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Re: Klein Guitars, soap operas, no loop content whatsoever



What a bunch of horseshit.

By this logic we must all consider Ned Steinberger a guy with a "Great 
Idea"
and Gibson Guitars as our saviors for having the time and money to market 
the
instruments after Ned tired of the whole thing.
The Guitars say "KLEIN" on them Kim...not "German" the accolades from 
Frisell,
Torn,Summers et al and the instruments they first encountered were 
conceived,
designed and built by Steve...not Lorenzo.
Comparing a Klein electric--fantastic guitars that they are ( I own 3) 
,whether
built by Lorenzo or Steve- to one of the Klein acoustics is a joke. I  
(and I'm
sure you) have been in the Klein factory (in Sonoma where it all started) 
and
you know as well as I that building a Klein electric is largely a matter of
finding the best wood and running it through
several stages of numerically controlled routers and cutting 
machines...fine
sanding the bodies and (most importantly as far as true artisan level work 
is
concerned) building one INCREDIBLE neck and fingerboard (Lorenzos necks are
truly the best) and bolting it on...the wiring and components are put in by
another employee...and ALL the paint and finish work (at least when I was
there) is jobbed out...sometimes with mixed results which end up delaying
delivery...because Lorenzo will not let a bad pice get to delivery stage.

In the middle of the factory there was something truly special going 
on...this
is where Steve builds his acoustics...every piece fashioned by hand...all 
the
inlay...the bending of the woods..shaving the braces...tapping the top 
woods to
get it perfect in a painstaking process taking MONTHS to complete just one
instrument ...

Jealous?

As much as I like Lorenzo and as much as I admire his talent, I'd have to 
say
he'd give his left nut to have the gift of craft and innovation that Steve
Klein has.
 So...by laying all these accolades on Lorenzo (all of which I agree 
with...he
is a SUPER nice guy) HONESTY INTEGRITY blah blah blah...and following that 
with
a paragraph of how Steve was just an Idea man...seems to indicate to me 
that
you hold Klein responsible for the post from Ed...(I've met Ed in the 
store on
Broadway downtown Sonoma...he's a
sales clerk for Christ sake..not a builder) when in fact it could be 
simply a
matter of a customer...ME for instance...stopping by the Klein shop and
casually mentioning to Ed...
"hey..Klein guitars get as lot of notice on the Loopers delight 
list...perhaps
you should stay in touch..your web page could use some sprucing up too"
When I last visited Lorenzo (last fall), he asked me what I did for a
living...thinking maybe we could barter some time for his work as I was 
having
a hard time justifying spending almost 3 grand on a guitar...alas...I am a
lowly police/fire dispatcher which obviously didnt fill his needs...but,  
I had
a freind with me who was also  intereested in a Klein...and he is a first 
rate
web author and offered to create a better website for Klein ELECTRIC
guitars...L.G. passed and I dare say if he hadnt his back order list would 
be
even longer today.
Personally I think you over- reacted to what is indeed an innocuos little
thing. If there is
evidence you havent brought forward regarding Steve being underhanded in 
his
dealings
and "using" the loopers forum to somehow further his cause and/or hurt
Lorenzo's, I'd
certainly like to hear it...until then I think you have done Mr. Klein a
disservice.

Steve's a GREAT guy...Lorenzo is a GREAT guy...they both build fine 
guitars...
I hope someday to own a Klein acoustic and sooner hope to own another Klein
Electric
( a baritone with Novax neck)

Thanks all for your further indulgence,

Roland Eberle




Kim Flint (by way of Kim Flint ) wrote:

> ok, I'll gonna break my solemn oath to not discuss guitars on the list.
> Just this once, promise, but it seems kinda important, at least to me. 
>All
> you Klein Electric Guitar fans, guitar fans, and general fans of musical
> instrument industry soap operas, you might be interested.
>
> So this just bugs the livin' shit out of me:
>
> >Kim, a customer said we should keep in touch. Ed @ kleinguitars.com.
> >Check out our website.
>
> Now it seems like a pretty innocuous little thing, right?
>
> Well, not exactly. It's a piece of dishonesty and deception that reaches
> heights rarely attained even in the music industry. It just rankles me,
> that's what it does.
>
> This "kleinguitars.com" and the website that goes with it, is NOT the 
>same
> company that makes the extraordinary Klein Electric Guitars played by
> people like David Torn, Henry Kaiser, Bill Frisell, Mick Goodrick, Andy
> Summers, etc, and list members here like Marshall, Jon and Kingsley 
>Durant,
> and myself. (and dt, too, of course.)
>
> Did you get that? It's NOT the same company.
>
> But if you look at this website, it sure does look like the same company!
> They've got a whole page on Klein Electrics, they've got logos and photos
> of endorsers, they've got specs, they've got ordering info, and they've 
>got
> an address in Sonoma, CA, formerly the home of Klein Electric Guitars. 
>Yet
> this website, and the company that put it up, is NOT KLEIN ELECTRIC
> GUITARS!! So what's the deal?
>
> The real Klein Electric Guitars is owned by Lorenzo German, one of the
> finest humans on this here planet. He produces one of the finest
> instruments you are ever likely to touch in your entire life. His 
>operation
> is an excercise in perfection; everything that comes out of his shop,
> produced by his hands, is a masterpiece. Buying one of his guitars was 
>one
> of the most pleasurable experiences I've had in my life, of any sort. My
> guitar is a beautiful work of art, sounds and plays like a dream. I can't
> say enough. Lorenzo is a great fellow. Honest, full of integrity, fun to
> hang out with, with a pride in his work that's hard to beat.
>
> The Klein Electric was originally designed by Steve Klein. A great idea,
> make no mistake. But Steve never got very far with it. Poor business 
>sense,
> weird customer service attitudes, inconsistent quality, a half-baked 
>idea,
> whatever, by 1995 he had run his business into the ground and decided to
> throw the electric business away and just focus on his acoustic guitars.
> Lorenzo was one of his employees at the time, and offered to buy Klein
> Electric Guitars from Steve. So they worked out a deal, signed contracts,
> the whole bit. Lorenzo got Klein Electric Guitars, Steve kept Klein
> Acoustic Guitars.
>
> Lorenzo took Klein Electric guitars and ran with it. He applied his
> perfectionism, his own innovations, and his expert craftsmanship to turn 
>a
> good idea into a phenomenal guitar. He applied his good sense and people
> skills to produce a good business. He's worked his ass off for it. The
> result? Some success! Klein Electric Guitars has been growing and selling
> more and more instruments. All that Lorenzo and his employees can manage 
>to
> make. Steve on the other hand, remains mired in his own muck.
>
> Can you say jealousy? Hardly anyone cares about Steve's acoustics.
> Everyone's raving about Lorenzo's electrics.
>
> Steve began to freak out, and has been giving Lorenzo a really hard time.
> He had been renting his barn to Lorenzo to run Klein Electric, and 
>recently
> kicked Lorenzo out for no reason. Lorenzo was tired of being there 
>anyway,
> and wanted to leave, but moving a guitar manufacturing operation on a
> shoestring budget and little notice is tough. Lorenzo lost all his
> employees because he had to move too far away. Then Steve began
> intercepting all of the mail arriving for Klein Electric Guitars at his
> barn. Customer requests somehow never get forwarded on to Lorenzo's new
> address, and he's losing business. And now, Steve has put up this website
> claiming that he is Klein Electric Guitars, and that is complete 
>bullshit!
> Legally, ethically, morally, he *does not* have that right. Lorenzo does,
> and he has the blisters and sweat and loyal customers to prove it.
>
> So if you care about this at all, do something!  Lorenzo and Klein 
>Electric
> Guitars need your help. Despite the world's past transgressions, it does
> not deserve to lose this gem. Tell people that the real Klein Electric
> Guitars is located at 1207 Marina Circle, Discovery Bay, CA, USA. The 
>real
> phone number is 925-516-9338.
>
> And give Lorenzo a call and let him know you care and you support him. He
> could use it. Maybe even order a guitar while you're at it. Believe me, 
>you
> won't regret it!
>
> thanks for the indulgence,
>
> kim
>
> ______________________________________________________________________
> Kim Flint                   | Looper's Delight
> kflint@annihilist.com       | http://www.annihilist.com/loop/loop.html
> http://www.annihilist.com/  | Loopers-Delight-request@annihilist.com