Miles Dewar
197 posts
Feb 28, 2009
4:33 PM
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Wait...is that?.... The Main Man Himself?...... Is he using a.......Lee Oskar? Damn, I don't think someone told Junior Wells that "Lee Oskars are horrible". Maybe he just accidentally grabbed it out of his bag of junk. LOL
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4FZJxNvxnq8
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---Go Bears!!! (Richard Dent for Hall of Fame)---
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Buddha
77 posts
Feb 28, 2009
4:55 PM
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I saw Lee in 1993 and he was playing Marine Bands.
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MrVerylongusername
174 posts
Feb 28, 2009
5:11 PM
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Junior Wells was an official endorsee for Lee Oskar harmonicas.
Pretty sure this is a LO
and this one
oh... and this one
Is that a Marine Band? Nope
I could go on, but it's v. late here and I'm off to bed though. Right now Lee Oskar plays Lee Oskars. Fact.
Last Edited by on Feb 28, 2009 5:12 PM
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Aussiesucker
157 posts
Feb 28, 2009
5:43 PM
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Who pays the piper? If I were given free harps by any of the major manufacturers then I would happily endorse them. If I had choices though then Lee Oskar harps are pretty good and so are Suzuki and so are...............
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Miles Dewar
198 posts
Feb 28, 2009
6:33 PM
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LOL "and this one, oh, and this one", Yep I think they are all lee oskars.... 2 in each photo....
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"Pipers"......... I think Stone played those after he left the Cave Boys.
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---Go Bears!!! (Richard Dent for Hall of Fame)---
Last Edited by on Feb 28, 2009 6:36 PM
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Buddha
78 posts
Mar 01, 2009
5:04 AM
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I'm sure is playing his own harps these days but he most definately wasn't in 1993. Madcat Ruth was there too and when he went up to jam with Lee, he said into the mic "Hey Lee, what kind of harps are you using?" or something to that effect and Lee just counted off the tune.
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Patrick Barker
187 posts
Mar 01, 2009
10:04 PM
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I don't think they actually play out of the box Lee Oskars... I know at least Lee Oskar heavily customizes his harps, and just because someone endorses a harp it doesn't mean its the only one they use. James Cotton endorses both Suzuki's and Seydel's, but when I saw him perform it looks like he used marine bands (probably custom). Also I can't be sure, but it looked like Lee used a Golden Melody (I could be mistaken) at a Harp blowout I saw recently.
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"Without music, life would be a mistake" -Nietzsche
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MrVerylongusername
179 posts
Mar 02, 2009
8:06 AM
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Absolutely! Returning to Junior Wells - he was also a Hohner endorsee. That's kind of the point. He already had all the benefits of endorsing Hohner harps and yet chose to endorse Lee Oskars too because he was impressed by their quality. Yes, endorsing a product doesn't mean you use it 100% of the time, but it does link your name and reputation to the quality of that product. From Adam's top 10 blues harpers list - only two of those players would have had the choice of a Lee Oskar. The fact that these harps were good enough for one of the greatest players of all time says it all to me.
in his own words:
"I like Lee Oskar's harmonicas and I like Hohners, I endorse for both of 'em... I want the best harmonica to have and those are the two."
Same goes for Oskar himself. He's a player who isn't restricted by stylistic labels. Maybe in a blues jam he preferred to use a MB because of the emphasis on chord work. In a jazz-funk context with its emphasis on single notes, he no doubt would prefer an equal tempered harp - like his own brand. Pick the right tool for the job.
All this doesn't mean that Lee Oskars are right for everyone (I'm convinced that the majority of the bitching about LOs comes from lip-block players who prefer thinner profile harps like a Marine Band), but they do suit some players very well and I personally have never had reason to knock their feel or responsiveness.
Last Edited by on Mar 02, 2009 8:10 AM
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Sirsucksalot
25 posts
Mar 02, 2009
9:44 AM
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Which ever harp works best for you is the best.
I Like Marine Bands.
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Miles Dewar
203 posts
Mar 02, 2009
10:51 AM
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Yes sir. Blues Harps are the way to go...a lot more painful than Lee Oskars though. That's one great reason to have some plastic combed harps.
