In Them There Hills

Well, The Klondike Gold Rush One is coming together nicely. I fitted a superb Hipshot hardtail bridge, it has a lovely USACG neck, some Sperzel tuners, and the most delish of groovy Mother of Jooky finish.

So all good, I even remembered the strap pins, but the choice of pickup has been doing me bonce in, I must admit.

So imagine my joy and lust when Mr Mojo pointed me at a set of his latest trix, his Filterfoils - basically Filtertron sized Foil Pickups. Destined to turn my La Cab into a reet dirty bint.

Needless to say I didn't exactly need anything in the persuasion dept.

So they should be here and nailed in soon-as.

See, it's quite simple this Jooky lark really.

La la laaaa

Whipped Pick-Me-Up

Well, just saw a flashy foto of the rather cool blade pickup that will end-up on The Whipped One, my Fretless La Cab-a-like, and rather stunning it is too, methinks.

I know you probably think of me as the chief Mojo Pickups fanboi, but it is this type of lateralness I just love, the guy is a genius, end-of.

Just don't tell him I said so, you know, he might put his prices up.

As for the rest, well ignoring the pile of other things I haven't finished, I should have the paint this week and will get a move on methinks.

La la laaaa

Saturday is Mojo Day

Mojo Pickups and loom for The Fretboard One
Sexy as Sin

Well, an early morning knock of the door here at the Palace d'Jook saw a flustered postie lady looking, well,  flustered as she handed over a large white box.

I love it when piles of Mojo pickups arrive as they are always so groovy.

First out of the box were a set of Mr Mojo's Authentic Vintage Dano Lipstick Pickups, along with a nice wiring loom and all the usual funky caps and pots. These of course are going into #1 Bratskis sparkly Gecko Strat and a quick plonk together shows them to be well funky. I may change the scratchplate, as the golden anodised metal one needs the holes for the pickups widening, and I quite fancy going for maximum wow and getting Custom Cool Etch to make one of their wonders instead. We'll see though as I'm not sure my boy will want to be waiting much longer.

Next of course, are the pickups and loom for The Fretboard One. A Tele bridge pickup with a Gold Foil for the neck duties. This ia actually well on it's way now, just need to finish the finish and we'll be in clover.

Incidentally, this is the guitar that will be randomly given to a supporter of the Fretboard forum - and you still have time to  stake a claim and join the place and make a small donation toward their running costs. It is going to be quite a monster with it's hand made body, bound and blocked neck, Sperzel tuners, Callaham bridge and the aforementioned Mojo Handwound pickups.Don't miss out -  All the Gen Here.

The third pile of goodliness in that there box was if anything more exciting. This is of course a little closer to my heart, as it is a Jazzmaster wiring loom complete with a pair of Mojo Teisco style Gold Foil pickups, which will find a home nailed to the front of The Alcman One. I think this could be something rather special and I am hoping that tomorrow may see a final introductiion on that one.

Speaking of introductions, I still haven't taken some snaps or The Sally James and Diamond Shiny Ones to share with the world, so I should probably do that too.

Anyway...

La la laaaa

Honey on my mind

Well, back in the land of the setting sun, I'm getting all excited about The Lingering Honey One, not least because Marc at Mojo Pickups has again come up with the goodies in the shape of a spiffing pickup and loom.

For those napping at the back, The Lingering Honey One is going to be a Jooky Classic of a Les Paul Jr but with a few twists...

From the top it is a classic single cut - single piece mahogany body, single piece mahogany neck, rosewood 'board, long tenon neck...gurrrt lush.

The body is destined for a right royal rusting, with the neck being stained and oiled which should be rather lovely indeedy.

Where things get really cool is that instead of the expected Dogear P90, we are going to nail on a Mojo Gold Foil - suitably aged in Halifax - and pair it with a top quality loom.

Other than that, it is going to have some fancy pants Grover tuners and a Tonepros wraparound tailpiece.

Now how groovy will that be?

La la laaaa

Do Tha Bump

Well, you know how much I love a 'different' pickup, one that is out of the ordinary that gives that little something different to the rest. I like that, guitars that sound as well as look a bit unique.

So top excitement when Marc at Mojo Pickups told me he was doing something special based on an old Kay Speedbump Humbucker, basically a big fat magnet with loads of wire wrapped around it...and as per I-just-gotta-have-it.

