Bellingham Business builds for Blues
Shannon Coberly: I have always worked with my hands in wood and metal, mostly wood. Thirty years ago I had a burl furniture shop in the North Bend area, I still mill most of my own flame and quilted maple. A friend of mine had an old Hagstrom bass and as a birthday present I built him a new body out of redwood burl. It has been a natural progression from there...and that old bass still shows up from time to time in Skagit county!
I started building custom cabs for amps a few years ago, but, truth be told, I have a working relationship with a highly talented amp tech that really makes my amps sound incredible. He is far more knowledgeable than I am when it comes to the actual circuitry.
BL: Burl furniture?
SC: Burl is usually thought of as a "cancerous growth" on a tree but it acts as a backup life support for the tree as well. As a rule the grain and figure is very dynamic.
BL: Your gear in the photos has such a vintage look, are they tube or solid state?
SC: I think most blues musicians will agree. There is no tone like that of a hand wired, point to point, tube amp. That is the only kind of amp that will ever have the "Trimmed and Burnin" name on it.
BL: You're also a player?
SC: I play a little bass, bottleneck slide, Dobro, lap steel and mandolin. But as much as I love to play, I am realistic about the fact that everybody and his brother in Whatcom county plays better'n me! These days most of my time goes into building instruments, not so much playing them.
BL: What do you feel makes your guitar or amps a good match for the blues musician?
SC: Blues is the music that motivates me to build and play, so I build with blues music in mind. I can build totally custom guitars and the amps to match them, but I naturally reference every tone and component from "how will this sound in a blues song." Although I build a Belly Boy Tele that is great for jazz, I still start with the blues unless otherwise asked to do so.
My guitars as well as my amps are built with only the "finest" materials and components. I know that this is a little subjective, but I can take the time to work with a customer to build what he is looking for. I build Teles, Hardtail Strats, my own electric resonator guitar and basses.
BL: How long can it take to build a custom guitar?
SC: Right now it's running 8-10 weeks on an average to complete a custom job whether it's an amp or guitar. I build one at a time so that I can put all of my attention on the project at hand. I really enjoy building personalized, custom instruments and amps. I also enjoy being able to add the little extra touch without worrying about a time clock.
BL: So do you also do instrument repairs?
SC: I repair my own instruments if they are in need, but I like to stay focused on building new guitars and amps. I can highly recommend a local luthier that I work with on an ongoing basis if someone needs repair work done.
BL: Are there any particular blues musicians who inspired you to create your own tools of the trade?
SC: I love most styles of blues from old Gospel tunes (Reverand Gary Davis), Chicago Blues (Howlin Wolf), Texas Blues (Johnny Winter) to Warren Hayes, Duanne Allman, Walter Trout, Darrell Mansfield and Glenn Kaiser. There are just too many to list without bringing to mind more blues musicians. I have had the privilege of building two amps for Glenn Kaiser and (so far) four amps for harp player Darrell Mansfield. Darrell and I are entering into an endorsement deal for harp amps.
BL: Looking to the future, where would you like to be in ten years?
SC: In ten years I would like to be in Bellingham building guitars and amps.
photo of Coberly playing his
electric resonator guitar at the
2004 Mount Baker Blues Festival
provided by Trimmed and Burnin
or Shannon Coberly can be
contacted through his website at:
www.TrimmedAndBurnin.com