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---Go Bears!!! (Richard Dent for Hall of Fame)---
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LIP RIPPER
34 posts
Mar 02, 2009
3:21 PM
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I GOTTA WEIGH IN. I STARTED PLAYIN THE HARP IN 07-08, BOUGHT THE 5 HARP DEAL OF LO'S. MY "A" HARP JUST DIDN'T WORK SO I CALLED THE COMPANY. I TALKED WITH THE GUY AND HE ASSURED ME THAT IT WASN'T THE HARP IT WAS ME. HOW COULD I ARGUE? AFTER A WHILE I THANKED HIM AND ASKED WHAT HIS NAME WAS. HE REPLIED, "I'M LEE OSKAR". WELL, AT THAT POINT I CONTINUED MY STUDY OF THE HARP AND NEVER WANTED TO PICK THE "A" UP BECAUSE IT JUST DIDN'T WORK. THEN I STARTED LEARNING HOW TO TWEAK ON THE HARP. ONE AT A TIME, LITTLE BY LITTLE I LEARNED TO MASSAGE THESE LITTLE TOOLS AND IMPROVE THEM. THEN AN OLD MUSICIAN FRIEND FROM A BAND WE HAD IN THE EARLY 90'S SAID HE WAS COMING TO VISIT. HIS FAVORITE KEY TO PLAY AND SING IN WAS "E". SO, I TOOK APART THIS P.O.S A HARP AND EMBOSSED THE HOLES, ADJUSTED THE REEDS AND NOW SHE'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE LEE OSKAR HARPS.
NO, I'M NOT SHOUTING.
Last Edited by on Mar 02, 2009 3:23 PM
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harpwrench
20 posts
Mar 02, 2009
5:52 PM
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There's a video on youtube of LO harps being made at the factory. There's a spot in the clip where the harps are being gapped, about 5 at a time in the palm of the worker's hand. Maybe 5-10 seconds per handful. The point is, any experience you have with playability at this price-point is purely luck-of-the-draw, either good or bad. IMO the same is true no matter what brand you play.
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Buddha
83 posts
Mar 02, 2009
6:12 PM
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another reason to buy custom harps
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jbone
29 posts
Mar 02, 2009
6:14 PM
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to me this is so much tempest in a teapot. what harp do you like? use it. what harp do you hate? don't use it.
i recently got a 5 key set of LO's and they have their place. so do a couple of sp20's and some delta frost. at various times i've used hering free blues and vintage '23, suzuki promaster, MB, blues harp, and yes, even big river.
i learned to play third pos chromatic on a hohner chrometta, what most "good" players scoff at. but to me it was an incredible easy harp to play and i only regret blowing out 2 reeds goofing around one night. i currently use hering 5148 chromatics. to me again, great harp for the money, well built and very player friendly. but the next guy may say, nothing but hohner 270 for me, the rest is trash.....
my point is, if you adapt yourself to what you have and strive to be a better player, it's always an adventure, you can always play well. but i don't use a metric wrench on a sae bolt, i get the tool for the job.
lips are very flexible, they can wrap over any number of different harps and make *that* sound. it's from in YOU anyway.
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Buddha
85 posts
Mar 02, 2009
6:19 PM
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My first harp was a golden melody. After a couple of months of playing I got into Lee Oskars. They were just becoming available in the states back then.
I had a whole set of them....every key and then I got into the melody makers and Natural Minor harps after I met Lee in person. After a couple months of only playing Lee Oskars, I tossed them ALL in the garbage because I was so frustrated with them. About a week later later, I realized how dumb I was and went out to buy another golden melody. That was when I discovered overblows because the six blow reed was stuck and I kept trying to make it work. Only the OB would pop out.
I haven't had an Oskar in my mouth in 20 years.
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GermanHarpist
104 posts
Mar 02, 2009
6:35 PM
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thanks harpwrench, the vid was an eye opener. Its hard to pinpoint what is missing in that scene. Maybe the love...?
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http://www.youtube.com/germanharpist
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Miles Dewar
205 posts
Mar 02, 2009
7:23 PM
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MyVeryLongUsername- Thats what i am saying. If he chooses to endorse them, they have some great qualities. and it is the Man Himself.
-Have you ever noticed the size difference in Lee Oskars? I have two A's and 2 Bb's, and the A's are thicker than the Bb's. Maybe for the visually impaired?
Nice Jbone- "my point is, if you adapt yourself to what you have and strive to be a better player, it's always an adventure, you can always play well. but i don't use a metric wrench on a sae bolt, i get the tool for the job."
That's what i say about diff. sized or extremely worn down skateboards.....It helps to get a feel for diff. stuff, it helps you adapt better in the long run.
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FORGET the Harmonica- "SKATE or DIE"
Last Edited by on Mar 02, 2009 7:24 PM
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