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Location: Colorado | When was the first time you heard and saw a professional playing either an Ovation or an Adamas? Live in concert, on TV, or on a video all count. I'm curious to see how long ago...or how short ago it was. I'll start:
TV...Glen Campbell - on the Goodtime Hour.
Live in Concert...circa 1973/74...America...all three of the front men playing Os....
I believe the first Adamas I saw and heard was Neil Diamond......Love at the Greek...
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Location: Utah | Glen Cambell on the Goodtime hour.
Edited by FlySig 2014-01-26 4:25 PM
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Glen C, on the Goodtime Hour... I didn't know what they were but thought they looked cool and sounded great. I read an article in Guitar Player Magazine and found out what brand they were.
In 1972 I clipped the little coupon out of an ad featuring Glen with an Ovation guitar and sent it in to get the free literature, which I still have.
30 years later, I ended up with the guitar that was featured in the ad.
Wayne |
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Location: Flahdaw | Hard to say. It seemed like everyone on TV was playing them way back when in the 70's. When my friend Keith got one, I was so impressed...like it was the Holy Grail or something. |
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Location: Texas | IT was Glen on the GCGH. I was just a kid, but I remember my parents being in downtown Omaha shopping and I went into a nice sized music store and asked if they had one and the guy laughed at me and said no...it was just a gimmick. |
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Location: Keepin' It Weird in Portland, OR | Some traveling hippie showed up at the pot circle in front of the Falmouth (MA) Public Library.
That was in 1971 or so.
During that summer a few hitch-hikers visited carrying Ovations.
Those folks were saying that the Ovation was the best guitar for hitch-hiking.
Not fragile like other guitars, and not as affected by changes in the weather.
Also, there was a girl in my high school who had an Academy in 1972 or so.
I remember asking her if it was a Toy Guitar because the top was Plastic.
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Location: Boise, Idaho | I'm not sure I ever saw Glen on his show. Possibly we didn't get it when I lived in North Dakota from 66 to 69, or possibly because I wasn't watching TV in the summer time. I do remember everyone having them around the time I started playing guitar in 71. I don't remember ever playing one until we bought the Matrix in 77. |
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Location: New Hartford CT | My Dad's machine shop was in Greenwoods Industrial Park in New Htfd. Ovation moved in right next door to us in '67 or so. Little did we know it was a relationship that would last more than a lifetime. |
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Location: Canada | I have to admit that I had absolutely no awareness of Ovation and who played when I grew up playing guitar in the 70s, though I knew of the brand and that it had a reputation equivalent to Guild and Martin. My first encounter with an Ovation was in the late 80s when we passed through Nashville and I thought it was a silly idea to stop into a guitar store and maybe pick up an instrument (I didn't have one at that time). The one that really struck me was a totally banged up and worn out ancient 12 string Ovation (maybe a Pacemaker) that played like butter and sounded so sweet. But the price tag was at least 400 which was way out my budget and it looked like it would fall apart so I passed on it but never forgot it. It was more than 10 years later that I got my 6751 and I found this site, and from here following the various links I learned about the various professionals who used them (though I have been an Al DiMeola fan for most of my life). |
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Location: Jet City | I paid absolutely zero attention to Ovation ACOUSTIC guitars until about 10 years ago.
Prior to that I'd have to say Neal Schon using a UKII was sorta fun, but I was such a metal head in those days it was almost more lame than cool to have Journey's guitar player playing the same guitar, so I bought a Flying V to shore up my metalheadedness (even though my heart still belonged to the UKII)
I could care less back then who was playing what brand, I knew nothing about guitars really, just that the UKII seemed to feel better than the rest in the store, so that's the one I wanted.
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Location: Jet City | I should note that I payed zero attention to ALL acoustic guitars. I had a beater Fender Concord for 20 years that was my only acoustic. I always had at least 3 or 4 electrics though. |
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| Glen C. once again, but I thought little of it at the time, as I didn't pick up a guitar until a few years later -- 1972 or so. My new neighbor played guitar and I played piano, so we exchanged lessons.
