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sparquelito

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Posts posted by sparquelito

  1. 9 hours ago, Retired said:

    Did I answer this Sparky? Let's just say I liked dad and we spent time together a lot. But I never wanted to be like him. He was cruel, Had a very bad temper. As a toddler he beat my mom. He cussed out her and my two sisters a lot but not me as he loved me as the only son. He was extremely prejudiced. I didn't like anything about him except he was a good artist and taught me to draw in the 2nd grade. I took art all through school winning many art fairs. I won a scholarship in High School for Art. I did many paintings and drawings for the guys at BNSF RR. Even retirement paintings for them. Dad and I used to have contests together to see who was the better artist. He always beat and mom was our judge. Till I became a teen around 13 and I started beating him every time. Then he quit doing it. I've done Horses all the time as a youth. Till in high school, I had a art teacher who refused to give me an A if I did a horse. So I started to do other stuff and got straight A's. Today I do Scenery, People, Dogs, Mostly Wild Life. and Plaines, Trains, Cars. I love doing Race cars. I used to race cars through the quarter mile. 

    If I had a horse, I would want you to paint him, Butch.

    🙂

    • Like 2
  2. 1 hour ago, fujifan said:

    "PM me, please."

    begging other men to pm ypu? I had a feeling you'd eventually sink to this level. What next, you want me to meet you in a truck stop bathroom with a hole drilled in one of the stalls? No thanks buddy

    Heh.
    How many truck stop bathrooms did you have to visit before you learned that that sort of liaison wasn't your cup of tea?
    Or did your doctor advise you to give it a rest?

    Oh, it's spelled "you", not ypu.
    Unless ypu is some sort of truck stop bathroom slang that I'm not hip to.

    Anyway, I'm through being kind to you, and endeavoring to offer you counsel on polite sociable behaviors.
    You clearly aren't here to pass on any sort of meaningful information.
    You are, as others observed early on, a common internet troll.

    Adios, Scooter.
    It's not been nice knowing you.
    😉

     

    • Haha 1
  3. OH MY GOD, I’M BORING    
    (a poem)

    Oh my God, I’m boring
    a fact of which I was unaware
    My ego will need restoring
    Fuji’s done some serious damage there

    And it appears that I am wrong
    I know nothing about neck tenons,
    the difference between short and long,
    or between Sir Paul’s and John Lennon’s

    My forum enforces blandness and uniformity
    and Gibson is a terrible company
    My Les Paul’s neck joint has a deformity
    Upon my playing, surely shame and guilt will accompany

    I guess I should thank fujifan for his honesty
    Though it’s a bitter pill for me to swallow
    This lesson should lead to ontogeny
    And maybe fujifan-like wisdom will follow

    I sure hope that Gibson gives a listen
    To the truths that fujifan has to offer
    Then maybe in 2025 they can christen
    A new line of neck joints to proffer

    Neck joints that conform to fujifan’s standards,
    that offer vintage tones
    to players what noodles and meanders
    whilst playing riffs from the Rolling Stones

    Well, I guess I really am boring
    Because I just wrote a poem
    On a topic as exciting as vinyl flooring
    even the rhymes and prose are ho-hum

    fin

     

     

    Okay, I’m gonna shut up now.

    😔

    • Like 3
    • Thanks 1
    • Haha 1
  4. 14 minutes ago, fujifan said:

    "I get it"

    I doubt it.

    "Why not introduce yourself, and tell us a bit about your years of playing Fuji-gen guitars"

    Nah. Online forums just aren't fun anymore. Back in 2000 they were entertaining but now they enforce blandness and uniformity. I'm only here to talk neck joints.

