Chromatics, Paul deLay

[Winslow Yerxa <76450.3230@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>]

TO: internet:harp-l@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Patrick Hester asks about various models and says he doesn't like
wood. I have to ask why. The Hohner 270 (and its derivatives the
Toots Mellow Tone and Hard Bopper) are great, warm-sounding harps
with plenty of bite. To me they're like the Marine Band of
chromatics (in the good sense, leaving aside recent bad
manufacturing runs).

The CX-12 has many o the virtues mentioned, but its sound is a
little muted - all that plastic. there's no way to inject bite
into its acoustic sound, while with the 270 you can always back it
off a little, or a lot. And the 270 has a lot of proponents -
William Clarke, Toots, Hendrik Meurkens, William Galison, Mike
Turk. (Hendrik has opted for Farrell's plastic-combed Lifetime
Harmonica, but feels it's a compromise in terms of sound quality
compared to wood).

BY the way, I notice that some of the people discussing the CX-12
talk about it as if it's not a Hohner - it definitely is.

If you don't like wood because of swelling problems with the
combs on diatonics, remember that this usually isn't a problem
with chromatics because your mouth never contacts the
comb. If you play a LOT you should have two other three
instruments and rotate them. This is what Toots does onstage and
in the studio (he also has 2 or 3 SM-58's and chooses the most
appropriate one in the studio - onstage it doesn't seem to make
much difference).

A lot of players would kill for the old wood-comb 64's as well.

The Hering 12-holers I have (bought in the late '80's) are all
wood - can anyone tell me if the new ones are? I find them kind of
squeaky.

Someone said that the Super 64x has thicker reeds - not so. It's
the reedPLATES that are double thick. The reeds are standard
brass - Hohner stopped using copper beryllium some time ago - too
hard to work with. This is currently my favorite 16-hole - when I
bought it I had a Super 64 in one hand and the 64x in the other,
going back and forth. The difference was enormous. I took it
onstage that night and felt like I was riding in luxury.

In terms of choosing between a 12 and a 16 holer, you might find
it easier to get your bearings on a 12-holer. I've played a
16-holer for third position Chicago blues since I was about 16
(there's nothing like that dark, gritty, forbidding bottom
octave), but I found that when I started to try melodic music in
other keys, I had a harder time finding where I was on the
instrument, When I bought a 270, it weas heaven. The warm sound
from the wood comb, the responsiveness, and the small size made
me feel like I was playing a diatonic (this was coming off a CBH
2016, which I still play). After working out with the 270 a lot,
I found I could go back to the 16-holer and transfer what I'd
learned on the 270 without getting lost.

William Clarke, by the way, plays 270's in various keys, all in
third position, including a Low F and a Bb that I specifically
know of, and probably others, but he plays quite a bit of regular
diatonic as well. I'll be reviewing his new album in HIP No. 5,
complete with harp keys and positions.

Chris Harris asks about Paul deLay. I reviewed The Other One and
Paulzilla in HIP No. 3. Both are excellent, but I feel The Other
One has an edge - better sound quality and less morose. On
Paulzilla the sound is claustrophobic and the impending jail
seems to be making him very depressed,while on the Other One
the sound is expansive and Paul and the band very enthusiastic,
with some very infectious grooves.

I spoke with Paul on Monday night. He's gigging and in very good
spirits, but his probation limits him to a 50-mile radius around
Portland, so if you want to see him, at least for the present
time, you'll have to visit Oregon. He's thinking about
experimenting with 15" speakers for the overtones he can get out
of them. I asked him about the gig with Norton. He said he always
goes into these things with an optimistic attitude, but Norton
always pulls off a speed display - "I guess it'll be taste
against speed." He's got about 2 dozen new songs to work out with
the band.

Winslow Yerxa
Harmonica Information Press
Z
Z  I woke up this morning baby / to the sound of jingling change