Cosmo Valdemar

I wouldn't know where to start I'm afraid! And... what is this 'clean' you speak of?!

That's the one I have. It fits, but there's little space at the headstock.

Whenever I play Rhythm Stick I use a pick in a crude Bobby Vega style. I think it works very well. I do usually play fingerstyle but I just can't pull off that tight burpy staccato style.

It is a fiend, that bit! I used to play it in my old band from time to time and could just pull it off, but I played it the other day and it's gone 🤣 If ever you do need to play it, something I did was drop the 2nd and 6th note on each scale run, it made it far less hectic and still got the gist across. When you're playing that comfortably you can slot in the missing notes!

Case: 133.5cm x 43.5cm (tapers towards end) Bass: 127cm x 36cm (approx. body width)

Absolutely stunning.

I finally had the chance to plug it in briefly tonight and... Wow! Fantastic tone. Definitely far brighter and growlier than the current Gibson Thunderbird pickup - in fact it sounds just like an old classic Thunderbird. For those going after that Martin Turner tone, the neck pickup nails it. To my ears, the tone with both pickups blended is slightly tighter that the classics but that's to be expected as the bridge pickup is closer to the bridge that it used to be. The neck pickup though, it just roars. Filthy beast! I think my initial impressions were a bit harsh - probably because it's a brand new, shiny thing that has never been played, I rarely buy brand new and I'm use to things being a bit more worn in. I've just spent a very pleasurable half hour finding my way around it. Amazingly, no neck dive either! It does hang in a slightly odd position compared to what I'm used to, but again, that's just the nature of Thunderbirds. I'm not 100% if it's staying yet, but it's rapidly growing on me.

Martin Turner's WA tone is the definitive Thunderbird sound for me. As for Argus, I think his memory is playing tricks on him - there's no way that's a Rick! He recently re-recorded Argus and used the Rick and it's a very different sound. There's also a lot of palm muting on Argus which wouldn't be doable on a Rick. Unless he'd swapped the bridge. Argus is the Thunderbird neck pickup, without a doubt.

I've never seen Geezer play like that!

Well, I won't be able to play amplified until the weekend, but I did have a brief play unplugged last night. And... I wasn't blown away if I'm honest. My first thought was actually to send it back. But I persevered and it actually plays very nicely (apart from those wretched factory strings). The narrow nut was a concern but it's a nice deep neck so actually feels very comfortable. Some minor sloppy painting on the headstock - which incidentally is absolutely MASSIVE - seriously, no pictures I've seen can convey just what a monster this headstock is! It's really something. Another annoyance is the use of round head screws on the pickups - they really protrude and I imagine they would be quite effective fingernail rippers, a problem Entwistle reported back in the day, so at least it's period correct! The bass also felt a bit odd ergonomically but this is to be expected and something that can be adjusted to. So, the jury's out until I can play it properly amplified. The headstock is massive.

Yes!

It is here...

Mine will be here on Tuesday...

Ooh!

Amen!

As much as I like the album, I've never felt it deserved that cover. It would have been perfect for Sabotage, and look at the cover that ended up with!

Greatest album cover ever?

Were they making Thunderbirds in 1984? What pickups does it have?