There are certain times when your goals and opinions change. I’m speaking of course musically, you think I would discuss career or relationship ambition on the blog? Seriously man, seriously. For the last year I’ve been obsessed with a new amp for recording purposes. Like any other instrument, when you’re young you get a small practice amp to start, its not enough so you buy a 100 watt monster, then you realize somewhere along the line that its too loud for most practical applications other than live performance, so the quest continues. Its a big myth that louder bigger amps sound better. I hear you saying “I still don’t believe you Steve, can you give me 3 pertinent examples?” why yes dear reader, I never thought you’d ask…
1. Layla, Derrick and the Dominoes, one of Eric Clapton’s most important albums, recorded solely on a Fender Champ.
2. The Rolling Stones. A secret weapon of Keith Richards is a 5 watt 8 inch speaker early Fender Champ. He now uses a Victoria champ replica, but its the same thing mannn.
3. Led Zeppelin. That early stuff was recorded not on a giant ass Marshall stack… but a small Supro combo amp.
Serious stuff? Why yes. So the thing is, you see the Champ is popular, but the one these guys used is a 1950’s tweed thing, in short supply, incredibly expensive, and incredibly fragile. I just don’t have that kind of dedication anymore. Amp repair is expensive, so are old parts. So then a while ago I heard of the Swart amp co, after seeing the one and only Jeffrey of Tweedy playing one. The sound was serious, as you could imagine. check it yo:
Thats it on the left. Its a modified champ thing, in a weird 1940’s looking cabinet, love at first sight. So it took a long time to find one. There were no dealers anywhere near me. Theres always mail order, but when spending a large amount, and making a serious commitment, you want to test drive, ya know? So last night I came home and randomly checked the Swart web site. Well….Ludlow guitars is the first NYC dealer. As they say…it was on.
So I went to work in the morning, pre passover, and gave a call. They did have it in stock, the tension was building. As quickly as I could, with the MTA on my side, I made it from midtown to the lower east side in record time. Even the infamous F train was there right as I needed it. Once at the destination, it was perched on top of a few other amps….a shining beacon of awesomeness. As I walked up to the counter to ask to plug that mofo in, another guy walks in, guitar strapped to his back. I inquire about the Swart, the dude behind me goes “oh I’m actually here to try it too, I brought my own guitar to test it” yep, those were fighting words. Luckily as the rules of the house go, I was there first. So he hovers over me the whole time as I’m trying it out. I can’t really blame him, I might have felt the same way, but I wouldn’t have gotten all up on his shit about it. He was moving the amp as I was playing, annoying stuff. So after like 2 minutes, it was decided, this amp is fucking awesome. Its beautiful, sounds perfect and everything. So i wave to my homey behind the counter, typical rocker dude named JJ, tattoos, long hair, I say “so, I know this guy wants to try it and all, thats cool, but I’ll take it” and the other dude kind of give a “Oh shit” look, yeah, take that! The store dude (and he most certainly was a dude) was on my side, hes like “as soon as you want that guy off the amp, just let me know, I’ll gently nudge him out” So the guy gave me minimal attitude, and I was on my way.
In a cab, a few blocks walk, on the PATH, then home through JC, it was not too much of a burden. Tonight being passover, I did travel back to the Hillsdale, a good excuse to bring the amp and crank it up at the house. Well…
This thing is the Secret weapon. Think the Stones “Sticky Fingers” album. Its just pure and wonderful. Extremely detailed, your guitar volume knob does most of the work, as there are only 2 controls on the back:
Yeah, they do go to 11. The low end on this thing is just plain silly. Its 1- 8″ speaker! how does that happen! Its gotta be this cabinet design, its a little taller than the Champ’s I’ve seen, and its supposedly some badass finger jointed pine thing, hand made by one dude, so extra love is a key component. Mine is serial # 236, still made by the one dude, Michael Swart, so I’m hoping he goes into mass production, so I can claim to have one of the originals. But all that stuff aside, this thing is beautiful. It sounds like a monster in a tiny package. And also, what other American products are still the best on earth? Think about it. Technology? umm, no Cars? haha, yeah, umm, ok. Clothing? Luxury goods? Anything? Guitars and Amplifiers. You come up with a better example, I’ll buy you a cheesesteak. God Bless America.