Tommy Smothers - Comedian Guitars Part Four

The final installment of Comedian Guitars is about Tommy Smothers, the guitar playing brother of The Smothers Brothers. He was the one his mother did not like best.

Tom was born in New York City. Tom’s father was Major Thomas Smother, a West Point graduate and military officer during WWII. The Major died when he was being transported from a POW camp in Japan. Tom’s mother moved the family to the Los Angles area and raised her children in Califonia’s Redondo Beach area.

Tom and Dick Smothers both attended San José State University. The brothers joined a folk group called the Casual Quintet. By 1959 they were playing at the popular Purple Onion, a San Francisco folk club. A few years later they developed the Smothers Brothers act and recorded a successful comedy album at the same club. In 1961 they made their first national appearance on The Jack Paar Show, and later on The Steve Allen Show, which was the forerunner of the Tonight Show.

The brothers set out ot be serious folk singers. Tom would introduce a song by making things up. Dick would chime in by disagreeing with Tom. Then a brotherly argument would ensue with a comic ending.

By 1965, CBS television offered them an hour long variety show. The brothers agreed to the show and it was a huge success. By 1967 their contract came up for renewal. In the contract language, they insisted on total creative control.

Now this was at a time when the United States was in the midst of the very unpopular Viet Nam War, social unrest was rampant due to the war and civil injustice to Black citizens. The drug culture was emerging, as was free love and an interest arose in alternative forms of religion. The Smothers Brothers, led by Tom, felt a calling to speak up on these topics by use of their humor. This did not sit well with the CBS censors. Each show became a battle. This led to the show’s demise.

Tom became very politically active. At one point he joined his friend John Lennon on the recording of Give Peace A Chance.

Tom Smothers found other work in the entertainment industry and won acolades for his talent and determination to take a stand. He owns a vineyard in Sonoma County and creates wines under the Remick Ridge Vineyards label.

Tom Smothers has used only two brands of guitar during his career. He played a Martin or a Guild.

The guitar that he is primarly seen with is the Guild D-55TV. This is Guild’s top-of-the-line dreadnaught. Although it is not as fancy as a Martin D-45, the Guild is a fine instrument.

It has been used by Folk, Country and Bluegrass artists and hearlded for its big voice. The D-55 is a true workhorse of a guitar. Unlike the Les Paul TV model, which had a yellow hue to show up better on black and white television, the Guild designation of TV is due to the use of the best woods and craftsmanship, that Guild Guitars would be proud to display on television.

I have heard it said that in Guild’s nomiclature, the designation T, noted an instrument with a natural top. I cannot find evidence to support this claim. The D-55TV is an updated  and fancy version of their model D-50.

Tom Smothers is generally seen playing a sunburst D-55TV.

For those unfamiliar with Guild’s history, the company was founded by Alfred Dronge and George Mann in 1952. The Epiphone guitar company had been sold to Gibson by the Stathopoly family. This left employees of the Manhattan firm out of work. Dronge and Mann put together a Guild of the finest luthiers in New York to start up their company. Their venture was a big success and the headquarters moved to Hoboken, New Jersey, since the company outgrew its original plant.

The advent of folk and blues music was a big assist to Guild and they concentrated less on archtop jazz guitars and more on flattop guitars in the Martin style.

Alfred Dronge was killed in an airplane accident. In 1966 the company was acquired by the Avnet Corporation and moved to Westerly, Rhode Island. Guitars from Westerly are considered to be the best that Guild made. Guild expanded into the electric guitar market in the mid 1960’s, due to the increased interest in the electric guitar.

The Fender Musical Instrument Corporation never seemed capable of producing a really great acoustic guitar.

The company was in an acquisition mode in the late 1990’s. They had purchased the small, Washington State based Tacoma guitar company and next set their sites on Guild.

The Rhode Island plant was old and the machinery was not modern. In Fender’s eyes, it was inefficient. Fender had just built a brand new factory in Corona, California. The employees in Westerly were offered jobs, if they wanted to relocate to California. I don’t believe anyone took up the offer.

