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The Steel Guitar Forum
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Multi-Kord
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This topic was originally posted in this forum: Wanted To Buy |
| Author | Topic: Multi-Kord |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 17 March 2000 09:09 AM
Do any of you out there know anything about the Multi-Kord. I have one that I played when I was a kid. It is probably 47 years old. I didn't learn to play it well because there weren't any teachers in the area that knew much about it. |
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Ed Naylor Member Posts: 1827 |
posted 17 March 2000 09:19 AM
Welcome to the forum. The Multi-Kord was built in Indianapolis by the Harlin Bros. They made 6 string -8 string and also double neck guitars. The cable system was the weak link. If you have a question call me at 1-800-749-3363. Ed Naylor Steel Guitar Works. |
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Terry Wood Member Posts: 1205 |
posted 17 March 2000 06:43 PM
Hi Bev_Z, Welcome to this thing they refer to as The Steel Guitar Forum! Dig your heels in and speak your mind. I don't know much about the Multi-Chords but Ed's right, the cable was the weak link. The builders used what they thought was the right materials at that time. Today's steels are usually built much better. I have only seen two of the Multi-Chords in my 25 years of steel playing. One was in a pawn shop in Springfield, MO years ago, and the other was in an individual's closet. Goodluck with your steel! Again welcome to the forum. We are glad you joined us! Terry Wood |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 17 March 2000 07:39 PM
Thanks Ed and Terry for your input. Sometimes I think I would like to play it again, but it has been a long time, and my fingers don't work as well as they used to. I suppose practice, practice, practice huh. |
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Terry Wood Member Posts: 1205 |
posted 18 March 2000 05:58 AM
Hello again Bev_Z, Yep practice is the only way. All steel players pros and beginners practice, don't ever let them tell you any different. I read an article that Lloyd Green wrote in some magazine and he stressed this very point too. The main thing is have fun when your practicing and playing. If it's not fun do something else and come back to it. I am a teacher so I don't believe in the word can't and giving up. Just go for it! Goodluck! Terry Wood |
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Johan Jansen Member Posts: 2207 |
posted 18 March 2000 11:39 AM
I saw one today at a vintage-market, it was a Gibson and had steel "underware"  -no cables, another type of multicord?------------------ |
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Buddy Elkin Member Posts: 168 |
posted 18 March 2000 12:22 PM
Bev, I've got a 6-string, 4-pedal Multi-Kord that's great to look at, but that's about it. I'm sure in its day, it was something else. |
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dblnk unregistered Posts: 168 |
posted 18 March 2000 12:35 PM
A Multi-Kord was the first pedal guitar I ever owned. Looking back, I realize what a piece of junk it was. At the time I got it, I was 14 years old. I thought it was the greatest thing since sliced bread. I took a stringtone tuning changer, and put on the outside neck. I had to reverse the keyhead end to do it, but I had 4 pedals on the inside neck(A tuning), and three different tunings on the outside neck. I couldn't keep the thing in tune, and it sounded horribly, but I had a PEDAL guitar, finally. It was a good beginner's pedal guitar to learn the basics on. ------------------ |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 19 March 2000 01:56 PM
Am I to understand then, that the Multi-Kord I have is of no value? It is an 8 string, single neck with 6 pedals. It is covered with white mother of pearl ??? i suppose plastic and has a pink fretboard. I also have an old Oahu tube amplifier. I guess they both would be museum pieces. |
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Al Marcus Member Posts: 7471 |
posted 19 March 2000 04:22 PM
Hi Bev, That Multi-Kord was really the only pedal guitar available at that point in time. I had one with 8 strings and 6 pedals. The first thing I did was take the cable out and put welding rod in, I made hooks in it so they would fold down out of the way for putting in the case. Actually I rebuilt it, by adding a string on the bottom and one on top. The tuning head was a great idea, Gibson used a head like that on their 1941 Electra-harps,( a nice piece of furniture) no case , of course. You did not tear it down, just carry it in and play.If you have the muscle. I had one. That helped me have strong legs. I like the Multi-Kord tuning head better than the Gibson because it had the locking nuts on the tuning screws, so they wouldn't back off when they hit and go out of tune. The Gibson was touchier. I played Pop and jazz and swing on both of them, E6 -E13 tuning. The only thing coming out then to compete was the special order Bigsby for thousands of dollars more. I wouldn't buy one of them and pay that kind of money. I sold a few Multi-kords and had students who did well with them. they were very low priced and as a dealer, I got them for half off list price. You can put any tuning you want on them, many raises and lowers. You can't do that with a maverick. I would suggest before you spend $1000 to $3000 for a new guitar. Get someone to put welding rods on in place of those cables and practice on it for awhile and see how it goes. As you progress, you can always upgrade to a better newer model. ok?...al |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 19 March 2000 10:03 PM
