Posts Tagged ‘Guitar Packages’
As I’ve gotten older, I have gone through phases of infatuation with just about every genre of rock music. When I first started listening to music in my early teens, I listened to hard rock and heavy metal—the stereotypical style for the inevitable stages of adolescent angst. I then moved on to “more mellow” music: grunge. This led to a stint with classic rock, and, after going to college, I adapted a formulaic affinity for indie. With the exception of the heavy metal, I still listen to all of the genres periodically.
Watching my brother’s music tastes evolve has been quite amusing, as I’ve seen him go through an almost identical transformation. Recently he has branched out from heavy metal into grunge and the sounds of the custom guitars from the classic rock era. Although I dislike pigeonholing anyone, I am fairly confident that he will begin to appreciate the counterculture of indie music sometime soon.
One of my favorite pastimes is attending concerts. Over the past few years I have become somewhat of a (self-described) aficionado, traveling around the Pacific Northwest to attend various events. While the band is, obviously, the most crucial element to any concert, I have developed a list of other essential elements that contribute to a great concert.
~Sound Quality: It doesn’t matter how good the band is if they are playing on subpar equipment. The best shows, in my opinion, come from the large acts that have the money to invest in top-of-the-line guitar amplifiers and other equipment.
~Stage Show: No matter how good the music is, it is still important to have a solid stage show to keep the audience visually stimulated as well.
~The Venue: Not only does the venue play a huge role in the sound quality, but it also sets the ambiance for the show. Seeing an acoustic concert in a classical theatre or going to a rock festival at The Gorge of the Columbia River can enhance even the most mundane performance.
If you would like to play an instrument and are not sure which instrument to play there are a few things you can do to help you with your decision. First think of your ultimate goal, are you playing for your own satifaction or are you learning because you want to be in a band.
If you are learning for yourself the acoustic guitar is good choice for you as you wouldn’t need an amplifier, unless you like the sound from your favorite group and would like to play like them then you might want to pick up a guitar package that would include an acoustic or electric guitar along with an amplifier. If you are thinking of joining a band, you might think about learning the bass guitar. While it is the easier to learn you might find it is in demand the most, as everyone wants to play guitar first. Besides playing bass will automatically make you cool, I can’t explain it but it’s true.
The Righteous Brothers broke up in 1969 then reunited to record Rock And Roll Heaven in 1974 which turned out to be a big hit. As the title implied it made reference to several artists who had died prematurely to that date.
The song named Jimi Hendrix with “Foxy Lady”, Janis Joplin singing “Piece Of My Heart”, Otis Redding for 
ock Of The Bay” as well as Bobby Darins’ “Mack The Knife”, Jim Croce had “Leroy Brown”, and Jim Morrison with “Light My Fire”.
Since 1974 there have been a host of artists that have died long before they should have, I like to refer to them in packages, like Janis Joplin,Jim Morrison, Bobby Darin being joined by Elvis Presley and of course the incomparable Freddie Mercury. These greats I have together for their singing and showmanship. Next I have what I call my guitar packages, one includes Jim Croce, John Denver, John Lennon and the second guitar package boasts the best of the best George Harrison of The Beatles, Terry Kath of Chicage, and Jimi Hendrix, with the last two the best of all time.
So you bought your new acoustic, bass, or electric guitar, you get it home, you want to look at it, and you want to play it. There’s no better feeling than getting a new instrument but after the feeling is gone you need to take steps to keep it looking the way it looked when you took it out of the box.
Wheather you spent thousands or hundreds the steps are the same:
1. Invest in a guitar stand, some guitar packages include a guitar stand, either way don’t leave your guitar on the floof where it collect dust or get damaged.
2. Keep your guitar in a room where the humidity is approximately 50%. Your guitar is constructed of wood and that wood is subject to expansion and contraction depending upon the humidity in the room where you keep it. Hint: A basement or attic is probably not the best place unless the areas temperature and humidity is maintained.
3. Keep your guitar clean using a soft micro-fiber cloth, don’t use a standard towel or dish towel for cleaning.
4. After wiping the loose dust off your guitar use guitar polish. Do NOT use common household cleaners as they are too harsh. You are not required to use polish all the time but once you start using it you and your guitar will feel better.