Production of Guilds in Corona did not last very long, before Fender moved Guild to the Tacoma facility in Tacoma, Washington. It was during this time that Fender started importing Asian made Guilds, using the Guild name.

Kaman Incorporateds main business was building precision industrial parts and building heliocopters. They had devoted almost 40 years to their founders dream of building a guitar by using synthetic materials. This was the company that made and sold Ovation Guitars.

The company decided in 2004 to unload the guitar division. Fender was right there and bought the company and their facility in New Hartford, Connecticut. Fender not only went on the manufacture Ovation guitars in the Connecticut facility, but moved production of Guild there as well.

American made Guilds are a bargain when compared with similar Martin and Gibson instruments. Their D-55 model sells new for around $2800 USD, with a hardshell case included.

This last video features The Who on the Smothers Brothers Comedy Hour. They are singing My Generation. Stay tuned for the end of the clip. Keith Moon put explosives in his bass drum, however without Moon's knowledge a stage hand put in extra explosives. Moon is stunned at the end of the clip. Townsend blames this for hearing loss.

Ranger Doug (Green) Comedian Guitars - Part Three

In the early 1990’s, a local public radio station from Cincinnati, Ohio, WVXU, played host to the Rider’s Radio Theater, featuring The Riders In The Sky. Two shows would be taped for broadcast on each visit. To be there was like going back in time to the early days of radio, complete with a sound effects man and each of the Riders doing different character voices.

The group consists of Woody Paul (Dr. Paul Chrisman) on fiddle, Too-Slim (Fred Labour) on upright bass, Joey the Cow Polka King (Joey Miskulin) on accordion and Ranger Doug (Douglas B. Green) on guitar.

As we are dedicated to guitars, I’ll be talking about Douglas B. Green. Doug is not just the guitarist, but sings lead vocals and yodels. He is also arranges for the Rider’s songs. He has won awards for songwriting. He sings lead vocal and yodels with the Riders In The Sky. Ranger Doug also lays claim to be The Idol Of American Youth.

Green didn’t start out to be a musician. He got a degree from the University of Michigan and did his post-graduate work at Vanderbilt, with a degree in Literature. It was during this era that he became interested in folk music, particularly Western Cowboy songs.



Prior to Riders In The Sky, Green played in a number of Bluegrass Bands. He even was in Bill Monroe’s group for awhile. He also joined the Buck White Family group, which performed Gospel songs. Green supplemented his income by doing guitar repair work at Gruhn Guitars in Nashville.

In my opinion, Ranger Doug is this generations foremost rhythm guitarist. He plays in the chunky style of Freddie Green and all of the big band era players. In 2006, he evened published an instruction book called, “Rhythm Guitar the Ranger Doug Way.”

Doug’s beloved Gibson L-5 was stolen years ago. He currently prefers vintage Stromberg guitars. Luthiers Charles and Elmer Stromberg designed these based on the Gibson L-5. However, the lower bouts on their Master 400 measured 19” across.

These guitars were cannons of sound. They had to be, to be heard above big band brass, reeds and drums. Strombergs are scarce, hence extremely valuable and collectible.

When he is not touring and recording with The Riders, Doug Green plays rhythm guitar in the well known Nashville, Western Swing band known as The Time Jumpers.

The Time Jumpers are omprised of nine of Nashville's finest studio and musicians and vocalists. The group started in 1998 with an idea from bandleader Hoot Hester to get together and play Western swing for their own enjoyment.

If you are ever in Nashville, check them out to see if they are playing.

Green has authored a couple of books. One is called Playing Guitar the Ranger Doug Way. (One of the oft quoted Riders in the Sky taglines says, “It’s not always the easy way, but it’s the Cowboy way.”) Green also authored a book on cowboy singers and guitarists, called Singing in the Saddle. The History of the Singing Cowboy. He is also an avid collector of vintage instruments. So it is not going to be easy to discuss all of his guitars. We will stick to the ones he is most seen playing.

In the Cincinnati shows, I recall that he was playing a sunburst Gibson L-5C.In an interview, Doug goes on to say, the Gibson L-5 was an offshoot of a guitar that Gibson produced in the mid 1930’s called the Super 800. This was a fancy mandola version of the Super 400 and it was Gibsons top of the line instrument of that era.

