Knox in Box
Rustbelt refugee.
My cousin sent me an Email back in July that I regretfully didn't see until today. Anyways, I thought it was pretty interesting, and he writes great prose. Enjoy:
Before we begin, just to clarify, it's a Johnny Thunder not a Johnny Thunders story. Big difference.
_______________________________
I met a lady who was selling her husband's amplifier. I walked to the front porch of the ranch-style house. Above the door was a wood-burned plaque: DAVE & COOKIE'S. Cookie opened the door. She looked like those ladies in a Far Side cartoon, a beehive hairdo and pointed rim glasses. Shorts. Sleeveless shirt.
"C'mon in. But hurry. I'm missing my show."
She led me down a long hall to a far room where stood a Kalamazoo Reverb 12, a small combo amp strangely modified to a head. The chopped amp sat on top of an immense five foot tall cab covered in brown pleather, the front with gold sparkle. There were only two 10 inch speakers in it.
"Well I'm really sorry to say that you can't try it out because Dave broke it. C'mere Dave! Tell him how you broke it!"
Dave sauntered into the room with his walker, "What?"
"Tell him. Tell him how you broke it."
"What?"
"Broke it! Tell him how...you...broke...it."
"I guess I broke it. It's the fuse. I think. That's the problem. Needs a fuse. I think."
"I'm going to WalMart to get a fuse since Dave can't do it."
I jiggered some knobs, "It's alright. When was the last time it worked?"
" 'Bout a month ago."
"I'm headed to WalMart!"
"It's okay. If it worked a month ago, I'm okay with it."
"Oh really? Mister Money Bags here just gonna buy it without trying it out!"
"It's $200. So what should I do? Offer $100? You'll come back with $180 and then I'll come back and then we'll eventually meet at $150. I dunno. The price is low enough at $200 that if it doesn't work now, I can get a pro to get it into fighting shape. If you said it worked a month ago, I'm willing to take a chance."
Dave wrapped up an extra cable for me.On the wall, I saw one of those Elvis clocks, the heavily shellacked pine tree crosscut with a photo of young Elvis.
"Whoa! Who's the Elvis fan?"
"Oh I love me some Elvis," she says.
"Did you ever see him?
"Nope. Never got the chance."
"I took my wife... ," says he.
AHEM from Cookie.
"Ex-wife. Her and our two daughters. He had a stop on a tour in Kansas once. I'm from Wichita."
"Was he great?"
"Oh didn't see him. I just took them. They went in and I sat in the car across the street for a few hours. They liked it."
"Dave likes country music."
He shrugged, "I like country music."
"We used to go to Branson, Branson in Missouri all the time. Didn't we, Dave. Branson. Ever heard of it?"
"Oh sure! Branson, yeah. I've been through there. See anything good?"
"Sure, we saw..."
"We saw a bunch of crap country that Dave wanted to go see. Never any Elvis. Let's wrap this up. I'm missing my show. Hey. Do you want to buy a guitar too?"
"I dunno. I..."
"I'll feel a whole lot better about this deal 'cause you don't even know if this damn thing works."
"Well I guess I..."
"At least come look at it, just to get your heart broken."
I followed her back down the hall and she grumbled about her husband "not getting rid of his crap". We entered the front room. She pulled out a case and opened it. A 1950's or 60's Harmony guitar with ornate Cadillac-type pin-stripping. I told her it was beautiful.
"This hunk of junk? You think it's beautiful? Well then get ready to have your heart broken honey."
She turned it over. As beautiful as the front was, the back was its negative equivalent. It was Freddy Kreugered. Body-length cracks up and down. I asked her how it happened.
"A jealous boyfriend. So says Dave. Hold on. Dave! C'm'ere! Tell him the story."
Dave arrived, limping with his walker.
"Tell him about the guitar, Dave."
Dave leaned his ear to her.
"The guitar! Tell him about it."
