The Washburn Guitar folks have a number of new acoustic models. All were debuted at the recent Winter NAMM show, and will be arriving in dealer showrooms later this summer.

Striking and unexpected wood choices are a theme with these five new guitars, three of which are available with onboard electronics.

The two dreadnaughts (D46SP and D46CESP) are maple guitars, using a highly-figured spalted variety for the top, back and sides. This splating is a result of the action of fungi on maple after harveting, but prior to manufacture.

The D46SP will retail for $839.90 and the D46CESP with cutaway and B-Band A-15 electronics for $999.00.

Another interesting wood choice is Java Ebony, used on the J27CE jumbo cutaway. The body is ebony with a mahogany neck and a rosewood fingerboard and bridge. Many people associate ebony with a nearly-black appearance, but a great deal of ebony has a streaked, reddish-brown look before staining. Washburn has left this wood in its natural state.

The J27CE, with onboard electronics will retail for $1,099.90.

There are also two new additions to Washburn’s long-running and very successful Festival Series guitars. These feature an oval sound hole and a cutaway with the EA17 ($649.90) being a deep body guitar and the EA21HM ($1,299.90) a much thinner model. Both feature the same B-Band A-15 electronics.

Our good friend Brad Davis is one of those super fast flatpickers that leaves you wondering, “How does he do that?” Well, Brad wrote in to share one of his secrets (besides insane talent, and lots of practice). The secret is coffee.

Brad is an avid coffee drinker. I’ve been in studio sessions with him that lasted 12 hours or more, and I’ve seen him drink a lot of coffee. Somewhere around a year ago, Brad showed up with a new coffee he insisted I had to try. The brand was Coffee Fool. I had never heard of them before, but Brad swore by the stuff.

Brad went on to write a theme song for company, just because he loved the coffee so much. You can hear that song by visiting CoffeeFool.com and clicking the play button in the lower left.

Just a couple months ago at the January NAMM show, Brad teamed up with Flapicking Guitar Magazine editor Dan Miller, to convince the guys at Coffee Fool that bluegrass flatpickers were in need of a special brew to give them the energy boost necessary to keep up with banjo and fiddle players during late night jam sessions. The company responded by creating a special coffee blend just for flatpickers. It’s called Flatpicker Fuel.

Pick the high note and low note at the same time with our post-roast blend of high energy Breakfast Brew, rich Fool’s House Italian and the subtle sweetness of pure Extra Fancy Hawaiian Kona. Just the right combo to keep you jammin’ through the day… or night!

CoffeeFool.com is a great supporter of music and musicians. They are sponsoring some of Brad Davis’ workshops and performances and are also co-sponsoring some live music events with Flatpicking Guitar Magazine. Dan Miller had this to say about working with Coffee Fool.

When Flatpicking Guitar Magazine needed a co-sponsor to help with the costs of promoting and hosting an Infamous Stringdusters show in California, with opening act Keith Little and Jim Nunally, Coffeefool.com didn’t hesitate to jump on board and get involved. They are good folks who love supporting live music.

So if you’re a flatpicker in need of a speed boost, give Flatpicker Fuel a try.

The next editions in the series of DVDs featuring recordings from Best of The Flatt & Scruggs TV shows, Volume 5 and Volume 6 are scheduled for released on April 1.

This series contains the best musical performances from a long lost TV show taped in the 1950s and 1960s. Never available before, this footage features Flatt and Scruggs in their prime with their group the Foggy Mountain Boys playing many of their most famous songs as well as many other bluegrass classics.

The series is available from the independent record and video company Shanachie Entertainment of New Jersey, in cooperation with The Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum.

A complete track listing can be seen in the Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum online store, where pre-orders are available.

Recording King has introduced a line of new metal body resonator instruments, including two guitars plus a mandolin and ukulele. All feature bell brass bodies and hand-spun cones, and the guitars offer the choice between a tricone and a single resonator design.

