Play Most Any Song in Open D Tuning

Why So Many Guitars? Acoustic Edition: The Taylor 814ce

Why So Many Guitars? Acoustic Edition

I didn't get my first acoustic until I was 30.  It was a 1990 Gibson Dove.  I chose it over everything else I'd played at the time because of the price ($1000) and that it was the loudest of the all the guitars I tried.  I was going to be leading worship for a Sunday school class of about 100 without a PA so that was my criterion. At the time I couldn't tell much of a difference between acoustics.  I was an electric player.  

Five years later, I purchased my next acoustic. A Lowden F-22.  As soon as I played it I loved it’s tone.  But mainly because it was different than the Gibby.  Way different.  Brassy, not as woody.  Still my ears were relatively inexperienced.  I bought it to take on the road for some clinics I was hired to teach starting that Spring.

I didn’t have the guitar two weeks when I got a call from Taylor guitars asking which model I would like as they were one of the sponsors of the clinics and wanted me to have one.  I didn’t know anything about Taylor models and they told me everyone else was getting an 814-ce.  Sure.  Two days later one arrived at my door step.  And it was very different sounding from my Lowden and Dove.  The 814 was definitely brighter than my Dove but not as brassy as the Lowden.

It was about this time in my mid-30’s I started to notice the difference between Martin’s and Gibson’s on recordings.  Getting to the point, where I’m sure so many of you are at, where I could listen to a record and say “that sounds like a Martin.”  Or Gibson.  Taylor’s were rarer on recordings and harder to pick out. 

Then when I was working on a session for a major Latin artist, the producer, whom I’d never worked for before, grinded me on my guitars.  One after another he told me my acoustics were too bright.  Isn’t that what EQ’s are for?  I thought.  Self-conscious I powered my way through the session thinking I need to get a dark guitar.

It was beginning to make sense what my teacher in the 80’s, Carl Verheyen, told me… “You can’t have too many acoustics.”  I didn’t have any at the time, and remember thinking… really?!?!

I determined that I needed a Martin.  So the hunt began.  At the local Guitar Center, of all places, I spotted a tattered, abused, orphaned 70’s Martin D-35 for $1100.  It played great and had a familiar tone.  But not flashy.  Subtle.  Serious.  And dark.

Now I had 4 very different guitars.  Plus a Taylor 655 12-string that I had gotten from Taylor from their B stock.

The Martin has been my go to guitar for sessions.  One thing I noticed, over years of playing on records, is that when I use the Martin, my guitar is hotter in the mix when I get the final product.   The Taylor sounds like a Taylor. The Dove definitely sounds like a Gibson.  The Lowden is very unique sounding.  But the Martin just sounds like a guitar.  Like a guitar we’ve all heard on recordings from the beginning of time.  My Martin at least, doesn’t demand too much attention and shares the sonic landscape with singers quite generously. 

I’ve since acquired two more Martins, a new Baritone, the prototype actually, that is serious times ten, and a 1924 O-28k, a small bodied, koa instrument that is so tender and sweet.  Great for fingerpicking and soft strumming.

I also acquired a 60’s Gibson Folksinger in trade for playing on a friends record.  It has a decidedly “boxey” quality that I’ve found is useful for that “hipster” sound.  Whatever that is.  You know like a Target commercial.

One Session, Two Lessons

I use to carry a little black book around with me to all my gigs and sessions. And no, not to register phone numbers of groupies (that book was blue). It was my log of things to work on or get or just something that I could learn from the job I just finished. I try to make everything be a teachable moment for me. So not only am I getting paid, I'm getting a self-prescribed lesson.

For example, I might write in my little black book... "practice playing over Imaj7-VII7 progression" or "listen to some James Brown to get some rhythm ideas" or "tighten up the bottom end on patch 298". Something to work on on days when I didn't have any work.