A few years later we were in a music store and he put one of the first Adamas models in my hands... after that, there was no other guitar for me. |
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Location: Caribou, ME | Glen on the Goodtime hour. My father always had Gibsons and Martins and I thought it odd for a guitar to have no pickguard and such a big rosette. I didn't notice the rounded back right away to be honest. Probably not until he set it down beside him. |
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Location: Sydney, Australia | Late '70s, watching Simon and Garfunkel's Concert in Central Park. Told my friends that if I ever took up guitar, I'd buy one of them. They all laughed. |
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| When I was young all the good bands had them, wings, heart, dr. hook, and when I turned 21, after a trip to Reno, I won enough money to buy one. What a great guitar, wish I still had it. |
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Location: Des Moines, Iowa | It was back in 1984 at a little club in this college town where I was living, partying, attending school, and hardly studying, when I saw this guy playing an Ovation round-backed guitar. I was already a player myself, but I'd never seen anything like it. Since I'm mostly a rhythm kind of guy, I was blown away by the amazing rhythmic sound this guy was coaxing out of this beauty. It just looked "comfortable" and VERY COOL, from the scalloped head stock to the tip of that rounded back, I was hooked. At that time I was playing electric, though I had a nice Epiphone acoustic as well.
I never forgot that guy, that performance, and most especially - THAT GUITAR! I can't recall how long it was exactly, but I know it was at least five years before I came across an Ovation for sale in a Pawn Shop. I took it down, sat it on my lap, and wrapped my hand gently around it's neck, while I began to "tickle" its strings. Fortunately I knew the guys in the pawn shop pretty good, since I'd often stop in there to buy the occasional cheap CD or once in awhile... get a short term loan. Since I didn't have the full price to buy it right then, I talked my pawn buddies into letting me put a very small down payment on it as a no risk option for them. I told them that if I didn't come up with the rest of the money within 30 days then they could keep my "deposit" AND the guitar.
That was my first Ovation, which I didn't learn until many, many years later was actually a VERY nice Ovation - 1979-year 1651 Legend Ltd. Series with a AAA Solid Sitka Spruce top, Rosewood fingerboard with pearl inlays, and gold-plated tuners. Now I know why it was that whenever I picked up some buddy or playing partner's new acoustic guitar, which he was all smiles and proud to have acquired... that I would say (only to myself, not out loud), "This guitar sounds like crap." I guess I got spoiled and someone would probably have to pull out a nice Martin D model to get me excited about any other guitar. P.S. I've never picked up ANY nice Martin, but it is on my "to do" list to check one out someday and see what all the fuss is about.
In the meantime I'll just keep playing and loving my three Ovation Legend guitars, because I've yet to see, hear, or playing anything better!
Of course I could be just a....
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Location: CA | Glen Campbell - thought if I could grab one of those funny guitars maybe I could play like he did. Pffft. But my first Ovation (bought new, 1971) did make my fumbling sound, at times, at least half-decent. Which kept me coming back to it. It did turn out to be a good traveling guitar, too. That thing went to Central America, through Panama on a boat, across the Atlantic to Europe and around most of the Med for 2 1/2 years. It even helped close the deal with several lovely ladies along the way. Never had a single finish crack or other problem with the guitar until I shipped it home to CA. When I went to get it from airline baggage, the head was busted off the neck right above the nut. Since the fretboard itself was not compromised, I just mixed up a batch of boat epoxy and glued the head back on. It might have a few scars now, but it still sounds great and I still play it. |
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Location: Mandurah. W.A. | My first time was in the late 70's and (the late) Tompall Glaser had one at Wembley Country Music Festival and I was backstage in the rehearsal room and he let me have a go on it, it was plugged into a Fender Twin Reverb and had a good sound. It convinced me to get one, I already had a FTR so it wasn't long before I had my Custom Balladeer.. Slowpoke (Al) |
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Location: Utah | I'm sure I saw Heart on Midnight Special in 1977. I had no idea what an Adamas was, though, and didn't make the connection it was the same company until joining this forum. I'd seen ads for Ovation in magazines such as Guitar Player, and knew a number of 70's singer-songwriters played them.
