UPDATE: Grover will return for a second SixString Q&A session on Tuesday, May 21, 2013. Be there!

Since joining the SixString community under the account name GJ2guitars, we’ve received questions about a variety of guitar-related topics. So we decided to hold our own informal Q&A jam session! Grover Jackson will take a break from the workshop to talk shop with guitarists.

Grover’s appearance on the SixString app provides a unique opportunity to ask questions of a master guitar-maker who has worked with everyone from Randy Rhoads to Allan Holdsworth. Grover will personally answer your guitar-related questions live on SixString using the hashtag #GJ2QA.

The SixString App—the first social networking application for guitar players—is available for the iPhone. Download it for free from the iTunes Store. Join us!

Josh Cardinali being interviewed at the opening of his art exhibit at BauhausU. A custom-painted GJ² Arete guitar hangs above.

GJ² artist/guitarist Josh Blue Eagle Cardinali recently unveiled a new custom-painted Arete guitar in a show called “Beats, Curves and Movement” at BauhausU in Long Beach, California. This is his latest and last (for now) of a limited series of stencil designs for GJ² featuring the beauty of women. 

In addition to Josh’s art exhibition, the “Beats, Curves…” gallery event included a DJ set, plus acoustic sets by two of his SoCal-based bands: Rian Basilio and the Roosters and Doug Means Project, with special guest Haile Maskel of the Rastafarians sitting in. 

For those who couldn’t make it to the opening, the exhibit will remain up for some time. Here are a few photos of Josh’s hot rod pinup-inspired stencil artwork, with the GJ² Arete 5-Star serving as the canvas. 

You can see additional photos from the art/music show and more of Josh’s work at stoneyeyestudios.com.

The GJ² Arete 5-Star guitar features hot rod-inspired pinup art by Josh Cardinali.

The backside of the Hot Rod Hottie. Art by Josh Cardinali, GJ² Arete guitar by Grover Jackson.

by Josh Blue Eagle Cardinali

at BauhausU, Saturday, March 30th

A contemporary stencil-art show featuring graphic artist/guitarist/composer/producer Josh Blue Eagle Cardinali (aka JBEC) will make its debut at BauhausU in Long Beach, California, on Saturday, March 30^th, 2013.

‘Beats, Curves, and Movement’ features GJ2 artist Josh Cardinali.

GJ² guitar fans may recognize Josh’s name from his recent series of custom-painted GJ² Arete guitars highlighting the beauty of women. Along with Josh’s urban-influenced artwork, the BauhausU event will feature a live acoustic set by two of his local SoCal bands: Rian Basilio and the Roosters and Doug Means Project. Additional entertainment includes a DJ set comprised of Josh’s eclectic, self-produced mix of musical styles; live models emulating the various paintings on display; plus an artist workshop.

Portrait of the Artist as a Musician

Josh Blue Eagle Cardinali is an accomplished and versatile musician specializing in reggae, dub, dancehall, dubstep, metal, and rootcore. He’s performed, recorded, and toured with artists such as The Scientist, HR of Bad Brains, Mikey Dread, and Haile Maskel. A California native, Josh is an ASCAP-published songwriter whose music has been placed in television shows such as MTV and Burn Notice.

Between songwriting and recording projects, Josh likes to test the limits of what can be done with paint and stencils, as can be seen with his recent work for GJ² Guitars and AudioFly Headphones. Josh’s Long Beach-based graphic design company, Stoney Eye Studios, creates custom stencil artwork and digital videos.

Guitars as Canvas

Josh took the new Arete guitar models out for a test drive at the GJ² showroom last year and his artwork caught the eye of co-founder Jon Gold, who promptly commissioned Josh to paint an exclusive, limited series of GJ² Arete guitars. Josh’s latest one-of-a-kind, custom-painted GJ² guitar will be unveiled at the March 30^th “Beats, Curves & Movement” art show.

BauhausU is located at 1950 E. 4^th Street in Long Beach, CA in the heart of the Art District. There is no cover charge for this all-ages event (7 p.m. start). Get more details at bauhausulongbeach.com.

See and hear more of Josh’s work at stoneyeyestudios.com.

Josh holding a blank GJ2 guitar-canvas. See the finished guitar unveiled at BauhausU in Long Beach on March 30.