This one particular session was for a major Latin artist at a major studio with some major session pros. I was already feeling like the low man on the totem pole. I was playing acoustic and was an overdub after the other musicians had already laid down their tracks. The song wasn't a song, but a medley of this artist's greatest hits. A dozen pages of music. The producer was one of my best friends, so on that I rest my confidence. The engineer I didn't know but more importantly, he didn't know me. For some reason he had it out for me. Some people build themselves up by tearing others down. This engineer was one of those people.

I had brought 3 acoustics and my nylon guitar. He set up the mic and went into the booth. I pulled out my Taylor 814, strummed a little, and into my headphones I heard, "Do you have another guitar? That one is too bright." I grabbed the Lowden F22. "That one is even brighter." Uh-oh. Last chance. The Gibson Dove should do the trick. "Nope." "It's the last one I have." I confessed and received a dismayed look and... "I guess it'll have to do."

I hadn't played one note and I was already feeling like a rank amateur. But with the Dove in my hands I forgot my insecurities and began tracking. Often I don't think I can play until I have the guitar in my hands, and then I know I can. We worked our way through the chart. My friend the producer knew the songs very well and is a good guitarist himself so he told me the feels and grooves for each section. After we tracked the steel string we took a break before tracking a little nylon. I headed into the booth, sat down exhausted on the couch, turn to the man on my left and said, "hi, I'm Tom, what's your name?" It was of course the famous Latin artist. Hey, I'm really bad with faces.

There are so many lessons that I could pull from this one session, I could probably fill up an entire black book. But here are a mere two...

1. I needed a darker guitar. Maybe the engineer was just exhibiting his insecurities or maybe he had a point. From that day forward I was on the hunt for a guitar darker than any of the ones I currently owned. And thus I found my 70's Martin D-35, which I love and is now my main acoustic.

2. Know who you are working for. I didn't even know what the artist looked like, let alone know his catalog. I should've known all of his hits at least. Then I would've known every song in the medley I was tracking that day. From now on whenever I get called to work with a new artist I research them. I especially study and memorize their face! I have worked for that artist since by the way.

Epilogue - I hadn't been in that studio again until just last week, five years later, when I was tracking acoustics for Justin Bieber's new record. I had a flashback and recounted the above story to the amazing engineer and friend on the other side of the glass. He was mad and wanted to know who this guy was. I wouldn't tell him. Every one in the room thought this unnamed engineer was crazy. "Oh I don't know," I said, "that session is why I got this Martin I'm playing right now." Then I took a break and sat down on the same sofa. I knew who was sitting on my left that day.

Bone Tone

Several years ago I was sitting in a pit band playing acoustic next to Bob Sobo, an excellent player, who was playing electric.  After the first sound check and rehearsal the house engineer came up to me and said of my Taylor acoustic, "that's the best sounding acoustic guitar I've ever heard." Before I could agree with him Bob chimed in, "It's the Injun not the arrows."

It took me a second to get the axion. I'd never heard it. What Bob was saying was something I never would've said myself for fear of sounding egotistical. That it wasn't the instrument, it was the hands that wielded it. The hands that had played a million G chords and at least as many C, D, E and A chords. Hands that had been guided and directed by teachers, producers, artists and composers for 30 years.  Hands that had played on thousands of tracks.

Unintentionally proving this point one weekend I played my $99 Squire Strat at church for fun. Several people came up to me to ask what new instrument I was playing. All were amazed at how good this cheap Chinese made electric sounded. Myself included. What friend even came up to me and jokingly said, "I hate you!"

Another friend of mine, who had a real job, always had better gear than me, had me play his Tom Anderson guitar. He had changed the pick-ups for the third time trying to get that "tone." As I played it I thought, "this sounds sweet!" Just as he said, "it sounds good when you play it." It's not the gear.

How many of your favorite guitarists played sub-par instruments? Especially old school guys. The blues greats.

All this goes to say, you can buy more gear to improve your sound. Or it may be something as cost effective as practicing more. Playing out more. I don't think that there is a surgeon that can give you "bone tone".