    So back to that- The neck joint is the root of all evil in gibson guitar construction. That's the one change they need to make to start building good guitars again. You ever notice that if you want to buy a 1971 strat you'd have to pay around 9 grand but the price of 70's les pauls never goes up? They have never become that collectible while japanese copies of Gibsons have gone through the roof. You could buy a 1965 gibson sg for 5k but a 65 strat would cost you 20 grand. Ever since norlin came up with this new neck joint, gibson instruments have been consistently subpar. Gibson still exists because every now and again a rockstar playing a gibson makes it big. This last time when Slash turned them around it for them he wasn't even playing a gibson, he was playing a replica. Gibson has thought of different schemes to stay in business but it would be really simple for them to return to being a quality guitar maker.

     

     

    I pray for you, brother fujifan.

    If this is the be all and end all of your contribution to music, then I can only offer my heartfelt love and prayers for a happier existence for you some day.

    PM me, please.
    I have many years of experience in counseling and guiding troubled men and women toward a more peaceable and harmonious outcome.

    Really.
    You only need reach out.
    I love you, and I'm here for you, little brother.

    🫠

    • Like 1
    • Upvote 2
  5. 9 minutes ago, fujifan said:

     Internet forums are echo chambers now. People that regularly frequent forums lack originality and an individual identity and are closer to cattle than humans. And those cattle are always offended when thoughts outside the orthodoxy are presented. If you say anything funny, they are offended because they are always terrified of losing their status to people that can actually relate to other people.  If you criticize Gibson, the NPC bots in the forum will come out in force. The rule is that you have to grovel and kiss *** for 6 months  to prove you're a team player before you are allowed to express criticism of gibson. but there's no way I could hang with you "people" for six months. The long time members in any forum are social outcasts that have retreated to a virtual life on an internet forum where their length of tenure and ability to merge into the herd grants them status.

    So if I'm a little salty it's because this forum is stealing your souls and I'm a breath of fresh air. You'll thank me later. but if you don't, who cares?

     

     

    You assign personalities, motivations, and politics to the forum that simply do not exist.

    I have no idea what your history is, but clearly you have been hurt and insulted on a number of web forums.
    I get it.
    It stings.
    And so you lash out.

    But I caution you to avoid characterizing any of these fine long-time Gibson forum members as lacking in originality and humor.
    These guys here are not Gibson bots, and most of them have been vocal in their criticism of Gibson and many of their product.

    Let's go back to square one now.

    Why not introduce yourself, and tell us a bit about your years of playing Fuji-gen guitars, and the gigs and performances that you have engaged in?  Tell us about your band members, and how well received your guitar performances are, when playing your favored instruments.  (versus the times that you no doubt had unsatisfactory experiences when playing modern Gibson guitars at your gigs)

    Really.
    All is forgiven.
    Just tell us about yourself and your band, and your life's experiences with a variety of guitar brands.
    That's the stuff we really enjoy here.
    True life stories from the road, and from the bars and clubs where we ply our trade.

    I extend this hand of friendship, and look forward to a fresh start for you here.

    🙂
     

    • Like 2
    • Thanks 1
    • Upvote 1
  6. fujifan,

    I'm sure you hear this a lot in your explorations and visitations of a variety of guitar web forums and other social media and web-sites, but in my opinion you are over-compensating.

    For what exactly, I have no idea.
    But you are trying too hard.

    So hard that you offend at every turn, and even take a perverse pride in offending.

    Most would simply write you off as an internet troll.
    As for me, I believe there is hope and salvation for you.

    My recommendation is to stand back and evaluate (objectively as is possible for you) what exactly it is that you came to the Gibson forum to accomplish.

    And then check the blocks on those items you hoped to achieve here.
    Here, I'll assist you, young sir.
    Let's start it off.

    * Pissed off a lot of long-time forum members - Check
    * Changed anybody's mind toward your way of thinking - No. Not at all.
    * Amused most of us, and given us a chuckle - Check
    * Made yourself look like an argumentative, rationalizing, projecting fool - Check
    * Made friends and influenced people - No. Not at all.

