Singer-songwriter-guitarist-multi-instrumentalist
Harvey Reid currently uses the following musical instruments and gear. He also
uses some other instruments and equipment, but this is his current, primary list
of tools, for those who are curious.
6-string:
Since Jan 2005, Harvey has been performing with a "slightly custom"
cocabola wood Dana Bourgeois JOMC
cutaway shown at left
Larrivee
Harvey's main stage guitar from 1994 till 2005 was a wide-neck cutaway (Model
C-10) rosewood (1994) It appears now and then on stage, livestreams and recordings
Larrivee Guitars 1070
Varnell Place Oxnard, CA, 93033
Slide
Guitar He is often usually seen playing (especially on tours that involve air
travel) an unusual Chrysalis guitar for slide, which also has an inflatable
body which he does not use on stage. He may be the only musician touring with one of these. Read Harvey's in-depth discussion of it.
Chrysalis Guitars 146 Lull
Rd New Boston, NH, 03070
Autoharp
early 1970's 21-chord Appalachian Oscar Schmidt, with a custom paint job by Fil
Kennedy. Harvey has played this instrument since Jan 1975 and it is the only autoharp
he has ever performed with. It has a modified chord arrangement, special pickup system and 2 home-made lock bars, but is pretty
much a factory instrument. Discussion of his amplification
Autoharp Rare "Mountain Harp" made by Ron Wall, obtained in 2021. Chromatic in key of C
Resophonic Harvey in 2003 began playing a RichieOwens
cutaway with a Zeta pickup system. They are no longer being made. It travels
occasionally.
Dobro for many years, from 1978 till 2003 Harvey performed with an early
1970's metal body model.
6-String Banjo 1988 Deering
Maple Blossom MB-6 (wide-neck) is still the primary one performs with, though he sometimes uses a Boston open-back. It has a Fishman banjo pickup, and a customized
Fishman Aura pre-amp.
Deering
Banjos 3733 Kenora Dr Spring Valley, CA, 91977-1829
6-String Nylon-String Banjo 2015 Deering Solana nylon-string banjo. This one does not travel much, but it is showing up now and then in performances and videos.
Deering
Banjos 3733 Kenora Dr Spring Valley, CA, 91977-1829
Bouzouki
(Octave mandolin) 1992 Trinity College Model 335
12-stringTaylor Maple Jumbo Cutaway wide-neck
(1988) This is the one he has used for all of his recordings, except for "Lost
Lullaby" on Guitar Voyages, and pre-1988 LP's when he played Gibson B-45-12. It has custom inlay by Bob Taylor, Wendy Larrivee, color izing and neck by Larry Breedlove, and no longer travels.
Taylor Guitars
1940 Gillespie Way, El Cajon, CA, 92020-1096
619-258-1207 / fax: 619-258-1623
Mandocello
For recording and performing, he uses a custom experimental 1998 Ovation Adamas, one of a handful ever made.
Mandocello On stage you may see Harvey sometimes playing a Chrysalis mando-cello, one of only 2 in the world.
6-string
(for the majority of recordigsg and occasional concerts) Taylor
wide-neck cutaway 810 rosewood dreadnaught (1984 and also a unique gray 1990 model) He used this guitar for both his guitar CD's,
and much of his recorded output.
Taylor Guitars 1940 Gillespie Way, El Cajon, CA,
92020-1096
619-258-1207 / fax: 619-258-1623
R.L.
Givens has passed away, and there are no more new instruments from him to be had.
Mandolin #41 by Winky Hicks of Alabama
Only a few dozen of these instruments exist.
Harvey began using the new Fishman Aura system
in December of 2003. It is a sophisicated new technology that essentially is a computer that modifies the soundwave produced
by the instrument pickup in real-time and converts it into the soundwave that would be produced by a microphone.
It stores an image custom-made for each of Harvey's instruments, and allows the
much more natural sound of the microphone to be heard at volume levels that were
previously impossible.It is also a pre-amp, tuner and direct box, and has replaced
the Blender (combination mike/pickup system) that Harvey has used for over 12
years.
He uses Hamilton KB-39 Hanger and Peak Music guitar
stands and a BOSS TU-12 tuner.
PICKUPS:
Currently he has a FISHMAN Matrix Natural in his 6-strings, a Bill Lawrence Red
in his 12-string, a FISHMAN SBT guitar pickup in his autoharp (along with an Oscar
Schmidt pickup) + Dobro, a FISHMAN mandolin pickup in his mandolin and bouzouki,
and a FISHMAN banjo pickup in his 6-string banjo. He uses no other effects or
EQ on anything else, except reverb.
CONTACT: Fishman Transducers
340-D Fordham Rd, Wilmington, MA, 01887
800-347-4626 / fax: 508-988-0770 http://www.fishman.com STRINGS:
6-string: GORE Elixir medium and medium-light gauge Nanoweb
strings 12-string: special gauges of GORE Elixir strings Dobro: D'Addario medium gauge phosphor bronze Autoharp: Oscar
Schmidt strings Bouzouki: GHS custom set 6-String Banjo:
GHS Boomers medium light
PICKS:
On guitar and mandolin he uses Jim Dunlop Tortex flatpicks, usually yellow, but sometimes orange or red
(very rarely). He uses Jim Dunlop plastic thumbpicks and one Dunlop fingerpick, plus 2 of the no-longer-available Dobro
plastic fingerpicks. Same fingerpicks for 6-string banjo.
On Autoharp he uses a National plastic thumbpick, and 3 National or Artcom heavy-gauge metal fingerpicks.
Harvey has done much of his direct-to-master recording in the 1990's with a Panasonic
3700 DAT and a 3800 DAT machine, though sometimes used a Sony DatMan or
a Panasonic SV-355 DAT. Recordings from 1989 to 2000 used Audio-Technica
4051 mikes, though more recently he has used AT4047 large-diaphragm mikes. He
has used some other gear that is listed in the liner notes for each album.
CD's
after #114 until the present were recorded in 24-bit with a Mark of the Unicorn
2408 system, Macintosh G4 computer, API Pre-Amps, and an Apogee
8000 converter. Mastered and dithered by Northeastern Digital of Southboro, MA, and since 2001 by Thomas Eaton Recording of Newburyport, MA.
Complete information about recording of each album is given in Liner Notes
to his many recordings.
WOODPECKER MULTIMEDIA
5 Fernald Ave York
Maine 03909 USA
phone (207) 363-1886
H
