Like Bigfoot emerging from the woods, JJ's Minick with the 12 inch bell appears on Mike Dease's social media

[slidefunk]

After reading about it in JJ Johnson's 'autobiography' I had always wanted to see a picture of the legendary horn with the huge bell. I had never been able to find one until today, there it was on Instagram. In a video, no less:

[Finetales]

That has to be a French horn bell, right?

[slidefunk]

It's been a while since I read the book so I would need to check my facts, but I believe it is indeed a French horn bell.

[tbonesullivan]

That definitely has an interesting timbre. What was JJ looking for by asking Minnick to make that for him? A slide flugabone?

[slidefunk]

I think this is the Downbeat interview quotes in the book:

[chromebone]

JJ had been doing that for a long time. He used to play a 3b slide on a 4B bell section and a 2b slide on a 3b bell section before that.

[harrisonreed]

That looks like AI

The sound is kind of like there is zero resistance on that horn. I'm not sure about it lol.

[dembones]

I heard him play it at the Blue Note in NYC. I was sitting right in front of him. Man could he play loud! I remember liking his tone on his regular horn better than the sound on this.

[Finetales]

I think this is the Downbeat interview quotes in the book:

Interesting, so he was trying to get a darker sound by making a trombone as conical as possible. I wonder if he ever tried a bass trombone (a la Slide Hampton) and concluded it took too much air, leading him to search for a different solution.

Kinda funny to see the Yamaha TG77 noted as "2G77". I would bet they just transcribed him talking and assumed the T was a 2.

[Doug Elliott]

I heard him play it at the Blue Note in NYC. I was sitting right in front of him. Man could he play loud! I remember liking his tone on his regular horn better than the sound on this.

I also heard him play it at the Blue Note, probably the same time. And Slide Hampton, the day before or the day after. I went up to hear both of them.

[slidefunk]

Interesting, so he was trying to get a darker sound by making a trombone as conical as possible. I wonder if he ever tried a bass trombone (a la Slide Hampton) and concluded it took too much air, leading him to search for a different solution.

That's exactly what I had envisioned in my head for years, a wider slide and larger bell throat. Maybe gold or red brass. Dark and mellow sound.

The real thing looks and sounds much different.