Squier® by Fender® MINITM, Black

Taylor Guitars 814ce Grand Auditorium Acoustic Electric Guitar

Life as a Rockstar...

OK, not really, but sometimes when you play on a record you get to be in the video too!

Guitar or Sword?

Don't sweat those dings on your axes.  In fact embrace the ones with stories behind them.

Traveling with a Guitar - Part One

Few things strike fear and panic into the hearts of guitarists everywhere than the thought of checking your guitar as baggage at an airport.  Whether you're making a 6 connection flight to Istanbul or a non-stop to the coast, little can relieve that sinking feeling that you will never see your fretted friend again.  A little cunning and a little sugar can get you far towards carrying on your precious cargo (or guitargo, sorry).  Fortunately I've had great luck and I'd like to share my tips with you here.

In the mid-nineties I received a call to do some work that required me to travel quite a bit (about 12 roundtrips a year) and I really needed to have both an acoustic and an electric guitar with me.  This is not something I would attempt anymore, but the axioms apply to carrying on one guitar today.  

My dilemma at the time was how could I get two guitars with me on the plane at the same time?  A Taylor acoustic in a hard case (though not a flight case) and a G&L electric in a soft gig bag.  Calls to the airlines only heightened my anxiety as I was repeatedly told that I would have to check them. 

Tip One - Minimize your exposure to airline personnel.  

Most every time I was able to get both guitars in the overhead bin over my seat.  The soft case on top of the hard case.  Rarely did I fly on a DC-10, MD-11, 727, 737, 747, 757, 767 or Airbus that didn't have room.  Though you can't always count one type of airplane to have same overhead bin configuration every time.  I would occasionally run into a bin with a divider, but it wasn't a solid divider, and the hard cases neck could fit through it easily first then the body of the case could be placed in afterwards.  Also there were time when I thought the case was too big as the door wouldn't close, but a helpful flight attendant showed me how placing a pillow under the body of the case would lift it just enough so the curvature of the bin's lid would accommodate the case and close.

Tip Two - Be early. This may seem obvious, but it really does help to keep your options open.

Tip Three - Check you and your suitcase in at the curb not inside at checking.  Typically the curbside guys are not airline employees and could care less what you walk into the airport with.  The person behind the counter is an airline employee and will make every effort to convince you to check your bag here.

If you have any flying with guitars stories or tips feel free to post them in the comments.

Traveling with a Guitar - Part Two

Getting through the security gate can be tricky as of late because many terminals/airlines have made the hole smaller on the conveyor belt through the x-ray machine. If it's plenty big enough for your acoustic's case or if you are just bringing an electric in a gig bag, no sweat, slide it on through.However, if you find that the opening is too small don't start sweating yet, I've had each of these six things happen to me...

Tip Four - Be open to options.

1. The metal flap making the x-ray machine's opening smaller was hinged and the security guard just lifted it up so my guitar would fit.

2. The metal flap making the x-ray machine's opening smaller was hinged and I just lifted it up so my guitar would fit.

Tip Five - Be generous. Generally smile a lot and say nice things.

3. The security guard said I needed to get permission from the counter before he could lift up the hinged flap and fortunately I had just come from the airline counter having successfully negotiated my way on to a flight other than the one I was booked on.  I had just given $25 to the airline's pet charity as a thank you to the employee who helped me, the same employee who by the way was needed to approve my guitar's passage into the deep recesses of the terminal.  Which she was more than happy to do.

4. The security guard just asked me to hand it to him over the x-ray machine so he could inspect it personally.  He even wanted play it a little.  Sure his hands were filthy but it was fine with me, it's not my guitar, everything I own belongs to God anyway.

Tip Six - Pull some strings.

