Guitar Reviews, Raves and Rantings Page

Having never written a review about a guitar before this is the first guitar that I felt compelled to tell people about. I thought it would be a nice feature for my site (www.JazzGuitarResources.com).

16 inch American Archtop "American Dream" Spruce Top 7 String

I spent a good half an hour with this guitar at a noisy Fall Philly guitar show Saturday (November 22, 2003). And it definitely was "BEST" of show of the guitars I played that day. Dale's guitars never fail to amaze me. Fortunate for Dale and unfortunate for me that guitar sold right after I played it.

Dale Unger learned his craft of building archtop guitars from the finest living luthier today, Bob Benedetto. Dale was born and raised in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, home of Martin Guitar. Building his first guitar after meeting Dick Boak of Martin Guitar in 1977, Dale has become a master luthier and one of the best at that. This sure shows in the workmanship of his guitars. But - looks aren't everything. As a musician I'm not going to be hanging many guitars on my walls, they are going to be played and played hard everyday. I get the feeling that his guitars would hold up to the same abuse that I inflect on my Benedetto Benny 7 everyday. The Benny runs the gauntlet from folk, country, rock, metal to jazz everyday teaching beginners to advanced guitarists.

I had the privilege of playing several of Dale's guitars over the years and since converting to seven string guitar four years ago, one of his seven string archtop guitar's have been on at the top of my list of goodies to get. Having played a "real" Benedetto 16 inch archtop (carved) as reference, Dales's guitar are right up there in that same league. With Bob Benedetto's patterns, mold, designs and Dales craftsmanship they should be.

I've always thought that a carved top guitar was the route that I would take having owned a great Gibson L5 several years ago. But his 7 string, laminated top guitars sound every bit as good or better than my L5 did and play a lot smoother. John Pizzarelli performs over 200 dates a year using a “plywood” guitar. used to be a Benedetto and not a Moll Custom Instruments signature model. I would like to compare one of those someday.

I played the American Dream archtop guitar through the same rig that I play my Benedetto Benny 7 through everyday. An Acoustic Image Clarus IIR head and Raezer's Edge Stealth 12 custom cabinet. The amp was set flat all tone knobs at 12’o clock. This is the modern day classic jazz setup and produces a great jazz tone. Not too muddy and not to bright. A tone that is horn like and cuts through. I hate that muddy, muted tone some like. The American Dream, aptly named, felt right and produced that great tone even at a noisy guitar show. I had the same feeling about a 17 inch version at last years fall show and almost sold my Benedetto to get it. But the versatility of the Benny 7 is just too valuable to part with.

The fit and finish of this 16 inch guitar was so tight I didn't even notice if the Humbucker pickup was a built in or a floater. Looks like a Benedetto (head stock shape), plays like a Benedetto but doesn't cost like a Benedetto...trust me I have a Benedetto that is worth every penny in the performance that it delivers.

Having played a 17 inch version a year ago I really like the 16 inch size now that I've been playing a smaller bodied guitar for a while. Felt totally comfortable in the sitting position. I’m 6’ 4” and it felt good under the arm. This guitar passes my 5 second test, which is if it doesn't feel great in that time it won't get much better, over time. I hand them right back if they don’t pass that test. If it does pass that test it just gets better over time like fine wine.

What is great about the top luthiers at these shows is that if you can actually play guitar they do not mind how long you play and entertain the on lookers. People will actually thank you for not hammering away on a power five chord and the blues scale. I played several guitars at the show and the feeling of most where that they needed a little or a lot of tweaking. The only other guitar that I played for an extended period of time and was great in its own right was a Bill Comin’s guitar. Another Bob Benedetto trained luthier, go figure!. I have the feeling that it needed a little more setup, especially past the 12 fret. The neck width is more along the lines of the L5 I owned in the past and I’m now more comfortable with a wider neck. Could also be a result of the number of people playing the guitars at these shows. But - then again Dale Unger's guitars where been played that heavily and I did not get that feeling with the 7 string I played. Bill’s guitar also passed the 5 second test, played that one for a good twenty minutes.

I also played an Eastman 7 string at a dealer’s table. From what I have been told by Steve Herberman these where prototypes that do not reflect what is going to be in the final versions. I sure hope so as they definitely did not pass the 5 second rule. Out of courtesy I play it for a minute or two but felt I was working the guitar not playing it.

Of the 170 plus luthiers that I have listed on this (www.JazzGuitarResources.com) site Dale Unger, Bill Comins and John Buscarino are at the top of the list for builder’s guitar that I have played for an extended period of time and handcraft their own guitars My number one recommendations are that trio when asked. There’s that Benedetto connection again. Now if can just keep one one of Dale's guitars someday ;-) Dale my address is ...

Curt Sheller
www.curtsheller.com