There seems to be a
lot of discussion about the instruments Ry Cooder uses. I'll publish the
information (that seems likely and valid) on this page, but keep me informed
on your knowledge. |
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First let me introduce you to "The Green Man", because I get a lot of questions about it: |
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It is a 2 tube guitar preamp with dual transformer isolated outputs (phase switches on each output), built in an old variac transformer housing.
It's used for driving two amps (Vibroverb & Tweed Deluxe) and controlling the volume simultaneously with the large knob on top. It also has a tone control on the side.

This is a picture of a fraction of Ry's instrument closet.
So let's not think we'll ever know a fraction of his collection.
(Regretfully, the picture doesn't show the top level. It has a label saying "Weird stuff".)
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Ry Cooder's main
acoustic guitar, according to his guitar repairman Rick Turner, is a
Gibson Roy Smeck model from the mid-30s. Frets were
added to this guitar, which was originally designed for lap-style playing.
Cooder still owns a 1950s Martin 000-18, which Turner
believes he used to record the theme from Paris, Texas. Some of the
other acoustic instruments owned by Cooder include a German-made Voss
plywood flattop cutaway converted from a standard six-string guitar
into a mando-guitar with four double courses tuned in fifths; a Kay
Kraft (made by the Stromberg-Voisinet company), which was featured
in the March/April 1993 Great Acoustics department; a Kona
Hawaiian lap guitar, which Cooder plays in the Spanish position; a Gibson
Mastertone guit-jo from the 1930s; a custom-made Japanese Shimu
auditorium-sized cutaway steel-string; an Indian tamboura,
which Cooder uses for slide playing; a rudra vina,
a sacred eight-string Indian instrument that is the ancestor of the
sitar; and various Turkish cimbses. He also uses a
host of other guitars that have been assembled from strat, les paul,
and even lapsteel parts.
Ry Cooder doesn't use any picks, he prefers the sound of fingertips
and natural fingernails on the strings. He uses heavy glass slides which
he wears on his little finger. The wobbly vibrato he executes by waving
the slide in a fan-like pattern is part of his trademark sound. He also
adjusts the strings on his guitars to a flat vs. radiused setting. This
lends to his technique of allowing adjoining strings to ring out buzz
free.
Ry uses a variety of tunings. The two he uses most for his recorded
blues are Open D and Open E. His favorite for blues being Open D. This
because he says it "lends itself to a darker sounding blues".
On the Buena Vista Social Club DVD Ry plays a Gibson SJ-200.
Dana Bourgeois:
"Ry has a Bourgeois Blues. The BB is a version
of a Slope D (one of our regular models) that was developed specifically
for bottleneck playing. The top, back and sides of the BB are made of
koa, which has a honky, midrange-y tone, and the top is ladder-braced
like the old Stellas. Also, the fretboard of the BB has a little
flatter radius than what we usually use, which makes it a bit more "bottleneck
friendly". Ry acquired the BB sometime in the late 90's through
a mutual friend. Right after he got it, Ry left a message on my answering
machine saying that he liked the guitar. I have no idea if
it was ever used on a recording. The accompanying photo is a Bourgeois
Blues that was made around the same time as Ry's, and to my knowledge
is identical."
Danny Ferrington:
In "Little Village", Ry uses a custom built unfinished (plain wood) electric with split frets made by Danny Ferrington.
This guitar was made for Ry by Danny Ferrington who lives very near to Ry in Santa Monica. In all I think Ry owns about five of his guitars. One is a custom built acoustic long scale baritone (sunburst)with a scale length based on one of Rys favourite strats. He uses it to simulate the sort of sound that Leadbelly used to get from his long scale Stella 12 string. An electric was used on "Dont Think about him when you're tryin to drive" shown on BBC2's "Little Village item of 3 numbers on "The Late Show". The guitar has its two bass strings built to a longer scale with wider frets and stepped back bridge.(i.e. again a baritone guitar). The other four strings are conventially fretted to a normal scale length. Ry uses his "own" tuning on it. Danny doesn't know what it is.

