Father and son accused of handling £170k of stolen guitars
A well known Yorkshire father and son business partnership dealing in rare and old musical instruments and equipment have been accused of handling stolen guitars worth £170,000 (c.$260,000). At the time of the alleged offences Richard and Justin Harrison owned a well known company called Music Ground. They had shops in Leeds, Manchester and London as well as many international customers. Mrs Lisa Carlton, the prosecutor, said they were both charged with handling stolen goods and intending or assisting in…
Engl announce new amps
Engl Amps has announced a new limited edition signature amp and a low-watt tube amp line to debut at Winter NAMM 2011. The Limited Edition Victor Smolski E 646 is designed for modern metal, while the GigMaster series, first seen at Musikmesse 2010, offers Engl tone at a smaller size with its head and combo offerings. Victor Smolski Limited Edition E646 The ENGL Victor Smolski Limited Edition E 646 was made to meet the demands of the modern metal guitar…
Clapton Les Paul now available from Gibson Custom Shop
The Gibson Custom Shop Eric Clapton signature “Beano” is now available. Here’s what Gibson have to say about it… “The tonewoods used to construct a great Les Paul Standard have always been at the core of this legendary electric guitar’s voice, and the Eric Clapton 1960 Les Paul is no different. Gibson Custom selects from its lightest stocks of mahogany to craft each guitar’s solid, one-piece back, and marries it to a two-piece top of lightly figured maple, seeking wood…
Guitar News Podcast for the Week of December 31st 2010
Pipes and PT breakdown all this week’s guitar news!
Gibson indictments expected
Newly-filed court documents show that criminal indictments are expected against Gibson Guitar after a federal raid in November 2009. The details are from an affidavit filed by one of the Fish and Wildlife service agents investigating the case. Wood from the island nation of Madagascar was seized at the Gibson Guitar factory during the raid and there have been accusations that the company has been illegally harvesting a type of wood from Madagascar, sending it to Germany and then importing…
London’s mayor wants Keef knighted
Boris Johnson, the mayor of London, has written an open letter criticizing former British prime minister Tony Blair for giving a knighthood to Rolling Stones lead singer, Mick Jagger, but not to other members of the band, especially guitarist Keith Richards. Here are excerpts from Johnson’s letter: “It is a continuing scandal that Keith Richards has not been made, at the very least, a knight bachelor. The outrage became clear to me when at Christmas – like so many other…
Beatles musical “Rain” splashes into profit on Broadway
The show’s producers announced that “Rain: A Tribute to the Beatles on Broadway” has recouped its initial investment of $2 million in just seven weeks The biographical show, with four cast members impersonating the Beatles in a concert setting, opened on Oct. 26 at the Neil Simon Theater. In a rare move for a Broadway show, “Rain” recently announced that it will close Jan. 15 at the Simon before resuming performances five blocks south at the slightly smaller Brooks Atkinson…
Man owns up to Dylan pizza prank
A man wearing a Bob Dylan backstage pass who ordered 178 pizzas from a Massachusetts pizza parlour but never picked them up has agreed to hand over the cash. A lawyer for the New Jersey man says his client is a “decent enough” guy with no criminal record who felt bad about the prank. Attorney Sean Cleary did not reveal his client’s name and did not say how much he’ll repay. The pizzas he ordered were worth about US$4,000. Workers…
Blues musician Nick Johnson dies in motorcycle crash
Nick Johnson, a Gretsch and motorcycle loving blues musician, who survived one horror road crash has been killed in a motorcycling accident in Spain. Nick Johnson, a former Edinburgh University pathology technician, was a well known and influential blues guitarist and singer. Friends and colleagues today paid tribute to the 48-year-old from Leith who passed away after the crash on December 23. He had moved to Catalonia several years ago but retained significant links with the Edinburgh. The crash was…
Bon Jovi are 2010 highest earners
Bon Jovi’s last album, The Circle, failed even to reach silver status in the US, but the New Jersey rockers won’t be worried – their tour to promote the disc has been announced as the highest earning tour of 2010. According to Pollstar, the concert trade publication, The Circle tour grossed $201.1m worldwide, including $108.2m from US dates alone. The list showed the continuing power of heavy rock in the live marketplace, with three of the top five grossing acts…