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PART 17 "ALL YOU NEED IS EARS OR YOU'VE HEARD THIS TONE FOR YEARS" (Pyramid, Beatles.. read!!!)
My, did all of our Beatles' lovers freak out from last month's announcement! My friend in New Jersey who is behind the resurrection of the famous Pyramid strings is beginning to think that's he's turned into Jerry Lewis after doing the "Muscular Dystrophy Telethon"...his fax and phone are just burning off the hook to put it mildly. Yes, gang, there's a rather large untapped market for these sets out in guitarland.You see, when something hasn't been available for years and years ( and you just crave the memory of that sound) there's just no substitute, period. I'm so glad there are people in the world who won't accept "No" as an answer to their question of whether they can recreate something from the past that was unique and in a class of its own. Usually, when folks get a response like "These sets are no longer obtainable from any manufacturer, anywhere.", the buck stops at that point.
Hey, if you want to make something bad enough, you'll find a way of getting it done. This is the proof in the pudding, I'll say that much. I must be very candid with our readers; I'm certainly old enough to have had the opportunity to play the Pyramid strings when I was young, but I have to state that I NEVER DID!! It wasn't until August of this year that I tried them for the first time. At 41 years old, no less!
Anyway, I know from the calls I received regarding this subject, that all of you Beatles' fans re-defined the term for the old "Woody" cars that the Beach Boys used to sing about, catch my drift(wood)? I am just crazy about these strings. They are a completely different breed of animal. Now, I'll pop the $64,000 question...what's the very first thing you do when you buy a new (or vintage) instrument?
You rip the original strings off of it (or what was on the guitar) and put your favorite brand of strings on it, right? RIGHT. I cannot remember a single time when I didn't perform this duty myself, even as a young teenager. When asking everyone else I know that very question, they ALL agreed with my theory. Everyone knows that the guitar builders (The factories with the largest volume of production in particular) use the cheapest brand of strings they can find. They just won't spend a little more to make their instruments sound the best they possibly can be made to seduce you into buying it quickly.
There are exceptions, of course, but generally the above practice is favored. The original equipment is sent to the circular file before you really start to enjoy the sonic qualities of your new baby. More info from our panel of experts; Ralph Novak has a stunning twelve-string that he tested the Pyramids on and he was floored. Want more? See Ken Fischer's review this month on these tonal gems. Their answer is always the same; these strings are just mind-boggling.
These magical wires effect you in a way the mythical "Fountain of Youth" did, you instantly lose about thirty years off your chronological age. Here's the scoop...these strings are actually more similar to the strings used on violins and cellos. In other words, they are Orchestral strings in a smaller size to accommodate your guitar. They have a very "Round-wound" sound to them acoustically, they ring and sustain like the "Bells of Rhymney". There's quite a bit of hand labor in the silking of the core and the ends of the string by the ball.
The outside silk is more a cosmetic detail (on the bass strings) that looks extremely nice, but this one extra step takes time to do anyway you look at it. It's a great example of an absolute class act, no holds barred. We did about ten months worth of research on the history and actual making of these strings before the word was put out to the masses. That's a tremendous amount of homework as you might imagine. My buddy has been getting calls from very prestigious plastic surgeons just to give you an idea that a market really exists for these strings.
"Coming out of the closet" has an entirely new meaning for that phrase! These customers are not only upper-income individuals, but seriously hard-core in their love of sound when a guitar is involved. I never got into playing guitar to get the girls or use it as a phallic symbol, I just loved the way it sounded and how it had the uncanny ability to communicate with my true inner self. After all, that's what makes self-expression so personal and exciting. Everyone has their own method of self-expression, but we just so happen to use our guitars as a vehicle for hearing our own spiritual voice within.
Markets are first created within a person's thoughtform. If you don't believe that a market exists for something, you won't create one, that's a fact. On the other hand, if you think of an idea that is worthy of developing a market for, you'll create it! Markets exist in your head first, then you decide on how to stratigically approach selling your product to people. This is a very simple example of the Law of Cause and Effect. Your thoughts set up the "cause" and your action(s) create the "effect" later on.
If the Pyramids have not been on the market for roughly 23 years, players were forced into using other alternatives that did not give them the authentic sound they were used to. Duh, I wonder why there hasn't been any demand for them--it doesn't take Einstein to figure that out. Somebody simply didn't want to be bothered by the hassle of making a string like the Pyramids, it isn't an easy job to do right by any means.
This brings me to the reason why I chose the title of this month's column. As some of you probably know, George Martin's 1979 autobiography is titled "All You Need is Ears". What a fitting title for a guy who knew how to use this sense to the highest degree. Well, he's absolutely correct...it seems a lot of players remember how their ears responded to the first chord the Beatles' ever played or these tons of phone calls wouldn't be comin' in.
I'm sure that you are aware of the new Beatles' CD box-set coming out in a few weeks time. NBC is planning a six hour documentary to coincide with the CD's release. Talk about marketing! The Beatles' last CD box "Live at the BBC" out-grossed even the Rolling Stones' "Voodoo Lounge" tour this year--$130 million or somewhere around that amount. The Stones grossed $121 million approximately. Face it, the Beatles' aren't going away, okay?
If anything, they're stronger than ever before and their music will live on for many future generations to enjoy and learn from. I know what I want under the Christmas tree, alright ma?
My next test is to try these Pyramids on my '56 Les Paul Junior as it promises to be very interesting. It should sound killer for slide or any other type of playing. This Junior is my favorite guitar to use as a test instrument when checking out new designs of strings as its neck is akin to a Louisville Slugger in size, and the tone the axe produces is downright mean. Besides, the neck won't shift when I change to a heavier or lighter gauge string when needed.
Hmmm...with the Trainwreck Liverpool I'm getting shortly, I think I will have a new religious belief! It's going to be rightious, I cannot tell you how excited I am about its arrival. As a matter of fact, Kenny and myself have decided to name the 'Pool after my lovely mother, Libuse. If you can't pronouce her name, it's because she's a full-blooded Czech. Her name has not been used in Ken's logbook so far, I can assure you of this without any hesistation.
What's going to be really fun, is that the amp's face-plate engraving will be of a court jester laughing at the stick puppet of himself that he's holding in his hand. Can you imagine if I play a gig and someone asks me about the sound I'm getting? I can either say, "Ask the Clown!" or "I don't know, you better ask my mom!" In any case, with the tone I'll get from this little monster, the joke is going to be on them!
Thanks for having the unbelievable interest and support for the new Pyramid string. With the new gauges that are going to be coming in soon, I think we're really going to have a lot of players looking younger by the minute.
Two last comments before signing off; The great English poet, John Keats (1795-1821), wrote a poem that states: "Beauty is truth, truth beauty, that is all ye know on Earth, and all ye need to know." Paging Peter Townshend, paging Tom Petty, paging Mary Chapin-Carpenter, and Jim, will you please tell your twin brother Roger,..."They're back!"
Copyright 1995 by Dean L. Farley
Reprinted from "Vintage Guitar" July 1995 issue.