The question of course is what to do with it, and as I normally do in such moments I find myself thinking of a single pickup jobby, so that is the likely plan.

Don't ask me what and I can't be bothered to think of a name, but there we are..

La la laaaa

Something For The Weekend...

Well, I don't have many guitars myself, as you know, and recently I have had a bit of a Buy-back phase that has seen things I previously moved on, reappear.

This is the end of that. (Unless somebody has the Les Paul Studio or maybe ...etc.)

So I am all rather chuffed that as previously mentioned my Old Gordo has come back to me in all it's battered desk-ness, and that Mr Mojo himself will be making me a couple of his lush PAF style 'buckers (tweaked for that Peter Green in the middle tone) to set it off a treat.

This one will never leave the shores of the little kingdom of Jook again. Really.

Next to it of course is something newer, a sparkly blue Danelectro Wild Thing which thru the reverb laden top boosted channel of my little Vox AC15 is absolutely stunning.

I am deeply in love with this one already and the fact that it looks as though it came direct from the Jetsons in the back of The Mystery Machine only helps lots.




So no jookiness is likely for a few days I wouldn't have thought..

La la laaaa

If Boogaloo is Cool - the Mojo Gold Foils are Far Out...

Well, I've spent the last few days explaining or at least trying to, what The Boogaloo One sounds like, so I'm going to get my finger out and do some sort of recording. Soon, really soon.

To my mind they are somewhere between a TV Jones and a P90 - gorgeous cleans with special jangly bits, but really at their best with a bit of dirt as they have this amazing sustain to them.

But they sound great, but I figured that maybe it is just me - it's in the fingers, dontchano? - so I was pleased to find these YouTube videos  and I thought I'd share them with the group. They sound fantastic with a slide in hand   (listen to the tres cool Ramon Goose below and see what I mean)  - in summary, they can be awesome.

Just maybe not my hand.

La la laaaa

Now That's Mojo

Well, I got woken up this morning by a neighbour, knocking on the door and doing an air guitar solo in the middle of the road. Simultaneously, which is a good trick if you  can do it.

Most odd. but the reason for this was that the thievin'bastard-postie had delivered a parcel to his house instead of mine, presumably to save himself a three yard walk and rather than give it me when I saw him last night, he thought he would wait until I was asleep.


Anyway, I opened the box and was rather pleased to find the pickups and loom for The Sappho One nestled in their cool wrappings - the latest delivery from Mojo Pickups, this job is always a joy.

Now I realise, my regular reader, that you see me as a quiet planner, considered and never, ever prone to rashness. But as I am only now just a neck short of a Jooky, I am sorely tempted to use another neck and get to play it.

The pickups, of course, are a little different. Marc has made a Jazzmaster sized pickup to the spec of one of those lush old Mosrites for the bridge, repeating the trick but making a Gold Foil Pickup for the neck spot.

I have expectations of this guitar, I can safely say that.

But do I or don't I?

I am struggling to do the right thing here.

Decisions...

La la laaa

And Then of Course...

Well, still a bit slo-mo-a-go-go at the mo-mo, but I  did get a chance the other day to sand back the top of The Boogaloo One, and stain it a proper white, and it looks more the part now.

It still needs some work in the sanding and re-staining dept. before I give it a sheen of hard wax oil, but it is more what I was hoping for and that feels nicer.

From here it is of course going to have that lovely bound Jazzmaster neck nailed on, a pair of Mojo Pickups Gold Foil Toaster Specials (I'm sure he will make up a better name if he ever makes any more), and I am thinking  that a nice Bigsby will be a good way to hold the strings on.

When this will be occurring, who can say, but I am planned-up and that is always nice amid the chaos of real life..

La la laaaa

Rusty Robotting

Well, back to imagining at the moment, but hopefully next week I'll be around long enough to nail some things together and the gold will glister, baby.

Until then I thought I'd mention a little pickup Marc at Mojo Pickups sent me to try, and this is it...

As you can see it has a funny stripe on it which I learn is called a blade and is like lots of pole shaped magnets stuck together. This is one of Marc's prototypes and is low output but should be crystal clear. Can't think why he asked me to have a look at it, then. It can't be the 'crystal clear' part. Hmmm.

