Lunch Report - Thursday 11 July

It’s easy to get a little housebound when you work at home, so since it’s yet another nice clear blue skied day here – over a week now, must be some kind of all-time record – I strolled out to indulge a vice: Subway.

I always have the same thing: footlong chicken and bacon, cheese, toasted, with lettuce, onion, jalapeno, gherkin and southwest sauce on Italian. Washed down the hole with black coffee and, since it was free, a cheesecake flavoured cookie.

More G&L success musings

Now, following on from yesterday’s discussion of G&L never really catching on as a Big Name, I’ve been wondering about how G&L do, and could, work with that.

There are some companies that know they’ve got a small, but loyal customer base and use that to make great stuff that really satisfies that tiny slice of the wider market.

Others seem always to want to take on the big guys and, more often than not, fail; both in terms of alienating their existing customers and running out of money long before they find the mainstream. Interestingly, there are a lot of parallels with bands and musicians here, too.

So how well do you think G&L plays this game? What do they do well, or badly? What do you think they could be doing that they aren’t?

Guitar moves

I stumbled across this great little YouTube series call Guitar Moves. I think they really cracked the formula: really engaging and funny conversation, educational and inspiring without lecturing. This one with Josh Homme from Queens of the Stone Age is by far the best so far.

[youtube]AJDUHq2mJx0[/youtube]

What interesting little tricks – not really technique or theory as such, but little methods and shortcuts – have you picked up over the years that make you sound like you?

For me, a big one is leaving open strings in chord voicings a lot to get interesting extended chords. I’m not sure where I lifted it from, but I recently started listening to Ty Tabor and he does a lot of similar things.

Phooey,

G&L does many things well and I am the last one to tell them how to run their business. This is not Leo's G&L but it is a good guitar. Two different products.
Actually I have told them how to run their business and it didn't go over so well. That was while they were discarding Leo's designs and moving from hand work to cnc machines. Live and learn.

Great guitars now but I dig the old ones,

y2kc

Maybe get some G&Ls in the hands of Mudhoney,

Local boys get high ( at five PST )
this would've been a great opportunity for publicity.


Live youtube KEXP feed
[youtube]LK3K3Z2YCLA[/youtube]


Someday a good looking brilliant guitarist that can sing high notes will be using a G&L to make
music magic. Until then , we can get them a little cheaper.

good LRs this week !
elwood

Whoah! is that an all day event? It took me a minute to realize that it wasn't 5 minutes and 43 seconds long but 5 hours and 43 minutes long. Cool! I happen to like a fair amount of grunge music, but I aints gots the time tonight to listen/watch the entire thing. Maybe on Saturday. I've had such a long day (I worked from 7 AM until after 5 PM, did laundry until 7 PM, and spent time dealing with/paying bills until 9 PM), that I'm only now, cooking supper (it's 9:20 PM)! Pulling out the 12-string acoustic, or plugging in one of the electrics to play for a little while is looking like a fading possibility, since I have to get up at 4:45 AM for work.

Phooey - the Josh Homme vid is pretty cool (been listening to his stuff since he was in Kyuss - we used to blast away on "Thumb by Kyuss for laughs during band rehearsal back in the day). I didn't know that he did fingerstyle playing. LOVE the Gretsch G-100 Synchromatic. If I could find one for a steal, I might scoop it up for some jazz bopping, despite already having a great jazz guitar (my Gretsch Country Club). It looks like Josh and Matt had a fun time.

Here's the er..good stuff, when you have time. music starts at 21:32 ...but watch the few moments before, you can sense the electricity in the air.
[youtube]wAwq_kQuRsU[/youtube]

interesting video. it also reveals how people get into bad habits without realizing it. the guy on the right has a right hand angle that will hurt his hand eventually (if he plays enough). that angle in the wrist is bad for the tendons. the guy on the right has poor left hand technique, but it is only limiting him, it should not cause injury. but the habit of lifting the fingers so far from the fretboard causes sloppiness and tension. unfortunately even most teachers don't correct those issues, and i have no idea why.

interesting video. it also reveals how people get into bad habits without realizing it. the guy on the right has a right hand angle that will hurt his hand eventually (if he plays enough).

It doesn't look ( or sound) like they play alot ( enough) these days.
good observations.

What a rush that would be, with single coils of course.

Some covers come to mind,
I can see for miles...
Purple Haze
and this one for some reason:
[youtube]0yq-Fw7C26Y[/youtube]

elwood

[quote="Phooey"]

More G&L success musings

Now, following on from yesterday’s discussion of G&L never really catching on as a Big Name, I’ve been wondering about how G&L do, and could, work with that.

There are some companies that know they’ve got a small, but loyal customer base and use that to make great stuff that really satisfies that tiny slice of the wider market.

Others seem always to want to take on the big guys and, more often than not, fail; both in terms of alienating their existing customers and running out of money long before they find the mainstream. Interestingly, there are a lot of parallels with bands and musicians here, too.

