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Hi folks, yes, we got the gorgeous Smoky Mountains and the Blue Ridge only 15 minutes away. I can see them from the living-room window. Makes a great backdrop for a musical "picking party" on the porch.  Although there are lots of picturesque, secluded spots in these here mountains, I have the privilege of talking to you on the net  -high speed! Glory be.

Old Doll, I felt right at home in Ireland: you must be the sweetest, most honest and independent people in Western Europe. With St.Patricks Day coming up, I salute you! Siince my daughter's name is Faye Erin: Erin Go Bragh!

I can see how you adore Hillary. She would make a great president, especially since she has worked hard to reform our health system when her husband was in the White House, only to be shot down by political lobbyists. Just about anyone could do better than the puppet (and the puppet masters behind him) currently in the White House. The world deserves an American president who's actually elected and represents the people and not petroleum. So, in my opinion, wether Hillary or Barak Obama gets elected, our country will go through positive changes. Hillary has softened with experience, wheras Obama is quick, edgy and has not been discouraged by the political machine. He's got a youthful disrespect for the "establishment". I believe this time, young people will make a huge difference voting for someone who speaks their language. I am not afraid of a radical change in American politics -as long as everything is based on democracy. Wow-enough said. Back to the kitchen: I put a bag full of cheese-filled Jalapenos in the oven. Together with an ice-cold coke, that's all for dinner tonight.

Weather has improved, gotta go in the basement to play with my girl friends (guitars).

Hi Old Doll and all,

tornadoes are extremely powerful, we all know that, but don't worry about me being tossed around. I weigh too much. I find it amazing that you are intersted in our elections, but then, I can understand: We behave like we own the whole globe and have to set things straight in remote corners of the world. In the meantime, our own backyard is in shambles. (Politically).

Now, since I am not a US citizen (only a "legal resident alien), I can't vote, but last night I heard Barak Obama use ideas from Martin Luther King and Ghandi in his speech. One thing stood out: "The people who we've been waiting for, to change America... is us."  That's a Ghandi idea, and I'm happy to see a presidential candidate use that wisdom in a political speech.

By the way: My family keeps up with your home Ireland as well, and we have seen some good movies, illustrating Irish history. And I have traveled (hitch-hiked) through Ireland 30 years ago. I was one of those Germans wearing a yellow windbreaker...

Play on!

Thanks everyone for the thoughts, and for keeping up with the news.
The string of bad weather has passed, but it left many people dead and more injured.

The tornadoes have hit hard in the western part of Tennesse, but our mountainous eastern sections of the state just got strong winds, baseball size hail and a ton of rain. The state of Tennessee looks like a thin sliver, compared to other states, but it also spans two time zones (500 miles) from East to West.

We are lucky to live in the mountains, where tornadoes quickly fizzle out, but in the relatively flat western part of Tennessee, they travel for hundreds of miles. I am really touched by your concern and this shows me once again that we are sort of a global community here on this forum! Thank you all so much for your compassion!

You're correct, 06sc500:
The Gretsch pickguards have no cutouts and are also a little bigger (would look nice on your Hodad 12.)
Here's the catch, if you got an original Gretsch pickguard, it would cost quite a bit more than $25. How about a Gretsch-shaped white/black/white layered one? Since I do own a Gretsch, I just made a template from the pickguard and have a full sheet of white/black/white material in my shop.
I'm not trying to drum up business on this forum, but I could make you one -of course, it won't have a Gretsch logo on it...

Play on!

I believe we all agree that the ex-drug user has sustained more damage than he is aware of: "I PRACTICE 2 (TWO) HOURS A WEEK".
That quote gives it away right there, he's really out of touch. I practice  7 x 2 hours a week -just for fun. Just because I commute to work a total of two hours a week doesn't make me a racecar driver either.

On the subject of high priced guitars: It's all relative to how much you earn, and if you are a company endorser, you don't have to worry about the price of your guitar anyway. In my humble opinion, anything above $2,000 better be a killer instrument. I honestly can't see how a $10,000 guitar is actually five times as good. No way.
The prices of vintage guitars are in my eyes obscene. This has nothing to do with music, or the art of building instruments, but everything with greed and the hype of the entertainment industry. Granted, a luthier who builds exquisite works of art that sound heavenly, he/she needs to get compensated and can ask whatever price the market supports.

Just last week, I saw the bluesman Hubert Sumlin interviewed on TV: now, he is one of the grandfathers of the blues who has played with Muddy Waters for many years. To my astonishment he was holding an Epiphone Sheraton on his lap -not exactly an outrageously expensive instrument. Hats off to Hubert! Video: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=llg0dym34vc. I don't care what Slash plays, and if it costs 100,000 rubels. The sad recovering drug user who was quoted, found something to get excited about; hopefully a Marshall stack and an expensive LP will make him happy.

Play on!

Me and my guitars are like a big Mormon family. I love each of the 14 guitars equally, but none of them has a name. Naming your guitars does have an advantage: If you and your friends take your guitars to a party, you can call yours when you're ready to leave.

Hint: Guitars usually gather around a strong amp in the bathroom, and talk about us in hushed voices... I know! I've seen them!

Play on.

Hey, I just remembered that as a bloody beginner (14 years old), I had a German Framus electric -ouch. It only had one volume and one tone knob. That wasn't enough for me: I actually glued two more knobs on this beast. I honestly liked it better, even though there wasn't any improvement in tone...LOL

The last "modification" I made to that guitar (this was the year 1967): I disassembled it, cut two thin sheets of plywood with huge upper horns, and glued those to the guitar. The empty space between the top and bottom plywood was filled in with shaped Balsa wood. I painted it in garish colors. Still no improvement in tone.