The RM991 guitar uses three 6” Continental cones and is available in both round and squareneck configurations, both made from Honduran mahogany. The roundneck model offers either a champagne matte or nickel/silver finish, and the squareneck comes in nickel/silver. Both use a screen coverplate and a T-shaped bridge.

The style-O RM998 is a single cone guitar (9.5” Continental) with a roundhole coverplate. The finish and neck options are the same as the 991.

All of the guitar models carry a retail price of 699.99. At this time, no pricing info on the mandolin or ukulele is listed on the Recording King site.

Washburn has announced the release of two new mandolin models, both designed to mimic the appearance of gently worn vintage instruments. These are solid wood mandolins featuring flame maple back and sides and a hand carved spruce top.

The Washburn folks are marking their 125th anniversary in 2008, and introduced these new models as a celebration of their long history building acoustic instruments. The vintage look - complete with aged hardware and a lighter, satin finish - suggests the styling that launched the US mandolin craze in the 1920s, and which has remained the standard to this day.

The M118SW is an F-style model that retails for $1,349.90 while its cousin, the M116SW is an A-style body with a retail price of $1,149.90. Both have a rosewood fingerboard and bridge, Allan tailpiece, ebonite tuner buttons and ship with a hard shell case. Washburn offers a limited lifetime warranty on all their new instruments.

You can find out more about these, and all the other Washburn mandolin models, on their official web site.

The American Made Banjo Co. will unveil their new lightweight banjo tone ring today at the SPBGMA convention in Nashville.

The Aluminum Dannick tone ring came into being after American Made owner Tom Mirisola’s search for a lighter banjo with a full flathead tone ring. He studied a number of alloys that could be cast and machined for use in his banjos.

“I stopped at the metal titanium, and felt I was at the end of the road. Titanium had the sound potential but the casting process was not cost effective for a tone ring. So, that idea was scratched fast. While searching for other aluminum alloys, I found another metal called ticalium (Pat-Pend). This is a mixture of aluminum, titanium and carbon. The hardness of this alloy could be adjusted based on the formula.”

Tom said that ticalium rang like a bell, but since their patent was pending, he knew he would not be able to use the alloy. He finally settled on a high-strength aluminum alloy developed by NASA which was also very hard with a bell-like tone. They poured a few aluminum tone rings and cut them to match the original Dannick tone ring.

“Our first test was when Robin Smith installed one in a maple banjo. It had great volume, but the tone was a little bright for our taste. Robin then suggested he install the aluminum ring in a mahogany rim to soften the sound a little. This became the necessary wood/metal combination. As an all mahogany banjo with the aluminum tone ring, the tone, volume and sustain was perfect to our ears.

One day Scott Vestal who markets his signature Stealth Banjo, was at Robin’s shop. He picked on the aluminum prototype banjo, and said, ‘That’s the sound I’ve been looking for.’ Scott then directed Robin to build a couple of fancy Stealths with elaborate binding and quilted mahogany resonators. These Stealth banjos with a Dannick Aluminum tone ring will be on display in the McGavick Room at SPBGMA 2008.”

The Dannick aluminum tone rings are cut to the same dimensions as American Made’s Dannick tone ring, and offer a full size 20 hole ring that weighs in at only 18 ounces. They are unplated, buffed to a bright finish to match the metal parts in a nickel banjo and sell for $435.

We picked up a few more details about the new Jerry Douglas signature resonator guitars from Beard Guitars, though there still isn’t any new info on their web site.

There will be two Douglas models - a production model and a limited edition guitar.

The Jerry Douglas signature model will have all solid woods - Honduran ribbon mahogany for the back and sides, sapele (African mahogany) for the top, and mahogany for the neck. The inlay and coverplate will be custom to the Douglas model and will ship for $5250 with arched hardshell case and straplock assembly.

The Limited Edition guitar uses solid pomele sapele - a very highly figured variety - for the back, sides and top. The other components will be the same as the production guitar, other than the installation of a Fishman Aura pickup and the Douglas family crest inlaid on the headstock. Only 50 of these guitars will be made, with a selling price of $7500.

