Tuesday, November 16, 2010

State of the "Art" Sound System

While not exactly Bang & Olufsen's Advanced Sound System®, this is a photo of a record player, CD player, AM/FM radio and two AM radios... 

M Y   C O L L E C T I O N — The Ford Model T, left, and Rolls Royce roadster, right, are both vintage AM radios. I was given the RR in 1972 for Christmas, and I found the Ford at a flea market, made by the same manufacturer as the RR. They are sitting on a wooden-covered record player, which I've painted (of course!). 

The original record player case was a horrendous pale wood with palm tree decals on it, but was just about the only record player I could fin ten years ago in my price range. It also includes an AM/FM radio and CD player. As soon as I took it out of the box, I sanded it and applied this paint treatment. The top of it is a painting I call "Follow the Yellow Brick Road" and the rest of the case is an antiqued dark green and gold finish. The painting is in my style, where I sand the painting when I'm done and there are several clearcoats on the top of it. The wood is similarly finished by sanding the paint off the corners and wherever normal wear and tear may have worn an original finish away, then protected under at least five coats of polyurethane. 

The daisy knob is actually original, but finished in a tacky bright-gold color. After I picked out the flower with white paint on a blue background, I dipped it in a walnut-colored stain and then wiped off most of it, giving it the look of a much older casting. It really is the detailing that counts. Even though the record player is a functional "modern" piece of sound equipment, I consider it one of my pieces of art anyway. As I've mentioned, and illustrated, on this blog before, I'll paint anything that doesn't get out of my way! (Yes, this photo should be part of my Dust Chronicles, too!)

18 comments:

  1. I absolutely love how you painted this record player! I agree with you, it SHOULD be considered one of your art pieces! Can I commission you to "paint" a few of my keepsakes?
    BTW, I didn't notice any dust issues at all - maybe I've been properly conditioned, lol.

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  2. thanks! I'd love to be the kind of artist that could do commissions, but I find them insanely difficult to accomplish. I've done a few but the pressure gets to me since I'm working on something that belongs to someone else. Maybe someday!

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  3. IT'S FUNNY CASEY,I HAVEN'T SEEN ANYTHING YET THAT I DON'T LIKE. I CAN UNDERSTAND HOW YOU FEEL DOING A PIECE OF ARTWORK FOR SOMEONE ELSE. I KNOW I'M A GOOD COOK BUT NEVER ENJOYED COOKING FOR OTHERS. I GUESS MAYBE INSIDE I FEEL I'M NOT AS GOOD AS MY MOM. SHE COOKED FOR CHURCH SUPPERS GETTING IT ALL TOGETHER WITH HELP FROM THE LADIES OF THE CHURCH AND WOULD FEED HUNDREDS AND NEVER THOUGHT ANYTHING ABOUT IT. SHE EVEN WENT OUT IN THE COUNTRYSIDE AND ASKED THE FARMERS FOR DONATIONS OF THEIR CROPS OR TURKEYS SO IT WOULD SAVE COST AND THE CHURCH COULD MAKE ENOUGH MONEY TO PAY THEIR BILLS. IF THE NEIGHBORHOOD KNEW THERE WAS A SUPPER AND MY MOM WAS IN CHARGE THEY WOULD COME. THOSE DAYS ARE GONE ALTHOUGH OUR LITTLE CHURCH UP NORTH STILL HAVE SUPPERS IT'S NOT LIKE IT USED TO BE. [TITLE - THOSE WERE THE DAYS].

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  4. Holly Cow! My dad owned something very similar to the RR model you show in the picture. You were able to change radio stations with the side mounted tire.

    The only Bang and Olfsen equipment I owned were these small little monitor speakers that I used for surround sound. I blew them along with my Mission 707's some 20 years ago. My friend is telling me to buy B&W's but I don't have $14k to throw away.

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  5. Woody: It was probably the exact same radio. I checked eBay earlier today and there are many, many for sale for as low as $3.99, lol. I think they sold several million of them back in the day. One sidemounted tire turns it on and off and the other one changes stations. The Audi A8 has an optional B&O sound system in it. I think if I could afford a new A8 I'd end up living in it!

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  6. Hello Casey,Hello Woody,
    Wow!
    I had one RR Radio as a kid, lost it , and later found one in an LA junk shop. Its good to know I can still get another.

    I always thought for an am radio, they did a good job on the RR proportions

    Thanks for the great little memory.(Now where the heck in which box did I put the Rolls ? )

    AP
    Malibu

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  7. GOOD NIGHT PAL GOOD NIGHT

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  8. G'Night, Granny.

    AP: cool we have the same collectible, inexpensive or not!

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  9. Cool piece! LOVE what you did to the knob on it too!
    You know, if you were to do a piece for me, I would want you to do it as if for yourself...don't know if that's how most people would want it, but I would want YOUR take on it...maybe supplying my own pics to be used on it but having you "build" the masterpiece at your own discretion. Now, to ME, THAT would be an amazing piece of art!!
    mare

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  10. GOOD MORNING EVERYONE AS THE DAY STARTS OUT WITH A SPIT SHINE ON IT.

    MARE, I AGREE WITH YOUR COMMENT. WHAT A BLESSING TO BE GIVEN THIS GIFT THAT CASEY HAS INSIDE HIS BONES. I JUST LIKE HIS FORM OF ART.BESIDES, WHAT'S NOT TO LIKE...........

    MALIBU, I ALSO LOVE THE OLD RADIOS. TO THINK, WE AS PEOPLE THROW THINGS AWAY JUST BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT IT. THEN IT BECOMES A TREASURE TO OTHER YEARS LATER. I CAN THINK OF SO MANY THINGS I WISH I HAD TODAY.

    GRANNY

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  11. Hello Casey, Hello Granny,

    I think the second Rolls Radio I bought was pretty busted up . But I got it just to replace the one lost three decades ago .

    Granny, there is a memory inside of everything . We can only hope that when we lose something , people like Casey find them !

    AP
    Malibu

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  12. @ Casey: I am not sure what happen to mine, maybe one of the dog's got the best of it. For $4.00 that is a great piece of history to re-own.

    My sister got me an XM radio, so I just use it for now.

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  13. I had the Rolls radio too -- I think everyone who had an interest in cars got one as a gift at one time or another. I seem to remember mine falling off a high shelf and smashing on the floor. I don't think I ever got batteries for it!

    Paul, NYC

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  14. The Model T in the photo is smashed a bit on the other side from dropping from my hands once. The wheels are cracked.

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  15. I think in the last big earthquake, my beat up Rolls was the only radio in the house that worked!


    This might have already be covered elsewhere , but
    did any of you get those Avon colognes in the Auburn/ Duesenberg bottles as Christmas gifts when you were a young man ?


    AP

    Malibu

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  16. i've never had that Auburn or Duesenberg, but I have several others including this '55 Thunderbird. I wrote about it in early October:

    http://artandcolour.blogspot.com/2010/10/ding-dong-avon-calling-in-1960s.html

    maybe I'll scan my others one of these days for the blog. Most are still filled with the cologne!

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  17. Thanks, Casey. I 'll go look that up.

    We had two bottles and my brother used it once and never again.
    The bottles were proudly on display from Christmas 1968 until we left home in 1973, but they were still full!

    ap

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