Buy a guitar from a guy who has made psychopathic behavior his religion/job/occupation/passion.........I'm sorry. Government already absconds with more than a quarter of my pay every other Friday...... I sure ain't handing over more of it to yet another lunatic!
The guitars look horrid, sound......well, ok, and that's about it. The website is horrible, the spelling is a travesty (so's mine, sometimes, but I'm not asking you to pay me for anything, lol), and the guy uses damn near every cheap sideshow angle for web promotion and sales.
He's an idiot.
He is to be ignored.
If you hype hard enough, damn near anything can garner a following...... boy bands have done ok, and they don't offer any quality, either.....
(Thunder Lizard) Jeff LeGrand (everyone calls me Biff) - Canadian Distributor, Basson Sound Equipment - Calgary, AB, Canada www.passionlizards.com/TLiz/
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Body
Style |
Body
Wood |
Neck
Wood |
Fbd.
Wood |
Scale |
Tuners |
Frets |
Pickups |
Electronics |
Neck
Joint |
Strings |
Weight |
Price |
|
Z2-JR |
African |
African Mahogany |
Pau Ferro |
624 mm |
Vintage Kluson-style |
24 Large/Medium *Dual Size |
Custom P90 12K |
Volume, Tone |
Glued |
Zachary Optimized Gauges (ZOG 10+) |
5.5 lb |
$2650 |
Simplcity is the ultimate in sophistication
Details
Normal people don't see detail. They don't care about details. Detail is not their friend. Sure they may say they appreciate detail because they feel its expected of them to say so. Truth is, most have no ability to see details. Details bother them, stresses them out, makes them anxious and they belittle those who do see and are preoccupied with detail, as having some kind of pathology. However, seeing details is what separates the tinkerer from the craftsman. A tinkerer can never be a craftsman no matter how much they try because they are not perceptive to detail. Perception to detail cannot ever be taught. You must be born with the ability. In short, tinkering hacks simply don’t have the tools to be a craftsman and I don’t mean drills and chisels.
If one cannot see details, one cannot really see beauty either. The two are basically one in the same. Beauty is in the details and the relationship between details. How the details all come together to make a discrete creation. A masterpiece is the perfect relationship and fit of an ensemble of details.
An artist is simply someone who can see and feel beauty through all of their senses. What makes a hack a hack is their inability to even perceive and recognize details and hence beauty. A hack is someone who is blind to details. They literally cannot see detail. Conversely, an artist constantly sees shapes, color, association, imperfections, harmony, dissonance, contrast, etc. Its a relatively rare talent to perceive beauty, despite that everyone claims to be able to see it. They may assert they know what beauty is or even what is just nice, but in fact, even unconsciously, they are only regurgitating like a parrot what they have been conditioned to say and think. They don't truly see it or more importantly feel it. Beauty has to be felt. They simply have learned what beauty is, without actually feeling it; an absence of emotional response. Most simply learn how to respond according to what societal norms expect of them but get no visceral reaction from it. Here is the difference between feeling beauty and simply reacting to fashion trends.
Most people have no real sense of beauty and what they do see does not come from their gut. The perception of beauty to a hack is not visceral, its in fact intellectual. Perception of beauty cannot be intellectual, if it is, then its phony,superficial, contrived and insincere. Its simply a reaction by prescription, rote learning and memorization.
An important part of paying attention to details are the rules of design. In order to design anything which has meaning one must follow strict rules. These rules are something tinkering hacks do not even know, do not pay attention to, disrespect and therefore do not follow. This is a large discussion in itself, however one can simply notice that tinkering hacks are not aware of any rules of creativity. A tinkering hack is ignorant and does not have any intimate knowledge of what they do. One example would be a tinkerer tracing the shape of any guitar body which appeals to them, putting a Telecaster pickup into a Les Paul body with a Floyd Rose. A tinkering hack not only does not see or feel the details and relationships between them, they don’t respect any rules of design either. They don't work according to any standards at all. Therefore a tinkerer hack does not show any sense of refinement, elegance, grace or style. A tinkerer hack has no finesse and taste at doing anything. They have no sensitivity to beauty and there is no beauty without laws relating to tradition and all the elements of design. There must be true respect for various laws on the part of the creator, without it, its just a mishmash of disjointed parts thrown together without any artistic theme or direction. To know the rules and to have respect for tradition, one has to have deep and accurate historical and technical knowledge of the origins of what one is creating; this is intimate knowledge.
