Naming Names
All my guitars have names. All three of them. My first guitar, the Santana SE is called "Carlito" after the great, great Carlos Santana whose name is affixed to the production model. He is my only guy guitar. Then came Holly, the Hollowbody II. That name is almost self evident. And now, the blue Swamp Ash Special is living with me and her name is "Julie Ocean." Why? First because that lush deep blue color with the distinct swamp ash grain makes me think of ocean waves and secondly becuase of Emm Gryner's beautiful cover of the Undertones song of that name. Her name might change as I get more comfortable with her but for now, she is Julie.
A friend suggested that she's a Duke blue color but reaching for a name to go with that (Debbie With A Blue Dress On? I don't think so) involved too much stretching. Things could change.
As for Julie herself - I'm quite remarkably happy. She's heavy, heavier than Carlito who also has a solid body. But she holds the music like a miser hoards money. I strummed once across the strings and held the neck to see when I felt the vibration die out - 12 seconds. And bolt-on neck guitars are not renowned for their sustain. I've also played with the tonal settings and I'm impressed -the tonal variation is hugely evident even to a neophyte such as myself. In short, I am liking this guitar. So much that I'm not even looking at Paul Reed Smiths on eBay anymore.
For the downside, there is kind of a funk coming off the interior of the case (sort of a chemical smell) which I don't much care for but someone coming into my home may find a pong that's not their cuppa either. Not a big deal - I've left the case open for a couple of days and Febreezed the room a couple of times. It's pretty much solved by now. And I do need her checked out by my gitbox man. The fretboard needs cleaning and I'm unwilling as yet to de-string it to do so.
It's just so great to have one more beautiful PRS for the love of music.