Look for more details soon on the Beard web site.

Recording King has introduced the latest in their growing line of affordably priced tone ring banjos, a signature model for Sonny Osborne.

This new model is called The Scout, and is a maple banjo with nickel plated parts. The peghead has “The Osborne” inlaid in mother of pearl script, and Sonny’s signature is engraved on a block in the 12th fret.

The neck is made from figured maple and the one-piece resonator is flamed maple, both finished in a sunburst. Sonny has long been known by his nickname, “Chief,” and both the peghead and the fingerboard inlays are styled in an arrowhead design.

Sonny also markets a high end, professional grade banjo of his own, known as The Chief. It is made in the US from what Sonny deems to be the best materials available, and sells for nearly $5,000. The Recording King banjos are made in China, though designed by US banjo experts like Greg Rich and Scott Zimmerman.

No pricing information for The Scout is given on the Recording King site, but we will update here as soon as we obtain that information. The RK banjos typically sell between $1,000 and $2,500.

Detailed specs can be found online.

UPDATE 10:00 a.m.: The Osborne Scout retails for $2295, with hard shell case and limited lifetime warranty.

Randy Kohrs was at the NAMM Show in Anaheim over last weekend to unveil his latest triumph - a signature, metal-body resonator guitar from Amistar Guitars.

The guitar’s body is made of brass, with a dark finish which allows the intricate etching show through. It is fitted with Amistar’s tri-cone system made by hand of an aluminum/magnesium alloy with a stamped radiating spiral pattern. The square neck is mahogany with a sunburst finish.

Each Randy Kohrs model also has Amistar’s Duotone pickup system installed. This features a mini humbucking pickup located at the neck and a T-bridge piezo pickup with an element attached to each of the cones. The player can blend the output of the two pickups for fine tone control in live settings.

Amistar is based in the Czech Republic (Prague), where the guitars are made. Randy first met them at the 2003 Dobrofest in the Slovak Republic and is delighted to be working with them as an endorser.

“It’s a classy instrument with the exact modern blues sound that I’m incorporating into to my progressive sound that hopefully distinguishes me from my contemporaries. Everybody wants their own style and sound and this instrument has really helped me get my own.”

Randy has been using the new guitar in sessions at his Slack Key Studio in Nashville, and is looking forward to taking it with him on the road.

Amistar Guitars are distributed in the United States by Vagabond Instruments, and by a number of dealers in Europe.

Beard Guitars has just announced the introduction of their Jerry Douglas signature series model resophonic guitars.

The Douglas models were unveiled today at the Winter NAMM show in CA.

There aren’t many details on the Beard site, but I’m sure we can get more information when they return from NAMM.

Recording King has introduced the latest model in their line of budget-priced, tone ring banjos. Known as the Deco King, this banjo features a luminous pearloid resonator and peghead overlay, a popular banjo appointment in the 1930s and early ’40s.

The neck is finished in a gloss black, again drawing on the Art Deco theme that inspired this new model, though the banjo is otherwise built to the standards of modern 5 strings. The pot is composed of a 3-ply maple ring with a Mastertone-style flange and tone ring and a one-piece resonator.

Recording King was a “catalog brand” for Gibson back before World War II, produced to satisfy a lower end market in popular mail order catalogs. The brand was resurrected a few years ago by The Music Link, and the new banjos and guitars are built in China under the design supervision of former Gibson production manager Greg Rich.

The Deco King banjo is shipped with a hard shell case and a lifetime warranty for a list price of $1599.99. Detailed specs can be found on the RK web site.

Weber Fine Acoustic Instruments is celebrating their 10th Anniversary with a new line of resophonic guitars.

Bruce Weber started his small shop with just himself and three other instrument crafters, and now has a staff of 12 luthiers working in a converted schoolhouse in Logan, MT. They have developed a reputation for building very high quality mandolins and mando-family instruments, plus arch top guitars.

