THE GIBSON SG FOOL WEBSITE

WE MOVED TO THE FACEBOOK PAGE at: 
https://www.facebook.com/thefoolguitar/

 All you need to know about this Iconic Electric guitar,
emblematic history of the Psychedelic era of the Sixties.

Best video ever of Eric Clapton showing the Fool and
the sounds it made.

 Commissioned by George Harrison to the Fool Collective, then passed to Eric Clapton, Lomax, Lundgren and unknown.

 Website structured by Ed Gugliotta, Miami FL 

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DISCLAIMER: This site may contain copyrighted material, use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owners. I believe that this not-for-profit, 
educational use on the Web constitutes a fair use of the copyrighted material (as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law).
If you wish to use this copyrighted material for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner 

 

FAMOUS GUITAR REPLICAS

This is the post from Famous Guitar Replicas. Although the one they chose looks a bit too bright colored, the fundamental details are pretty accurate:

http://www.famousguitarreplicas.com/models/Fool-SG/index.htm

I am still not too sure about the white halo around the angel hair. I am pretty sure the original did not have the Halo:

Although I must admit it looks nice and it's appropriate to enhance the hair details.

This is my Fool, artwork done by Rick Daskan ( http://rickdaskam.blogspot.com ):

SHARED IMAGES OF THE FOOL

More images of Clapton and The Fool Gibson SG

MY THREE BABIES and a cousin.

My three best guitars, and the Firebird by Rudolph Kohn:

The Joe Bonamass Goldtop Gibson Les Paul, The Gibson SG re-issue 61 Reproduction of Clapton's The Fool, and a 2003 Gibson SG re-issue 61.

Check out on the right, the best to LP's of Rock History: CREAM's Disraeli Gears and Wheels of fire, and in the middle, an uncommon litho by Peter Max.

 GIBSON Firebird re-issue 2007. Artwork by Rudolph Kohn

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ALVARO FALCON-One of the best Latin American Blues and Rock performer

I had the privilege of having ALVARO FALCON, one of the most talented guitar players in Latin America, play my FOOL SG. he performed at the PAX (Performing Art Exchange) in Miami - http://www.paxmiami.com/ . Part of a pulsating couple with Biella Da Costa, Alvaro started in the early Sixties when he replaced me as Lead Guitar of Eddie and the Snobs, High School band in Caracas, Venezuela,  that enjoyed playing covers in as many parties and events available from 1965 through 1968.

 Eddie and the Snobs, 1966

He has participated in many Venezuelan Bands and performed with Biella all over the world. He came to Miami this month of August 2013, and I asked him to use The Fool for one of his interpretations, which he kindly did ( http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rdz9HzRtRE8 ).

I believe ALVARO is perhaps the only professional  Latin American guitar player that has use a version of The Fool guitar.

 ALVARO'S guitar rack

 Group of images of the August 25th, 2013 ALVARO FALCON's performance at the Miami PAX

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TWO AMAZING BLOGS FILLED WITH UNCOMMON INFORMATION ABOUT CREAM & ERIC

These two Blogs are full of unique information on the best band ever. and his lead guitar front man. Records never released and bootleg vynils:

http://cream.blogger.com.br/

http://www.ericclaptonbrazilianfanclub.blogger.com.br/ 

And an incredible video of how all started in England in the early Sixties:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e2pi47X3q2A

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ORIGINAL PRINTS FROM 1967 ERIC AND THE FOOL

I just got in these three prints from Photo House Classic Rock Photos. The seem to be the real thing! Original prints of Eric and the Fool. Love them:

ERIC CLAPTON PLAYING A GREAT SOLO WITH THE FOOL

This is simply to good to be true! Clapton playing the track of While My Guitar Gently Weeps isolated from all the other instruments, and with human errors and all... I always wanted to feel him playing really solo. And of course The Fool!

This sound track is really historic and shows the magnitude of talent Eric had.

 

Eric Plays the Fool on the solo VIDEO

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HOW TO TRANSFORM A SO-SO FOOL TO A GOOD ONE

I got my fool around a month ago from Guitar Hangar. So it happens that they seem to be creating reproductions of the Todd Rundgren Fool, not the original good stuff from the Cream era. So, I decide to take the matter in my own hands and after a few online inquiries and a lot of research, I made the appropriate changes to transform a So So Fool SG into a really good looking Babe.

 

horrendous rectangular Harmonica bridge

Modern nickel Grover tuners

Steps 1

The Guitar Hangar Repro comes with a horrendous Harmonica Bridge ( used on the SG's from circa 1970 through 1979), this bridge distorts all the antique look of the 61 SG, and turns it into a Neo-copy of the real thing, so I had to order special insert Posts (the Harmonica has Epiphone inserts), from www.allparts.com, that could accommodate an ABR-1/Nashville similar Bridge.

Step 2

Even if the nickel tuners provided by GH might be better for actual use, Clapton's SG had bone simpler tuners, so I got myself a set of  KLUSONS vintage style,  that not only fit perfectly and gave the retro look, but covered 6 empty holes that the guy from GH left uncovered.

Step 3

I don't know what got into the Hangar guys neurons but they took some kind of tin can scrap and hand-cuted a crappy Rod Cover and removed the original black acrylic one. So I ordered a well finished solid metal (nickel finish) cover that looks great.

FINAL CUT

LEO QUINTERO Florida Blues Factory.... and LITTLE OLE ME

Showtime for my Fool, and what better than Crossroads with Leo Quintero and Treva Harrell. Lots of fun.

The Fool Version 1, soon, Version 2 with ABR-1 Bridge and Antique tuners... the real thing.