    You get the idea.
    You can take it from here, I imagine.
    😉
     

    • Thanks 1
  7. True story.
    A few seasons ago, I was playing a gig with my band, and I was playing my Gibson Les Paul Studio Copper-Top, a 2001 model.

    Weeks of band practice had led to some really tight sets, and the wedding party we were playing was rocking with a high degree of fun energy.
    Wedding attendees and the bride and groom were on the dance floor, and we had a ball delivering them great dance tunes and even a few requests.
    Set after set, great music, short breaks, lots of dancing, and everyone was having a fabulous time!

    At one point late in the event though, the father of the bride started pointing at me and shouting, "Stop, stop, STOP THE MUSIC!!"
    We lumbered to a halt, and Bob the drummer just looked at me and shrugged. What could be the matter?
    The raucous crowd went silent.

    I spoke into my mic.
    "What's the matter, sir?"

    He pointed a trembling finger toward my guitar and sneered, "Your Les Paul has a long tenon neck. It has a step down and the neck heel covers the joint.
    No wonder your tone sounds like crap!!"

    The groom exclaimed, "What the hell?  You aren't playing a 1952 Gibson?  I thought there was something off about your tone!"

    The bride burst into tears. "Whaaaaaa!  His guitar isn't vintage, and now my wedding is ruined!  Whaaaaaah!!"
    She turned and sobbed into her mothers' comforting arms.
    The mom glared at me angrily.

    The pastor stepped forward and whispered softly, "It might be best if you all just packed up and left out of here. I'll make sure you get paid, but don't expect anything more than half wages."

    I nodded glumly, and my band-mates and I sadly began to quietly pack up and load out.
    The crowd dispersed, and the jukebox began playing softly.
    Theme From Peyton Place was the song.

    My girl singer hissed at me, "Great job, John. You and your crap Les Paul ruined everything!"
    She turned and marched away with her Shure microphone and her flavored rum drink, headed for the parking lot.

    The rest of us loaded into the van and cars, and Bob the drummer and I drove away in silence. We made no conversation for quite a while.

    Finally a few miles up the road he said, "We gotta get you a proper early 1950's Gibson, or we will never get any jobs around this town."

    I sank into my seat belt shoulder harness a bit, and just nodded morosely.
    We drove on into the night.

    😔

    100_1483_v_1703168870.jpg

    • Thanks 3
    • Haha 4
  8. 8 hours ago, Retired said:

    I was forced to go by my real name in school. Dad and had the exact same names. Floyd Delton Hanslip. He was sr and I was jr. Then later in life I found out he was married to another woman before my mother. He named his first son after him also so there were 3 Floyd's and One Sr and two Jr's. So I hated my name and always went by the nick name my mother gave me from birth.  BUTCH. 

    WOW.

    That is incredible hubris, naming both of you after himself.

    Just curious, and you don't have to answer of course, but how did you get along with your dad over the years?

    🤨

    • Like 1
  9. 24 minutes ago, Retired said:

    Re; Floyd being Dad's name

    Our father was Floyd Sparkman Jr, and his father was Floyd the senior.
    Pop, in his family, grew up 'Buddy', to keep this straight around the house.

    My younger brother and lifelong musical partner was christened,  in February of 1961, Floyd Stacey Sparkman.
    To keep things less confusing, he was always known as Stacey, and never Floyd.
    So he grew up Stacey.

    Funny though, over the decades, even though he's Stacey, his closest buddies and band-mates invariably end up referring to him as Floyd.  Just to get a rise out of him at first, and then as an affectionate matter of habit.

    Anytime I would go looking for him at some bar gig or at work at the hangar, it went like this.

    Me: Hi guys.

    Them: Hey, Spark.  You looking for Floyd?  He's out dicking-off somewhere.

    😜

     

  10. 4 hours ago, Dub-T-123 said:

    Now with both Rev David Lee and Guitar God gone I’m not sure we have any straight up guitar collecting maniacs left here

    Yes, I thought I was a guitar buying fanatic, but I was nowhere near their level of greatness.