Allow me a minute to digress. Wes Tuttle is probably not a household name. Wes was in a handful of movies with singing cowboy, Stuart Hamblin. Hamblin had a hit song in 1955 called This Old House. Tuttle owned and played a left handed 1939 Gibson L-5 throughout his career.

Aside from working with Hamblin, Tuttle’s biggest claim to fame was dubbing in Dopey’s part in “The Dwarf’s Yodeling Song” in the 1937 Disney version of Snow White. Tuttle was also in the Sons of the Pioneers.


During the golden age of radio, he performed in Cincinnati on the Boone County Jamboree on 50,000-watt radio station,WLW.

Tuttle had a couple of notable hit songs. One was called Detour and the other called With Tears in my Eyes. In the 1950s he was a writer and performer on the “Town Hall Party” TV show in Los Angeles. Wes Tuttle was inducted into The Western Music Hall of Fame in 1997.

A year after Wes Tuttle passed away, his widow, Marilyn, was thoughtful and generous enough to present Tuttle’s L-5 to Doug Green. Green states, “In the course of my getting to know these people I got to know Wesley Tuttle, and he helped me with the book greatly.”

After receiving the Gibson L-5, Green had it refretted, added a bone nut, cut for right handed playing and had a new right-handed pickguard built for the guitar.

Green admits to owning quite a collection of Gibson archtops, including a blonde L-5C, a 1941 L-5 Cutaway, and a pre-World War II J-200 (a fancy flat top model that was also a favorite of the singing cowboys). There are pictures of him playing a vintage Epiphone Regent model.

Doug Green had an affinity for guitars like Tuttle’s Gibson L-5 ever since he formed Riders in the Sky in 1977. The L-5 is an “archtop” style, a style invented and perfected by the Gibson company, featuring a top that is carved into an arched shape, like a violin.

Prior to the availability of electric guitars, guitarists in big bands found that archtop models were the only guitars that could produce enough volume to be heard above drums and horn sections.

Gibson’s L-5 was the original f-hole archtop, and it was the favorite of many performers throughout the 1930s and ‘40s. As Green says, “A lot of people think 1939 was the best year for Gibson archtops. No question, they made the most attractive guitar. They came up with the design and nobody could top it. To me, the 1939 Gibson…. you’re just not going to top that.”

Green’s style of playing is much like the “comping” of Freddie Green’s swing playing with Count Basie. Ranger Doug plays a lot of 3 note chords, many times using five or six strings, but muting all strings but three.



The chord changes occur each half measure. This makes the guitar the rhythm instrument for the Riders.

Aside from being an authority on Singing Cowboys, Green is also an authority on Stromberg guitars.

Charles and Elmer Stromberg built instruments using the Gibson L-5 as a template, however they scavenged for old wood, used their own system of bracing, and on their Master series made the lower bout 19 inches wide. This was almost a full two inches larger than Gibson or D’Angelico.

Stromberg’s top models were their colossal, nineteen-inch-wide bodies that provided the tremendous volume and projection needed for a rhythm guitarist to be heard in the large jazz orchestras of the 1940s. Charles and Elmer, father and son, worked together in Boston, beginning in the early 1930s. Both men died in 1955. I have never been fortunate enough to play a Stromberg, however I am told these are the greatest guitars for playing rhythm.

This cutaway version of the Stromberg G-3 model was made circa 1950 and has been owned and used by "Ranger Doug" Green and was offered for sale by Gruhn Guitars of Nashville.

In a handwritten letter accompanying this guitar, Ranger Doug writes, "It is with considerable regret that I part with Stromberg G-3 #602, a guitar that has traveled all over the country and been on the Grand Ole Opry many times."

As I have stated, Green is an authority on Stromberg instruments. He states there are only five G-3 cutaways known to exist. So this is indeed a rare guitar. The guitar was professionally refinished in cherry sunburst..