Hi Al, Thanks for the suggestion. I have battled with those cables since I got it. The welding rod idea makes sense to me. Maybe I can talk my husband into doing the surgery. At my age I have no big plans or desire of playing professionally, but it would be fun to get back into it for my own enjoyment. |
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Al Gershen Member Posts: 432 |
posted 24 March 2000 08:56 PM
Hi Bev_Z: My first pedal steel guitar back in 1960 was a used Harlin Brothers Multi-Kord Hawaiian steel guitar. It was a single neck model with 6 strings and 4 pedals. I used this guitar until around 1964 when I bought a used Fender 1000 pedal steel guitar (double neck, 8 strings, 10 pedals and 4 home-brew knee levers) from Red Rhodes in Los Angeles. My first professional gig was with the Multi-Kord and I played it "without" a volume foot pedal. I have a question for both dblnk and Al Marcus. What year did you both get your Multi-Kord pedal steel guitars? Does anyone really know what year the Harlin Brothers brought these instruments out commercially with their pedals? I've read somewhere that the Harlin Brothers had their pedal changer patent granted to them sometime in the 1930's....at least before Gibson came out with the Electraharp pedal steel guitar in 1939. If this is true, did the Harlin Brothers bring out a commercial model of their pedal steel guitar in the 1930's? Or was it in the 1940's. The earliest I can seem to find was in the early 1950's. What was the Harlin Brothers doing for about 20 years? I'm very facinated with the Harlin Brothers Multi-Kord and I follow their sales on the eBay auction. Perhaps some day I'll buy another one just for sentimental reasons. Sure....try to explain that to my wife! ------------------ |
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C Dixon Member Posts: 5912 |
posted 25 March 2000 06:11 AM
I am not aware of ANY pedal steels being manufactured in the 30's. If so I never heard about it! If I'm not mistaken, the Harlan "Multi-Kord" came out in 1947. I believe Gibson's "Electa-harp was around this time also. Don't mean to throw cold water on your plans Bev, but if you are hearing the sounds of PSG as played to day, and you want to play like that on your Multi-Kord, you may be dissapointed. These guitars were not designed to use the "moving tone" sound that Bud Isaacs made famous on "Slowly". Their name tells what they were used for. To change chords and/or tunings. There basic design was to put the multi neck guitars all into one neck. Before there time, most players had a 2, 3, 4 or 6* neck guitar. The idea was to provide in just one neck all that could be had on the multi-neck guitars. Not a moving tone sound that we love so dearly on the E9th standard necks today. While the "moving tone" sound CAN be done on the Multi-Kord, at best it is difficult and oft times frustrating because of the relative difficulty pressing the pedals. But in any case, God bless you with what ever you do. Carl * Yes, a 6 neck steel was designed and played by a lady named Letritia Kandel, in the 30's and early 40's. She was a regular band musician with the Paul Whiteman Orchestra that was so popular back then. The guitar was built on a large table console and had three necks on each half of the console. The upper two necks only had 4 strings. The other 4 necks had 6 strings each. Letritia designed it and it was built in Chicago in the late 30's. The guitar was designed to be played standing up similar to what a marimba player does. Moving from side to side. She would often go from one neck to the other letting the previous neck's sound sustain. (open strings of course). Especially the two "bass" necks. She named it the "Grande LeTar" |
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CHUCK BRATTAIN Member Posts: 24 |
posted 25 March 2000 07:20 AM
I HAD A MULTI-KORD IN THE 50's AND HAD A NEW BODY MADE FOR IT, THEN REPLACED THE CABLES WITH RODS. THE TUNING SYSTEM WORKED GREAT BUT I HAD TO SET SIDE WAYS TO WORK THE PEDALS. |
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Donny Hinson Member Posts: 9192 |
posted 26 March 2000 12:00 PM
Johan, I could be wrong, but if memory serves me correctly, I believe the Gibson guitar you saw might have been a "Multi-Harp", instead of a "Multi-Kord". The Multi-Harp was another version of the Gibson "Electra-Harp". Maybe another one of the other guys here knows the difference between the two. |
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Doug Seymour Member Posts: 785 |
posted 26 March 2000 12:31 PM
I had a 6 string 4 pedal Multi-Kord that I bought used in 1954 & later traded it for one with 6 pedals. I took one off and sat sideways, giving up my volume pedal, because I wanted combinations on my C6 tuning that used both feet on the pedals. I used pedals 5, 6 & 7 that are standard on today's C6. In addition P1 raised the Cs to C# that combined with P2 gave an A6 chord. I had P5 making strings 2 & 3 D & Bb. I never tried the rod idea & luckily never broke cables, but it sounds like a good idea! Doug |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 27 March 2000 07:05 AM
Thanks to all of you who have offered suggestions. I am not the one who broke the cables. I don't think I could have pushed hard enough on them to break them. It was a "macho" next door neighbor who was messing with the instrument. I will probably keep the Multi-Kord and just replace the cables that are broken. It has sentimental value, and it is something to practice on and get my fingers working again. If I get to where I can play it again I might look into getting a better pedal guitar. What kind of amplifier are all of you using now? Bev |
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Bev_Z Member Posts: 6 |
posted 05 April 2000 09:01 AM
Terry Woods, Your message got deleted off my e-mail. Please contact me again. I am interested in your tape. I can't figure out how to get your e-mail address. Also I wonder if you have an instruction book, or who's you would recommend. Thanks, Bev |
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