Archive for the ‘Acoustic Guitar’ Category
When you listen to a song what do you hear? When you listen to a song you like, what is it that you like about it?
I have asked musicians and people who do not play any musical instruments at all these very questions, the answers I got were pretty consistently the same. When someone tells me they like a song I ask them in return, What do you like about it? If it is a song that I like also I will ask if they like lets say the bass guitar line, or the sound of the electric guitar solo, or even the acoustic guitar playing on the song?
Most of the time someone that does not play guitar will not even take notice of the instruments on the song, they recognize the singing, or the singer but are oblivious to the music behind them. When someone that does play and is proficient at it they hear that great bass guitar riff that makes the song great, or the guitar solo whether played acoustically or on an electric guitar. Someone familiar with music can also tell you what pedals are used to make the electric guitar sound the way it does.
The last blog was a lot of fun, digging up and remembering supergoups from the past that I thought I would continue that theme in this blog. Hopefully these names will stimulate your thoughts if you are as old as I am, or stir your curiosity if your new to some of the names.
First up is the Traveling Wilburys, shot started as a simple jam session among friends turned into something very special for us all. Armed with electric guitars as well as acoustic guitars these individuals were all highly respected and well known artists. The Traveling Wilburys were made up of equal parts of George Harrison (The Beatles), (ELO otherwise known as Electric Light Orchestra), Bob Dylan, Roy Orbison, and Tom Petty. The name “Wilburys” referred to the studio equipment that was able to cover up their mistakes in the final mix.
For me a band that deserves to be on this list is Fleetwood Mac. While each of its’ members were known before combining their efforts, none were as successful as after joining Fleetwood Mac. While founding member Peter Green left the band the five members everyone remembers most are, Mick Fleetwood on drums and also one of the founding members of the band, my personal favorite Christine McVie on keyboards, vocals, and songwriter of some of the bands biggest hits like “You Make Loving Fun”, Over My Head”, and “say That You Love Me”, all that can still be heard on the radio today. Stevie Nicks whose vocals can be heard on “Rhianna” and “Dreams” can also still be heard on the radio. Bass guitar was played by John McVie who contributed with some fantastic bass riffs. Rounding out the band is Lindsey Buckingham playing electric guitar. On stage you never saw him use a fingerpick, he always used his fingers and fingernails to give us some of the most brilliant guitar solos ever.
Have you ever been driving in your car or truck when a song came on the radio that you never heard before? As soon as you get home you start looking for the song, when you find it you find it had an outstanding bass guitar line that was invisible on the radio, you start to ask yourself why.
How about those songs you hear over and over on the radio that you just don’t like. As with the first example you find the songs done live by what ever band it is, and you hear electric guitar licks you never heard on the radio, and are now a big fan of that particular band.
That has happened quite a bit to me, one such band for me is The Doobie Brothers. There music has been on the radio for decades and to me it was alright, but nothing great. If you have never heard The Doobies try it. Electric guitars are used for most of their songs, featuring great guitar solos, along with some snappy rhythm guitar work, and if you are an acoustic guitar lover listen to “Snake Man” a song which the play entirely with acoustic guitars along with a steel guitar.
I am 57 years old, other parents like me are at a greater advantage of our parents. When I was a teenager rock and roll was just beginning and my parents didn’t understand it, being from an era of the 1930’s.
Rock and roll has lasted for more than 50 years, that puts us on the same, or better level of music with our sons and daughters then our parents had with us. It’s a great time to communicate with your children through music.
It’s a great time for everyone in the family to learn music and have one big jam. It doesn’t matter if you play bass guitar, electric guitar, of even acoustic guitar music is something the whole family can share, (who knows you might even impress your child with your musical talents). The experience with your child will also bring you closer to the music
Are you a mellow acoustic guitar picker style, or maybe you like to exercise your guitar amplifier volume control along with some classic rock electric guitar solos. You practice like crazy but feel like something is still missing.