Story by Mitch Devine
Google

Guitars made in Southern California

The Glendora includes Grover Jackson’s meticulous attention to detail, first-class fit and finish, and is available with a range of options, from simple single-pickup instruments through highly figured exotic wood examples. Our proprietary in-house made Habanero^™ pickups are offered as standard with the Glendora line. As always, the majority of GJ² Guitars components are made in-house. Glendora is built alongside all the other GJ² models in Laguna Hills, California.

Why the name “Glendora”?

The Glendora name is a subtle homage to the area where Grover first began designing and building his own line of guitars in the early 1980s. For many who are familiar with Grover’s history, the town of San Dimas, California, looms large in the luthier’s legend since it was the site of his first company. However, what’s not generally known is that San Dimas was really just the Post Office box address! The actual factory location was in the city of Glendora. So the name is a salute to Grover’s roots as well as the mark of a new beginning as he applies what he’s learned over the years to take the bolt-on style of guitar to a higher level of playability and versatility.

Where to find Glendora

To get your hands on a Glendora made by Grover Jackson, check our growing list of GJ² dealers for the one nearest you. Once you try it, you’ll feel right at home.

Want to hear one in action? Check out this video of rising guitar star Tony Bennington as he test drives the limited edition “Green Meanie” version of Glendora at NAMM 2013. Keep checking the GJ² Guitars YouTube channel for more player test drives in the coming weeks.

The “Green Meanie” is a limited edition of the Glendora. Only 12 right-handed and 4 left-handed models will be made in the U.S. (all going to Drum City Guitarland). A small run will also be available for Europe and Asia.

The GJ2 Guitars Glendora line is available in a range of options and colors. This one is Red Velvet.

Posted by Mitch Devine
Google

Named after the chili pepper, GJ² co-founder Grover Jackson explained the reason for creating a new line of pickups: “We had our own ideas for the pickups’ voicing. Pickups are like a stew: they all use the same basic ingredients, but each one tastes different depending on your recipe. We wanted to add our own seasoning to some classic designs.”

Jackson elaborated, “I like to voice the pickups for tone, not just power. With so many ways of adding gain to a pickup, I believe the most important thing is to begin with a strong fundamental tone, then you can tailor it however you want. We believe the Habanero pickups are high-quality, worthy replacements that can be used on any guitar.”

The initial range of GJ² Habanero pickups includes humbuckers, single coils, and TD91s — an updated version of the classic “soap-bar” pickup. Most of the pickups are voiced to echo the classic pickups of old but higher output versions are also available.

Tom Dumont likes the flavorful tone that Habanero Pickups give his guitar sound.

Posted by Mitch Devine
Google

The NAMM Show is not open to the public, but if you’re a member and plan to attend, visit GJ² at booth 4296.

Tom Dumont will be at the booth on Friday, January 25 from 11 a.m. until noon for a meet and greet.

No Doubt’s Tom Dumont (holding “Zora”) and GJ2 Guitars co-founder Grover Jackson (holding “Glendora”) at NAMM

Tom Dumont demonstrates the new GJ2 Guitars “Zora” model by playing a few choice No Doubt licks.

No Doubt guitarist Tom Dumont holds the new production model of GJ2 Guitars’ Zora.

Tom Dumont stands near a display of GJ2 guitars at the NAMM 2013 Media Preview Day. Shown are two Arete 5-Star models and the new Zora—a collaboration between Tom and Grover Jackson.

Tom Dumont holds a Zora in each hand: the black prototype 1, and new production model made of mahogany with a quilted maple top.

Posted by Mitch Devine
Google

No Doubt fans have been noticing the new object of guitarist Tom Dumont’s affection lately. During the band’s recent Push and Shove concerts and appearances, he’s been playing a brand new guitar made by a brand new company (hint: GJ²).

Bloggers Beacon Street and Everything in Time quickly reported the news from Premier Guitar about the official product launch next week at the Anaheim Convention Center announcing the collaboration between the No Doubt guitarist and renowned guitar-builder and GJ² co-founder Grover Jackson.

Tom Dumont playing prototype 2 of his GJ2 Zora guitar at a concert in Paris.

The result of their collaboration, “Zora,” is not yet available in retail music stores, but that’s about to change when the production model of Zora is unveiled at at the 2013 NAMM Show — the National Association of Music Merchants annual convention and “ultimate big boy toy show”.