Weber launches his reso line with four models, all available in three configurations. Round neck models will be offered with either the spider cone (typically preferred by bluegrass and country players) or the biscuit cone (favored by bluesers), and square neck models with a spider. All of the new Weber resos will be built using their Carousel soundwell, with an open body design designed to maximize airflow through the chamber. It is built using a pair of wooden rings supported by small posts.

The four models differ in the woods used for the body.

• Vigilante - all mahogany
• Renegade - mahogany with spruce top
• Outlaw - flame maple back and sides with spruce top
• Bandit - all flame maple

More photos and details can be found on the Weber web site.

Nashville-based banjo picker - and Bluegrass Blog contributor - Casey Henry is the latest banjoist to debut a signature model in the Kel Kroydon line manufactured by Tom Mirisola and the American Made Banjo Co.

The Casey Henry model is part of the Charlie Cushman signature line, with each banjo designed with Charlie’s input, and final assembly and set up occurring under his supervision. It is an all maple banjo, with the pearloid fingerboard and brightly-colored inlays that were utilized in the original Kel Kroydon banjos prior to WWII.

Casey is delighted with her new axe, and shares a few words about how she came to be involved with Kel Kroydon.

“Tom Mirisola first approached me about a set of signature strings, which I was pretty tickled about. When he called me after IBMA about doing a signature model banjo I was so surprised I almost didn’t know what to say. I was flattered he’d chosen me to be part of the Kel Kroydon family, and although I’d never met him in person (and still haven’t) I knew that if Charlie Cushman was working with him, he was good folks.

I modeled my KK banjo on my Gibson style 11 that I’ve played for years–maple stained brown, with nickel plated hardware. I chose the pearloid fingerboard because the 11 had originally had one (the tenor neck I have hanging on my wall) and, why not? It’s distinctive. There’s no mistaking what kind of banjo it is from the very first glance.

I got my new instrument right before Christmas and spent quite a bit of time playing it over the holidays. It sounds absolutely wonderful. It has that deep flathead growl (Charlie Cushman set it up impeccably, of course) and I know it will only get better with time.

To my surprise I haven’t found playing on the mother-of-toilet-seat fingerboard to be that different. I guess I mostly look at the side of the neck, rather than the front, when I play. I really hope some people will be interested in buying one. I know Steve Martin just bought a Charlie Cushman model and I’m pretty pumped that Steve Martin and I have the same kind of banjo!”

You can see more photos and find additional details about the Casey Henry model on the Kel Kroydon web site.

Mirisola tells us that they have a number of new items to be introduced in ‘08, including a Style 2 Kel Kroydon reissue, and a Dannick no-hole archtop tone ring. The Style 2 banjos will feature a walnut neck, simple inlays on a pearloid fingerboard and will be available with either a 1/4” brass hoop or the Dannick flathead or archtop tone ring.

The instrument company Recording King has recently opened a custom shop and is accepting orders for handcrafted banjos and acoustic guitars, in both the U.S. and Japan.

You start with a standard Recording King model and order changes in components, finishes, or specifications.

Cliff Fitch, a well-respected banjo luthier, will be heading up the U.S. custom shop. Fitch has more than a decade of experience building custom banjos and doing repairs and restorations. In October, at IBMA, Fitch introduced the Recording King Professional model banjo.

The Asian custom shop will be run by Scott Zimmerman, who is known for his banjo bridges and the Desert Rose banjos.

Custom shop orders can be placed in the U.S. by contacting Cliff Fitch by phone at (817) 714-1115, or by email at fitchbanjos@att.net.

Orders for the Asian custom shop can be placed by contacting Scott Zimmerman at scott@sugiguitars.com.

Steve Huber and his talented team of craftsmen at Huber Banjos have a new model in their line.