During one of the Cincinnati Rider’s Radio Shows that I attended, Ranger Doug took a break from his usual large-bodied F-hole guitars to play a Gibson J-200 on a couple of songs.

I suppose many of us associate that guitar with Miss Emmylou Harris, but it was the singing cowboys and other country artists that were attracted to this guitars “bling” factor and the fact that it was big and loud. Though we associate Gene Autry with Martin Guitars, he also held court with a Gibson J-200.

As a tribute to Ranger Doug’s preference for Gibson guitars, The Gibson Musical Instrument Company has presented Green with two great instruments.

In 2009, Gibson Master Luthier, Ren Ferguson, sent Ranger Doug a handmade contemporary version of the Gibson J-200, made especially for the Idol of American Youth.

In 2010, Gibson once again honored this generation’s most famous singing cowboy with a beautiful new blond, Gibson L-5C, that was also made by Ren Ferguson. This is a prototype of the Gibson Ranger Doug model.



During his long career, Doug Green counts himself fortunate to have met many of his guitar inspirations such as Gene Autry and Roy Rogers, as well as Wes Tuttle, Jimmy Wakely, Eddie Dean, Bob Nolan, Lloyd Perryman, and Ray Whitle.

I’ve always been a fan of acoustic music and close vocal harmony arrangements. The Riders in the Sky are at the top of my list.





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The George Gobel Gibson L-5CT - Comedian Guitars part 2

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In the 1950’s, comedian, singer and guitarist, George Gobel was a hot commodity. In 1954, he was the star of his own television show on the NBC network. This variety show featured the most popular TV and movie stars of the day. The show ran for six years.

Gobel was a rather short fellow. Much like Drew Cary, George Gobel was known for wearing his hair in a crew cut.

His musical career began when he was a child and was known on the radio as Little Georgie Gobel. Later, he toured with country bands by singing cowboy songs and billing himself as The Littlest Cowboy. Gobel appeared on radio shows of the day, including The National Barn Dance from Chicago’s WLS radio.

Unfortunately, his career was cut short due to WWII. During these years, he joined the Army Air Force and served as a flight instructor in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Later in his career, he would joke that none of them enemy ever made it through to Tulsa.

Gobel’s sense of humor was very low-key. He talked about his home and referred to his over-bearing wife as Spooky Ol’ Alice. He referred to himself as Lonesome George. He had several catch phrases that brought laughs, such as "Well I'll be a dirty bird" and "You can't hardly get those any more." Gobel was featured in several movies.

George Gobel was one of a handful of players honored by the Gibson Guitar Company, during their Kalamazoo era. Gibson made a special guitar bearing his name; the Gibson L-5CT George Gobel Model. The prototype of the guitar was presented to George by fellow comedian Tennessee Ernie Ford on Gobel’s TV show.

The original model that Gobel played had the same features as the L-5C model, but the bodies depth was only 2.25”. This short depth helped Gobel play more comfortably. The prototype presented to Gobel had a scale of 25.5”, which was unusual for a Gibson instrument. The production models all used a 24.75” scale. Gobel’s guitar had a beautiful dark red finish, that showed up nicely on television. His instrument had a venetian or rounded cutaway.

For those unfamiliar with Gibson’s designation, the letter C is for cutaway, the letter T is for thin, the letter E designates an electric guitar and the letter S indicates a Spanish/six string guitar. For example, a Gibson ES-335T, designates a thinline instrument.

The fact the guitar is a double cutaway is factored in to the 335 designation. Another little known fact is the numerals at one time indicated the instruments price. A Gibson ES-335T, sold for $335. A Gibson ES-175, sold for $175. Those were the days!



From Guitar Center $25,000

Between 1958 through 1962 only 44 George Gobel L-5CT’s were manufactured, which makes this an extremely rare guitar. How did it sound? I’m told that despite the narrow body depth, the guitar produced a very nice and big tone.


This is it, the "one-off" custom-built especially for Gobel by Gibson, with Serial Number 27318, which the Gibson archive dates to March 20, 1958 and hand-notes "Lonesome George Gobel Spec." The Gibson label inside this guitar notes the serial number and "L5 C- Special" as model.