Anyway, luckily I have a rather nice chunk of Tele shaped alder waiting for a reason to live, and I had intended to make a little rustiness with it, as it were, so that came together quite well.

Other than that, I guess it will be one of my fave Esquires, it is destined to have a neck (on it's way - somewhere - as I type) and there we be.

Jesus loves me and he can love you too.

So that will be The Rusty Robot One, sometime, probably, maybe, well, like, whenever. Duh.

La la laaaa

Golden Years Da Da Da

Well, still a bit AWOL at the mo', but before I configured the life raft, I did receive a double dose of Vitamin Gold Foil from Marc at Mojo Pickups, and bloomin' gorgeous they are too.

It'll be a while before I get on with them, but I couldn't help a quick plonk together of The Hartlepool and Boogaloo Ones with their gilt racked, as it were.

The Hartlepool One is obviously a lot closer as it has been, err, finished, and in a way it makes sense as I should get to play with the real deal as far as the Gold Foils go before moving on to toasters and toppings.

I'd forgotten how pretty Hartlepool was though, all verra nice indeed.

As for The Boogaloo One, I'm really pleased with the neck. It is a Jazzmaster one, maple, black blocks and it is bound too, which is very lux. The body is going to be Lake Placid Blue, unless I go darker and I'm dithering whether to put the proper Ricky 660 pickguards on - or the ones I cut from an LP - forgot about those, wonder where they are... - or maybe even to stay au natrel. No panic though, plenty of time..

Just when I'll get to be doing them really...

La la laaaa

Gold Foil a Go Gooooo

Well, planning-and-a-plotting as I am, I was somewhat delighted to see that Mr Marc Ransley of the Mojo Pickups parish has finished me some of the coolest looking pups this side of the Stirchley Bowl...

First up, are the authentic and uber classic Gold Foils that are destined for The Hartlepool One (that slice of offset semi-acoustalification that has been waiting under the stairs for such an occasion). These are a long held dream and I really can't wait to get them fitted and fettled...

The other, if at all possible are even more special. As you no doubt know, The Boogaloo One is going to be a funky little momma, based on a Rickenbacker 620 with a groovy maple blocked neck, I'd initially thought that I'd get Marc to make a couple of his Toaster pickups, but in one of those weirdly cool moments, we have ended-up with Toaster-sized Gold Foils which look quite frankly, stunningly cool. I don't even know where to plug in the hyperbole for these babies...or indeed how the hell he has managed to put them together at all, but the boy is a genius. End of.

So, in summary - all is golden, all is glistery.

La la laaaa

Getting Old on a Saturday

Well, I mentioned the other day that I'd hunted and gathered a Monster Relic neck for The Old No. 7 One from Marc at Mojo Pickups, and it arrived this morning and it is rather stunningly cool. I am really impressed with the quality of it, and the ageing is very subtle, no stupid wear, just genuinely old looking and feeling.

And as that was just about the final jiggysaw lump, and hopefully next week this baby will be on it's way to Paul for mucho strumming.

La la laaaa

Gimping My Tele Baby

Well, I got a lovely walnut telecaster body a while ago, and the subtle little plan has being to make myself a nice Esquire to have around the place, as the one time I used a walnut body before I was rather impressed.

Anyway, I've started staining that as I want it pretty and simple, and I snapped up a Ye Olde Bakelite pickguard, so that is cool too.

I was also really impressed by the neck I put on The Black Russian One - with the ebony board, so I am going to grab another of those for this and there we are.

As for pickups, well I've been thinking about a Gimp pickup for a Tele and have decided to go for one that I really loved when Marc at Mojo Pickups made me one before, which was basically a hot P90 in a Tele Bridge sized form...

And so that is what the second Gimp will be - a Tele P90 for the perfect Esquire...That will debut here too.

I feel so un-manic about this, I'm really not sure why, but it will be uber cool methinks.

A Tele P90 Gimp, can't really beat that.

Apart from maybe if I put a Bigsby on it..

That'll be The Chimera One then, it has to happen sooner or later.

La la laaaa

Snax Time

Well, I've got a lovely and no doubt sexually healed pair of P90s on the way from Marc of Mojo Pickups fame, along with a rather trixy little loom that features a blend pot instead of the more usual three-way-switch, and with a bit of luck and snow drifts allowing, they should get here in the next day or three, and I should be able to plop them right into my Mosrite inspired The Scooby Doo One and smile, smile, smile.

