Ask Zac

Thanks to Truetone for sponsoring today's episode. 
Find your next pedal board power supply at:  www.truetone.com

Jeff King was raised in the Smokey Mountains of East Tennessee, where as a young boy, he found a guitar in an attic and was immediately hooked. Though he loved music and played frequent gigs, he did not study it in college, yet post-graduation, he decided to throw in his lot with a friend that moved to Nashville in the early 80s. With luck on his side, he fairly quickly hit the scene in a big way in 1985 by landing the lead guitar spot with the then-new artist, Patty Loveless. Jeff was soon riding the wave of success with Patty who was busy sending singles up the charts and wowing crowds and critics with her soulful Kentucky sound. This led to major screen time, as Loveless guested on the TV shows of the day, including Austin City Limits, The Tonight Show, Letterman, and the various music shows on The Nashville Network.  Jeff was also getting to watch Patty make her records with guitarists Reggie Young, Ray Flacke, Albert Lee, Richard Bennett, and Steve Gibson. He soon was putting his watch-time lessons to use by working on demo sessions in-between road dates to the point that he was soon able to bid the road goodbye and focus completely on studio work. After decades of studio work, he was asked by one of his clients, Reba McIntire, to go out on the road with her, which lead to him also performing road dates with Brooks & Dunn. Jeff now tours with two legendary Country Music acts, and because of their less strenuous touring, he is able to keep his studio work thriving.

On the gear front, King tells the backstory of his main guitar, a 1985 G-Bender equipped Glaser Tele-Style that is on its second neck. We also get a look at his Tom Anderson Strat, Gretsch Duo-Jet, studio pedal board, and his 1956 Fender Harvard amp.

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

Music City Bridge Guitar Parts:
https://musiccitybridge.com/collections/guitar-parts

Glaser Benders
https://www.glaserbender.com/

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac  
Or check out my store for merch  - https://my-store-be0243.creator-spring.com/

A look at my 6 Telecasters:

1. 1982 Kubicki/Danocaster with Musi City Bridge 3-pickup blend wiring, Glaser convertible bender.

More on my Kubicki/Dano
https://youtu.be/F9fjUeQtjUM

2. 1967 Fender Telecaster - stock except for compensated saddles. Refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments

More on the 1967 Maplecap Tele
https://youtu.be/K62c9ycOTlU

3. Crook Custom Paisley - Glaser Convertible Bender, Music City Bridge 3-string tree

Joe Glaser installs a Convertible Bender in the paisley
https://youtu.be/JLBKjRpRA7U

4. 1957 Fender Esquire with a 1954 neck pickup, and original bridge pickup. Restoration and Aging on the Body by Dan "Danocaster" Strain. Refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments. Both pickups were rewound by Ron Ellis. Pickguard design by Jay & Kristi Smith of Juicebox Designs.

More on the 57 Esquire
https://youtu.be/VHVlD_Ut0OU

5. 1953 Telecaster - Ron Ellis 52T and Standard plus neck

6. 1967/69 Telecaster with factory Bigsby - Bill Lawrence A400 neck, Ron Ellis 60T bridge pickup. Aging by Dan Strain, and refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments

More on my Bigsby Tele
https://youtu.be/sKNXOCRlaiY

Amp:
2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

Strings: 
D'Addario NYXL 95-44
https://amzn.to/41rnl0V

Pick:
Blue Chip TPR 35

Effects: Amp reverb

#askzac #zacchilds #telecaster

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac  
Or check out my store for merch  - https://my-store-be0243.creator-spring.com/

video of show
https://youtu.be/IbWSeuLuj6A

I was about to put away all of my gear after a run of shows, and I decided to show my somewhat minimalist approach to what I take to gig with. Here, I show my pedalboard, amp, cables, and spares I take with me, including my direct amp rig I use as a backup to my Headstrong Lil King. In the pursuit of completeness, I even show the gig bag and amp cover I use, and the old Coca-Cola crate I use as an amp stand and transport for cables and gear. Also included are some clips of me playing from this last run of shows with Paul Bogart. 


