What guitar playing Barney Isaac?

Alexander Stepanenko · Post by **Alexander Stepanenko** » 10 Feb 2012 3:07 am

Barney is one of my favorite musicians. Especially like the sound of it. Very sweet and melodic. I thought he played on Fender,but in this photo the other tool. What is it?

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Paul DiMaggio · Post by **Paul DiMaggio** » 10 Feb 2012 5:50 am

That looks like a Magnatone Lyric.

Michael Lee Allen · Post by **Michael Lee Allen** » 10 Feb 2012 8:43 am

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Mike Anderson · Post by **Mike Anderson** » 10 Feb 2012 8:49 am

Alexander, there are people on this forum who actually knew and played with Barney so I hope they'll add more, but yes, that is a Magnatone, one of the instruments he played. He also played a Fender T8 as you say, and on "E Mau" you can see him playing a Canopus in the booklet that's included. You have very good taste, Barney's playing is truly beautiful. Some pictures and a video for you to enjoy:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GJdOcHaHltk

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Scott Thomas · Post by **Scott Thomas** » 10 Feb 2012 9:44 am

Alexander, the guitar on the album cover is indeed a Magnatone Lyric. There were two kinds of this model, the long scale (24" scale, two pickups as shown in the catalog picture posted above)--

And the shorter scale 22.5", single pickup version with white fret boards as shown on that album cover.

Here is a better picture of one of these:

Kevin Brown · Post by **Kevin Brown** » 10 Feb 2012 9:46 am

Anyone notice the two missing tuning keys on Barneys D8 magnatone, I owned this for a while

Scott Thomas · Post by **Scott Thomas** » 10 Feb 2012 9:52 am

Kevin Brown wrote:Anyone notice the two missing tuning keys on Barneys D8 magnatone...

Nope, but I noticed that he changed out those Lucite button tuners.

Bill Creller · Post by **Bill Creller** » 10 Feb 2012 9:53 am

Barney was named a "treasure of Hawaii" from what I remember. And well deserved.

Alexander Stepanenko · Post by **Alexander Stepanenko** » 10 Feb 2012 11:44 am

Thanks for the interesting links.
But here's what I found on the net .
Frank Miller
New Member
From: Mesa, Arizona, USA
posted 09 April 2004 04:00 PM profile send email edit

""I have been a member for 3 mos.This my first
offering. About the Barney Isaacs- pedal guitar- topic. Barney did not play pedal at any time except the Evening in the Islands record. It was an experiment between himself and the other steel player. He did not play pedals on all cuts and I don't remember which songs he played pedal on.He did not play pedal guitar on any other recordings.
I do remember that he tuned the Fender 400steel to his C13 tuning and added just a few pedal changes. This he told me personally
Another thing, Jeff Ah Hoy in another article, mentioned that Barney used the C13 on the second neck and the E13 on the near neck. That was true only for a short period of time -less than six mos. of a long career. It was due to a problem on the particular steel guitar-Canapus-I believe, that was soon corrected.
Barney normally used on near neck C13 E-C-A-G-E-C-Bflat-C. Second neck E13 E-C#-G#-F#-D-B-G#-E(sometimes he used 4thstring E in place of the F#.)
If he used a 3 neck steel he used a standard low bass B11 on third neck E-C#-A-F#-D#-B-F#-B. This is not my guess, but directly from Barney. Barney was a close friend and is missed."""
It turns out the main instruments he had Fender400(1000),Magnatone
and Canapus.
I don't know what album this song(aloha oe),but the sound and the way the game surprised me so much that I learned a few more songs Barney)). And most likely,he played it on the Fendere400(1000). Heard noble sustain,characteristic for long scale.

Michael Lee Allen · Post by **Michael Lee Allen** » 10 Feb 2012 12:00 pm

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Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 10 Feb 2012 12:47 pm

He also used heavily a white Fender Stringmaster dbl. 8 after ditching the Mag., a Gibson 503(?) dbl. 8 was also in his quiver. Last I heard, Jeff had that, but I'm not sure if the family still has the Fender or Mag.
Frank Miller has been coming to Oahu each year for decades and often had all the great Hawaiian players up to his apt. for music parties, and fortunately captured much of Barney and the others on video, they're all gone now but they live on in his footage and the records. Maybe Frank will see this thread and comment.

Scott Thomas · Post by **Scott Thomas** » 10 Feb 2012 1:09 pm

This is a favorite thread of mine on Barney. See especially the posts by Bruce Pytco on his friendship with Barney in the 60s. Really nice little details.

http://bb.steelguitarforum.com/viewtopi ... sc&start=0

Jack Aldrich · Post by **Jack Aldrich** » 10 Feb 2012 7:57 pm

One of my favorite albums is "Barney and Jules" with another of my guitar heros, Jules Ah See. - Jack

basilh · Post by **basilh** » 10 Feb 2012 9:13 pm

The twin 8 "Magnatone" shown in most of those shots was a 'STAFF' instrument of the Hawaii Calls Show and not owned individually but available collectively. If anything, it belonged to Webley Edwards as it was he who was contracted my Magnatone to promote the guitar on his radio shows with the mention directly of Magnatone steel guitars.