Nancy Wilson playing her Adamas on Midnight Special...
http://youtu.be/V44HiAX91Hs
Edited by FlySig 2014-01-30 3:06 PM
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Well I don't remember when exactly, but likely the 60's seeing Roy Clark with his Deacon or maybe a Preacher and maybe Glenn. The only music/variety shows we got back then were Ed Sullivan and later Hee Haw, so if it wasn't on there, I didn't see it. I wasn't very conscious of what artists played what instrument back then anyway. Even when I bought my first Ovation it was more a series of circumstances such as it was made in CT where I grew up, and names like Roy and Glenn were associated with it, it was on sale, and it sounded great and as it was a Madallion it was pretty much indestructible. I got my first Viper electric a couple of years later when I was looking for an electric and found out Ovation made electrics too. Figured I stick with what I knew. It wasn't until the 80's when Ovations were just about everywhere. |
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Location: Tennessee | 1975. San Diego Civic Auditorium. Dave Mason with a Pacemaker and Jim Krueger with a Legend. I'm sure I saw Ovations before, but being up close and personal really opened my eyes and ears.
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Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | I was at that show! Dave Mason played in San Diego a lot back then. I saw him at Golden Hall, at The Auditorium, and of course at the Sports Arena.
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Location: Denver, CO | I know I must have seen Glen playing one, but I was too young to notice the difference between an Ovation or anything else. I do remember seeing a guy at a huge revival playing one in the mid seventies. Went down front and talked with the band and was formally introduced to an Ovation for the first time. |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | Josh White, my living room, 1965 |
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Location: Utah | Beal for the win. |
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Location: Texas | "Josh White, my living room, 1965" Is that actually fair?
Edited by jay 2014-01-30 9:37 PM
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Location: Tennessee | CanterburyStrings - 2014-01-30 4:14 PM I was at that show! Dave Mason played in San Diego a lot back then. I saw him at Golden Hall, at The Auditorium, and of course at the Sports Arena. That was a particularly good time to be in Southern California. I saw Dave Mason many times. Alison, if you were in San Diego then, do you remember the Homegrown albums done by KGB radio? I know at least a couple of the songs used Ovations on them. |
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Location: Flahdaw | Nancy Wilson, my dorm room, 1978 |
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Location: 6 String Ranch | liar |
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Location: Flahdaw | Well, she SAID she was Nancy Wilson (from Fargo N.D).... |
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Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | stonebobbo - 2014-02-01 1:32 AM
CanterburyStrings - 2014-01-30 4:14 PM I was at that show! Dave Mason played in San Diego a lot back then. I saw him at Golden Hall, at The Auditorium, and of course at the Sports Arena. That was a particularly good time to be in Southern California. I saw Dave Mason many times. Alison, if you were in San Diego then, do you remember the Homegrown albums done by KGB radio? I know at least a couple of the songs used Ovations on them.
"I'm going to...Chula Vista, Chula Vista". Yeah I remember the Homegrown albums. I think I still have a couple of them somewhere. I even submitted a song once but it didn't make the cut.
San Diego was a GREAT place to live back then! Do you remember the burgers at Tugs? And that great record store in PB called Licorice Pizza? Not to mention Tower Records down near the Sports Arena, and the Wherehouse which had several stores in the area.
Good times. SO long ago! |
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Location: Atlanta, GA. | Of course there was 1st Glen on his TV show, and a buddy of mine got a shiny back Balladeer in the early 70's, but I think it was seeing Mac Davis play one on his variety show, even after his skirmishes with Glen, that I came to appreciate Ovations. I didn't get my 1st one until ~1985. |
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Location: Nashville TN. | From Glen Campbell then subject came with Family who worked Charlie before Kaman Corp |
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When was your first time?