Some Conn 2J history
Posted: Sun Nov 15, 2009 5:32 pm
I saw a post offering a Conn 2J in trade for a rotary CC and a fair bit of discussion about the manufacture dates for the 2J and the Harvey Phillips connection including links to some former posts. I was studying with Harvey just prior to the release of the latest model to carry that designation. Just thought some might like a little extra info, though it might be information overload to some. I think I might have posted something about this about 10 years ago so this could be a repeat and it's even possible that there could be some slight discrepencies - it's possible that one's memory of things from nearly 40 years ago can change. Anyway this might be a few stories abreviated to make up one.
I got to NEC at Boston in Oct 70 and Harvey had been working with Conn for about 2 years or so on bringing out a new CC along the lines of the instrument he had been playing for several years. He had a few prototypes on hand and Dave Gannett was using one. At the time I was using my old King 4RV BBb Monster which was needing some work which I started to do in the workshop space I was given across from the piano workshop in the basement. I got a call to come to Harve's office.
He had a recording gig for the next day which he could not do and said he had told the studio he would send me along to it. Oooooooops, the King was in many pieces and there was no way i could have it ready by the next morning. "Not a worry, I"ve got a spare here which you can use," he said so away I went. It was one of the prototypes - not a bad axe, but very different to the King. Anyway the recording - a jingle for Cold Duck - got put down and eventually I even got paid after it had gone to air. I continued to use that as my main instrument until Harvey packed up to shift to Indiana. I would have liked to keep it but Harvey wanted to keep it in his collection or it was to go back to Conn - I'm not sure which, now - and in any case there was something better to come......
The horn Harvey was using was from about 1932 or so as I recall. He had it about half wrapped with black tape, mainly to cover suspected leaks. (As I recall an early recording of Harvey which included Air and Bouree had a picture of him with that horn in it's tape on the cover - can't be positive as my copy has disappeared over the years.) He had several of theses smaller Conns of various models. Included was a gold plated upright detachable bell one which Helleberg had used in the Sousa band. Anyway, his horn was playing a bit stuffy and he had me check it out for leaks. I took all the old tape off and gave it a good clean up. All it needed was a good clean and valve alignment. The tape on it for years was not needed as it didn't leak at all where the tape was bit I did resolder a couple other joints, the valves were still pretty tight, though were showing some wear. Just that somebody had mucked up with the felts and the valve guides needed replacing and filing to get correct alignment. It played very nicely when things were fixed up.
Back to the new ones. A couple more prototypes came in which we played and tweeked a bit here and there and early in 71 Harvey announced that the final version was ready to go into production, the nickel plating on the inside of the bell being the last change. There had been some discussion about the model designation and 2J had been decided on. This designation had been used previously - probably twice and as I recall the Helleberg horn had that designation.
It is quite possible that a 2J could have been made in 58. The latest started coming out in August and September of 71. (I think harvey took the first production (or last pre-production) copy with him to the Cassals festival that summer. I was supposed to get one of the 10 which Harvey was to get as part of his "package" for getting these horns produced. Mine was not ready yet when I could have picked one up at Conn as I worked my way across the States on my way to Australia. I got a call while I was in Seattle the day before I was ready to leave. Conn promised they would air freight it out to me in care of their one and only importing dealer in Melbourne , an outfit called Rose Music.
The retail price on these was to be quite reasonable - something like $1500 if memory is correct. Now, what was to be a "complimentary" copy turned into the unaffordable. The dealer refused to handle my horn unless they got to sell it to me at their retail price less a "professional discount" of a supposed 10%. That came to $2500 Australian (the Aussie dallar was actually worth $1.09 US at the time) PLUS freight, plus import duty plus, plus,etc. I never got mine and only ever got to play on one which John Woods who was playing in the ABC orchestra in Brisbane and later Melbourne imported. That was for about 10 minutes when he visited me for a bit of coaching. (Could go on with another story about getting pro gigs here but won't now.)