Gear used in the live clips:

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

1957 Fender Esquire with a 1954 neck pickup, and original bridge pickup. Restoration and Aging on the Body by Dan "Danocaster" Strain. Refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments. Both pickups were rewound by Ron Ellis. Pickguard design by Jay & Kristi Smith of Juicebox Designs.

https://danocaster.com/

https://www.ronellispickups.com/

Strings: 
D'Addario NYXL 95-44
https://amzn.to/41rnl0V

Pick:
Blue Chip TPR 35

Effects: Amp reverb

#askzac #zacchilds #telecaster

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
 Patreon https://www.patreon.com/AskZac 
Tip jar: https://paypal.me/AskZac 
Venmo @AskZac 
Or check out my store for merch - https://my-store-be0243.creator-spring.com/

When Bill McCumber sent me his 1967 Telecaster, he knew it needed some work, as the high E-string was resting against the bridge pickup, and the action was already set fairly high. I raised the action and did a neck shim to help it, but I knew more work was needed to get it playing right for the long haul. As both Bill Lawrence pickups were non-adjustable, I knew some changes had to be made. I decided to keep the Lawrence neck pickup that I really loved and remove the bridge pickup and modified wiring. This allowed the Tele to have a nod to both eras of its past, by keeping some of the Bill Lawrence mods and installing a standard bridge plate, control plate, and Ron Ellis 60T bridge pickup. Now with at least one pickup height adjustable, the guitar's volume and tone could be set to be much more balanced.   
 
Today's Book Nook is for the Galaxy of Strats by Yashuhiro IWANADE It is on the expensive and hard-to-find side, but can be found on eBay or Amazon in Japan.  

Special thanks to Bill McCumber for the fabulous guitar, and for Dan Strain's restoration work and the use of his workbench.

#askzac #bigsbytelecaster #telecaster

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac  
Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com

As soon as I got a second guitar amp in High School, I began experimenting with running both of them at the same time. In 1990 this usually meant a stereo chorus splitting the signal. An unwanted side-effect was that I found that my noise floor went way up, and sometimes, with certain pairings of amps, it seemed like my sound got smaller instead of bigger. It was not until almost two decades later, in 2002, I learned about the grounding and phase issues that have to be dealt with when running two amps simultaneously. Here, I show how to overcome these issues with an easy-to-find signal splitter that incorporates phase reversal controls, and safe ground lifting using an isolation transformer.

Full episode on Youtube
https://youtu.be/FZ__DCGIwDI

Amazon link to Lehle P-Split III
https://amzn.to/3MVoVU1

Book Nook Link - The Fender Archives, by Tom Wheeler
https://amzn.to/42fyZfi

The Stratocaster Chronicles, by Tom Wheeler
https://amzn.to/3WANkBE

Gear used:

1982 Kubicki body, 2022 Danocaster Neck, Glaser Convertible Bender, 80s Duncan middle, Ron Ellis 50/60 Tele pickup set. 

NYXL 9.5-44 Strings
https://amzn.to/3qbGGpp

1965 Deluxe Reverb with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker

Link to 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://amzn.to/427wpYr

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

Effects used:
1981 TC Chorus 
Mad Professor Deep Blue Delay 
Truetone CS6 power supply  https://amzn.to/3WAMd4R


#askzac #princetonreverb  #telecaster

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
 Patreon https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar: https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac
Or check out my store for merch - https://my-store-be0243.creator-sprin...

I recently had access to a variety of 1957-1974 Fender guitars, and I wanted to spotlight the change in finishes when Fender started using polyurethane on necks and bodies in mid-1968. That change did not mean the total elimination of lacquer/nitro finishes, it meant that nitro was used less, but at times was still used for topcoats, and it was nearly always used on the headstock after the CBS black logo was applied into the early 1980s.

Special thanks to Dan Strain for making his 1957 Telecaster, and 1972 Stratocaster available, and of course for the use of his workbench. 

