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| This is what I've been told so far:
Miles purchased the neck from Bluebird who bought the guitar from some "Goober" named Buddy(who worked with this guy named Jerry) and got the guitar from him, somehow the guitar was damaged(airline?), well Jerry had a good friend named Glen, who had a few of these, and asked to use one of his... meanwhile Glen had the guitar sent back home for repairs, and to be sent back to Buddy, when the guitar was repaired at the mothership in CT for some reason the original color scheme was covered over and the entire guitar was repainted in the blue metallic color solid with no burst and no bluebird stencil.
the broken neck was replaced with the one that I have with the deluxe inlays.
neat story.. any additional information appreciated.
Glenn |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | Glenn, I can give you the whole scoop, but, I've been REALLY busy the last day or so and will be lowering on in to hell today. Send me your phone number and I'll tell you all tomorrow. It's too much to type.
BYE! |
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Location: SoCal | Budro, you've told me bits and pieces of that story, but I'm going to drag the whole thing out of you in CT.... |
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| I appreciate it man!! no hurries..
it is looking good... should be assembling soon.
Glenn |
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Location: Central Florida | Goober,
Why limit the sharing of this story to only a personal phone call and to those within earshot at the factory tour? I'm sure many of us here (who won't be able to make the tour) would love to hear the story as well. I know I would. Please... do tell. :) |
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Location: SoCal | Jeff, it's a conspiracy against you...... |
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Location: Central Florida | Oh behave yourself Paul! ;)
Actually, you may be right... I think it started with the whole "anti-lefty" movement at the mothership. :D |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | I wish I had taken some "before" pictures to go with the "after" ones but I never thought to do so at the time.
Wayne |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | Glenn,
What you said is pretty much accurate except for the "the entire guitar was repainted in the blue metallic color solid with no burst." It is true that it had not Bluebird symbol, but I did not request one. I did have a nice blue-burst, and was in immaculate condition.
To start, I had wanted a nice Ovation electric 12 that was not so heavy, hence wanting the urelite-bodied Viper-like Bluebird. I had owned a Deacon 12 and the sumbich about killed me to hold it up for a long period of time.
We opened for Glen at his golf tournament in LA one year, and after the show a lot of us were hanging and getting in the liquor bottles ...including me...and for a little while...including Glen. I had done a couple of TV shows in the last two years backing-up Glen so he sort of new who I was (the Goobery-looking guy that played with Jerry Reed. LOL!). So, after a few stiff ones, I told Glen that I had really always wanted a 12 string electric like his to use on Jerry's show. (I didn't even know they had a name for the guitar at the time.) He told me to see Bill McClay (Glen's road manager...to this day!) and his now late agent Roger Adams, and that he had one with a broken neck that he would give me. He also said that the factory would fix it up for me. It went straight from Roger to the factory. I never even saw it before it was redone. So there you go...the whole long-assed story.
Liquor or no liquor, never let it be said that Glen is not a really down-to-earth guy and very generous.
It was a little darker blue than the Wayne's other Bluebird, but it was done in a nice burst. All of the Bluebirds I saw Glen play had sparkle on them...maybe not as much.
I was trying to get the guitar back ASAP to use it on the road instead of an acoustic. Even with bat wings in my Adamas, my acoustic set-up was no match for the entire Jerry Reed band. Jerry always ended up on "10" every night, and the rest of the band would follow. The electric 12-string sounded really nice and more like an acoustic to my ears when I was strumming or finger picking...and I could crank it, baby!!!
Getting the guitar rebuilt exactly like Glen's was never the goal. I guess it would have been nice, but the factory did what they did to get it functional and rebuilt ASAP. And all I know is that at factory, they did call it a Bluebird. It had a Preacher Deluxe neck on it done in the matching blue. Sucker practically played itself!
It was a sweeeeeeeeeeeet guitar just the way it was, but Wayne wanted it to be just like Glen's, and the factory did an AMAZING job of doing that (I'm sure with Wayne's ever watchful instructions, since he had one to go by).
That was one of about 4 guitars that I really regret selling. But, I had gotten off the road and it stayed under the bed. |
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| Thanks Buddy!
the preacher deluxe style neck does still have a label under glue/finish that says bluebird .
it's going to be a blueburst again, the headstock color outer edge to lighter blue/silver at center.
just got off the phone with Brett about 20 minutes ago.
wish I could make it original... but parts is parts.. and the UK body is at least structurally accurate.
it will be nice. Brett does good work.
Thanks again for "the rest of the story"!!
Glenn |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | You are no doubt right about the bursted finish, Goob...I only had it a couple of days before sending it off for the makeover so I don't really remember. I figured if it was really the only twelve left, it would be a shame not to try to restore it back to it's original state, especially since I had an original finish 'bird to send off with it for an in-hand guide to go by.
