#16
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Knopfler's style to me always comes off as a combination of Richard Thompson and J. J. Cale. You could go with either when it comes to guitars and be pretty close to hitting the mark.
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"You start off playing guitars to get girls & end up talking with middle-aged men about your fingernails" - Ed Gerhard |
#17
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While I agree players as skilled as Mark Knopfler, can play 'notes' recognizably on a wide range of guitars, they choose their specific instruments with care for the properties they exhibit when they play them. But as a player and teacher, I don't dismiss the properties of the instrument when one is pursuing particular styles. Fingerstyle guitars are often quite different than Bluegrass lead guitars. It's not just about how-little-can-I-get-by-with to play my style with them. It's more a matter of at what point does the instrument become invisible to the player so he/she can just express themselves with it. If you hand Mark Knopfler a nylon string guitar with little sustain, not well intonated, with muffled mids, you wouldn't beg to hear him play it even though you might recognize the style. He has very definite thoughts about the tone and responses of his 'chosen' instruments (which he has talked about at length in interviews). That's part of what makes him 'Mark'. Other highly respected players are similarly selective about the properties of their instrument (Al Petteway, James Taylor, Phil Keaggy, Michael Chapdelaine, Martin Taylor, Pat Donohue, Pete Huttliner-who I miss a lot, Laurence Juber, Marty Stuart etc). They chose their instruments for the properties under discussion when combined with their style. The original poster is currently playing a nylon string guitar and wants to add a representative steel strung instrument to apply Mark's style to. So the issues boil down to a balance between price (how much should he spend) versus which characteristics enhance the properties of Mark Knopfler's style as one grows into them. I think the focus should be around the desired properties that place it in the camp of Mark K style playing, and mark2b is doing the right thing by starting to play instruments and audition them. I started learning to do fingerstyle on a great D-28 (owned it for 17 years) but at about 13 years with it, my skills and styling hit a wall and I began wrestling with the instrument instead of playing music. While I was exploring how to loosen things up and pushing myself, and practicing even harder, someone put an Olson in my hands for about an hour, and my style immediately improved. Imagine my surprise when James Olson said "I cannot sell this guitar because it's not up to my standards." It took 4 more years to make commissioning one a reality, but my Olson is now 25 years old, my main guitar and I'm still growing musically. |
#18
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He’s playing a Froggy here.
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#19
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I totally agree. I don’t like his style because his technique is always the same regardless of the song - boring! There are many guitarists that have the ability to play different techniques that fit songs rather than making all of the songs sound the same.
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Taylor V-Class 814ce, 717e BE WHB, 520ce, 454ce, 420 Cedar\Maple, T5z Classic Martin D18E Retro Cordoba C10 Crossover Emerald X20 Rainsong H-OM1000N2 Voyage-Air VAD-04 Custom Les Paul Hot Rod Deville 410, Fishman Loudbox Performer |
#20
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This model comes in three sizes, O, OO, and OOO and my pick would be the OO. It has a short scale, is 12 fret, spruce top, hog back and sides (laminate, but whatevs) has a lovely sunburst, looks well made and has a nice vintage woody tone with sweet trebles. It basically checks off all my boxes and I've no doubt Knopfler would approve since the OOO closely tracks his Martin specs. It's only downfall is it's horrible name, Gretch "G9521 Style 3 Double-O Grand Concert" which is kinda hard to warm up to, but the price seems well within your parameters. https://www.gretschguitars.com/gear/...top/2705801537 Nice to see so many Knopfler fans weighing in. While I've emulated his playing style, I'm not such a fan-boy that I love all the tracks on his albums. If I go 5 for 12, I consider it a success. The newest has some more personal songs from him, "Matchstick Man" and "One Song at a Time" that were my favorite and if I'm not mistaken, Knopfler went political again like he did with "Don't Crash the Ambulance" with his song "Heavy Up." Politics, being the 3rd rail generally – well I'll just stop there, just wondering if anyone else noticed . . .
