GAS

[jazzalta]

Aaah, the dreaded musician's disease. I'm curious as to anyone who DOESN'T suffer from this affliction. Is there anyone out there who has had the same instrument for years (ala Willie Nelson, Barney Kessel, etc.etc.) and has no desire to go on buying binges occasionally? I've been at this 35 years and know of only 1 guitar player who is playing the same guitar for over 20 years now.

In my case, I actually tired of the game (for now) and am loving the simplicity of owning just 2 guitars: Thompson acoustic and Fender Tele with humbuckers. Talk about a stress reliever. It was getting to point where I couldn't decide what guitar to take to a gig. So let's hear from the non-GAS sufferers. How do you resist temptation?

[Superfly]

Sadly, (or maybe not), I find temptation hard to resist. I've got one guitar that I got 25 years ago, everything else is pretty new (and I keep looking).

BTW, what did you do with your other guitars ("What equipment do you have?" thread)? I count six guitars there......oops, see what happens with a first post.....got looking in classifieds and quickly figured out where the rest of your guitars got to....

[dkaplowitz]

I had a Tom Anderson Grand Am Lam for 15 years. It saw more than its fair share of gigs and abuse and play time, one broken off birdseye headstock, etc. etc. It was the best guitar I had/could afford for that time, which is why I had it so long. I just sold it earlier this year to another Anderson enthusiast. I used it to buy my new Anderson, but I also bought all these this year, so I'm definitely in a guitar GAS. Of those 5 or so there are two that I would (at this stage) consider keepers, the rest may wind up being sold to try other things out.

I chalk it up to trying to enjoy my life more. I don't even gig professionally any more, but I really like having killer guitars to play. It helps me play more often and makes the time I do get to spend playing more enjoyable.

I don't stress too much about the GAS....except when I realize I'm spending more time and energy acquiring gear than I am becoming a better musician (which is why I have the sig I do -- for me to remember "less ebay more mel bay").

[epi]

Hi DK,

My primary Axe for the last 38 years is a 1967 Epiphone Howard Roberts Standard,; Carved spruce top, Maple back & sides, Mahog. neck. Check out Mike Evans Howard Roberts website for a photo of mine and lots of great info. There were less than 300 of these built from '64-'69 when Gibson sold out. I use it with a 1975 Polytone mini brute II I bought new. It uses a floating JS PU.

I checked out the JS and L7 models for hours before I decided on the Roberts-no regrets!

Type Pat Farrand into a google search and Mikes excellent website will be the 2nd one-- just click on and scroll down to HowardsRoberts Standard & click.
www.utstat.utoronto.ca/mikevans/hroberts/guitars/guitars.html-29k

[dkaplowitz]

epi said:

Hi DK,

My primary Axe for the last 38 years is a 1967 Epiphone Howard Roberts Standard,; Carved spruce top, Maple back & sides, Mahog. neck. Check out Mike Evans Howard Roberts website for a photo of mine and lots of great info. There were less than 300 of these built from '64-'69 when Gibson sold out. I use it with a 1975 Polytone mini brute II I bought new. It uses a floating JS PU.

I checked out the JS and L7 models for hours before I decided on the Roberts-no regrets!

Type Pat Farrand into a google search and Mikes excellent website will be the 2nd one-- just click on and scroll down to HowardsRoberts Standard & click.
www.utstat.utoronto.ca/mikevans/hroberts/guitars/guitars.html-29k

Epi,

Is this yours? --



That looks great! I'm sure after all this time it's an insanely mature and resonant axe! Are you a big Howard Roberts fan? I met him a couple times while I was going to GIT back in '87-88 and he was a really cool, humble, and humorous guy... a real inspiration too. Did you ever check out his "Super Chops" course? Probably kinda' basic to you, but it was part of the curriculum at GIT (of course it was over my head at the time).

Anyway, I hear Gibson's re-releasing their Howard Roberts model some time soon. I'll definitely try one out, but a new Gibson is probably nothing compared to your epi.

[namaste]

Superfly, I notice you're from Alberta. What part? I'm down in the soggy south, Lethbridge. As far as my guitars go, I ended up selling most and giving away three. I gave away an old Larrivee L10 that needed a neck reset and a Fender strat. I also gave an old classical I had to the prison ministry. All in all tho I'm pretty happy with what I have.

[epi]

Hi DK,

[epi]

Hi (Again) DK,

Ii seems I must post twice to get one to take!

My Roberts thanks you for your compliment!! As you guessed... it is resonant beyond belief. ..It's a beautifully balanced tone (.011-.057 Gibson 640 light 1/2 round strings) The Massive Brass Truss Rod Cover is actually the base of the 'Custom String Dampers' I build...(It now has a far smaller, more tasteful design)!!!

I also met Howard twice; once at a gig in '72 and once at a seminar in '79. I am -I think-one of the few players that actually worked almost through 'Superchops' on my own..sheesh!!!

I thought Howard was a masterful player and a nice cat to chat with. You studied at GIT! That's great--I've heard the sessions with Joe Diorio were ....'stressful'... for the student.

I have heard about the re-release too; but I'm curious if they'll follow the L4 specs that mine was designed from ; or the later '70's Gibson plywood box. They also released a Korean Epi (copy)-it ain't!... in the '90's.

