Lunch Report - Friday February 25, 2011

[KenC]

Lunch:
I just realized this morning how badly I need to go grocery shopping. Lunch will be tuna salad (again) with a couple of oranges (again), probably eaten at my desk while I plow through some work.

G&L Topic:
The question of the day on Wednesday was whether we select our guitars or our guitars select us. Mine select me most of the time. The biggest factor in whether I end up bonding with any particular instrument is how well the body resonates. This naturally drives me toward having (or keeping) instruments that have seen a lot of playing time over several years, and often means the instruments come to me with much less than 100% of their original finish. A few may even have less than 100% of their original wood. These were all used guitar shop finds, and didn't come from G&L collections. I keep my guitars in hardshell cases any time they are not in my hands, and fortunately I haven't dropped, stepped on or otherwise traumatized a guitar yet in 30 years of playing (aside from exposing one to an uncle with a blowtorch, but that was only once!). Seeing the various bits of G&L porn on this sight makes me realize just how beat up most of my guitars are in comparison to others of the same age. Questions of the Day: How do you protect your prized G&Ls from miscellaneous dings, scratches, scuffs and worse? Do you think your care routine is typical of most electric guitarists/bassists, or do we tend to be a more protective group in the G&L community?

Non-G&L Topic:
As I mentioned on Monday, I was away from the discussion group and electric guitars in general for about ten years. It wasn't complete musical inactivity, though. A search for new musical ideas (fueled to a great extent by finding my SB-1) got me exploring jazz, which led me to try the string bass (a/k/a upright bass). I ended up gigging on this instrument with African and Middle Eastern drummers, which led to experimenting with the oud (the guitar's ancestor - imagine a short scale, fretless, 12-string classical guitar with a bowl body). I'm still doing a bit with the string bass, but am coming around full-circle to the electric guitar as my instrument of choice. There isn't even a single lick that I've carried over from either of the other stringed instruments back to the guitar, but being forced to look at a fingerboard in a new light (and without frets or position markers!) really broke me out of relying on the same comfortable chords and fingering patterns and helped focus on where the melody was heading. Questions of the Day: Do you sing or play anything other than electric guitar or bass? If so, how has it affected your electric guitar/bass playing?

I would like to thank everybody for the great participation on the board this week. I was pretty nervous when late afternoon had rolled around on Monday and no responses had been posted yet, but after the initial worry this has been a great experience. I really appreciate all of the kind words and support. I'm amazed to see just how little this forum has changed after a ten-year absence. I doubt there's anyplace else on the web that is so open, friendly and above all civil. Words can't express how glad I am to have found my way back.

Next week we will have another first-time Lunch Reporter. Astutzmann has accepted the nomination. I look forward to his posts next week.

Sincerely,

Ken

[yowhatsshakin]

Hi Ken,

Thanks so much for a fine week of LR's. It is great to see it still rolling with so many first timers picking it up lately. Not too long ago there were talks of dropping the tradition all together due to lack of reporters.

I am the same as you. I keep my guitars in their hard shell case if I'm not playing it. The only guitar permanently out of its case is either of my 2 Ovations. Their carbon fiber back make them just that tad less prone to damage. Furthermore, I'm not somebody moving around a lot when playing so I don't bang into anything either and keep my belt buckle away from the back of the guitar; one of the few advantages of having a bit more of a belly at my age Have a couple of guitars stands in different strategic places so there is always a safe and stable place to put it back. I learned my lesson when a long time ago I rested my acoustic guitar against a wall. Even though I had turned it around, so the front of the headstock rested completely on the wall, it slid away sideways and broke the headstock just beyond the nut. Going through that trauma once was enough for me. When done playing, I wipe it off, clean the strings, and back in its case it goes. But the story would be different when you're a gigging musician, playing small stages, and/or going all out. The guitar would see way more abuse that way.

As a teenager I dabled around on the keyboard. But guitar and bass have always been my main instruments. I do have a mandolin which due to its 'up-side-down' tuning forces you to rethink chord shapes. But since you can just mirror them it is still not that complete foreign.

Thanks again Ken for the excellent questions this week.

- Jos

[astutzmann]

Hi Ken:

Great job this week, I hope I can do half as good next week.

You really got me thinking about how I store my guitars when I'm not playing them. I like them all out and currently have a 5 guitar rack that they are on, its protected in a corner of the room. Not sure which is better, out (easier to get and play) or in cases like you guys do. when playing I occasionally hit the headstock on my desk, that's the worst that happens to them.

On my bluesboy, it was on a single stand for a year and the sun was shining thru the window onto it for part of the day. Neck warped (nothing major) and needed a truss rod adjustment, wont do that again.

My guitar teacher has half his guitars out, half in cases but he has a humidifier in the room and says that a humidifier or at least a large vase with water in it, is a great idea for our climate.

I would really like to hear more about this from folks, what they think is the right thing to do.

Nothing other than guitar right now, more on that next week!

Alf

[darwinohm]

Ken, I have had a bout with the flu this week, so I have only been watching. Lunches have been sparse.