So today, in between a few more layers for The La Cucuracha One's paint job, I figured I should make sure that the rest of the bits 'n' bobbins are in the right places and that Jesus still wants me for a pilgrim. Though was it ever truly in doubt?

And a quick peek reminds me that I did in fact nail the neck on, and it just leaves a few more mundane matters like wollaping the tailpiece into place, digging out some strap pins, twizzling the tuners, that sort of bobbins.

And I'm really excited at the prospect, it is going to be groovy.

La la laaaa

The March of the Gimps

Well, as it seems to be a day for futures, I was pleased and becalmed to see this foto pop along from Marc at Mojoland, as it is the first of the Jooky exclusive pickups that I'm going to be using on some of my guitars in the coming days and maybe even punting on the vapour-web-site I keep imagining might one day happen.

This is one of a set of pickups that will be going into The Spindrifting One, that will be unlike your usual Stratiness, and will in fact be voiced more along the lines of a P90/Tele with a more tone-filled and fatter sound for real noisy goodness.

This is something we've been collaborating on for months, and after long discussions deep into the night we've finally managed to define something I think will be pretty special.

OK,in truth the discussion went more like:

Me: Can you make something that doesn't sound like a Strat? I don't like Strats, like.
Marc: Yes. How about  like a Tele?
Me: OK, that sounds good.
Marc: Shall I make them then?
Me: Yes please.

And then I left Marc to sort out all of the messy detail stuff, like magnets and wires and things, but there we are.

Which oddly is how the Manhattan project got started.

Once they arrive, I'll be giving them a special Jooky finish, and there we are...

And as all good revolutions need a T Shirt, and every dog needs a name, I came to the conclusion that they would be known as GIMPS.

And we all need a bit of a Gimp in our lives, let's face.

Jookified Gimps, err, coming soon.

La la laaaaa

Gold Foil Dreamin'

Well, I think I may have overdone the sanding and screwing a wee bit these last couple of days, so The Black Russian One will now get bolted together early next week, but there we are. What can you do? I'm a raspberry ripple, end of story.

Instead then, my mind has turned to the long awaited and often-hazy-of-spec The Hartlepool One, my cats-eyed, semi-acousticalified Jazzmaster of sorts. I've lost track of how many variations this has been going to enjoy, so it is probably time to nail it down once and for evermoresome.

And after a good chat with Marc at Mojo Pickups, it will now have a rather intriguing specification....

So for today at least, as who knows what I'll think tomorrow, it will be:

1. A Jazzmasterish shape, cats eye slash holed, semi acoustic.

2. Big CBS headed neck of rosewood and maple.

3. A Dark-as-night blue metallic finish with essence of pearl and moonbeam

4. A Ricky bridge

5. A Bigsby

All of which is super cool of course and will look amazing.

As for the finishing touch, well I'm going to try the first set of Mojo Pickups' Gold Foils, which I think will be pretty darn stunning in this guitar, if I say so meself, which I do, so there.

I've been looking for a good place to try these for a while now and a sparkly Jazzmaster with a Bigsby sounds about the most perfect venues... The foto is of Marc's old Teisco, which also appeared in Saturday tea time's Metal Mickey when I were a lad.

Hopefully I can get started with this next week then as it is going to be uber cool methinks.

Other than that, I'm halfway there with the web site. It is going to have a couple of surprises and I've just brought  a few metres of hessian... Can you see what it is yet?

La la laaaa

From The Frozen Filled North...

Well, normal Jooky service will hopefully reassert itself tomorrow, but I had a nice couple of boxes arrive from Planet Mojoland, which will help things along no end and to be honest, I am bamping at the chit.

Fotos by a Blind Mouse, Earlier Sometime Ago

First of all, are the TV Jones-sized Filtertrons in Hi Lo Tron-esque covers, for The Black Russian One. Can't wait to hear these in action, though a slight delay on that as when I came to fit the lovely ebony boarded neck I noticed that it was split all along the back. Most bugging. I have a maple one which I might put on to try it out, but even so...it was made with ebony in mind, and that is the way it needs to be. I am verily serious today.