I keep getting requests to sell it- but it's been with me since near the beginning--It's the best box I've ever played ...of course that's the same for all of us I guess!!

I'm 61, but I'd guess we might know some of the same cat's!

epi

[dkaplowitz]

My compliments on getting through Superchops! "Sheesh!" is right! At the time I only got through about 2 weeks and I got so sick of my playing because it was so nonsensical that I gave up in frustration. I was still a bit new to be taking on songs with changes like those. (And man! those chord voicings! Ow!)

I tried to go to as many of Diorio's seminars/jams as I could, but I often left my guitar in my locker or at home. Same with Scott Henderson and Frank Gambale's sessions. I think I was a bit too green to handle all they threw at me at GIT. I had to teach myself what jazz was after I got there because I was coming from a purely rock background and had no idea about jazz. (I taught myself to hear it by playing a local jazz station softly while I slept.) I think now, almost 20 years later, I am just about ready to take something like that on, but alas I have different priorities and obligations now. So it probably ain't gonna happen. (I may try to take Superchops on though, since I still have the book and could use the discipline it provides.)

Anyway, I think not selling your Epi was/is a very smart thing. As good as some guitars are these days (mostly the ones from small luthiers), it's very hard to find one that's just right for you. If you'd sold it, you might never have found one that works as well for you.

I have an ES-175 that I like quite a bit and play quite a bit. It's my first real archtop so it's fun to play around with different string winds and sizes. As good as the guitar is, I'm not sure if it's one I'll have for a long time. I'm staying open to other axes. I trust that one day I'll find one I just bond with and know is a keeper. Or who knows, maybe the 175 will just grow on me.

Cheers,

Dave

[epi]

Hi DK,

[epi]

Hi DK,

The 175 is a real workhorse and very reliable! Have you ever thought about doing the occasional 'Solo' gig? It could get you back into the game without having to worry about the vagaries of other players...and you could make all those Diorio sessions pay off!

I spent over an hour with Tal Farlow during a break between shows-one on one-in the mid '80's. We talked about guitar building etc...I asked him how he approached the instrument; He said that he felt that anything that can be played...can be played within any six fret 'box'. He said every scale, chord, bass line and melody line was in any given 'box'--you just needed to think differently to accomplish what you wanted. When He spoke, he was so focused..it was mesmerizing. He used the whole fretboard when playing- but said he viewed it as all just one 'box'.

If any players want to have a new experience..I'd recommend Tal's concept of trying to play anything that can be played within any six contiguous frets. Tal couldn't read music well but he knew the 'sound' from the inside out. He said he sometimes lowered his A or D string a full octave to create a different feel for a tune. He was one humble and generous cat!!!! I like his approach much more than the 'scalar or modal' approaches--or as Herb Ellis once said --"Ala Mode".

DK, I'll be eagerly awaiting your first solo album! epi

[dkaplowitz]

epi said:

DK, I'll be eagerly awaiting your first solo album! epi

heh...thanks for the vote of confidence. I feel I have a bit to overcome before I start making anything musical enough to want to release in cd form. Mostly it's about confidence I'm discovering, but I think there's some rudimentary vocabulary building stuff that I still need to work on.

Solo gigs might be a fun way to start. I've not even started looking for what kinda' gig/jam options are available to me. I'm just returning to playing after a 6 year hiatus from playing anything. My main goal is to try to have some fun with it.

Cheers,

Dave

[Qrious]

I thought that GAS was primarily a guitar player's disease.

What other musicians suffer from this seemingly contagious disease?

[dkaplowitz]

qrious said:

I thought that GAS was primarily a guitar player's disease.

What other musicians suffer from this seemingly contagious disease?

Hmmm... I think that's why the "G" stands for "gear" and not "guitar". I don't think there are many musicians who don't suffer from this in one form or another. Maybe singers are the ones who can get a killer mic or two and be happy with that, but the rest of us are hosed.

I actually feel lucky being a lowly guitarist. For some of us a $2000. guitar and a $1500. amp would be a huge outlay, but would certainly be enough for gigging in most small-to-medium venues...and the guitar could be played in any venue. (You could get away gigging with a lot less, and of course you could spend a lot more)

I couldn't imagine all the junk I'd need to buy if I was a keyboardist, though I guess they're lucky since a lot of their effects are built in to their keyboards, but there's always samples to buy and other sounds, etc. Their rigs always look to have a lot of add on components too. I imagine it could get pretty costly.

But the worst could possibly be classical musicians...like 'cellists and violinists. I think their axes are pretty expensive to start with, though I guess a single wise purchase for a violinist could last an entire career, whereas that's seldom the case with a guitar player. Though if that single wise purchase is a Stradivarius, it could cost more than I'll likely ever pay for as many guitars as I might ever buy.

[pinsk94]

I always have GAS, but luckly my lack of income and my personal attachments to the instruments that I own keeps my stable rather consistant. But what would I like. Hum......
Palen custom archtop
Martin d-18ge
CA Bluegrass performer
Goodall Royal Hawaiian CJ
Taylor T5 Koa
.... it just keeps going and going and going ;D