Whether your learning through an instructor, or teaching yourself from the many guitar lessons that are available on line, or maybe you just play by ear it pays to find some other musicians in your area. They can be equal, better or even just beginning ir doesn’t matter, everyone benefits from just getting together to jam.
You might learn something from that person playing an acoustic guitar, or he might pick something up from you on your electric guitar. Jamming alone makes you a better player. You find your own concentration will be better, along with that instinctive quality that makes you try harder not to make any mistakes.
Turn off your guitar amplifier and put down your electric guitar, there is a radio program that will put a new twist on the way you view and listen to your favorite rock and roll songs. This radio show takes your favorite rock songs done by your favorite rock band but the song is done acoustically.
The name of the show is The Acoustic Storm. It normally airs on Sunday morning and it’s pure listening joy. Do you like Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama”, how about Skynyrd doing the song on an acoustic guitar. How about the Rolling Stones doing “Honkey Tonk Women” or Led Zeppelin doing “Going To California” in a way that you have never heard it.
If your a big fan of rock and roll try tuning to The Acoustic Storm one time, that’s all it will take for you to be hooked.
Just a few simple steps can keep your electric guitar looking new and playing new. The same thing applies if you purchased an acoustic guitar, or a bass guitar.
From the time you made your purchase you should have picked up some guitar polish and some soft rages, or maybe you purchased an electric guitar package that has guitar polish and special rags in it. These two guitar accessories when used often can preserve the finish on your guitar, cleaning the strings can result in making them last longer also.
You should get into the habit of keeping your hands clean when playing your guitar along with wiping the guitar and strings down after every use. The oil given off by your fingertips can be one of the biggest reasons your strings would have to be changed often.
With the right playing habits and just a few simple steps mentioned above there is no reason your electric guitar can’t have an outstanding appearance like it did when it was new.
Give me a guitar and I’m a happy guy. It doesn’t matter if it’s an electric guitar, acoustic guitar, or bass guitar, to me it meant rock and roll.
There has been several failed attempts at expanding the formula for rock and roll, disco was one of them, thank goodness that’s over with. That brings me to Rap, can someone please point out another way of making millions of dollars with absolutely no musical talent.
You don’t have to play a guitar or even have a good singing voice to be a Rap star. You can hook up with a talented singer like Rhianna with Kanye West, or Alicia Keys with Jay Z but to me that just masks the fact that they have no musical talent.
Disco gave life to quite a number of bands and singers in the 70’s, they even had a porn star with a hit song, “More More More” by the Andrea True Connection. While many of these acts were at least pleasing to hear they didn’t hang around much as Disco faded away. Maybe it’s my age showing but I hope the same thing happens to rap, it needs to go away and never be heard of again.
Everyone who loves rock and roll has different tastes when it comes to what kind of rock they like, and what is there favorite band. Along with their lists of favorites there is another list of favorites, and that is a list of their best guitar solos.
At the top of my list is a guy that plays an electric guitar in a finger-picking style of an acoustic guitar, he is non other than Mark Knopfler of Dire Straits. Other guitarists look at him in awe because of his talent with a guitar. His guitar solo in “The Sultans of Swing” to me is the best. Next on my list I have Jimmy Page for his outstanding solo in “Stairway To Heaven”, and Eric Clapton with Layla. His original version played on his stratocaster electric guitar is one of the best rock songs of all time.
Music videos are not something new, they have actually been around since the early 1960’s. Ozzie Nelson was a band leader and the father of Rick Nelson.
The first music video is on thesong “Travelin Man” recorded by Rick Nelson. The song is about the loves of a traveling man, with a woman in every port the song talks of a ”pretty senorita” in Mexico, along with women in Alaska, Germany, Hong Kong and Waikiki.
The video was the idea of Rick’s father Ozzie and shows the different areas of the world with Rick’s image superimposed in front of it playing an acoustic guitar. It was really quite creative for its time, compared to some videos today where it involves someone with mediocre talent, with an electric guitar in a video with great looking girls in sexy attire to distract you from the fact that the so called artist has no talent.