickups work out? I loved 'em. After I got my 1990 Mullen, I bought Gary Hogue's first Emmons, a 1976 push/pull guitar (which is now in Junior Knight's keeping). I've never played any non-Emmons guitar that sounded as close to an Emmons as that 1990 Mullen.

Here's a couple of tunes (recorded the same way) that compares the 1990 Mullen with the old 1976 Emmons. (By the way, the steel is way out front on these as they were "critique" tapes I made ... whenever we'd learn up a new song and do it for the first time on stage, I'd set a recorder under my pack seat, record the song and then play it back on the way home from the gig to hear any rough or trouble spots in the song I'd need to work on) ...

Never Alone (1976 Emmons)
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/never-alone

Oh Girl (1990 Mullen)
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/oh-girl

Here's one more comparison (for Dale) ... the same song on both guitars (the one with the Emmons is a board mix ... the one with the '90 Mullen is from a critique tape on the night we first played this arrangement; complete with still getting ideas for it and a missed-execution here and there) ...

Amarillo By Morning (1976 Emmons)
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/ ... sung-by-ty

Amarillo By Morning (1990 Mullen)
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/ ... 990-mullen

I played that Mullen almost exclusively until 1995 when Gary let me know that he'd sell me his first Mullen, that 1986 guitar, if I wanted it. Well, I only had two guitars at the time ... the '76 Emmons and the '90 Mullen and, to afford Gary's guitar, I was going to have to sell one of them. I wasn't about to let Gary's old push/pull Emmons get away, so it was the '90 Mullen I let go. I took it to Steve Lamb in White Settlement and he gave me a great price for it. Truth be told, if Gary had not decided to let his original Mullen go, I'd still be playing that 1990 Mullen today, but I really wanted Gary's first Mullen, so I let the '90 model guitar go to get it.

The guitar's history becomes a little vague for me at this point ... I've no idea who bought it from Steve Lamb and/or how many owners it went through before finding its way into Mickey Adams' hands.

Imagine my surprise when Mickey called me up one day and said, "Man, you're never going to guess what guitar I just bought" ... then he told me he had my 1990 Mullen. It became his go-to guitar, like Dale said, and then not long ago Mickey made it available for purchase.

I'm so proud that Dale got it. Dale's a great guy, a fine player, and takes immaculate care of his music equipment and I know it's in loving and careful hands. Dale, if that guitar brings you even part of the happiness it did me when I had it, I know you're a happy camper. Enjoy! You've got a great axe there!

Nice playing Dale especially with so much attention on every note! I like the dump truck idea also.

Thanks Greg, I appreciate the kind comment...concentration does seem to be a reoccurring issue for me...I’m sure prayer was the main factor keeping me from too much embarrassment...that may have been the best I’ve gotten through that harmonic and slant bar section...And yes I liked the Dump Truck too, and apparently so do the kids...

Jim, thanks so much for providing all that history...it certainly is interesting to me to hear some of the “back” story concerning this steel...I re-listened to the audio samples you provided and either my ear isn’t good enough (very possible) or there just isn’t a big enough difference between this guitar and your old 76 PP for me to notice or feel like I got a guitar only worthy of standing in the shadow of a PP Emmons...I don’t mean that in ANY way as a slight on an Emmons, and someday would still love to have one,...But, I’m thrilled with this guitar, the way it sounds and plays, and feel blessed and privileged to have her...Thanks, and I will take care of and enjoy her to death!!..I’m also pretty sure I’ll become a better player, playing her...I was playing her last evening till about 11...my wife had to peel me off her, cause I couldn’t do it myself...I was loving the sound coming out of her soooooo much I couldn’t pull myself away...You told me that would happen though and you were dead on...

Hey Jim...could you post that picture you were telling me about of the first time you played the 1990 Mullen?...I’d love to see it all bright shiny and new!!

Here ya go, Dale. Picture isn't that great (taken with one of those disposable 35mm cameras). This was the evening that it arrived and my first time to play it.