#askzac #zacchilds #telecaster

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac 
Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com

For my 50th birthday, my wonderful wife, Amy, took me on a surprise trip to New Orleans to go to Jazz Fest and see Mavis Staples.

Through a twist of fate, Mavis played 2 nights later in Nashville, and I was able to have breakfast with Rick. At my studio, he showed off the modified Broadcaster/Nocaster blend wiring he was using in his 56-mongrel Tele, and I asked if I could film it. He obliged and also talked a bit about the joy of working with Mavis, and the fun of working in a 3-piece rhythm section with two vocalists.

Wiring info
https://www.askzac.com/post/rick-holm...

Gear used:

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

https://www.ronellispickups.com/

#askzac #rickholmstrom #mavisstaples

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac 
Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com

My dear friend and mentor, Bill McCumber, contacted me a couple of weeks ago saying he wanted to give me his 1967 factory-equipped Bigsby Telecaster. I was blown away, not just by the gift, but also remembering the many kindnesses Bill had done for me through the years. I share about Bill and the modifications that he had done to the guitar since he bought it from Clawson's Music in Corpus Christi, Texas in the mid-1960s. Through the years, it received an electronics upgrade from Bill Lawrence, who did the modifications himself, and a neck change to a mid-70s model.

I also show how Bill's Tele has aged differently from my 1967 Telecaster, as his 1967 has much less wear, yet is much darker due to the number of gigs he played in the smoke-filled Honky Tonks and Dance Halls of South Texas.

Book Nook Amazon link - Fender The Inside Story by Forrest White
https://amzn.to/3MidRQQ

Gear used:

1967 factory Bigsby-equipped Fender Telecaster with Bill Lawrence pickups, and a mid-70s neck.

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

Effects used:
Mad Professor Deep Blue Delay


#askzac #billlawrence #bigsbytelecaster

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac 
Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com

One of my Patreon supporters started playing with a new group, and they wanted to add some Western Swing numbers and he wanted some pointers for playing in that style. I thought this would be the perfect topic for a video. Here, I share some do's and don'ts along with harmonic & tonal concepts for sounding legit when performing Western Swing.

Junior Barnard playlist
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/11b...



Gear used:

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

1957 Fender Esquire with a 1954 neck pickup, and original bridge pickup. Restoration and Aging on the Body by Dan "Danocaster" Strain. Refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments. Both pickups were rewound by Ron Ellis. Pickguard design by Jay & Kristi Smith of Juicebox Designs.

https://danocaster.com/

https://www.ronellispickups.com/

Strings:
D'Addario NYXL 95-44
https://amzn.to/41rnl0V

Pick:
Blue Chip TPR 35

Effects: Jrocket Archer Ikon with NOS diods from Chad C.

Listen on: Apple Podcasts   Spotify

Support the show

To Support the Channel:
Patreon  https://www.patreon.com/AskZac
Tip jar:  https://paypal.me/AskZac
Venmo @AskZac 
Or check out my store for merch  - www.askzac.com

I have been struggling off and on with hand pain since 2019 but had been able to keep things under control until March 2023. Last month, my hand pain hit a new level, and I knew I needed to find out what was going on. Today's episode lays out my journey and my road forward.

FYI, I just played one of my gigs in Tulsa last night. All went well, just a bit sore, and going to ice it down some. Looking forward to the gig tonight, April 21, 2023.

Gear used:

2023 Headstrong Lil' King with 12" Eminence GA-SC64 speaker
https://headstrongamps.com/lil-king-amp

1957 Fender Esquire with a 1954 neck pickup, and original bridge pickup. Restoration and Aging on the Body by Dan "Danocaster" Strain. Refret by Nick at Glaser Instruments. Both pickups were rewound by Ron Ellis. Pickguard design by Jay & Kristi Smith of Juicebox Designs.

Strings:
D'Addario NYXL 95-44
https://amzn.to/41rnl0V

Pick:
Blue Chip TPR 35

#askzac #zacchilds #arthritis

Support the show