Description
The G. E. Smith Vintage Guitar/Amp Collection
If you have ever watched the Saturday Night Live band back some of the greatest names in music, then you probably saw G.E. Smith on guitar. G.E. has been THE rock-steady guitar sound behind SNL, Hall & Oates, David Bowie, Bob Dylan, MoonAlice and many more.
Recently, G.E. had been thinking about selling some of the gear he'd collected during his long career. While looking for an established, knowledgeable and trusted buyer, he ran across our shop and liked what he saw. After checking out the store's bona fides, he decided to touch base with John Majdalani, Cream City Music store co-owner and head vintage buyer.
Fortunately, John and G.E. hit it off immediately, and G.E. asked John to come out east to see, in person, the portion of his collection he was no longer using. When John arrived at G.E.'s, he was invited down to the basement, and they spent the next 8 hours deep-diving through the whole thing: amps then guitars--all the while jibber-jabbering about gear, life, food and rock'n'roll war stories.
The collection turned out to be a total of 60 pieces--roughly 30 guitars and 30 amps...an astonishing wealth of great vintage gear. At the end of the long day, as John was packing everything into the truck, G.E. sat on the tailgate and played a goodbye tune on his old, trustworthy 1960 Black Beauty Les Paul.
Most of the collection is currently at Cream City Music and consists of some of the most extraordinary vintage pieces we have seen in many years. If you're in the area, it's truly worth a visit to the store to see this gear. If you can't make here though, take a look at our website and social media over the next few weeks to see these items as they are posted for sale.
What makes this guitar special: An early Masterbuilt Custom Shop, built by Fred Stuart, one of the original 4! GE definitely played this one in, and you’ll see why when you get your hands on it. It plays every bit as great as it looks. The chunky neck profile is comfortable as can be, and the 3-pickup configuration makes it very versatile, suitable for everything from surf rock to sludge. Professionally inspected and set up by the experts at Cream City Music, so it’ll be ready to go right out of the case!
Cosmetic condition: This one was certainly used, but not abused, and showcases some honest wear throughout. There are various scratches, dents, dings, nicks, chips, and scuffs present, with some visible pickwear on the guard, scratching from the bridge cover, and minor fretwear.
Body: Solid alder body in shell pink finish with 3-ply pearloid pickguard. String through bridge with six individually adjustable saddles and original ashtray bridge cover. Chrome control plate and knurled chrome control knobs.
Weight: 8 lb, 1.1 oz
Neck: Chunky, C-shaped maple neck with skunk stripe, black side dots, and black dot inlays. 1 11/16” nut width, 30 1/4” scale length. Maple fingerboard is in marvelous shape, and frets show only light wear with a lot of life left. Vintage style tuners work great. Fred Stuart initialed the neck heel, and GE even signed his name on the back of the neck. Back of the headstock sports the “Custom Built Fred Stuart” badge. Neck is straight and plays great up and down the length of the fingerboard.
Electronics: Seymour Duncan single coil pickups (Neck-8.52k ohms, Middle-7.26k ohms, Bridge-6.81k ohms) with 5-way pickup selector switch and knurled chrome knobs, 1x volume, 1x tone.
Case: Fender hard shell case included.
