Joe Bonamassa’s Nerdville guitar amp collection has just welcomed its newest member: Lowell George’s Dumble Overdrive Special Reverb (ODSR).
According to its new custodian, the legendary amp was last played on June 28, 1979, the night before Little Feat’s often overlooked guitar genius died at the age of 34.
Apparently, this particular Dumble – with its matching cab – has been on JoBo’s radar for quite some time, with Bonamassa saying this purchase brings an end to a “15 year quest” to get his hands on it.
It looks as though it’s been worth the wait, though: its proud new owner has called the ODSR “the crown jewel of my amplifier collection”. It makes sense: ODSR's are incredibly scarce at the best of times, so to own one that had once belonged to Lowell George is borderline unbelievable.
“Well there is cool and there is this,” Bonamassa wrote. “The Lowell George Dumble Overdrive Special Reverb serial number 009 has finally made it to the Nerdville green shag after a 15 year quest.
“This amp last played live at the Lisner Auditorium in Washington, DC on June 28, 1979,” he continued. “Lowell tragically died a day later at the age of 34 bringing suddenly to an end the life of one of the most talented and significant musicians in Rock and Roll.
“Little Feat is a hall of fame group and they belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame end of story.”
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George’s relationship with Howard Alexander Dumble and his amps was well-documented, and the slide guitar guru played through a handful of different models during his playing career. This particular head is an extremely early example of an original Dumble, and served as George’s go-to amp.
Speaking to Guitar Player back in 1977, George discussed the custom Dumble he was using at the time, calling it “the best amp I’ve ever played through”.
“I’m using a custom-made Howard Dumble amp which is the best one that I’ve ever played through,” he said. “It’s like a Fender made right.”
This particular amp is absolutely steeped in history, and fortunately Bonamassa has no plans to keep it holed up on display at Nerdville. Instead, he fully intends to take it on the road with him – and it could happen sooner than you might think.
“This amp will be back on the road again as early as this July,” Bonamassa added, “but most likely in the fall.”
“The opportunity to own one of your top guitar hero's amplifiers made by Alexander Dumble is a once in a lifetime event. I feel very blessed to have it. It is certainly the crown jewel of my amplifier collection. Thank you to Drew and Suren for helping make this happen and to Agent R for picking it up this afternoon.”
Keep your eyes peeled on Joe Bonamassa's Instagram account for future Dumble demos.
In the meantime, George's ODSR is safe and sound at Nerdville, whose security systems were bumped up after a fire almost completely destroyed its entire haul.