"I was stationed in Germany. This is in the early 60's sometime. I got a call from a friend of mine in Wichita. He owned a pawn shop and had this guitar come in. He gave me a call on the base. He described the guitar to me and I wired him the money on the spot. Did you see the headstock? Take a look."
I take a look. Johnny Thunder in a cross pattern.
"The band was broke and on tour. It wasn't until a few years later that Johnny Thunder had a big hit with 'Loop de Loop', remember that one?" he started singing it.
"No Dave! He doesn't care about that! Tell him about the jealous boyfriend!"
Dave leaned a weak ear to her.
"The boyfriend! Tell him about the jealous boyfriend!"
"There's nothing to tell. I stole a guy's gal. He got mad and took it out on my guitar."
"Well, you broke his heart Dave."
Dave shrugged and winked at me then sauntered away with his walker.
"Alright. I'm missing my show. Good luck and all that."
I don't know if it really was once in possession of Johnny "Loop de Loop" Thunder (unrelated to Johnny "New York Dolls" Thunders). I haven't found any pictures with him and a guitar. I suppose it's possible. I posted this on a Harmony Guitar site. One of the commenters followed early 60's soul and guessed it was formerly owned by a guitar player that backed up Mister Thunder. They probably put Johnny Thunder's name on the headstock in a similar fashion that a drummer would put 'Johnny Thunder' on their kick drum. Seems reasonable.
When I posted pics to a Harmony Guitar site, I had a lot of people saying "That's totally fixable!". I then comment "Great! How do I start?" they comment "I wouldn't try that if I were you. Get it to a professional." So I contact various professionals and they say, "Jeez that's going to cost at least $500 to repair." I respond with, "Well I didn't pay very much for it so $500 sounds great." And they write back, "Sounds good but you're going to have to wait six months to a year guy." And then I respond with, "Well I guess I'll give a go myself!" and then it starts again, "Oh I wouldn't try that if I were you. Get it to a professional..." and on and on.
So I'm rehabbing it myself. I have a few local friends that have some good appropriate tools for me to use. It seems the most valuable part of the guitar is the pickups. If I screw up the body or neck, at least those can be salvaged for my (or someone else's) use.
-jk
Before we begin, just to clarify, it's a Johnny Thunder not a Johnny Thunders story. Big difference.
_______________________________
I met a lady who was selling her husband's amplifier. I walked to the front porch of the ranch-style house. Above the door was a wood-burned plaque: DAVE & COOKIE'S. Cookie opened the door. She looked like those ladies in a Far Side cartoon, a beehive hairdo and pointed rim glasses. Shorts. Sleeveless shirt.
"C'mon in. But hurry. I'm missing my show."
She led me down a long hall to a far room where stood a Kalamazoo Reverb 12, a small combo amp strangely modified to a head. The chopped amp sat on top of an immense five foot tall cab covered in brown pleather, the front with gold sparkle. There were only two 10 inch speakers in it.
"Well I'm really sorry to say that you can't try it out because Dave broke it. C'mere Dave! Tell him how you broke it!"
Dave sauntered into the room with his walker, "What?"
"Tell him. Tell him how you broke it."
"What?"
"Broke it! Tell him how...you...broke...it."
"I guess I broke it. It's the fuse. I think. That's the problem. Needs a fuse. I think."
"I'm going to WalMart to get a fuse since Dave can't do it."
I jiggered some knobs, "It's alright. When was the last time it worked?"
" 'Bout a month ago."
"I'm headed to WalMart!"
"It's okay. If it worked a month ago, I'm okay with it."
"Oh really? Mister Money Bags here just gonna buy it without trying it out!"
"It's $200. So what should I do? Offer $100? You'll come back with $180 and then I'll come back and then we'll eventually meet at $150. I dunno. The price is low enough at $200 that if it doesn't work now, I can get a pro to get it into fighting shape. If you said it worked a month ago, I'm willing to take a chance."
Dave wrapped up an extra cable for me.On the wall, I saw one of those Elvis clocks, the heavily shellacked pine tree crosscut with a photo of young Elvis.