5. One time when I was flying from Indianapolis to LA I arranged to be escorted through security by an airline employee.  She was the wife of a guitar playing friend of mine.  This was because my "guitargo" was a 1929 National Duolian metal bodied dobro that was impenetrable by x-rays and I didn't want them to take it apart to see that I wasn't carrying some form of contraband.  I swear.  I don't think in a post 9/11 world this would work.  I would just ship it today.  But it never hurts to have a contact in the business.

6.  The last scenario... I was sent to the ticketing counter where I was assured that my guitar would be handled carefully and waiting for me at the "fragile baggage" claim area back at home. It was there, but when I opened the case up and inspected it right then I noticed that the "G" string had been loosened and there was a dime inside (?!?). Whatever.

If you have any flying with guitars stories or tips feel free to post them in the comments.

Traveling with a Guitar - Part Three

Next stop, the gate. This is definitely not the place you want to saunter up to with a guitar (or two) acting like a prima donna.

Tip Seven - Keep a low profile.

You have two options here if you need to go up to get your boarding pass at the gate. One, have a friend (or quickly make one) watch your guitars as you wait in line to get your pass. Or two, leave your guitars somewhere you can keep an eye on them but out of the line of sight of the gate-checker-in-person. This way you can answer "no" honestly when they ask you if your bags have ever been out of your sight.

Tip Eight - Choose your seat wisely.

Now this is most important. When you call in advance to book your seating (I always forget) find out what kind of boarding they have. There are three kinds that I've experienced...

1. Rear to front - this is most common. Get a seat in the back so you are the first to board when there is plenty of overhead space.

2. Cattle Call Boarding - Southwest is known for this type of boarding, this reiterates the importance of Tip Two, be early.

3. "WILMA" Boarding - This stand for Window, Middle, Aisle. As in the order in which the seats are boarded. I've only seen this on United Shuttle. It's supposed to speed up boarding and took me completely by surprise, as my normal last row aisle seat meant I was one of the last to board forcing me to check my acoustic, but that's another story.

Tip Nine - The "Switcheroo".

This next tip I'm not proud of but we are told to be "shrewd as serpents", this could maybe on a good day fall into that category. Your second to last hurdle is the person (airline employee) who takes your ticket just before you head down the skyway onto the plane. If this person was going to be on my right I would strap the electric to my back, hold the acoustic in my left hand and my ticket in my right hand.If this person was going to be on my left I would strap the electric to my back, hold the acoustic in my right hand and my ticket in my left hand.In either situation I would say something nice, witty or charming. I call the the "switcheroo".

Tip Ten - Be courteous. 

If you've gotten this far and you're on the plane, you are ripe for a bitter harvest of disappointment.  You may have forgotten the last hurdle... the flight attendants (don't call them stewardesses).  This lesson I learned the hard way, when an attendant told me my guitar would have to be check as there wouldn't be enough room on the plane for it (maybe Tip Eleven should be don't travel around the holidays).  Well I wasn't prepared for this outcome and I made a little stink saying something to the effect, "you'll never work in this town again" (which means very little at 30,000 feet).  

So when the same thing happened on a flight the very next week, I was polite and even acted happy that some businessman would be able to carry on his suitcase full of CLOTHES(!) so he could save some time by avoiding baggage claim and down one extra martini before bedtime!  Well the flight attendant came back to the 178th row to see me half way through the flight to inform me that my guitar was in the overhead bin above row 10 as they had more room then the expected.  A service that would not have been provided by someone freshly chewed out.

Also along the lines of courtesy.  When an airline gets it right and your traveling with guitars is made relatively easy or even greeted with courtesy of their own, let them know.  E-mail the airline praising them for their acts of heroism.  Okay, maybe not heroism.  Let them know you will fly their airline whenever you can and to book you on the first flight the book to the moon (lots of frequent flyer miles).

If you have any flying with guitars stories or tips feel free to post them in the comments.

Capoing Reasn #3

Shubb GC-20A Acoustic Guitar Capo in Nickel

Kyser 6 String Capo, Black - This one is better for partial capoing, ie. only capoing the top five strings