I was going to explain all the little details which went into this instrument, however regretfully I will forgo this for the sake of not making it even easier for those who learn by stealing the creativity of others. A hack and a tinkerer does not have any original ideas but is an expert at making the achievement of others their own. They must lie to themselves first in believing the work of others belongs to them in a process of achieving false self perception based only on aspirations, not ability. Everything they do depends not on meaningful and visceral intuition but by mindless copying.
I will simply say, as you may have guessed, those who have followed my work for some time, that this is the very first single pickup Zachary guitar. I am particularly excited about it because of its historically accurate references. Its also such a fun guitar to play. That one powerful P90 does it all. My goal has always been maximum simplification and purity. Nature plays a big role in what I do. Nature should be preserved in its purest form and processed as little as possible. This is the difference between an instrument which is alive and which is dead. Dead instruments can only be sold by massive amounts of advertising to non-players. I don't participate in that game.
I think I will just leave it at this and have you figure out the rest ... if you can.
I have already given away way too much.
Goddamnit, I love that little guitar! A great one! Took me by surprise. That is an instant favorite and classic! Ted
Spot on! Best, JR
Woah! A Junior. Another spank for Gibson (now into the 3rd generation robot((barf)) technology)
I love your love of tradition, even if all others have abandoned it. Good wood and great attitude. Those
boys at Gibson deserve every embarrassed giggle they give and get. What a bunch of whores.
And congrats on the sublime pick guard, a Z2 first. Tony
Amazing new guitar. In some ways it is the ultimate Z guitar. All substance with no distractions. Eli
Z2 JR is awesome. It says it all by the pics. Pure rock machine. Great materials and yes its all in the details.
Thunder Lizard web site is hilarious. Nothing more needs to be said. Frank B.
First, please don't confuse me with this Jeff LeGrand. That is definately not me or my opinion of your work.
I was just wondering the other day if you would ever put a pickguard on one of your guitars so imagine my surprise when I check in to see 050410. I was worried that it might spoil the flow of the Z2 but it definately hasn't!
I'd like to say that I enjoy seeing the different take you have on each of your guitar models. From the choosing of different woods to putting a pickguard on the next, to trying a different bridge or pickup because it reminds you of a great guitar from your past. Everything has purpose within your designs. The Z2 is a perfect example; one element flows to the next. Dude, just keep doing what you're doing. (Of course I'd love to see a contoured top Z2 with a tune-o-matic style bridge and the strings through the body... Wait save that one for me! ;D)
As for your detractors: I think you nailed it on the head with your explaination of the 040510. As I said before to you, when an instrument is made by human hands it will find a soul. Your statement about nature being processed as little as possible of course rings true. Embrace the flaws because they really only enhance its beauty. The trick is to find its correct place and how to use it, thats the artist's eye. The beauty truly is in the details.
Thanks Alex. In a time when I'm trying to find my musical voice again, your guitars and insights are invaluable.
Jeff T. (Calgary)
And there's the difference between a mass-produced tool and the things that you create. As I said before, I've looked at all of your guitars, some of them many times, and there's something mysteriously compelling about them. I have to say that this Z2-JR has really hit the "monkey nerve" for me. It's interesting that you should talk about having a visceral reaction to beauty, because quite seriously I felt it in my gut when I saw that guitar. I thought to myself that this is a guitar that could lead me to somewhere new with my playing--and that I would follow it. I'm already half in love with it, and I've never touched or heard it. I know a lot of people would think that's weird.
Anyway, I'm not trying to buy this guitar; I don't have the money and I also have to admit to myself that I'm not "deep" enough for it--not yet, anyway. But somehow I just wanted you to know that this guitar really hit the bull's eye. If I could order a Zach to my specs I would ask for a "Special" version with 2 P-90s and the wiring from the G4-SP, but if I were next in line when this Z2-JR came out instead, I would JUMP ON IT.
I think you wrote, about one of the F1s, something like "this is what a Tele should be, but Fender will never be able to make one like it"; well, 050410 is what a LP Junior should have evolved into, but Gibson will never be able to make anything like it. Frankly, I don't think they have the guts. Your work inspires me; I eagerly await each new instrument, and when I practice, I often think about what it would be like to play a Zachary guitar. I'm back to playing after a several-year hiatus, and maybe a year or so from now you'll be hearing from me again. As for this one, I have a feeling it'll be going fast.