So how well do you think G&L plays this game? What do they do well, or badly? What do you think they could be doing that they aren’t?




there all several ways to measure success
1 .... total production out put or gross sales

2.... total profit

3 .... set out to do something in particular and achieve it , Since G & L set out to make a quality affordable instrument I would say Leo achieved his goal and BBE has maintained it

that said , what I would do (if I was G & L) and we wanted more sales , I would cram adds in every guitar magazine and internet forum ...... I would start every add as "when george fullerton and leo fender started G & L " they wanted a high quality affordable professional grade guitars for musicians ect ect ect ..... the next month's issues advertisement I would talk about George and Leo's MFD pick up and there advantages ...... next month I would talk about "George and Leo's" dual fulcrum vibrato and there advantages over the competion ,maybe do a Paul Gagon alnico addvertisement and explain who Paul is and his accomplishments ... after 6 months or a year everyone will associate George Fullerton and Leo Fender as G & L and name recognition problem will be solved

next I would do the same for the tribute line ..... start every add as George and Leo , explain that G & L tribute series is designed for students and musicans on a tight budget without sacrificing quality or sound ... explain the tribute series as less options and foriegn made for reduced cost's/low price without sacrificing quality or sound , Explain G & L is the only company putting the same proffesional grade hardware and pick ups in there tribute series as there top line American guitars , totally high quality with out the price ... maybe even cram adds in December 10 percent off or rebate on all tributes during the christmas shopping season and get the internet talking about it

if G & L needs me , I can relocate to California

fumble, fender owns leo's name. mentioning leo fender in an ad would likely cost more than any increase in sales would offset. why do you think g&l cnn''t have the leo signature on the guitars?

fumble, fender owns leo's name. mentioning leo fender in an ad would likely cost more than any increase in sales would offset. why do you think g&l cnn''t have the leo signature on the guitars?

Don't know how that exactly is, maybe not that simple, but I remember FMIC wasn't allowed (or at least they said they weren't) to celebrate Leo Fender's 100th Birthday in a big event, because of G&L.

I think, G&L is not allowed to put the name Fender anywhere on a guitar, while Leo isn't a problem.

interesting video. it also reveals how people get into bad habits without realizing it. the guy on the right has a right hand angle that will hurt his hand eventually (if he plays enough).

It doesn't look ( or sound) like they play alot ( enough) these days.
good observations.

What a rush that would be, with single coils of course.

Some covers come to mind,
I can see for miles...
Purple Haze
and this one for some reason:
[youtube]0yq-Fw7C26Y[/youtube]

elwood

Nah, half the guys in Mudhoney don't live in Washington state anymore (I read it in an interview last year), so the only time the band really gets together anymore, is when they practice for doing short duration tours (it doesn't sound like they do much touring anymore). So, yeah, they probably are a bit rusty playing together.

As for "Oh Well" - LOVE Fleetwood Mac Mk1!!! But that group sure was under a black cloud! Jerremy Spencer left Fleetwood Mac to rejoin the religious cult he grew up in (spending a few years in a compound in South America in the process). Peter Green and Danny Kirwen ended up suffering from mental illness (both Mick Fleetwood and John McVie blame it on the fact that Peter and Danny were taken off by a rich German couple [who belonged to some cult] to a party, where both of the guys wound up getting dosed up non-stop on LSD for 2 or 3 days straight).

The last info I saw on Danny Kirwan, said that he was basically a psychotic bum living on the streets of London. Peter Green has stabilized a bit mentally, and is playing guitar again. While he gigs on occasion, he's nothing like he was before 1970 chopswise. Watch the "Man of The World" documentary on Peter Green. There are interviews with all of the old Mk1 group members (except Danny Kirwan). While Peter isn't bat crazy anymore, you can tell that he's not quite all there. I don't like everyting the Mk1 version of Fleetwood Mac did (sometimes it veers too much into "blues deluxe" territory for my taste), but when they were good, they were REALLY good. And they were a 3 guitar band at a time when those were just about non-existant.

For those interested in it, here's the full (Peter Green) "Man of the World" documentary.

[youtube]-Vkh63QIw-c[/youtube]

fumble, fender owns leo's name. mentioning leo fender in an ad would likely cost more than any increase in sales would offset. why do you think g&l cnn''t have the leo signature on the guitars?

ads are not the guitar , I would be have the attorney's look it over to be safe and push the limit , all advertising should start with George and Leo so everyone will know that G & L is George and Leo

all advertising should start with George and Leo so everyone will know that G & L is George and Leo

Would have been a good idea when Leo and George still were around, but not nowadays, just my opinion.

I think it would still be good to throw George and Leo on everything until the name is synomious with G & L , plus BBE seems to run the place just like Leo did or it least hasn't done anything too crazy , heck they haven't even changed a thing in his office

funny how things go sometimes. after reading comments i went back and watched the guitar moves video looking for what louis described. not to be disrespectful but the guy on the right looks like he could develop a lot of problems from bad habits. his posture is going to be murder on his back. i noticed he also looks very fatigued.

then i realized he was dripping in sweat. the guy on the left looks a little more composed but he too wipes his face the way people do when they are very hot. i think it must have been a blistering hot day in that room.

speaking of sweat, that isn't the most flattering freeze frame for a video with mick fleetwood's wet arm pit.


the tributes say something like "tribute series" but many of the usa made g&l's say "guitars by leo" under the g&l logo, right? i have seen it on quite a few. i know some only have the logo. if they could have that on the headstock they might have been able to feature "guitars by leo" in all of their advertisements. then everyone would have "guitars by leo" as the first thing that came to mind when they thought about anything g&l. that is warm and fuzzy.

when they started the company it doesn't seem like selling g&l was an objective given enough attention while evolving and experimenting on the other hand was. i wonder if leo felt happy about abandoning those early unique styled guitars and using familiar tele and strat styles. i guess he probably made a compromise and let it go so he could focus on experiments with the guts?

then i realized he was dripping in sweat. the guy on the left looks a little more composed but he too wipes his face the way people do when they are very hot. i think it must have been a blistering hot day in that room.

Is it the Mudhoney vid you are talking about?
If so...the room is a little stage on top of the space needle. It was a mild mid 70's day.
Weird how the wind died down for the show ( they are supposed to have tethers, I don't see any).
Mark's hair is barely moving.

elwood

i was referring to the 1st video "josh hommes - guitar moves - episode 3"

Thanks ,that makes more sense all of a sudden ...I'll go back and watch that vid.