...and every
one of your guitars has just been ripped off...
The Ottawa Citizen
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada - Tuesday 22 October 1996
Copyright 1996-2004 The Ottawa Citizen
Fifty You’re in a foreign country in an unfamiliar city, a matter
of hours from show time, and every one of your guitars has just been
ripped off. Rock ‘n roll can dish out tough knocks even to veteran
guitarists such as Warner Hodges.
“I’m pissed off!”
Jason and the Scorchers’ guitarist extraordinaire Warner Hodges
minced no words after thieves stole all six of his guitars early this
morning in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada. He lost two Paul Reed Smiths and
some customized Strats along with a wireless system and two pedal
boards. The purloiners also carted off Jeff Johnson’s Fender
51-P Telecaster bass. “I’ve got insurance, and I’ll
be able to piece my gear back together eventually,” says the
avuncular Hodges, “but it’s tough to do when I’m on
the road.”
Perhaps in earlier days such calamity would have chased Warner into
his cups, but he reached for the telephone book instead of a beer
and started calling Ottawa music shops in search of succor. With only
a few hours until that evening’s show at Barrymore’s Music
Hall in Ottawa, Hodges had to scramble to find a replacement axe,
no simple prospect in an alien city as far north as the band strays
from its Tennessee turf. Fortunately, one of his calls put him in
touch with Gary Schingh of Steve’s Music.
“I think Hodges was surprised that we had pretty much what he
was looking for,” says Gary. “He and Johnson were both very
particular about what they wanted.” Johnson ended up driving
two hours to Montreal, Quebec, to pick up a 51-P bass at a sister
Steve’s outlet, but Gary was able to fix Warner up on the spot.
“He tried a bunch of Strats and settled on a Japanese Foto Flame,”
says Gary. “But that was just the beginning; he wanted it customized
too.” Again, good fortune prevailed. Steve’s resident guitar
doctor, Kevin McPhail, was on duty and he performed the “fastest
set-up I’ve ever done” while Warner paced about like a caged
lion.
“We kept telling him to relax and that we’d take care of
him, but every five minutes he’d duck outside for another smoke,”
says Kevin. “We felt really bad for them, so we bent over backwards
to help them out.”
While Gary sold Warner a Pro Co Rat distortion unit and a volume pedal,
Kevin operated on the guitar. He installed a Seymour Duncan Hot Rails
pick-up in the bridge slot (“We told him he’d love it,”
says Kevin. “He’d been using a Seymour Duncan stacked pick-up,
but we didn’t have one in stock.”); moved the volume pot
to the middle position so that it wouldn’t impede Warner’s
right hand; cemented the tone on 10 and got rid of the two tone pots;
tightened down the tremolo; and flipped the input jack upside down
to accommodate the right angle plug of Warner’s (ex) wireless
system. Kevin put on a set of D’Addario 11/49 strings, installed
strap locks, tweaked the intonation, and handed the lethal weapon
to its new, equally lethal owner.
“Hodges and Johnson were great guys,” says Gary. “Real
personable and down to earth. They were joking how ironic it was that
their gear got stolen in supposedly crime-free Ottawa of all places.”
And what of Kevin’s impromptu handiwork? “Kevin did a super
job,” says Warner. “Steve’s looked after us real well.”
Those that caught the Scorchers’ incendiary performance that
night can attest that Hodges and Johnson showed little mercy in marching
their new axes through guitar boot-camp. Three quarters of the way
through the show, the mesmerizing Hodges stopped showering sparks
long enough to pass judgment on his new mate. “Y’all know
what?” he exclaimed, a disarming grin poking out behind his frazzled,
black mop. “This is a GREAT Strat!”
©
1996-2004 —
The Ottawa Citizen —
All Rights Reserved