That was at a club in Dallas called Borrowed Money. Never will forget that place ... they had the coldest air conditioning of any venue I've ever been in. LOL

Thanks Jim...great picture of “my” steel...but who’s that young guy under the cowboy hat?...

...but who’s that young guy under the cowboy hat?... You got me, Dale ... the reflection in my mirror is a bit different now ... haven't seen that guy in years!

Jim I resemble that statement...though I must admit to probably being in better condition then I have in years...still don’t recognize the guy in the mirror in the morning...

Hey Jim...do you have any other audio comparisons between your PP and the 1990 Mullen?...If you do, I’d love to hear them...Thanks

Let me dig a little and see if I can find something that's from the same evening. I used to take both guitars to the gig and I'd start out with the 1990 Mullen on sets 1 & 2, then I'd switch and play the 1976 Emmons on sets 3 & 4 (allowed me to have my cake and eat it, too). I'll see what I can find for you.

Sounds wonderful ! Lotsa good music in that guitar !

jim,
just wondering how would you compare the Boen d-10
to the mullen d-10 and the emmons d-10/pp as far
as tone went and playing wise. did you use the boen
thru the same amp setup....

p.w

Dale Rottacker wrote:Hey Jim...do you have any other audio comparisons between your PP and the 1990 Mullen?...If you do, I’d love to hear them...Thanks

Okay, Dale, took a little finding, but here's two recordings of the same song (There For Awhile) on the same night, one on the '90 Mullen and the other on the '76 Emmons.

I wasn't quite as heavy on the volume pedal on the first cut with the Mullen because I was a naughty boy and had not learned the song from our rehearsal tape; instead, I was flying by the seat of my pants and depending on what I knew of the song from having heard the DJ play it during our breaks.

Here's the "Mullen guitar cut" ... There For Awhile
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/ ... 990-mullen

For reasons unknown, Ty (who literally never had us repeat any song in the course of a single night) had us do There For Awhile again during the last set. By this time I had switched from my Mullen to my old Emmons.

Here's the "Emmons guitar cut" ... There For Awhile
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/ ... 976-emmons

By the way, if you hear those little spots of intonation issues, I had just changed strings on both guitars right before the gig and didn't have enough time to do any string stretching before we kicked off the first set ... needless to say, there was a lot of tuning-on-the-fly that night as my strings settled in.

Paul Wade wrote:jim, just wondering how would you compare the Boen d-10 to the mullen d-10 and the emmons d-10/pp as far as tone went and playing wise. did you use the boen thru the same amp setup....

Paul, if you're talking about that black D-10 I built for myself when I was working for Jim Boen, I think I can give you an example here for comparing the tone and general sound. This recording was a different night with a different band ... but ... I was using the same amp/rack rig, same amp settings and the recording method was the same ... a little recorder set beneath my pack seat. That being said, I think this might be a fair comparison for the sound of that Boen D-10 versus the '90 Mullen and the '76 Emmons.

1985 Boen D-10 (10 & 7) --- Greener Pastures
https://soundcloud.com/excalibur-steel/greener-pastures

When I compare the sound of those guitars, I find that, to me, the Boen D-10 had a very pleasant sound, but the highs seemed to bite with a little more resilience than the Mullen or Emmons. I had to be careful of that when I was playing that guitar.

As far as playability, my Boen D-10 was pretty comparable to the Emmons in pedal/knee lever feel, but the string spacing (exactly the same as the old MSA Classic guitars of the mid-late '70s) was not quite as comfortable to me as the string spacing on the Emmons.

Both the Boen and the Emmons were setup and adjusted very well ... they both played excellent and were very comfortable to play, but now we enter the '90 Mullen into the picture ... in every measurable sense it was far superior to my Boen and Emmons across the board. For me, comparing the playability of the Boen & Emmons versus the Mullen would be like comparing the ride of a couple of Chevrolet Impalas to the ride of a Rolls Royce Silver Ghost or Silver Shadow ... that Mullen, which Dale now owns, was just beyond compare.