The Fretboard Journal Guitar Podcast

On today's Fretboard Journal Podcast, we talk to Jason and Pharis Romero of J. Romero Banjo Co. From the tiny town of Horsefly, British Columbia, the Romeros craft some of the most coveted new fretted instruments being made. They currently have a five year waitlist and, as they describe it, even getting on the waitlist is a bit of a challenge. The duo are also exceptional musicians and won the 201...

On this week's podcast, we talk to luthier Maegen Wells. After years of working alongside famed archtop guitar and bass builder Tom Ribbecke, Maegen is now building her own guitar and mandolin creations out of her Forestville, California workshop.    Wells has devoted nearly her entire adult life to learning the craft of lutherie and woodworking. Straight out of high school, she enrolled in Bryan...

On today's podcast, we talk to William Seeders Mosheim, the owner of Seeders Instruments . Seeders is an open-back banjo builder who has found success combining old world designs with new world craftsmanship. The Vermont-based luthier honed his woodworking craft at his father's furniture business but now has a multi-year wait list for his banjos. His custom creations can incorporate any number of...

This week, we talk to recording engineer Larry Crane of Portland's Jackpot! Recording Studio about the new and expanded 20th anniversary reissue of Elliott Smith's Either/Or , his friendship with Smith and what those original recording sessions were like. Larry tells us about Smith's in-studio work habits, the gear they used, the work that went into remastering these songs and a lot more. We also...

This week: A double-episode of sorts! First off, we talk to Michael James Adams (aka by his social media handle, puisheen ) about interviewing Nels Cline for us for issue 37. Michael walks through the interview process, Nels' gear selections and more. Around the 20 minute mark, we share another session from the 2016 Fretboard Summit, this one on the next generation of guitar stores. On the panel:...

On today's Fretboard Journal Podcast, we talk to singer-songwriter Paul Burch, who went from performing in rock and indie bands in the Midwest to working the honky tonks on Lower Broadway. Burch tells us about his years performing at Tootsie's Orchid Lounge, focusing on "post-war, pre-Elvis" music; his classic country music influences; how his songwriting and singing evolved; and his latest projec...

Yet another fun session from the 2016 Fretboard Summit! This week we hear John Thomas ( Kalamazoo Gals ), TJ Thompson, Mark Stutman (Folkway Music), Jim Baggett (Mass Street Music), Robb Lawrence ( The Les Paul Legacy ) and David Sheppard (Lowe Vintage) field questions on vintage Gibson acoustic guitars. Topics include: the many variables found in most vintage Gibsons; solid linings versus kerfed...

The wait is over! Back on our 100th episode, we introduced you to T. Drew Heinonen, a young luthier who attended the first Fretboard Summit. We ended up ordering a guitar through Drew, using woods and materials we sourced through some of our favorite suppliers. Ever since, we've been checking in with Drew on the podcast as he builds the instrument. Well, the wait is over and at the second Summit (...

Law professor, author and Fretboard Journal Field Editor John Thomas joins us once again to discuss some recent updates to CITES and the impact they will have on musicians, instrument collectors and builders. Specifically, beginning January 2017, all remaining species of Rosewood (beyond Brazilian, which was already protected) will be added to CITES Appendix II. This may not affect you at all if y...

On December 5, 1927, the day after Blind Willie Johnson recorded some of his most influential blues sides at an impromptu Columbia Records recording studio in Dallas, in walked an equally mysterious and haunting musician, Washington Phillips. Phillips carried a homebrew instrument - later described as a "dulceola" but, as we learn on today's podcast, actually two zithers he fabricated together. Th...

You don't need to be an offset guitar connoisseur to appreciate the beauty of Nels Cline's beat 1960 Fender Jazzmaster, affectionately dubbed "Watt." On today's Fretboard Journal Podcast, we talk to the former owner of that guitar, Mike Watt himself. Watt reflects on his ongoing friendship with Cline, his ownership stint with the Jazzmaster (which was briefly owned by J Mascis before Watt bought i...

On this week's podcast, we talk to guitarist Jon Herington. For the last several years, Herrington has performed guitar duties for Steely Dan, but his credits go far beyond that. He's also an accomplished singer-songwriter and session musician. We also discuss his 2016 solo album Adult Entertainment , his Wysocki Telecaster, the rigors of touring and a bunch more. 

On this week's podcast, we're sharing the vintage Martin guitar panel that took place at the 2016 Fretboard Summit. Included on this panel were guitar experts Mark Stutman (Folkway Music), TJ Thompson, Jim Baggett (Mass Street Music), David Sheppard (Lowe Vintage), Eric Schoenberg and Joe Glaser (Glaser Instruments). Also joining in is Dick Boak from Martin. This episode makes for a nice bookend w...