 Treva Harrell, Leo Quintero, and Ed Gugliotta - private party June 2013

watch Version of Crossroads.The musical video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WedvvYxOYHY

 Exchanging phrases with Leo

 TREVA AND LEO

 TREVA HARRELL, if only the world knew more about her! with Dr. Charles Bustamante and me.

The Invitation.

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MY NEW ARRIVAL

I just receive my Fool Reproduction from Guitar Hangar (thanks Rick!). Had only time to open the box, drool over the beautiful and unique artwork and plug it a few minutes to the Marshall. Even without playing it, I am already jumping of joy.

 Do I have a face of delight? LOL

Close up of the baby

My FB Timeline

BTW: I dislike the Harmonica Bridge! (I'm in the process of changing it for a Tune-o-matic): Oohps.. confirmed, cannot change it.

THE UNIQUE FOOL GIBSON SG

New findings on the creation of The Fool:

Clapton had purchased the guitar only a few months earlier at the beginning of 1967. This would become his main axe for the next two years. Eric would use the cherry finish double cutaway for both live and studio work; it would be featured prominently on Disraeli Gears and would also appear on Wheels of Fire, Goodbye, and on the subsequent live albums, Live Cream and Live Cream Volume II. 

Clapton plays the Fool during his Albert Hall reunion in 2005

The legend of the Psychedelic SG ― as it was sometimes referred to ― was oft-told and varied from telling to telling. Clapton’s Les Paul Standard had been stolen and replaced with this Gibson. Initially, everyone referred to it as a Les Paul SG. But they were wrong. Les Paul did not like the new SG design and asked that his name be taken off the model. By 1963, the guitars were known simply as SG Standards.

There were no Les Paul SGs in 1964.

Not only was it identified incorrectly model-wise, but everyone also goofed up the year. Originally, everybody thought it was a 1961; a close examination of the body revealed a sixth screw hiding just under the lower left corner of the bridge pickup. Prior to 1964, only four screws were used. That was the giveaway.

Clapton’s guitar, then, was a 1964 regular issue SG Standard.

When he first began playing the Gibson, the guitar was still fitted with the original Deluxe Vibrolo tremolo arm; Clapton simply fixed the mechanism in place. The vibrato bar was eventually removed and replaced with two other tailpieces: another Gibson tremolo with a flexible piece of metal instead of springs; and a non-tremolo trapeze-style unit.

The tuning heads were switched out from the standard-issue ivoroid Klusons to Grovers.

And then there was that trippy acid-influenced paint job by the Fool. A Dutch design collective and band (they released one eponymous album produced by Graham Nash), the original members were artists Simon Posthuma and Marijke Koger. The hippie pair had designed clothes and album covers for the Hollies, Procol Harum, the Move, and the Incredible String Band. But it was after seeing what they’d created for the Beatles pals that Eric fell under the influence.

Simon and Marijke had psychedelicized one of George Harrison’s Stratocasters and transformed both John Lennon’s piano and one of his Gibson acoustics. They’d also illustrated an astonishing three-storey mural on one of the exterior walls of the Beatles' Apple Boutique in London.

Eric saw that and knew immediately he wanted his recently-acquired Gibson SG turned Fool-ishly psychedelic. The original cherry finish was given a coat of white primer and then the oil-based paints were applied on top. Brushed-on enamels. Every inch of the instrument was painted including the back of the neck and even the fretboard.

Maybe not such a great idea at the time.

The psychedelic graphic was as weird as it was beautiful. A winged wood sprite with curls of fire sat astride a cotton candy cloud. His left hand grasped a triangle while his right hand held a spoon-shaped beater about to strike it. The arch of his right foot balanced gently atop a tone control, while the toes on his left pointed delicately downwards towards a pickup’s toggle switch. Yellow six-sided stars sprinkled against a sky of azure and aqua orbited him. Swirls, flames and gradient shades of blues, greens, and yellows danced across the instrument’s body. An orange orb dipped behind a burnt sienna mountain range that floated across the pickguard.

During live performances, paint chips literally flaked and flecked off the neck while Clapton played. Eventually, all the excess paint was permanently removed. Soon, Clapton began using Gibson ES-335s and Firebirds. One day, he simply left the guitar with George Harrison, who was a friend, and never returned for it.

Around June 1968, the Beatle, in turn, loaned it to Jackie Lomax. The singer was signed at the time to Apple Records and George knew he needed a guitar so he gave Jackie the legendary SG.

In 1971, while in Woodstock, New York, Lomax and Rundgren met at a session and became friends. Rundgren was astonished when he learned that Lomax owned that very same guitar he’d seen hanging from Eric Clapton’s neck. He told Jackie about seeing the guitar back in ’67 and what an impression it had made on him.

A year later, in 1972, to Rundgren’s shock, Lomax offered to sell him the guitar for $500. Lomax’s only caveat was that he had the option to buy the guitar back. A year passed and not a word was heard.

Rundgren restored and sealed the body to prevent any further deterioration, replaced the rotting headstock, and retouched the paint. A fixed stop tailpiece was installed along with a Tune-o-matic bridge, Strap Locks, and new knobs. The guitar’s guts were left intact and none of the electronics, wiring, or pickups were touched. He named Sunny as a nod towards the instrument’s appearance on the Disraeli Gears track, “Sunshine of Your Love.” The Fool SG became his main instrument until it was retired in the late ’70s.

“Todd never played the guitar after we told him we found it,” Waldo said.

In 2000, Rundgren sold the Psychedelic Fool Gibson SG at a Sotheby’s silent auction, where it  brought $150,000. This anonymous buyer re-sold the instrument several years later for an estimated $ 500.000

CREDIT: The Fool 2010 Facebook page. 

 

Eric Clapton made the Fool Gibson SG famous.