Little did I know it would be 13 months before I laid eyes on it again...way too long but what a fantastic job he did. My only consession from originality was to have it done in nitro-cellulose laquer instead of poly to get a nice vintage feel and look.
I was absolutely amazed when I received the first pictures via email of the completed job. Here are links to those original pics taken in the shop, just like I got them, if you want to take a look.
They are quite large so it'll take a minuite to load them.
Looking forward to the finished pics on yours, Glenn!
Wayne
BB1
BB2
BB3 |
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Location: Central Florida | Cool story, Goob. Thanks for sharing. |
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| Wayne, if you don't mind, I'd like to use those photos as another set of references.
Thanks in Advance.
Glenn |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | I sure would like to have a VTX 12-string...without overdrive (which I would guess is a setting anyway). |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Heop youself, Glenn...that's why I left the files at their original size.
Wayne |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Goober;
Maybe you may have seen this already but I have a guitar built for another of your playmates but I don't know if he ever used it.
Maybe you could ask him if he remembers it sometime when you see him.
Wayne
JR T-Head |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | That's a beaut, Wayne! I like the way the electronics are set up on that. I know Reed used it The Goodtime Hour.
Where did you get that guitar? I know Jerry had several 335-style Gibsons that he played his Chet stuff on. But, as you know, he was really a Tele electric man through-and-through.
I was told by a former artist relations guy (man, his name escapes me) that the Country Artist was originally designed to be the Jerry Reed model. But, an executive decision was made not to do anymore "name" or artist model guitars after Glen.
Maybe Bill can confirm or deny this, but it makes sense. |
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| Originally posted by Goober:
I sure would like to have a VTX 12-string...without overdrive (which I would guess is a setting anyway). I've been thinking about the same thing.. guess I'll have to wait till MF and GC lose the exclusive and we can get it with other finish options and maybe more strings..
I'd love a VXT with a Natural top, and dressed out nice... 12 string.
Glenn |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | "...he was really a Tele electric man..."
Goob, you know, as soon as I picked this thing up I realized that this was IMO, exactly what the control configuration was all about...a layout that a die-hard Tele man might like. Even the sound, with the bridge pup is much like that snarly f-holed Tele Thinline tone.
This is the guitar that Miles had, who got it from Samova, who got it from Bill K. It's the only one I know of but maybe there are more out there.
Wayne |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | I didn't know they had exclusive sales rights. Major suckage. :confused: |
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| I have a set of NOS pickups with blades that look really close to those... were those yours as well Bluebird?
They're going on an artist body (korina over basswood)reverse route, with a preacher deluxe neck(shaved and sculpted a little)... Schaller bridge, and Keystone Grovers.
having it built for my daughter, unfortunately she wants it in Trans-Green...
it will be unique.
Glenn |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | Are those the UKII pups, Glenn? I have a BB6 with a set of those and they were the best Ovation humbuckers by far, imo.
I did sell a set one time but I forget to whom. Highly unlikely the ones you have were mine, though.
Wayne |
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| these are single coils(with a dummy coil I think)..similar to ? they are NOS Storms.
DeArmond? or Schaller? or Ovation?
the pots are all 250k and nice old milspec caps.
Glenn |
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | I didn't buy the neck from Bluebird. I bought it from Sam I think. The pickups on the Jerry Reed are potted pickups. |
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Location: Nova Scotia, Canada | No Miles, you got the neck from me...I had it on EBay along with a stripped UKII body and hardware.
Wayne |
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Location: Upper Left USA | I can see myself grabbing a hot deal on Ebay only to get it home and realize its been here before... LOL.
May the circle be unbroken. |
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Location: Australia | I wish they would reissue this guitar, perhaps as a limited edition
....I get alot more excited about a Bluebird 12 than the VXT |
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Location: Athens, GA & Gnashville | Originally posted by richardd:
I wish they would reissue this guitar, perhaps as a limited edition
....I get alot more excited about a Bluebird 12 than the VXT It was never issued in the first place. To my knowledge, and Bluebird will know more about this than I, all Bluebirds were custom made for Glen Campbell. |
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Location: The Great Pacific Northwest | Originally posted by Bluebird:
No Miles, you got the neck from me...I had it on EBay along with a stripped UKII body and hardware.
Wayne Ahhhhh.. memory ain't what it used to be. |
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Location: Australia | Originally posted by Goober:
Originally posted by richardd:
I wish they would reissue this guitar, perhaps as a limited edition
....I get alot more excited about a Bluebird 12 than the VXT It was never issued in the first place. To my knowledge, and Bluebird will know more about this than I, all Bluebirds were custom made for Glen Campbell. |
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Location: Australia | I'm probably living in a fools paradise and it'll never happen but then again I never thought I'd be holding a new slothead Adamas either
the fact that they're once again dipping their toe in the water with solid bodies again gives me cause to live in hope |
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Info on my Bluebird 12 neck... more appreciated.