In 2006, Quentin Stoltzfus was forced to retire Mazarin, the dreamy, strummy Philadelphia-based project he debuted in 1999, due to threats from a litigious Long Island classic-rock band of the same name. If not for that, the new Light Heat album would be a Mazarin album, and could have come out years ago. The catalyst for Light Heat’s debut came from Stoltzfus’ friends and former tourmates the Walkmen. That band, minus singer Hamilton Leithauser, backs Stoltzfus on the LP, although Light Heat itself, like Mazarin, is essentially Stoltzfus and whomever he plays with. Stoltzfus will be guest editing magnetmagazine.com all week. Read our new feature on Light Heat.
Stoltzfus: It occurs to me that haven’t spoken a single word about instruments and recording gear in these entries. I don’t want to bore you with the insidious tech knowledge I’ve acquired during my time as a musician, producer and engineer. I will talk about two guitars I purchased 10 years ago that have become essential partners, and are rarely far from reach. I got my two Harmony Sovereign acoustic guitars, both from 1971, at my home base music store DiPinto Guitars within months of each other. I had plenty of other guitars at the time including higher priced Martin and Gibson acoustics, but was looking for a smaller sound more suitable for rhythm parts. I’ve rarely made more impulsive purchases. When I bought the first of the two, I think I played an E chord, looked at the neck, played a Major D scale and handed over my money. It has impeccable tone and playability. When I found the second one, that has a factory D’armond pickup embedded in the neck, I think spent even less time checking it out before buying. That guitar has become my main squeeze because it plays so beautifully and is suitable for everything almost always. Having the D’armond pickup makes it a monster because you can go from an acoustic sound to a Gretsch sound without changing guitars. I’ve written more songs on that guitar at this point than any other instrument I own. I converted the other Sovereign into a Nashville High Strung guitar a few years ago after playing one in a studio in upstate New York. I fell in love with the tuning and have since incorporated it into many recordings that I’ve made. If you’re not familiar with the tuning, look it up and thank me later. These guitars are still fairly inexpensive for their quality. If you can find one with a pickup, consider yourself lucky.