(All we could find was this Ferrington with conventional frets.
Marc)
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Bourgeois Blues
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Gibson SJ-200
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Stromberg Kay Kraft
Venetian - Style B |
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Martin 000-18
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Gibson Roy Smeck |

'64 Favino Gypsy
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The
instruments shown above are samples of the mentioned guitars.
They are not Ry's. |
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The '67 Daphne Blue Fender Stratocaster was the first electric guitar Ry has ever had. (Originally chosen for it's color.) It has a maple neck, a bound rosewood fingerboard and a painted headstock. Ry thinks the guitar has a lot more high-end and harmonics because the strings aren't through the body anymore.
Bridge cavity is filled with blank wood.
Neck pickup: Guyatone ('60's LG-50 ?) pickup with paper-thin magnets that produce a transparant, almost acoustic tone.
Bridge pickup: a replicated Bigsby eight-string steel guitar pickup made by Paul Warnick.
Bigsby B5 Tremelo
Bridge:****
Jack input plate is mounted
upside down.
The strings are roundwound, tuned in D.
His guitar for the ballad/chordal sound. Here's an interview with Ry telling about his guitars. |
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The '60s Fender Stratocaster is his main blues and bottleneck guitar. It's a very stable and responsive guitar, with good sustain and a good constant volume.
The body is a Buddy Holy reproduction
Bridge pickup: An Oahu/Valco lap-steel pickup assembly, the body was routed out to accomodate that and is notched for the Fender tailpiece.
Neck pickup: Teisco pickup he got from David Lindley.
Neck: A "C" model he got from David Lindley. It's really wide with lots of mass.
The strings are flatwound, tuned in G.
Here's an interview with Ry telling about his guitars.
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The '90s Fender Bajo Sexto Telecaster Customshop
Neck pickup: Teisco.
Bridge pickup:
Single-coil staggered pole 6.62k
output (if
standard?)
Neck: 30 1/4 inch scale (781 mm), Slab Maple.
Tuned in open D.
Pearloid slab sunburst single-cutaway body.
Two controls (one volume, one tone) plus three-way "top-hat" selector switch.
Chrome knobs with flat tops and knurled sides. Combination Telecaster three-saddle bridge/tailpiece, with through-body stringing.
Strings:
.016 .026 .036w .046w .056w .066w (if
Standard?)
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Guyatone LG-200T, Mid 60's
4 Single coil Pickups
6 Pickup selection switches
Headstock logo has been removed.
Originally 2-channel Stereo Out, but converted to Mono.
24 frets
Non-original Bridge |
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30's/40's Rickenbacker Electro Spanish Model B
The entire neck and body of this instrument are made of molded Bakelite. Though this guitar appears to be solid, it is actually hollow. The neck is bolted on to the body. The neck attaches to the body at the 14th fret. There are five decorative chrome-plated panels that cover the cavities in the instruments body. The 23 fret neck was also made of bakelite. The horseshoe type pickup on the guitar was placed right before the bridge and covered with a chrome hand rest. A volume control is placed on the lower bout. The mounting screws and pickup screws were made of non-magnetic brass, to avoid interference. |
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40's/50's Gibson F-12
Bigsby pickup |

Guyatone |

Ripley Stereo |

Early '60s Guyatone |

Simular, not Ry's, but a better picture.
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'49 Gibson ES-9 |

'49 Kay |

Jerry Jones 12 Shorty
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Takamine J15E
(Jazz concert)
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The Bigsby Tri-Neck Pedal Steel. These instruments
are only custom build for people like Speedy West and Joaquin Murphey.
Paul Warnik put this one together from salvaged parts.
The Earley '60s Guyatone. A great little guitar, wich sounds like John
Lee Hooker. Pickups from these instruments, he uses on other guitars.
The '49 Kay is a 9 string give syou a unison. A unison,
and then the fourth is an octave. He plays this with the cubans because
with the double strings your almost in tres mode. Twelve are hard to
handle. You don't need an octave on all the strings.
The '49 Gibson ES-9 is fitted with the same pickups
Merle Travis had. There's no master volume, just a volume for each pickup.The
neck pickup is the sound of a beautiful, big, purple gabardine suit.
If you wan't to twang a bit, you dial the rear pivkup in a little and
you're there. It has a very rigid top, so it doesn't feed back.
The '64 Favino Gypsy. A little beat-up instrument with
French pickups in it.
The Ripley Stereo Guitar. One of a duo made for both
Dweezel Zappa and Ry. It goes through a complicated box and produces
a liquid, flute-like sound. |
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Here's the selection
of Mandolins Ry uses according to an interview by David Grisman for Mandolin
World News. |
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F-4 mandolin
(with an aluminum bridge) |
H-4 mandola |
K-4 mondocello |
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For the real technicians among you, I'll name you some of his non-guitar
gear:
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