Prior to the first Baroness tour following the release of "PURPLE," I worked with G&L to create several custom guitars with unique purple stains and finishes to offer our more gear-centric fans; especially because i have a real affinity for the G&L ASATs, which i wanted to share with an audience that wasn't as likely to be as familiar with the model as i was. However, when i received the guitars, i had a very hard time letting go; they were all incredible instruments, and i held onto a couple of them. However, after several tours and recording sessions, i'm positive i have TOO MANY (blasphemy, i know) of these. With that in mind, i'd like to make this Classic "S" ASAT available. I have played this guitar a lot, and i have loved it dearly (also helped to have a great guitar-tech), i can honestly say this guitar plays, feels and performs as well as any i've ever played. Furthermore, it has some sentimental value, based on the album for which it was so obviously designed to accompany. If you are interested, i can only hope you'll create as much or more with it than i already have. Dont worry, i have many other ASATs to keep me company. Attached is a video of this particular instrument onstage in Toronto in 2016.
From the G&L site:
The G&L ASAT® Classic 'S' is a factory-modded version of Leo’s final word on the traditional single-cutaway bolt-on axe. First created in 2004 by the G&L Custom Creations team, the ASAT Classic 'S' later joined the line as a standard model in 2008.
The basic idea for this kind of arrangement has been long established in the Nashville session player scene, where players often install a Strat® middle pickup in the middle position of a Telecaster® and swap the 3-position pickup selector with a 5-way unit.
Back in 2004, The G&L Custom Creations Department dediced to build an instrument similar to the formula adopted by the Nashville guys but with a distinctly G&L flavor with ASAT Classic MFD pickups in place of Alnico Tele® pickups, and the S-500 MFD in place of the Strat pickup. The CCD team decided to ice the cake with a push/pull tone pot that functions the same way as the S-500's mini-toggle switch, enabling additional pickup combinations of neck+bridge or all three pickups together for a unique sonic depth that G&L players love.
The "S" designation comes from both internal designation for this instrument, due to its use of the S-500 middle pickup, and "Session" in homage to the origin of this guitar configuration.
