This is my top 5 harmonicas.
1: Hohner Marine Band Crossover C
2: ARKIA Signature - “Modular Booster” Paddy Richter
3: C.A. Seydel Söhne 1847 Classic C
4: East Top Advanced Diatonic Harmonica Key of C
5: Hohner Marine Band Deluxe G
What is your favorite harmonica?
I hate the company, but Suzuki Manjis are my favorite playing harps.
I’d follow that by Seydel Session Steel and Lee Oskar.
My number one is the same with a comb that can be dipped in alcohol to clean. I got a Rocker and it is very close to my Crossover. My Oskar is gathering dust as it is a box and the note quality below the Crossover or Rocket.
My favorite harmonica is easily the original Hohner Golden Melody. I could literally talk for hours about why I like this harp and have it as my harp of choice, but I’ll keep it brief.
I like to prioritize comfortability when it comes to choosing my harps. I really like designs with both curved edges, as I hate the comb digging into my hands, and full length cover plates which I prefer when I’m raking up and down the harmonica. I also genuinely love the tone of these harps as well. If I were to describe the timbre of the original Golden Melody, it’s more on the brighter side in terms of single notes but it has a more raspy quality on double stops and chords. They also sound great for amplified blues as well.
My #1 is Lee Oskar in Bb, followed by LO in C and D. Yes, I love the Oskars! I like their tone, and the covers don’t cut my lip like some other brands. I also like the Hohner Special 20 and the East Top Lightning and Blues Deluxe series. I just bought a BD in Am, and I’m looking forward to trying it out on my current songs to give them a new sound!
YES !
Wow, dude! You and I have pretty similar tastes in harmonicas and harmonica players. I know you also mentioned in another thread that you liked both Terry McMillan and Norton Buffalo, whom are my two biggest influences on the harmonica. It’s awesome getting to meet another fan of this playing style.
Now I’m wondering this. After the Golden Melody, what is your second favorite? For me, it’s the Suzuki Manji Sky which is a newer model that released about two years ago. I have one in Bb and I absolutely love how it plays. It has a raspy timbre like the Golden Melody, but also a tad bit brighter due to the cover plates being more open and the harp itself having more like a Hohner Marine Band-like design.
Even though I like how the Marine Band plays, I’m not a fan of wooden combs simply because I don’t like how the grooves in them feel in my mouth and they have the downside of swelling. Most of my harmonicas have plastic combs, but I also tried an aluminium comb and have some customized acrylic combs. While I do love the smoother feel and being easier to clean, I sometimes want to feel the earthiness of a wooden comb. The Manji’s claim to fame is the comb, which combines plastic with wooden fibers. This is also prevalent on the Olive model as well, which I consider that to be a sister harp to the Manji line. What I love about the Manji’s comb is that I could play with it all day and it will never swell up on me. I’d get the earthy textures of a wooden comb with the smooth feel of a plastic comb.
Wow , a little hard to answer
First , yes it’s pretty cool we have these players and harps in common . So glad these players are not forgotten . I’ll never forget the first time in the mid 1970s when I heard Magic Dick of J. Giles band play Wammer Jammer . WOW ! it just blew me away . Have you heard Buddy Green play ? Another talented player ( video attached )
Second , I think after Golden Melody the Special 20 is next . Smooth plastic comb is a plus for me . I had started out years ago with Blues Harps so I get what your saying about the wooden comb . But then again , I have so many harps ( 30+ ) and each one is really unique within itself . If you can understand what I’m trying to say , it’s like a Chromatic is more precise to play than the sloppiness of a Blues Harp
Heres Buddy Greene :
I’ve actually met Buddy Greene and talked to him a couple of times on Zoom. He’s incredibly nice. One of my greatest achievements as a harmonica player was getting my playing complimented by him because he heard me playing a gospel song, I think it was “I Saw the Light”, on Youtube. This was back in 2023 and I was still a student under Todd Parrott at the time. Just getting a compliment by the guy who influenced your teacher’s playing was incredible on its own, but it also showed me that there are professional harmonica players who do act professional and lift others up rather than tear them down.
You top one and mine are the same. I also think the Rocket Hohner offers is a great harp.
He’s seems like a great guy . I admire that in any musician . When a musician is nice to a person it always tells me they " never forgot where they came from " . I once met guitarist Tommy Emanuel . Super nice guy and took the time to talk to “me” .
I’m a retired Animal Control Officer and live near an area called Sneedings Landing ( not far from NYC ) In Sneedings Landing are many actors and actresses . Bill Murry - arrogant , Dee Dee Conn - we should have 100 more people in the world like her .
Being nice is important 
Amen to that.
very well said. I met him and he is a good ole boy from Georgia that never let his success change him.