NAMM 2013 Media Preview

GJ² Guitars is making final preparations to launch a full line of Zora guitars at the Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim (which also happens to be No Doubt’s hometown). Tom and Grover will present the new GJ² Zora model guitar onstage to the press during the NAMM pre-show Media Preview Day. No Doubt fans and guitar geeks can watch the event live!

NAMM Preview Live Webcast – Wed., Jan. 23

http://www.namm.org

Tom and Grover will be on from 11:40 a.m. to 11:50 a.m. (PST) so don’t be late!

Zora Guitar Vital Specs

Zora prototypes have been made using mahogany and Sapele (African mahogany) wood and are built to maximize stability, sustain and tone. Our own Habanero pickups as well as the volume and tone knobs and other hardware are all made in-house. Mother of Pearl chevron-shaped fretboard inlays are inspired by Art Deco architecture.

One of the first good guitars Tom played when he was starting out happened to be a Jackson-Charvel. Here’s what Tom had to say about working with the long-time luthier: “Grover is amazing. He’s made me three guitars so far and they all play beautifully. By making prototypes we’re able to try out different ideas, find out what works, discover and correct any flaws. It’s a process. By the end of it we will have the perfect version of Zora.”

Test Drive a GJ² Guitar, Meet Tom

The NAMM Show is not open to the public, but if you are a member and plan to attend, please stop by and try out Grover’s latest and greatest work.

To meet Tom, visit the GJ² booth on Friday, January 25, 11 a.m.–12 noon.

See, hear, and play the full range of GJ² guitars at booth 4296, Hall C.

NAMM Pics & Tweets

Follow us on Twitter @GJ2guitars and also our Instagram feed (GJ2guitars) for pics and news from the show.

No Doubt guitarist Tom Dumont with the production model Zora guitar that he and Grover Jackson will launch at the Anaheim NAMM Show, January 23. Meet Tom at the GJ2 booth #4296 on Friday, January 25 at 11am.

Unfinished production model of the GJ2 Zora guitar, a collaboration by Grover Jackson and Tom Dumont.

During many of No Doubt’s recent television appearances and live performances, notably their seven-night residency at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Los Angeles, Tom has been using three different prototypes of the new Zora guitar built by GJ² Guitars. The Zora model is designed by GJ² co-founder Grover Jackson with technical and aesthetic input from Tom. 

Zora prototypes have been made using mahogany and Sapele (African mahogany) wood and are built to maximize stability, sustain and tone. The guitar’s Habanero pickups as well as the volume and tone knobs and other hardware are all made in-house by GJ² Guitars. Mother of Pearl chevron-shaped fretboard inlays are inspired by Art Deco architecture.

Commented Tom, “Grover is amazing. He’s made me three guitars so far and they all play beautifully. By making prototypes we’re able to try out different ideas, find out what works, discover and correct any flaws. It’s a process. By the end of it we will have the perfect version of Zora.”

GJ² Guitars is preparing to launch a full line of Zora guitars in 2013, to be unveiled at the January Winter NAMM Show in Anaheim (also No Doubt’s hometown). You can see Zora at the GJ² Guitars booth #4296 in Hall C at NAMM. Now, enjoy a couple songs from No Doubt featuring Zora.

The two guitars will be at the International CES show in Las Vegas, Nevada, from January 8–11, followed by NAMM in Anaheim, California, where you can see one at the AudioFly booth (#1254 Hall E) and the other at the GJ² Guitars booth (#4296 Hall C) from January 24–27, 2013. Artist/guitarist Josh Cardinali will also be attending NAMM, so stop by and say “hi” and try out one of the guitars.

In the meantime, check out the cool “making of” video that Josh put together (below), featuring the song “Vultures” by Rian Basilio and The Roosters (with Josh and fellow GJ² player Eric Endo on guitars). And here’s a bonus: if you’re digging the music, go ahead and download the mp3 of “Vultures” — FREE at The Roosters’ ReverbNation page. Enjoy!

A matching pair of freshly painted GJ² guitars awaits clear-coating. Custom artwork by Josh Cardinali for AudioFly Headphones of Australia.

She’s wearing AudioFly: Model Jasmine graces the front of this GJ² guitar painted by Josh of Stoney Eye Studios for AudioFly headphones.

A DJ turntable, cassettes, and a profile of Jasmine adorn the back of this custom-painted GJ² Arete created for AudioFly.

“Record-Play-Pause-Skip” buttons and the artist’s signature decorate the edge of this custom-painted GJ² Arete 5-Star guitar for AudioFly.