Secondly, Marc has done me a Hotter than Hot-hot-hottish Broadcaster bridge pickup for The Mysterio One. This can be coil-tapped (coil-split? I forget) and so he has done another groovy Esquire loom for me, with one of the positions being the tapped/split variation on the norm. This is turning into something completely different, especially as I might well put a B-Bender on the thing too, just next to the kitchen sink balancing on the cherry on the top. Should be fun, has to be said. If I can lift it to play it.

The third box contained the loom and pickups for The Seaside One, which is a real gilty pleasure (ahem), and that too is ready to finish when I get my finger out and proud..

So along with The Frou Frou Fox One, I think I have just enough parts to finish 3 guitars, though as I have succumbed to the Bratskis collection of puke-worthy bugs it might well be next week rather than this that sees them completed.

Anyway...

La la laaaa

Black Russian Mojo Babushka Blues in Em

Mojo Filterons in Hi Lo Up Down And
Very Left Tron Design Shocksome

Well, I had one of 'those' emails again from Marc at Mojo Pickups, where he sends me a foto of some cool little trifle of a trinket he has put together especially for one of my Jooky babies, and this time the boy has excelled hisself and come up with something particularly groovy. for The Black Russian One, my final La Cabronita.

It has been a while and specs change, so as a refresher for those that haven't been paying attention to their note-taking duties, The Black Russian One is a swamp ash bodied La Cabronita, with a evil black stained and waxed body.

The neck is maple/maple (originally this was going to be ebony but I changed my mind) and pickguard and rear control cavities offer a flash of colour if not inspiration and are hand carved from an old Television, red vinyl disc. Lovely.

The knob has a genuine old Russian red star badge cap affixed to the top (though I'll have to supply a normal one too I think as it may not prove to be the most practical of knobs. And  we all need knobbages with a hint of practicality.)

Black Russian, Among Friends
On My To Do List

The rest of the hardware will come as no surprise, but where Marc has excelled is that he has created a couple of TV Jones sized Filtertron voiced pickups especially for it, designed to look like Hi Lo Tron pickups, and verily cool they are indeedy. They should set it off a treat. These are low output, vintage tone chillsters rather than high gain screamers, which is cool. I like a bit of tone of a morning.

He has also done one of his classy wiring looms, completed with all that is good and wholesome in such circles.

Anyway, the pickups should hopefully be here soon and this little baby rocking like a mocking bird next week sometime. Can't wait.

So perhaps this will be the first Jooky to break cover in 2013, who'd have thought it?

You gotta love it.

La la laaaa

Going For Gold Like Scooby Snax, Yeah

Well, all is chaos at the moment in the little kingdom of Jook, with baubles all over the place and more glitter on show than at a convention of 1970s peedos, but will we let such shenanigans get to us and cause us to hide under the stairs, stroking korina with some wire wool? Not a chance.

And excuse the excitement, but there is something else that is golden and shiny on my mind, as after many months of searching, I heard from Marc at Mojo Pickups yesterday, that he is finally in a position to make some authentic repro Gold Foil pickups. I know he has wanted to do these for ages so it is really cool news.

Now these originally appeared in the coolest of vintage cool guitars, things like Harmonys and Silvertones and Mr Ry Cooder's own tone owes them plenty, so they are well worth checking out methinks. In fact, it is no big surprise that I can't wait to give them a try, but have the slight issue that I haven't got a guitar to put them into.

Obviously, I ordered the first set he makes (ahem) without considering that flaw in the plan.

Not that that is too much of an issue as for quite an eon of an aon of a while I've fancied making meself something along the lines of a Mosrite in all it's twangy off-key-looking-ness.

Which is something I've wanted for years (a Mosrite, I mean) but never quite got the chance/excuse/energy, and the copies I've tried haven't really hit the spot.

So I'm going to get Jezz of Woodroffe Guitars to make me a nice semi acousticalified body of the right shape, plonk an incongruous big headed Strat neck on it and see where that gets us.

As you may have noticed, a lot of the new guitars seem to be classic old shapes that have been Jookificated, and this is something that I think will continue for a while as it is fun, though I have a couple of ideas of my own that I really must get sorted. Groovy indeed.

So, back to the future, coming soon to an obsessive near me, The Scooby Doo One, tis gonna be groovy.

La la laaa