Archive for June, 2010
Playing electric guitar has been one of the best experiences of my life. I not only learned something that I can use my entire life, I also learned something that has inspired my daughters to learn.
Bass guitars, electric guitars, or even acoustic guitars are symbols of our family having fun together. It doesn’t have to have that polished sound to it, we’re not professionals, it just has to make you feel good. We share each others music which brings their music into my life, and likewise they get to share my music, which they have found to be pretty good.
The family rewards from playing guitar out weigh any bad times that families usually experience, I encourage you to start a family tradition of playing electric guitars to enhance your family life.
Everyone that plays electric guitars or bass guitars are familiar with the names of Fender and Gibson. These two names are the premium names when it comes to selling quality guitars, the only thing is these names come at a premium price also.
For a lot of people that price is more than they can afford so the alternative is to find electric guitars that are made with quality and are much more affordable. Luckily today there are many guitar manufacturers that fit the bill. Glen Burton guitars, New York Pro guitars, and Stadium guitars are three guitar manufacturers names that give you more bang for a buck. Their stratocasters, telecasters, and jazz guitars are instruments that won’t let you down whether your playing alone or in a band.
How many times have you picked up your electric guitar to play, either alone or with a band and found you were off? You grab your digital tuner, tune it up, only to find that it still sounds off and now you don’t know what to do about it. This same thing applies to bass guitars also.
What you have just experienced is something called intonation, but don’t worry all of us have had it at some time. What is intonation you ask, well it is when the note played on a string in the open position is the same note played at the 12th fret.
It is really quite easy to adjust for, you will need a digital tuner. Tune the first string as you would normally, than check the string at the 12th fret, if it is not the same it needs to be adjusted. Your guitars bridge has screws that connect it to the saddle, if your note was flat turn the screw to move the saddle towards the fretboard. If your note was sharp turn it away from the fretboard. Don’t forget to release the tension on the string before you make any adjustments. After you have completed the first string do the same thing on each of the remaining strings.
Are you looking for your first electric guitar? Do you already own an electric guitar and are ready to either upgrade, or increase your guitar collection?
As you are looking for you next electric guitar check out a something called electric guitar packages. These guitar packages take the guess work out of all the things you need, and also provide you with things that you wouldn’t think of purchasing for yourself. Electric guitars like strats, teles, LP’s, and jazz guitars can all be found in packages along with guitar amplifiers, guitar stands, guitar tuners, and guitar polish and cloths.
Do You ever listen a CD of your favorite band and wonder if they are really as good they sound in the studio controlled version that you are hearing. I like comparing the recorded version of a song to that which is recorded live, I like to hear the similarities and the differences to see if they are better, the same, or worse.
I particularly like when a band lays down their electric guitar packages in favor of acoustic guitar packages. The acoustic guitar sound you hear is the talent of the band without all the sound altering electronics.
The radio show The Acoustic Storm is aired every Sunday morning and features songs by the artists that made them famous, however the songs are done acoustically. Songs that you are used to hearing on a classic rock station like “Radar Love” by Golden Earrings being done live and with acoustic guitars really changes your perspective of the band.
The 60′s was a great time and place for all types music, especially if your into guitars like I am. Hendrix with the help of his guitar package that consisted of an upside down strat electric guitar and Marshall guitar amplifier, brought us a sound we will never hear again.
Every band had their own great sound with the help of Gibson LP guitars, and Jazz style guitars, Fender strats, Telecasters along with their Precision and Jazz bass guitars. These instruments were used to create rock, blues, and country music.
One band that stood out in the 60′s was Sly and the Family Stone. They were the first integrated band with a clear cut message about blacks and whites getting along in the song “Everyday People”. This is the band that invented Funk, and their bass guitar player Larry Graham invented the slapping bass guitar style that is used when playing Funk music.
Most people are satisfied picking up their electric guitar, plugging it into their 10w guitar amp and playing along with the music of their choice. What they don’t realize is different guitar packages can give you a unique sound that you never thought you could achieve.
There is many things that can attribute to your sound, the obvious and the most frequent thing that is changed is the style electric guitar that you play. Electric guitars have different styles because each one is designed with its own sound. Often overlooked is the guitar amplifier that you use. Amplifiers come in different wattage’s, like 10w, 20w or even 100w with speakers ranging from 6″ to 15″ or bigger. Your amplifier also comes with knobs that not only control the volume but also the high, mid, and low tones all of which can give you a different sound. The biggest thing in developing a sound is to use your imagination and create a sound that is pleasing to you.
Today’s kid want to take shortcuts when it comes to playing electric guitar. When my daughter started to play bass guitar she informed me that on the Internet there is a thing called Tabs that teaches you the notes on what ever song you look up.
After examining these Tabs I found them to be useful, especially if you already now the basics of playing guitar. What I also found is that young people trying learn music are actually cheating themselves, by this I mean you might be able to play what is written in tabs but when a song comes on the radio that you want to play it is very difficult to pick that song up.
It doesn’t matter what kind of electric guitar package you are trying to play if you don’t know the basics it will sound choppy. Take me, I learned to play bass early age with the help of an instructor and books. I learned cord configurations which help me to this day, when I hear a song on the radio I can usually pick it up right away because of the basics I have learned.
I don’t know about you but I love most types of music. From classical to rock I can always find something interesting in most kinds of music.
Songs that really get me going are the ones with the bass guitar playing more than just root notes. When ever I get a chance to watch a group play, I not only listen to the music, I am also watching them to see how they play. By this I mean their style, using me for an example I am an OK bass guitar player but I lack style. Style is something the best bass guitar package can’t give you, like me you might be able to play but you don’t have that charisma that makes people notice you.
When I started in music the choices you had when it came to purchasing an electric guitar or bass guitar were pretty slim. Of course you had your top manufacturers like Fender, Gibson, and Gretsch along with a few knock-off brands.
The difference between those knock-off brand guitars and the major brands were pretty great in those days, unlike today where you have high end knock-off guitars such as the ones from New York Pro guitars, and Stadium guitars. The finish and action on these guitars will amaze you to the point you will be comparing them to the Fender and Gibson guitars they were modelled after.