    🥲

    • Like 1
  11. Okay, I found the answer.

    From one of many Reverb ads for that model (3,400 were produced between 1978 and 1979),
    "The 25/50 model was issued to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the Les Paul model and the 50th anniversary of Les Paul's career. "

    Only  a year off from the first sales of the Les Paul,  and spot-on for the launch of the performer's musical career.
    From Wiki:
    "By age thirteen, Paul was performing semi-professionally as a country music singer, guitarist, and harmonica player."
    He was born in 1915 and began making money performing his music in 1928, so that checks out.

    Close enough for government work.

    🙂

    • Like 1
  12. That's a lot of bling!

    Say, I am struggling with the 25/50 Anniversary designation.
    It appears that the model was made between 1978 and 1979 only.

    But those years don't seem to align with either the anniversaries of the Les Paul or Gibson as a company.
    1952 for the sale of the very first Gibson Les Paul guitars, and 1902 for the start of Orville Gibson's company.

    Scratching my head.
    🥲
     

  13. 5 hours ago, Sheepdog1969 said:

    Heck yeah brother! You beat me to it. I have a 1st pressing (vinyl) of Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass Greatest Hits/ A&M Recordings. It sounds sooooo good through my system (1,500+ watt, dual sub 7.2 system with high end speakers and a Gemini PDT-6000 turntable)  I grew up listening to this album on my Dad's Panasonic 2 channel stereo tiny speaker home system and loved it then. My mind was blown when I played it through my system after restoring the turntable. I was a Fifth Bone/Bass Trombone player in a HS funk/jazz band in my teens that was rated No. 1 in the USA by Down Beat Magazine. We recorded albums each year, and toured Europe the summer after my sophomore year. (Jim Culbertson was our director. He is the father of recording artist Brian Culbertson, btw.. Check him out on Youtube. Jim plays lead trumpet on his sons albums.) So, obviously, I really appreciate horns.

    I always get a kick out of playing "Spanish Flea" for my older friends who all say, "It's a great little car.", when I play it. (per the Mazda GLC ads). Yes, the "Dating Game" references are called out as well, LOL.

    Yes sir.

    I inherited all of my parents record albums, and going thru them (and dropping the turntable needle on most of them over the past few years) has been a trip down 1960's memory lane.

    You have a very rich and interesting musical history, good sir.
    I would love to hear more stories about your European tour back in the day.
    That had to have been an epic adventure.
    Must have been quite a job for Mr. Culbertson, keeping all you young musicians reeled in safely.

    🙂

    • Thanks 1
  14. 4 hours ago, jifov38653 said:

    Sounds like you found a clever solution to tackle the icy conditions! Improvising ice cleat shoes from your running shoes was a stroke of genius. It's important to stay safe, especially when the weather throws a curveball like this. Walking the dogs in the woods must have been a relief for both you and them after being cooped up indoors. Stay warm and keep those improvised cleats handy for your next adventure!

    Thanks, jifov38653,

    The snow, icy woods walking was a lot of fun (and cardio) for all of us.

    I returned the running shoes back to normal configuration, and have since acquired proper slip-on ice cleats.
    For myself and the wife.
    And as Sarge indicated earlier, I'll probably never need them.
    But it's good to have them in my closet, ready to go!!

    🙂

     

  15. Trey was a real sport, and a bona fide guitar collecting maniac.

    I always looked forward to his postings, and reading about his latest acquisitions.

    badbluesplayer,
    I plan to get up to Johnson City later on this year for a visit.
    I did some work up that way with Bell Helicopters for a coupla seasons, and I always wanted to go back and hang out for a weekend.
    There is extra incentive now, and I want to go by Roselawn Memory Gardens there by I-26 and South Roan Road, to see Trey's final resting place.

    I'll let you know when that visit finally comes together, sir.

    🥲

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