Ron Whitfield · Post by **Ron Whitfield** » 10 Feb 2012 11:20 pm

We've seen more than one Hawaii Calls 'staff' Magnatones, and even amps, it wouldn't make great sense that he owned them all.

Alexander Stepanenko · Post by **Alexander Stepanenko** » 11 Feb 2012 4:12 am

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Until recently, I thought that the CD Various Artists - All the Best of Hawaii ,track Aloha Oe plays Barney Isaacs. But now doubted it. Can someone who has this CD will tell you what's playing a song Aloha Oe.

Mike Anderson · Post by **Mike Anderson** » 11 Feb 2012 11:07 am

John, when you mention "Barney and Jules", do you mean this album: http://www.amazon.com/Hawaiian-Shores/dp/B004DGC3JS, or is there something out of print out there with that actual title?

Jack Aldrich · Post by **Jack Aldrich** » 11 Feb 2012 7:59 pm

Mike Anderson wrote:John, when you mention "Barney and Jules", do you mean this album: http://www.amazon.com/Hawaiian-Shores/dp/B004DGC3JS, or is there something out of print out there with that actual title?

It's long out of print. I believe that I got it from Basil Henriques, bless his soul. I try to get my hands on any recordings of Jules that I can. He is the one steeler I wish that I could have met, although Alan Akaka is helping me along with Jules' stuff. - Jack [NOT John, which is my formal given name].

Mike Anderson · Post by **Mike Anderson** » 11 Feb 2012 11:14 pm

Thank you Jack, good info!

David Matzenik · Post by **David Matzenik** » 12 Feb 2012 3:33 pm

Alexander,One of the things I love about this forum is how we meet other players of Hawaiian Steel Guitar from every corner of the world. Do you have other musician friends in Russia who love this music?

To Michael Lee Allen: Damn! You've got some nice stuff!

Alexander Stepanenko · Post by **Alexander Stepanenko** » 13 Feb 2012 3:23 am

David, I do not know,as in Russia,but in Moscow I don't know musicians playing the steel guitar. Too exotic tool. But on the DOBRO we play. I know these musicians. But many of them.

David Matzenik · Post by **David Matzenik** » 13 Feb 2012 3:44 am

Alexander, I hope you will keep posting here, so we know what is happening in Moscow. Most of us are very lucky because so much on the internet is our English Language. You are doing well. The way you use the word "tool" is technically correct, but we would say "instrument." Aloha Nui Loa! But that is another language.

Bill Wynne · Post by **Bill Wynne** » 13 Feb 2012 9:52 am

I am reading this thread as well as the thread that Scott linked to, and I am surprised at the lack of information on the numerous recordings by Barney Isaacs. After Jerry Byrd, Barney was probably the most recorded steel player in the modern history of Hawaiian music. The issue, I think, is that you are not going to find many recordings with Barney as leader because he did his best work accompanying Hawai'i's legendary singers.

I am sitting a few miles from my LP/CD collection right now, but I can attest to recordings by Barney backing Haunani Kahalewai, Marlene Sai, Herb Ohta, Bill Kaiwa, Alvin Kaleolani Isaacs (his dad), Atta Isaacs (his brother), Lani Kai, the Maile Serenaders, Charles Kaipo Miller, Eddie Kekaula, the New Hawaiian Band, Chick Floyd, Danny Kaleikini, Ed Kenney, Charles K.L. Davis, and even Genoa Keawe.

The Charles Kaipo Miller, Danny Kaleikini, and some of the Charles K.L. Davis and Marlene Sai sides have been reissued on CD.

The two most cherished Barney Isaacs recordings are probably the ones he made with his family. In the early 1960's, he did a duet album with brother, slack key guitarist Atta Isaacs, on the Sounds of Hawaii label entitled "Hau'oli." And shortly before his father's passing, the entire Isaacs family did an album of their father's compositions. (Alvin Sr. was not merely an entertainer from the previous generation. His mastery of the Hawaiian language made him one of the most prolific composers ever of songs in the Hawaiian language.)

Alexander Stepanenko · Post by **Alexander Stepanenko** » 13 Feb 2012 9:58 am

David,the most interesting is that in Russian we say is a musical instrument,but the interpreter translates as a tool.) Machine translation is not very perfect..

Mike Anderson · Post by **Mike Anderson** » 16 Feb 2012 10:45 am

Bill Wynne wrote: The two most cherished Barney Isaacs recordings are probably the ones he made with his family. In the early 1960's, he did a duet album with brother, slack key guitarist Atta Isaacs, on the Sounds of Hawaii label entitled "Hau'oli."

Bill, I just realized I know this album - it's available through Cord International as the second disk of a set called "The Legendary Atta Isaacs": http://www.cordinternational.com/ATTA-ISAACS1.htm. You can download the PDF booklet here: http://www.cordinternational.com/PDF-FI ... gibook.pdf. I got the digital download and both disks are beautiful.

EDIT: correction - it isn't the whole album at all, only a few tracks; the rest of the disk is from other albums.