The Berkshire was introduced officially at this past October’s IBMA convention in Nashville and is featured in their 2008 catalog. It was designed to address customer demand for a flame maple, nickel-plated banjo, and is the first to feature Huber’s new Hearts & Petals inlay pattern.

Like all Huber models, the Berkshire is made with the Huber Vintage Flathead tone ring and their hide glue, 3-ply maple rim, steel coordinator rods, one-piece die cast flange and a rosewood fingerboard. It sells for $3975, and more photos and details can be found on the Huber site.

Also newly introduced on the Huber site is Steve’s stainless steel banjo capo, precision machined for smooth operation and tuning accuracy. They are available in either nickel ($120) or gold plate ($140), and either can be shaped to match a radiused fingerboard for an additional $10.

You can request a free copy of the 2008 Huber banjos catalog by calling the shop at 615-264-4959, or by email.

Tom Adams has just published a new book of banjo transcriptions taken from his playing on Audie Blaylock’s Trains Are The Only Way To Fly CD. The book contains tabs for all Tom’s breaks and multiple backup sections in this 34 page spiral bound volume.

Adams came to the attention of the bluegrass world as a member of Jimmy Martin’s Sunny Mountain Boys in the 1980s - which is also where he first met Audie Blaylock, who was on mandolin with Martin at the time. The two mens’ paths would continue to cross as Adams and Blaylock later worked together with both Lynn Morris and Rhonda Vincent.

Tom describes his picking on the Trains CD as emblematic of the style he used when he played with Jimmy Martin - aggressive and hard-driving - with much of the material coming from the Martin repertoire.

The book is available from Tom’s Adams County Banjo web site, along with his three other banjo tab books.

The Bluegrass Calendar 2008 is now available from Bluegrass Productions of Virginia, and can be purchased on-line via the website. I am sure that I am not the only bluegrass fan who missed the joys of having one of the calendars last year and news of a new calendar is tremendous.

The 2008 bluegrass calendar has as its theme the ladies of bluegrass; from pioneers, to group members and then to band leaders, as the trend developed.

Since the 1980s there has been a proliferation of women in bluegrass music, more and more actually leading bands. Previously there was a small number playing the music; just Sara and Maybelle Carter; Hazel Dickens and Alice Gerrard; and Rose Maddox. Now following in the footsteps of those pioneers is, firstly, Alison Krauss, then Lynn Morris, Laurie Lewis, Rhonda Vincent, Claire Lynch, Valerie Smith, Dale Ann Bradley, Lorraine Jordan, Alecia Nugent and Honi Deaton.

In addition there are the side musicians such as Janet Beazley, Missy Raines, Kristin Scott Benson, Becky Buller, Rayna Gellert and Sally Love, all of whom make a very significant contribution to their respective bands.

Gary Reid shares some recollections of the way in which his 2008 Bluegrass Calendar came to have women in bluegrass as its theme.

“Maryland-based photographer Priscilla Warnock had a lot to do with the concept. We met at the IBMA World of Bluegrass event in Nashville several years ago; I had a booth set-up in the trade show and was promoting the most recent edition of the Bluegrass Calendar. Priscilla made me aware of her photographic activities and shortly after the trade show, I contacted her and began a dialog that led to the 2008 edition of the calendar. It’s been a while since we started the project, but… if memory serves me correctly, I think it was her idea to highlight the role of women in bluegrass.”

The ladies featured in the pages of the 2008 Bluegrass Calendar are Margie Sullivan, 3 Fox Drive, Sally Love, Cherryholmes, Hazel Dickens, Rhonda Vincent, Laurie Lewis, Lynn Morris, Valerie Smith, Becky Buller, Megan Lynch, April Verch, Nancy Cardwell, Jeanette Williams, Sharon Gilchrist, Casey Henry, Murphy Henry and Janet Beazley.

Gary Reid has been publishing the Bluegrass Calendar since 1991. In addition he continues to manage Copper Creek Records, write liner notes for CDs, to do production work for other companies and to do research into the lives of his much beloved Stanley brothers. Gary has set up the new organization, Bluegrass Productions of Virginia, to deal with those matters not related to Copper Creek Records’ business.

