Which of the first Alembic Guitars/Basses were Made for the GreatfulDead  Members?...........& who Onwed which ones?........somebody told me 'Phil Lesh' used to own alembic#12 in the early 70's.

Hi Keavin,
 
according to the original work order board from those times (which we still have) #2 was made for Bob Weir, #3 was made for Jerry Garcia & so were #13 & #25. Garcia was also owner of #6 for a while then he damaged it and traded it in for a new one. Phil Lesh had #8, Mickey Hart #19. Stanley had #14 , Neil Young had #15 & John McVie had #27. Of course #1 was Casady's and so was #17.  
 
Valentino

Thanks Val!!

Interesting.  Number 2 is now in the posession of Hard Rock.
 
I have number 16 and it is rumored to have originally belonged to the bassist with Willie Nelson.  I would love to be able to verify it's earliest beginings.
 
I got a chance to play number 17 a while back.  It was for sale too, but I passed on it.  I don't know who ended up with it.
 
Michael

Are there any pictures of these to correspond to the numbers? I'd be particularly interested in seeing Bob Weir's #2 - Ok, no joking guys, I'm serious!

Hi Valentino, can you look at Alembics records and tell me when the some of the earliest Lefties were made and any history and backround on their wherabouts. I am amazed at some of the lefties that I have seen lately. I know there must be more out there. Thanks, Michael

Hi Chris, as far as I know we do not have pictures of #2 or of most of the early instruments. Since #2 is now owned by the Hard Rock Cafe, maybe you can find pictures on their site.
 
Sorry Michael, the old board says nothing about lefties. There's little information on it, just the serial number, scale lenght & the buyer if it was a custom order. I'd have to look through the individual files to find the early lefties, which  would take a while. Maybe one day when things are slow.
 
 
Valentino

If there is any Alembicians in Houston, maybe they can snap a picture for us.  In this link check out #9.  I think this could be #2.
http://www.hardrock.com/locations/cafes3/cafes.aspx?LocationID=56&MIBenumID=3&MenuID=3

I have this pic, but it does not show much detail.  If you mess with it, you will see that it has a scroll, and a brass plate on the face of it.  Maybe someone can lighten it for us.
 

 
5-pin connector.  The knobs look Alembic.  The bridge is harder to see, but looks Alembic.

I saw that exhibit back when it was still open here in Florida.  The tour guide said it is an Alembic.  It looked like one to me when I was there, though at the time my perception was skewed.  I wondered if there was anything in the pockets of the good doctor's jacket.

Hah!!

Mica when the first seriesII produced?....i don't recall seeing one from the early days although several early custom guitars were equipped with S/II electronics such as mine.

Hi Mica, When was the first guitar (as opposed to Bass guitar) produced at Alembic (not counting custom orders)? I realize you do not have statistics for all the years but do you know how many were produced in 1974? Where would #74-78 place.  How many registered instruments (Bass or Guitar) do you have  for 1974?
 
(Message edited by coffeegod on March 25, 2009)