While I understand your reasons for not going into the details involved in designing and building this guitar, I must also say I was disappointed! I love reading that kind of stuff.
PS: I know it's presumptuous for a first-time writer to suggest a nickname for a guitar that he isn't even trying to buy, but if this were my guitar, I'd call it the Monkey Nerve.
Sincerely, Rod R. (Osaka, Japan)
Stunning wood on last guitar of yours - especially the fretboard which just seems like it is screaming for someone to lovingly move his/her fingers across. What most people don't get is your special relationship to wood. That alone puts you in the top class of luthiers. Best, Seth (Germany)
The Z2 JR is a beautiful looking guitar. I'm not sure how well I could live without a neck pickup, though. Playing live, a bridge pickup is essential in order to be able to cut through loud and clear when you need to be heard. But for recording, I find myself using the neck pickup more often than not for that clean, round tone.... But if the majority of what you played was rock this guitar would fit the bill nicely. Mark
Reply:
I would have agreed with you and was apprehensive about a single pickup guitar prior to making the Jr. I love the way they look but never thought I could safely make one for the same reasons you site. However, I can tell you that amazingly, at least with a single P90, I do not miss the neck pickup at all. In fact, with a P90, you can make the bridge pickup sound exactly like the neck pickup if you turn down the tone knob. With a single pickup guitar however, a tone knob is a must. I don’t use a tone knob much, almost never but on this Jr. I sure do. So before building it I knew that a tone knob had to be there.
So if you played this guitar, I know you would agree with me that it does not need a neck pickup. With the tone knob you can turn the bridge pickup into a neck pickup. It also must have to do with the nature of P90s, which are dark pickups to start with. They are single coil but nothing like a Strat or Tele pickup, so they can sound like a neck pickup very easily because they are naturally dark and gutsy. You can do anything on this Jr., which you would normally do on a 2 pickup guitar. Alex
I don't chime in much, but I just wanted to say that I think the Z2 Jr is brilliant. Over the years, I keep moving towards ever more simpler concepts that "speak" to me with regard to instruments. I'm sure it would be an adjustment to adapt to one pickup; however, it would (again) simplify the whole approach to the guitar's tone. I can only imagine the way the volume and tone pots must interact together on this instrument - especially given the P90.
Wish I had the means for this one (if it were for sale)....playing it must be like "putting it all out there"...no props, etc.
5.5 lbs - wow....must be resonant to the point of making your body vibrate visibly along with it. How does it sound unplugged, Alex?....probably quite fuller and richer than most would expect.
Cheers, Jay
Well I think that even if the bridge pup w the tone rolled down is not identical to a neck pup (and it is not), the stone cold simplicity of that one pup is just so appealing on a conceptual level. All the best van Halen stuff was recorded on a guitar with no neck pup at all. I suppose having a guitar with just one pup puts you in another head space. You have to use your hands to get the range of sounds you want and it forces you to be more creative when you don't have the option of 4 or 5 other settings. That is the flip side of the versatility coin. There is an interesting debate to be had on that score.
However the latest Z2 with 2 P90s 280410? There is no debate to be had with that one. You are all set with that guitar. It is the same set up as my Hollow and I am not close to getting to the bottom of that beast. Eli Friedmann
I come back from several days "downrange", and check in on your site after a few months of not checking. I see the 050410. I have to tell you, brother, I'm in absolute awe. This guitar punched me in the face. You blended everything I love about guitars into one guitar. Style, simplicity, contrast, elegance... Not to mention, I'm sure it sounds phenomenal. I had a few sketches for guitars I wanted to build when I got home, but just threw away the drawings. Honestly.
I could go on dribbling from the mouth, but let me conclude by congratulating you on such a fine work of art. I have neither the money or the musical talent to own a Z, but I have now seen craftsmanship and design at its zenith. This single guitar will both inspire my future and haunt me for life. No surprises to see that it's not for sale.
I simply wanted to say that, although I've always appreciated your craftsmanship and ethos, the Z2-JR is the most unbelievable guitar that I've ever seen. Even just visually, it beats the hell out of plastic coated 10 tops - and I'm sure it sounds much better. Simple, stylish, and perfect. Well done.
God bless you and goddamn you. All the best in your future endeavors. CPT Steve G. (Afghanistan)