Gibson L-5C

The guitar is slightly thicker (2 5/8 in.) than the production model and has a standard L-5 25 1/2 inch scale to the production model's 24 3/4 inches. 

Gobel's L-5C "Special" has a 17 inch wide body, weighs just 4.90 lbs and has a nut width of 1 11/16 inches.

The top is carved spruce. The back and sides are curly maple and so is the neck. The neck is bound and capped with an ebony fretboard and 20 jumbo frets. It also features inlaid pearl block position markers. The tuners are made by Kluson and the tuning buttons are Kluson's bell-shaped models.

The pickguard is feaux tortoiseshell with a five ply binding. The saddle is made of rosewood and compensated. The guitar's distal end features a distinctive L-5 trapeze tailpiece. All the hardware is gold-plated.  The factory number on the orange label is A  27318.

Despite the shallow depth, the guitar has a remarkable tone.

Homer Haynes Guitars - Comedian Guitars Part 1

Henry D. Haynes aka Homer (of Homer and Jethro) was one of THE best rhythm guitarists ever. At least that is what Chet Atkins had to say about him. Chet should know, because he frequently called him as a session player.

Haynes started his career at age 16 when he and Kenneth (Jethro) Burns won an audition on Knoxville radio station, WNOX. At the time, the host could not remember their names, so he christened them Homer and Jethro.

The duo played live on the great Country Music shows of the mid 1930’s, such as the Renfro Valley Barn Dance, the Midwestern Hayride, the Ozark Jubilee, and the National Barn Dance. These all not only had a live audience, but were broadcast on the radio. So millions of listeners became aware of the comedy duo.  The guys hit it big when they discovered their niche of doing parodies of popular songs. And though Homer and Jethro were funny, both were serious musicians.

Haynes played guitar in a style known as comping (accompianing), which was popular with most big band guitarists of the era. Instead of playing a single chord, the player would play variations of the chord or related chords, which made the song more interesting and made great use of the guitar as a rhythm instrument. One of the few guys that has mastered this technique is Doug Green aka Ranger Doug of Riders in the Sky and the Time Jumpers.

Homer Haynes favored a beautiful red-burst Gibson L-5C throughout his career. He occasionally was seen with a natural finish and a sunburst L-5C.




Early in Haynes career, he played an Epiphone Triumph. He can be seen in videos with a Gibson J-200. The main instrument was always the L-5C.

Homer with #001

In the mid 1950’s, Leo Fender bestowed Haynes with a Stratocaster that bore the registration 001. The instruments body was painted gold. The pickups were white. The knobs were white and the scratchplate was tinted gold and all the hardware was gold plated. It was a beautiful instrument. But you never saw Homer playing it. Perhaps he realized its value and left it at home under the bed.

In 1988, Fender made a decision to reissue a Homer Haynes Limited Edition Stratocaster that was limited to 500 units (Though some authorities say 200 units.)

This was an exact replica of the original intrument that utilized the same machine bent bridge saddles and five spring tremolo. The neck was maple. The pickguard was attached to the body by eight wood screws. The pickup switch was the older 3-position model that is found on all 1956 Strats.

The Gibson L-5C is the cutaway model of the L-5. This beautiful instrument was carved by Gibson's craftsmen out of solid spruce. The body is 17” wide at the lower bout. The bound neck is fitted with an ebony fretboard, with pearloid, block inlays. The neck and binding features a point at the distal end of the neck. The headstock is bound and capped in black maple with a flower-pot inlay.


The binding around the body features six plies, while the binding on the neck and headstock are made of two plies.

Homers guitar came with a beautiful, black, bound, celluloid pickguard. The adjustable, movable bridge is made of rosewood and the deluxe tailpiece is gold plated. The tuning pegs are also gold plated. The neck has a 25.4” scale. It is a beautiful instrument and the very guitar that John D’Angelico and Elmer Stromberg looked at as a model for their instruments.

Homer and Jethro’s humor may seem a little dated by todays standards, but it was always good clean fun. Both men’s instrumental musical ability was overshadowed by their fame as comedians.