"Whoa! Who's the Elvis fan?"
"Oh I love me some Elvis," she says.
"Did you ever see him?
"Nope. Never got the chance."
"I took my wife... ," says he.
AHEM from Cookie.
"Ex-wife. Her and our two daughters. He had a stop on a tour in Kansas once. I'm from Wichita."
"Was he great?"
"Oh didn't see him. I just took them. They went in and I sat in the car across the street for a few hours. They liked it."
"Dave likes country music."
He shrugged, "I like country music."
"We used to go to Branson, Branson in Missouri all the time. Didn't we, Dave. Branson. Ever heard of it?"
"Oh sure! Branson, yeah. I've been through there. See anything good?"
"Sure, we saw..."
"We saw a bunch of crap country that Dave wanted to go see. Never any Elvis. Let's wrap this up. I'm missing my show. Hey. Do you want to buy a guitar too?"
"I dunno. I..."
"I'll feel a whole lot better about this deal 'cause you don't even know if this damn thing works."
"Well I guess I..."
"At least come look at it, just to get your heart broken."
I followed her back down the hall and she grumbled about her husband "not getting rid of his crap". We entered the front room. She pulled out a case and opened it. A 1950's or 60's Harmony guitar with ornate Cadillac-type pin-stripping. I told her it was beautiful.
"This hunk of junk? You think it's beautiful? Well then get ready to have your heart broken honey."
She turned it over. As beautiful as the front was, the back was its negative equivalent. It was Freddy Kreugered. Body-length cracks up and down. I asked her how it happened.
"A jealous boyfriend. So says Dave. Hold on. Dave! C'm'ere! Tell him the story."
Dave arrived, limping with his walker.
"Tell him about the guitar, Dave."
Dave leaned his ear to her.
"The guitar! Tell him about it."
"I was stationed in Germany. This is in the early 60's sometime. I got a call from a friend of mine in Wichita. He owned a pawn shop and had this guitar come in. He gave me a call on the base. He described the guitar to me and I wired him the money on the spot. Did you see the headstock? Take a look."
I take a look. Johnny Thunder in a cross pattern.
"The band was broke and on tour. It wasn't until a few years later that Johnny Thunder had a big hit with 'Loop de Loop', remember that one?" he started singing it.
"No Dave! He doesn't care about that! Tell him about the jealous boyfriend!"
Dave leaned a weak ear to her.
"The boyfriend! Tell him about the jealous boyfriend!"
"There's nothing to tell. I stole a guy's gal. He got mad and took it out on my guitar."
"Well, you broke his heart Dave."
Dave shrugged and winked at me then sauntered away with his walker.
"Alright. I'm missing my show. Good luck and all that."
I don't know if it really was once in possession of Johnny "Loop de Loop" Thunder (unrelated to Johnny "New York Dolls" Thunders). I haven't found any pictures with him and a guitar. I suppose it's possible. I posted this on a Harmony Guitar site. One of the commenters followed early 60's soul and guessed it was formerly owned by a guitar player that backed up Mister Thunder. They probably put Johnny Thunder's name on the headstock in a similar fashion that a drummer would put 'Johnny Thunder' on their kick drum. Seems reasonable.
When I posted pics to a Harmony Guitar site, I had a lot of people saying "That's totally fixable!". I then comment "Great! How do I start?" they comment "I wouldn't try that if I were you. Get it to a professional." So I contact various professionals and they say, "Jeez that's going to cost at least $500 to repair." I respond with, "Well I didn't pay very much for it so $500 sounds great." And they write back, "Sounds good but you're going to have to wait six months to a year guy." And then I respond with, "Well I guess I'll give a go myself!" and then it starts again, "Oh I wouldn't try that if I were you. Get it to a professional..." and on and on.
So I'm rehabbing it myself. I have a few local friends that have some good appropriate tools for me to use. It seems the most valuable part of the guitar is the pickups. If I screw up the body or neck, at least those can be salvaged for my (or someone else's) use.
-jk