Interesting reports this week and it is so good to hear from recent new members. I hang many of my guitars on the wall, I have ten in two 5 racks and one in a display case. Ginny and I are empty nesters so children are not a worry and the grand daughters are very careful around them. I am very fortunate in that I have only one new guitar that I have put a ding in. It is going to get a make over this spring. It is a Fender American Deluxe Strat. It was not a favorite color soo it could end up some kind of Red. I am the only person who moves the guitars. If someone wants to look, I take it down for them.

There has been some discussions on rarebirds this week. I am not sure that they will appreciate in value that much but I am taking good care of the few that I have. Even though the G&L rarebirds are low in build numbers, I think that Fenders that are pre 1990 and build numbers of 100 or less are collectible. Time will tell.

Someone had asked if the Bigsby on my Bluesboy changed the balance. It was heavy to begin with. I am going to gig it on Sunday and will report next week.

Thanks again Ken for the interesting week!! Darwin

[sickbutnottired]

Great Week on LR, Ken.

I store my guitars on stands right now. I want to get a hanging setup, but haven't gotten around to it. Most little dings I get when I am playing. I put a little scratch on an otherwise cherry ASAT Deluxe last week trying to lean around a music stand with a laptop on it and futz with a recorder. A better console setup would be the biggest improvement to my practice regimen and ultimately the care of my instruments. I have also put more than one chip on the front of a guitar turning around into the headstock of a bass being played right next to me...

I sort of sing, out of necessity. I have been working on my singing both harmonies and trying to add dynamics to it. I think I might try and take a few voice lessons. It has been very good for my ear for sure. I have also fiddled with the harmonica off and on. But playing the harmonica is like playing the guitar, it's easy to suck--and I haven't gotten beyond that yet. I was just getting to point that I could reliably play the single note I wanted and have gotten very busy and haven't worked on it hardly at all.

[blargfromouterspace]

I keep my guitars in their cases to keep them safe, with some of that Silica stuff. I used to have wall hangers, but have been moving house far too often in the last few years to get that set up again. My parts guitar stays on a stand in my den for quick access and I'm always careful not to bump it off. I also have a 5 guitar rack which I leave my guitars on when on stage. I take two guitars and my banjo to gigs, leaving room for anyone else who might need to use it. So far I've been good with my G&L's - none of them have had any significant dings. I've knocked them into mic stands and had instrument collisions with the bass player but they aren't damaged. I become most concerned for the safety of my gear when punters at bars/clubs get on stage during breaks.

A good tip when playing live is to make sure that the rest of the stage (PA, lights etc) is set up before you put your my gear into place, and make sure to pack your guitars away as soon as you've done the final number. This will reduce the chance of the sound guy knocking the guitars off of your rack as he lays/packs up his cables.

I do a bit of backing vocals, though I have sang lead vocals in the past. I enjoy singing and always have a great night after I've belted out a couple of songs. I also play the banjo. We've recently worked it into the set with the country band, doing a medley of 'Foggy Mountain Breakdown' and 'Dueling Banjos'. Audiences go crazy for it. Playing the banjo hasn't really added to my repertoire of licks on the guitar but did force me to look at chords in a different way. I taught myself to play it, and by working out chord shapes I discovered that to play certain chords I'd have to be selective about notes, eg. Cmaj7, I'd end up playing an Em shape. I carried that over to guitar. I have a lap steel, but like Jeremy (sickbutnottired) has said, it's all to easy to suck so I don't gig with it yet!

Thanks for a great week of reports, Ken. You've asked some great questions! I'm looking forward to hearing from Alf next week.

[sam]

Great week Ken, welcome back and thanks for giving me another case of GAS with the talk of rarebirds.

G&L Topic:
Questions of the Day: How do you protect your prized G&Ls from miscellaneous dings, scratches, scuffs and worse? Do you think your care routine is typical of most electric guitarists/bassists, or do we tend to be a more protective group in the G&L community?
I try to keep my G&L's and better ones in cases when not played, have two tele copies always out in some state or other to pick up and play. Unfortunatly dings and scratches have occured to a few new G&L's due to me being a clutz, ah well. My only fanatic thing is that I keep them on a stand about 7 inches off the ground to prevent any damage should water tank bust. Equipment is in the basement and so is water tank.

Non-G&L Topic:
Questions of the Day: Do you sing or play anything other than electric guitar or bass? If so, how has it affected your electric guitar/bass playing? Singing is best kept to minimum and I have said I was going to learn piano for years....we shall see.

[zapcosongs]

Protecting my G&L guitars: I tend to play one guitar until the new strings go dead, then move on to another, so I change guitars every three weeks or so. I keep my guitars in their cases.

Singing/Other instruments: I have a theory that everybody can sing - it's just that some folks do it better than others. So, yes, I sing but it's not something you'd want to listen to for more than a song or two (if that). I took piano lessons from the time I was four until I was twelve years old, so I got kind of good at that. Unfortunately, I hated the (mother imposed) practice regimen, so I quit in favor of sports, scouting, etc. Looking back, I should have stuck with it. I've forgotten most of what I had learned, including my ability to read music fairly effortlessly.

Within the past couple of years, I have acquired a couple of nice Leo-era G&L basses. I would very much like to learn how to play them in the near future. Great week, and welcome back! - ed