Then I came to my senses: After seeing Pete Townshend of the Who smash his guitar, I did the same with the disfigured Framus. Never looked back, because it's too damn embarrassing.

Play on!

Ok, I give up.
This discussion about "Robotic Tuners" reminds me a lot of the old tube amps vs. transistor, or analog vs. digital, ceramic vs. Alnico pickups, or even single coils vs. humbuckers. After all, your own perception of the sound is the ultimate measure.

I understand how someone can get excited about new features, or innovative technoloy. But honestly, I would rather buy a top-of-the-line handcrafted guitar with simple features, than a techno-laden modeling thing that promises to do it all.

Call me old-fashioned, I deserve it.

It's of course absolutely true that strings nfluence the sound of acoustics -and electrics- alike.

I've never understood why many foreign guitar makers slap a set of ultra-cheap wires on their guitars to keep the price down. Any acoustic sounds brighter and fuller with a new set of Elixir Polyweb/Nanoweb strings.  My favorite music store tech swears that they can sell just about any acoustic guitar, once a set of Elixir strings have replaced the factory strings. I'm sure there are other strings that come close. For under $10 (depending on the brand), you can get a whole new guitar sound and playability.

For my electric solid bodies, I prefer Ernie Ball Slinky's (all gauges behave a little different of course). For a really heavy, ballsy tone, my Telecaster gets "Skinny Top Heavy Bottom" strings that are sort of a mixed gauge: E, A D are extra thick, G is medium, whereas the B and high E are light (for bending). But these strings don't work for my Gresch, Washburn and Yamaha hollowbodies. I'm still experimenting here, even after several years.

It helps to experiment and read some reviews. Your own taste should always override the opinion of others, because no reviewer can do full justice to your taste, your instrument, your equipment. One rule though is universal: If the strings sound dull, look corroded/oxydized, nicked, etc., rip them off immediately. They DO have a major influence on your instrument's tone. Even Elixir strings don't last forever.

How often do you change your strings?
If I'm not playing gigs, they can last for up to 6 months. With heavy use (daily practice and regular gigs), I change the Ernie Balls once a month (occasionally more frequently) on my two main electric guitars. Since my acoustic guitar is only used at home and maybe at parties, I string up a set of Elixirs twice a year.

You can tell that I'm not into matching guitar strings to the manufacturer. I have no experience with Gibson strings. Fender and Martin sell nice strings, they are just not my favorites on these manufacturer's  own guitars.

PLAY ON!

Old Doll and all:
During our discussion here, I sensed your fond feelings towards our country... The Unorganized States of Agony. I need to tell you that I am living in the U.S. by choice, not birth... After living in crowded Germany for 30 years, I came to America in 1980.

I have lived (and played guitar) here now for 28 years, am still not an American citizen, but certainly feel like one. My new family is all-American: open, honest, loving, caring, passionate, aggressive, loud. My wife and kids (daughter is a hippie, son is a US Marine) are a true mix of Swedish, Dutch, Irish, Cherokee, French, and now German. We are blessed with our checkered heritage. Americans truly embody the best and worst of many cultures -we are part of a social experiment. I'm proud to be part of this experiment, even though we still have poverty, racial inequality, and a sad government at this time.

As food and music are part of every culture, Americans have an incredible culinary and musical smorgasboard to feast from. Here in my immediate region (the Appalachian Mountains), we still have the remnants of Irish and Scottish folk music alive and well. And the European music has partially merged with African music many decades ago. I'm in musical hog heaven and wouldn't want to live anywhere else.

Let's keep this discussion going, and let's exchange our views, favorite foods, critical thoughts and all, down to the biscuits, jelly, Jello, scones, The Rolling Stones, Guinness, cider, brownies, smores, BBQ....and Shepherd's Pie.

Play on!

After playing for 40 years standing up -gig and practice alike, I now play sitting on a tall swivel barstool ($15 at Tractor Supply) during practice. The height of the stool depends on the length of your own legs -tall player: tall stool. For gigs with our bluesband, I have a folding stool from Walmart (also $15) on which I occasionally take a brief rest -but mostly I'm standing up, it just makes for a better band appearance.

Drum thrones are cool and comfortable, but they are hardly ever tall enough. The swivel feature is a must if you play with others. You do have to turn  occasionally to adjust the amp, or whatever. Personally I think that sitting during a performance is only for solo/acoustic gigs. If everyone in the band must sit down for health reasons, you're probably too old for rock'n roll...

NELA -that's what you get for visiting friends from the past!
My story isn't quite as moving as yours, but here it is anyway: I traveled on business to Germany just before X-mas and brought home a magazine for musicians. Didn't have time to read it until Christmas day. As I was arriving on page 50 or so, there is an ad for an acoustic guitar, and the photo of an endorser: It's a girl I had my eyes on in 1980! Eyes on, not hands on, because back then she was only 15. I taught this kid to play the guitar, and when I wasn't looking, she constantly "borrowed" mine. Today she's one of Europe's top jazz vocalists and performers -she plays a Gibson ES335 and has recorded with people like Pat Metheney.

The former "kid" still looks as gorgeous as ever and has a voice to die for. Her guitar playing is way better than mine. That's what an old man gets for being nice to young girls. Play on!