Video Tutorial with Rob Anderlik

Check out Chicago based Musician and Teacher Rob A
nderlik's new Youtube tutorial of the classic Lindley tune 'Look so Good'.

Rob said about the tune "Look So Good was the very first song I ever heard on the Weissenborn and also the first song I learned to play on the instrument. My rendition is not a note for note version, but more of an attempt to capture the spirit of the tune."

You can download the tab for this tutorial at Robs website: http://www.robanderlik.com/

Rob is a long time slide maestro and shares his thoughts on his new Style 1 at 10.47.

Rob's Style 1 at the shop, shortly before heading out to its new home in Chicago.

Iggy and the Stooges, Ron Asheton tribute

Last month in Ann Arbor Michigan, Iggy and the Stooges played a benefit concert celebrating the life of Ron Asheton.

Just before the show ended, Iggy Pop and James Williamson sat down to perform a special acoustic tribute, called 'Ron's tune'.



The original music was by James Williamson, with the lyrics by Iggy Pop. The arrangement was performed live on a Style 4 that I made for James in 2010.

David Dominic Jr. Photo

Thomas Oliver - 'The Moment'

Check out Wellington musician Thomas Oliver's latest slide guitar instrumental, 'The Moment'.



Recorded on a Tony Francis Style 3, I asked Thomas about the inspiration for this track and the Major 7th. -TF

"The inspiration for ‘The Moment’ was simply following the melody and harmonic movement I heard in my head one day when I sat down with my Style 2. The Weissenborn has an amazing ability to conduct itself, and sometimes writing music on the instrument for me is just a matter of keeping up with the melodies that seem to build themselves when I play. However, the lap-slide guitar can be a very limited instrument, due mainly to the fact that it’s played with only a flat bar, and this means that part of the art of playing it is achieving the melodies and harmonic movement you hear, within the restrictions of the instrument. This is why I retune the guitar before and after each chorus in ‘The Moment’. The initial tuning is open C# (C#-G#-C#-F-G#-C#), and the top string is very much required in the melody of the verse. But as I wrote the chorus, the melody I heard in my head had the F note in the top (ie the major 7th on the IV chord), but I simply couldn’t achieve this with only a flat bar, as the bar was occupied in holding the rest of the IV chord. This led me to tuning the top string down one semitone at the start of the chorus, and back up again at the end. My challenge was to compose the melody at the start and end of the chorus in such a way that would incorporate this mechanical change without disrupting the flow. I think that, with the Weissenborn, it’s easy to fall into the trap of playing/writing using your hands and the mechanical motions they are accustomed to, but the writing of ‘The Moment’ was very much about creating a strong melody, then finding ways to incorporate the harmony or bass notes behind it, and structuring it like a song to give the melody a strong sense of voice.

The inspiration for the title came one night when I was filming a music video with my band and it was somewhere around 3am as it was a night shoot. We had just finished “lunch” and everyone was talking and mingling as the camera crew began setting up the next shot. I grabbed my Weissenborn and started playing this song, just to myself, really. I wasn’t really paying attention to what was happening around me, so I didn’t realise that, as I played, more and more people began to stop what they were doing and watch me play this song. Some people sat on the ground around me, and others stayed standing, but eventually all 25 people in the crew were silent, and listening to the music. It seemed that, despite all the pressures of the shoot, everyone was lost in the moment, until I finished playing. I was stoked to have brought such a tranquil atmosphere to an otherwise buzzing environment, so I named it ‘The Moment’." - Thomas Oliver

Style 3 Hourglass

This instrument is #3 of the latest batch of 4. Patterned from a late 1920s original (small bridge, large wing Ca.1927) Style 3, and is the first of its kind I have made. Today, as in the 1920s, many musicians either want an instrument with simple Koa grain or one that is super deluxe, and so Style 2's and 3's are rare.

Made from the finest lighter density Koa wood, this is a gorgeous sounding instrument, exemplary of modern craftsmanship in the old school Hawaiian style.

Front detail.

Rear detail.

Side profile, also known as the Hawaiian vault.

Peghead detail.

Weissenborn Reproduction Hardware

Following the recent restoration thread, I have had a lot of inquiry's about the hardware I am using, so I wanted to blog about this in further detail.

Custom made for my own modern reproductions of 1920s and 30s Weissenborn guitars, and also as a much needed direct replacement for vintage Weissenborn guitars, I am happy to make these available to the market. Patterned from original parts, these are the finest quality available and in true 1920s specifications. Made in Germany (Pins, buttons and tuners), and the USA (Precision machined Aluminum saddles).