I called Harvey and he called Conn but Conn decided they would not ship the instrument out here except in accordance with their dealer's demands and no, they would not even ship it to anybody in the US so it could be forwarded to me. I don't think Harvey ever got it either - it must have disappeared into a black hole.
Anyway, that is a bit about the latest Conn 2J and how it was born.
I got to NEC at Boston in Oct 70 and Harvey had been working with Conn for about 2 years or so on bringing out a new CC along the lines of the instrument he had been playing for several years. He had a few prototypes on hand and Dave Gannett was using one. At the time I was using my old King 4RV BBb Monster which was needing some work which I started to do in the workshop space I was given across from the piano workshop in the basement. I got a call to come to Harve's office.
He had a recording gig for the next day which he could not do and said he had told the studio he would send me along to it. Oooooooops, the King was in many pieces and there was no way i could have it ready by the next morning. "Not a worry, I"ve got a spare here which you can use," he said so away I went. It was one of the prototypes - not a bad axe, but very different to the King. Anyway the recording - a jingle for Cold Duck - got put down and eventually I even got paid after it had gone to air. I continued to use that as my main instrument until Harvey packed up to shift to Indiana. I would have liked to keep it but Harvey wanted to keep it in his collection or it was to go back to Conn - I'm not sure which, now - and in any case there was something better to come......
The horn Harvey was using was from about 1932 or so as I recall. He had it about half wrapped with black tape, mainly to cover suspected leaks. (As I recall an early recording of Harvey which included Air and Bouree had a picture of him with that horn in it's tape on the cover - can't be positive as my copy has disappeared over the years.) He had several of theses smaller Conns of various models. Included was a gold plated upright detachable bell one which Helleberg had used in the Sousa band. Anyway, his horn was playing a bit stuffy and he had me check it out for leaks. I took all the old tape off and gave it a good clean up. All it needed was a good clean and valve alignment. The tape on it for years was not needed as it didn't leak at all where the tape was bit I did resolder a couple other joints, the valves were still pretty tight, though were showing some wear. Just that somebody had mucked up with the felts and the valve guides needed replacing and filing to get correct alignment. It played very nicely when things were fixed up.
Back to the new ones. A couple more prototypes came in which we played and tweeked a bit here and there and early in 71 Harvey announced that the final version was ready to go into production, the nickel plating on the inside of the bell being the last change. There had been some discussion about the model designation and 2J had been decided on. This designation had been used previously - probably twice and as I recall the Helleberg horn had that designation.
It is quite possible that a 2J could have been made in 58. The latest started coming out in August and September of 71. (I think harvey took the first production (or last pre-production) copy with him to the Cassals festival that summer. I was supposed to get one of the 10 which Harvey was to get as part of his "package" for getting these horns produced. Mine was not ready yet when I could have picked one up at Conn as I worked my way across the States on my way to Australia. I got a call while I was in Seattle the day before I was ready to leave. Conn promised they would air freight it out to me in care of their one and only importing dealer in Melbourne , an outfit called Rose Music.
The retail price on these was to be quite reasonable - something like $1500 if memory is correct. Now, what was to be a "complimentary" copy turned into the unaffordable. The dealer refused to handle my horn unless they got to sell it to me at their retail price less a "professional discount" of a supposed 10%. That came to $2500 Australian (the Aussie dallar was actually worth $1.09 US at the time) PLUS freight, plus import duty plus, plus,etc. I never got mine and only ever got to play on one which John Woods who was playing in the ABC orchestra in Brisbane and later Melbourne imported. That was for about 10 minutes when he visited me for a bit of coaching. (Could go on with another story about getting pro gigs here but won't now.)
I called Harvey and he called Conn but Conn decided they would not ship the instrument out here except in accordance with their dealer's demands and no, they would not even ship it to anybody in the US so it could be forwarded to me. I don't think Harvey ever got it either - it must have disappeared into a black hole.
Anyway, that is a bit about the latest Conn 2J and how it was born.