On this week's Fretboard Journal podcast, we're sharing the talk that acclaimed luthier TJ Thompson gave at the 2016 Fretboard Summit in San Diego. This talk was billed as "Myth Busting with TJ Thompson" and had the following description in our program: Adirondack you say? What makes you think so? Is it possible to build a new guitar just like the old guitars? How long is long scale? Is hide glue...

The last official talk at the 2016 Fretboard Summit featured three giants in the world of guitarmaking: Rick Turner, Dana Bourgeois and Andy Powers. This sprawling talk covers a lot of ground: What makes a great guitar? How long are guitars supposed to last? Will artificial intelligence take over guitar making? They also fielded plenty of enlightening questions from our audience. [Note: Audio is a...

Two old friends join us on this week's Fretboard Journal Podcast as we talk with guitar improvising legend Henry Kaiser and Andy Marshall of THD Electronics. During our sprawling chat, Kaiser tells us about his love for diving in the Antarctic and how being underwater in the cold has affected his sense of rhythm. He also tells us how he met Alexander "Howard" Dumble and how he obtained his #1 Stee...

On this week's podcast, we talk to Will Lowe and David Sheppard of Lowe Vintage. Lowe Vintage is a relatively new guitar shop based in Burlington, North Carolina. Despite their newcomer status in the world of vintage guitars, mandolins and banjos, they've already amassed an incredible selection of Gibsons, Martins and more. During our talk, Will Lowe tells us about how this store came about and wh...

Our Fretboard Summit OM guitar project is now nearing completion. On this episode, we conduct one last Skype conversation with luthier T. Drew Heinonen to talk about the instrument, where it stands currently and about some of the finishing touches Drew will be making to the guitar. He tells us a bit about pore fillers, the intricacies of UV finishes, how he prefers to glue the bridge to the body,...

We don't often cover religious music here at the Journal but on today's podcast we talk to Paul Enns, a music pastor based in London. He walks us through his unique job, crafting music and playing acoustic guitar for church services; tells us about his wildly eclectic music tastes (here's a player who can appreciate everything from Joe Henry to John Zorn and Albert Ayler); describes the life chang...

As Santa Cruz celebrates its fortieth anniversary, we're sharing the talk that founder Richard Hoover gave at the first-ever Fretboad Summit. Richard tells us a bit about the SCGC operation, gives us his thoughts on how tonewoods affect what we hear, describes his specific builds for Tony Rice and much more.  The next Fretboard Summit takes place October 14-16, 2016 in San Diego, California. Once...

Jim Olson is a legend in the world of acoustic guitar making. The Minnesota-based luthier is a cult favorite among guitar collectors around the world thanks to the instruments he's built for James Taylor (Taylor's Olson was once immortalized in cartoon form on a Simpson's episode), Phil Keaggy and Leo Kottke. Due to their high demand, Olson's new creations start at $15,000, a price that even he is...

These days, Otto D'Ambrosio is best known for his exquisite archtop guitars. But his guitar journey began long ago, when he stumbled into Mandolin Brothers as a 13 year old. He ended up working at Mandolin Brothers for Stan Jay, then for luthier legends Flip Scipio and John Monteleone. He did some time at the repair department of Guild's Westerly plant and, eventually set out on his own as a luthi...

It's starting to look like a guitar! Luthier T. Drew Heinonen is hard at work on the OM guitar project we'll be unveiling at the 2016 Fretboard Summit. On this week's podcast, Drew tells us about his assembly of the guitar's body, gives us his views on bracing and bridge plates and much more.  The Fretboard Summit OM will be unveiled at the next Fretboard Summit, taking place October 14-16, 2016 i...

Author, record producer, historian and performer Bob Carlin joins the Fretboard Journal podcast to talk about his latest project, the gorgeous new book 'Banjo: An Illustrated History.' The book is an exceptional tome for any fretted instrument collector: Carlin walks us through the history of the instrument while showcasing some of the most gorgeous banjos ever created. It also offers profiles on...

Tim Young is best known for his guitar playing with Wayne Horvitz in Zony Mash but he's also done a ton of session and studio work with everyone from Todd Rundgren and Fiona Apple to John Legend.  On this week's podcast, we talk to Young about his career as a session guitarist, including his stint playing on the case/lang/veirs record (he's also immortalized as the subject of the song "Best Kept S...