Sold by the set or individually, classic long grained Ivoroid bridge and end pins. Old style Aluminum wire saddles and plate style tuners featuring jumbo eyelet bushings. These are a perfect fit to your vintage Weissenborn and require no modification.

Classic 1920s spec Ivoroid, and Aluminum wire saddle.

These are the same Ivoroid pins as above, distressed. They are designed for use in restoration work. Because they are distressed using a process that is chemically very similar to natural aging, the color is very near identical compared to a vintage part.

1930s spec black. Although rare, some of the latest Weissenborn featured scalloped back tuner plates with back buttons and pins. I am very happy to make these available, and hope to offer a version of these classic late 1930s models available in the coming months.

Comparison shots of the Ivoroid, Distressed Ivoroid, and Black.

This is a picture of the prototype gears. With a few refinements to the design, the new models will be available in the coming months. Please inquire.

As well as the reproduction hardware, I also have a limited supply of original hardware and parts. Please contact me with what you need, and I will do my best to find whats best for your guitar!

Weissenborn guide in Acoustic Guitar Magazine!

In the February 2011 issue, Acoustic Guitar Magazine features a guide to contemporary Weissenborn-style guitars, penned by noted lap steel author Andy Volk. A clear and concise reference for both long time aficionados and guitarists new to the instrument, Andy's piece is essential reading. Among the short list of top luthiers building in the old style, Tony Francis, Bill Asher and Bill Hardin.

Read it here!

Duelling Tony Francis Style 1's.

Weissenborn Style 1 Repair - Addendum

Following the restoration and repair of the Style 1, the owner of the instrument and noted Musician, Composer, Engineer, Producer, Author and now certifiable Weissenborn aficionado, Bruce Kaphan, asked if he could share his thoughts on the process. Bruce has been professionally involved in the music industry since the mid 1970s, and it was a true pleasure and honor to do the work for him. But I will let Bruce take over from here. -TF


I'm primarily a pedal steel player, but in recent years I've become
interested in branching out into non-pedal slide instruments,
especially for recording. I purchased a Gold Tone Weissenborn a few
years ago, and enjoyed using it on a number of recordings, but fairly
quickly became frustrated with the tone- it was great for the price,
and served its purpose of getting me hooked on Weissenborn style
guitars, but its tone wasn't so golden to my ears... There were so
many resonant and dead spots in the instrument's response. I decided
to splurge and began searching for a real vintage Weissenborn. I
found a shop online that advertised having a few in stock, hopped a
two hour flight and compared them. One instrument, a style 1, clearly
stood out among the others. Its top was pretty bellied, but otherwise
it seemed to be in reasonably good shape, made of absolutely
beautiful koa- it just looked like it should sound good, and it did.
The tone was beautiful; especially compared to my Gold Tone and the
other vintage Weissenborns I played at that shop, the tone on this
particular one was way more balanced, with fewer resonant or dead
spots. I purchased the instrument, and soon after, recorded my first
track with it. It sounded great!

There's a really great acoustic guitar repair shop in the region in
which I live. Not long after I purchased the instrument I took it
there, to ask the staff if there was anything they could recommend
for the bellied top. They shrugged their shoulders and said no.
Sadly, not long after this, as I was preparing for an upcoming gig,
the bridge cracked, rendering the instrument unplayable. After the
bridge cracked, knowing the local repair shop didn't seem to have a
great deal of familiarity with Weissenborns, I did an online search
for Weissenborn repair, and came across Tony Francis' website. I live
in California. I really didn't know very much about Weissenborns, and
had never heard of Tony. To be sure, knowing how much fraud exists
online, based only on a website, I have to say I was a bit nervous
about shipping my Weissenborn to a stranger in New Zealand for
repair, but Tony's blog, complete with a discussion of repairing
bellied tops on Weissenborns, appeared to offer a solution to my
instrument's problems. I contacted him and found him to be a very
well-spoken, considerate individual. Although I saw some very nice
comments about him online, I didn't see any testimonials about
shipping instruments from far away; nevertheless, I decided to take
the risk, and was absolutely not disappointed. And that's why I'm
writing this testimonial. As you can see in these beautiful
photographs, Tony was able to address all of the problems with my
style 1. He finished the job in the time frame he said he would. He
held to his quote. When I received the instrument, his work was
absolutely impeccable, as you can see in these photos. I asked Tony
if I could write this testimonial- I just want to encourage anyone
who might have the same misgivings I had about shipping my instrument
to a stranger so far from home. Tony is a man of his word and an
impeccable craftsman. I'd be happy to vouch for him any time- please
feel free to contact me at the contact page of my website,
www.brucekaphan.com, if you need further encouragement to take the
plunge to send your instrument to him. Thanks Tony, for breathing new
life into my style 1! -BK