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Larrivee OO-05, OOV-03, OO-44R & Strat |
#21
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Ye, the name is horrible.
Unfortunately, Larrivee guitars are out of my budget. The Gibson J15 is a big stretch for me already. I don't live in the US, so prices here vary much. |
#22
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Among the many guitars MK has played and performed with is a small body Froggy Bottom guitar
http://www.oneverybootleg.nl/MK_guit...oggybottom.htm MK is a guitarist's guitarist. He has refined his enormous talent over a long career. He says so much with subtle few notes. I admire his approach greatly. hans
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1971 Papazian (swiss spruce/braz RW) 1987 Lowden L32p (sitka/ind RW) 1992 Froggy Bottom F (19th cent. german spruce/koa) 2000 Froggy Bottom H12c (adir/ind RW) 2016 Froggy Bottom K mod (adir/madrose; my son's) 2010 Voyage-Air VAOM-2C http://www.soundclick.com/hanstunes (recorded on Froggy H12c) |
#23
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You may have gotten a less-than-ideal Gibson. Which will happen from time to time. But.. of the guitars listed there, I would take the J15 by a mile before any of the others. Sigma is the only other one which would be a potential contender, but.. for not much more, you can find a Gibson (or equivalent) on the used market. Everyone has their own preference, and ear.. but in the end, you're the only one who matters. I would also add Washburn to the list.. as my Washburn is one of the most responsive guitars for tip-of-the-finger/flesh fingerstyle that I've ever played. Especially at that price. But at the end of the day, I would just say... be patient. Wait for something that speaks to you. You may have to play 20 or 30 or 50 guitars until you pick one up that you're like.. "*dang*". I can't help but keep thinking that Mark Knopfler does play almost exclusively Martins for his acoustics.. including a signature model.. but if you're budget is going to restrict you to the "lower" tier Martins, (or even the mid-tier ones.. except maybe save one or two..) ..I would steer you elsewhere. But , again. . it's all about you.. enjoy the quest!!!! -Scott
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2003 Washburn WD44S | Sitka/Hawaiian koa 2018 Gibson J-45 Vintage | Torrefied Adi/Mahogany 2015 Gibson Wildwood AJ New Vintage | Adi/EIR Fishman | Loudbox Mini | Primetone 1.0mm "what is the universe? the universe is a symphony of vibrating strings.." -michio kaku |
#24
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BTW the current issue of Guitar Player magazine has an article on MK's guitars...
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#25
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As for Sigma and Washburn, are there any particular models you can recommend (especially with Sigma, which copy so many models)? A funny side story about Washburn: my very first nylon string guitar I bought back in 2006 was a fully laminated Oscar Schmidt OC11, which is the daughter company of Washburn for 180$. Since than I bought and sold several guitars with a higher price tag, but that one is here to stay. It is the guitar, in fact, on which I currently play, while my 2700$ CS Strat sits in the closet. Quote:
I guess I need to just buy what I'll enjoy playing rather than owning, whichever the price is. Last edited by mark2b; 01-11-2019 at 02:25 AM. |
#26
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Does anyone here have an experience with Seagull guitars?
In particular, how do the S6 Original and Maritime SWS compare against Gibson's J15? |
#27
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Might be worth asking in a new thread Mark.
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#28
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"Discovery is as much a productive activity as creation." - David Friedman |
#29
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The price of this Yamaha, in my area, is almost as much as the J15, so it doesn't save me much money either :/ |
#30
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Fair enough, if you can though I'd recommend trying one as it has a really tasteful reverb built in that can be used without plugging the guitar into anything. Not everyones thing, but an excellent feature nevertheless - sound beautiful with folk styles (although not much use with faster/busier styles?).
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"Discovery is as much a productive activity as creation." - David Friedman |
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Tags |
country blues, fingerstyle guitar, folk guitar, knopfler, ragtime |
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