Maryland-based photographer Priscilla Warnock has been the staff photographer for the Delaware Valley Bluegrass Festival for the last few years, as well as being active in photographing events such as IBMA’s World of Bluegrass festivities.

Weber Fine Acoustic Instruments recently introduced a new instrument to it’s catalog, the Octar Mandolin.

The Octar is an octave mandolin built on a guitar body with a carved top and f-hole style sound holes. It is being offered in both 22″ and 23.5″ scale lengths. The Octar comes standard with the same appointments as Weber’s existing carved-top guitar line, but can be built to order with any of Weber’s custom options.

The Octar synthesizes the percussiveness of the carved-top f-hole guitar with the haunting drone of the octave mandolin. The scale length options offer maximum playability for multiple venues, from the stage to the recording studio.

Weber Fine Acoustic Instruments is located in Logan, Montana.

For more information on the Octar, or to locate an authorized Weber dealer, visit www.soundtoearth.com.

Banjo icon Terry Baucom has recently released a new instructional DVD titled Driving With The Duke.

The DVD is hosted by Terry’s wife, and award winning DJ, Cindy Baucom. Cindy and Terry review his history with the banjo and the various bands he has played with over the years, then get right to the picking. Terry teaches many of the classic tunes he has recorded during his distinguished career, including Can’t You Hear Me Calling, Gold Rush, Sally Goodin, Blue Night, White House Blues, and Nobody’s Love Is Like Mine.

The instruction takes the form of an introduction to the tune, including discussion of when Terry recorded it, followed by the actual recording from the original record, and then Terry breaks it down at a slower speed showing you the fingering and explaining hard to play licks. The real value here, as with any instructional DVD, is getting such a good look at his hands close up while he talks you through it step by step.

After the instruction, Terry plays the tune at two different tempos with the cameras focused entirely on his hands. By using the angle button on your DVD remote you can quickly switch between his right and left hand, choosing which should be the prominent image, while the other is inset in a smaller window. You may also choose to see the two hands side by side at equal size.

Terry played his new signature model Sullivan Banjo for the entirety of this DVD.

Terry and Cindy will have the DVDs available for purchase at their booth (#92) during the World of Bluegrass Week (IBMA), or you may purchase it online from the John Boy & Billy Online Store.

* By way of disclosure I should tell you that Brance filmed and edited this DVD at his studio.

I’ve heard old-school musicians bemoan the use of electronic tuners. They feel a person should train their ear to hear the pitches and tune that way. Electronic tuning devices have become a part of the fabric of playing a stringed instrument though.

Now Gibson Guitars is taking it one step further. This month Gibson has introduced a new line of guitars featuring what they are calling, the Powertune System.

The Powertune System, available as original equipment only on Gibson guitars, is the first fully functional, performance-ready, and non-obtrusive automated tuning system, and the only self-tuning system practical for use by the professional guitarist.

Powertune, at it’s simplest, is simply a built in electronic tuner that automates the process by taking control of the instrument’s tuning pegs and making the necessary adjustments. It looks like it adds some mass to the back of the headstock, but at this time it’s only available on electric guitars so I don’t know what kind of effect it would have on the sound of an acoustic instrument.

Beyond the basics, Powertune has some interesting features. It is not on by default, so you don’t have to worry about it attempting to tune a string while your bending it. It’s controlled by a tuning knob they have dubbed the Master-Control Knob. The MCK allows one to chose from multiple preset tunings, or to create your own custom tunings and save them. Standard tuning is included, along with drop D tuning and a couple different open tunings.

Operation seems simple enough. All that is required is to activate Powertune, select the desired tuning (both of which are done with the MCK), and lightly strum the strings. Powertune does the rest.

I suspect it won’t be long before Powertune finds it’s way into acoustic guitars as well. Is that a good, or a bad thing? You decide.