On Stage
Silver Street Guitars On Stage



















https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=94Zy1crWS0c











Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=poqCZy3FalQ







John in New Jersey is a musician who performs regularly in various venues. He recently used his red Spitfire on a tribute cover of the Icon song “In the End”. It was recorded by The Aurora Project as an homage to the song’s co-writer John Wetton who passed away in 2017. These photos show John’s guitar posse for the recording session and John putting his Spitfire through its paces. Thanks for the images and backstory, John! Here’s a link to the “In the End” video. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t416dq4zFpo

Silver Street’s Steve Volpp had approached Shaw with the idea of endorsing their line of guitars. Tommy’s first reaction was skeptical, said Volpp, since he had Gibson and Ibanez trying to get him to endorse their standard models when he was with Styx. However, neither company could make a standard model that was what he thought he wanted his name on. “After we brought in one of our standard models, then he was 99% sure we could deliver what he wanted. We started talking about some ideas Tommy had and started throwing out ideas for a custom model. We started out with the neck, then body design, pickups and wiring harness, and finally adjusting the placement of the volume and tone controls so they would be easily accessible and not in the way of the tremolo bar. We got the prototype done in time for the concert at Notre Dame. We had it done and up to what we both wanted out of the guitar. The guitar has a maple body with a maple three-piece neck, rosewood fingerboard and Dimarzio pickups. Depending on style, either a Schaller bridge, Kahler tremolo or Floyd Rose tremolo is used.” Shaw says the guitar is really a testimony to Steve Volpp and his persistence and tenacity. “He just kept working on it and finding me and bringing out prototypes until we both felt right.” Thanks to John in New Jersey for this information.


Joe Mumford was born in 1954 in Greenville, MS. He started playing guitar at age 14 and was soon playing professionally in Chicago and Los Angeles. He performed and/or recorded with well-known groups including The Temptations, The Pointer Sisters, Gladys Knight, Freda Payne and many others. With those groups he performed live, on television and in recording studios. While on tour, he performed in 29 countries. He died in Las Vegas on August 19, 2012.




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Spitfire S003 History by Bruce Hardy: After the NAMM show, I gave Spitfire S003 and a zebra striped Cobra to Rob Hepler. He was to act as our Sales Rep for Silver Street Guitars in PA. At that time, he was also a sales rep for an RV Company. He then sold it to a Christian bandmate in PA, Curt Hocke. When Curt unexpectedly passed away, Rob got it back from the family. Rob adds: “It was used to affect hundreds for Christ. Curt was a small guy, so he liked the body shape.” I let Rob know about Mike D. really wanting a Silver Street guitar, so it was sold to him. Rob added: “I believe my wife’s brother still has the zebra striped Cobra. I am going to try and get it back.” The image above is from a gig at the Park City Mall on Labor Day. We provided the sound; this was for Jerry’s Kids” benefit sometime in the early 90’s. Curt Hocke pictured at far left playing S003 and Rob Hepler center.




