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Post by andyray on Mar 17, 2008 12:19:44 GMT -6
this guitar was purchased in 1979 from upstate new york. it seems to be a les paul knock-off, and it has the word lark written in gold cursive on the headstock. I am having trouble finding info on it. any info you might have would be appreciated.
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Mar 18, 2008 6:57:04 GMT -6
Maybe a photo would help.
Ibanez made a number of "store brands" during the 70's. These were identical to the Ibanez guitars with a different logo on the headstock.
My favorite were the "Bradley" guitars from Music Emporium in Northern Virginia. My friend had a killer "lawsuit" Les Paul Custom in black with gold hardware. He put a Dimarzio Super Distortion in that rig, and it sounded and looked great.
John
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Post by shattered on Mar 18, 2008 13:40:10 GMT -6
You're likely to have a tough time finding background info on lesser-known names. Some of them are as good or better than anything Fender or Gibson could make, and the stuff Ibanez was doing in the 70s is a good example.
I've owned two guitars by Memphis (still own one, which has been heavily modded), and also owned a Lotus LP copy. I've been unable to find any info on either company. I tried doing a search on Lark after reading your post, and have come up empty. In which upstate city did you buy it? I live in Buffalo, so I'm curious. Is it plywood or solid wood?
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Post by andyray on Mar 19, 2008 7:32:50 GMT -6
This guitar was bought in Seneca Falls in 1979. I dont know if it is solid or plywood cause its in the shop, but when I get it back I will look and see.
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Post by shattered on Mar 19, 2008 10:20:44 GMT -6
I had a Lotus LP copy the same color, but with a cream pickguard and pickup rings, and without the binding on the headstock. I had some problems with the bridge, but a nice guitar overall.
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Post by andyray on Apr 5, 2008 6:48:36 GMT -6
I wanted to thank everyone for the information, from what i can gather this guitar was manufactured in Korea by the ibanez company, distributed by the Philadelphia music company as there store brand "Lark". This guitar does have a plywood body. I had the repair work performed at Guitar Works in Cary town Richmond VA. I spent 70 bucks on parts and 30 bucks on labor to get this guitar into playing condition, it sounds good and has the classic sound, stays in tune and is fun to play. thanks again
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Post by GuitarAttack Forum on Apr 10, 2008 10:43:56 GMT -6
The glory days of copies! Glad to be of service.
Do you know the store where those were originally sold?
Enjoy the guitar. John
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Post by shattered on Apr 10, 2008 11:27:50 GMT -6
Did you just replace the hardware that's missing in the pictures you posted, or did you upgrade electronics? Inquiring minds want to know! This thread makes me miss my Lotus LP copy...I sold it and my ART 830 to finance my honeymoon several years back.
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Post by andyray on Sept 1, 2008 8:27:10 GMT -6
Ok, when i took the guitar to the shop i had just the necessary parts put on to get it in playing condition,(tailpiece, bridge, and jack). I bought a practice solid state amp at the same time. I got tired of the amp a couple of weeks ago and bought an epi valve junior head and cabinet. (5 raging watts) I immediately ordered new JJ tubes for it and it sounds pretty cool. A few days ago I broke down and bought the seymour duncan hot rodded humbucker set with the sh-4 jb and sh-2n, WOW. I plan on replacing the harness with push/pull pots cause you can tap these pickups from humbuckers to single coil. I have also polished the body, cleaned and conditioned the fingerboard on this guitar and will post pictures of it clean as soon as I can.
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Post by RalphDog on Feb 15, 2015 16:37:54 GMT -6
Hmmm.... interesting. my partner and I owned Smith & Jones Music in Seneca Falls in the late 70's and early 80's. The "Lark" name sounds very familiar but honestly, I can't remember. We sold Guild Guitars and then others from a distributor by then name of C.Bruno and Son. Mostly "off-brands" like Ventura and Memphis (mentioned earlier). Bruno was purchased by Kaman - an aerospace manufacturer. They started distributing Ovation guitars and the lower-end Applause guitars. Both had a man-made rounded back made from the same materials used their aerospace mfg. Bruno was also the first US distributor of Takamine and their knock-off Carlos. We at times used other distributors, but I can't really be sure who distributed Lark and if it was in our store. As my partner said, I can't remember much about the 70's. - Ha!
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Post by Deleted on Feb 16, 2015 9:36:37 GMT -6
Lark's have been around for a long while. I have seen them off and on over the years. don't know much about them. I had a friend that had one a long time ago. But have seen them like I said off and on over the years. EB
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Post by jason on Oct 24, 2016 21:25:54 GMT -6
i have a 1974 lark gold at the top of head stock. mom bought it for my dad.
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Post by SUPER SIMON on Nov 8, 2016 17:19:40 GMT -6
I have a 70's "J" style Lark bass. I bought at a pawn shop id Philly for $150, no case. After about a 3-4 months one of the pickups died. It's a great piece of wood with a straight neck, so I sent the pickups to Lindy Fralin. I then installed a baddass bridge and replaced all the crappy 500k pots with 250k pots and an orange drop 47u capacitor. This bass is totally awesome! Yes, I'm into it for a few bucks, but it was completely worth it. I encourage anyone whose got a lawsuit type bass to experiment with some simple upgrades. You might end up with a real gem.
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Post by CoachRon on Jan 30, 2017 15:11:30 GMT -6
I have a cherry sunburst Lark Les Paul from around 1979. I remember paying around $300 for it when I bought it new. Still a great guitar and I enjoy playing it. Does anyone have an idea what it might be worth? As mentioned above, tough to find information on Lark guitars.
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Post by chezvoz on Jan 30, 2017 17:42:03 GMT -6
I have a 73 or 74 Ventura Les Paul, with a bolt on neck. It seems I'd be lucky to get now what it cost new then, which I believe was $250.
It plays OK for being a "fretless wonder." I thought frets that size were normal for the longest time. It was a LOT better than my first electric - a Japanese single PU offset sunburst guitar with no name. Perhaps Teisco.
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