January 2012

Peter Gabriel - Solsbury Hill - Guitar Lesson - How to Play on Acoustic ...

Sunday, January 29, 2012

Posted by cralph | at 3:32 PM 0 comments

Image via WikipediaSolsbury Hill
by
Peter Gabriel

From Song Facts:

Most of Gabriel's songs have lyrics made up of various images that come to him, put this was a rare autobiographical song, dealing with his break as lead singer of the band Genesis and anticipation of his new challenge as a solo artist.

This was Gabriel's first single as a solo artist. It was a big deal for him, since the song proved that he could write and perform a hit on his own with a song that was meaningful to him. He remarked in interviews at the time that he was especially pleased with the song and surprised that it was a single, since at one point he was going to leave it off the album.

Solsbury Hill is located near Bath, England, where Gabriel would often walk or jog. According to legend, a temple was built there to honor Apollo, god of light, music, and poetry. Solsbury Hill was the focus of a long and bitter dispute in the 1990s between environmentalists and government concerning the construction of a 4 lane road which cuts deeply into the side of the hill. (thanks, Tim - Bath, England)

Link: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=393

Lyrics:

Climbing up on Solsbury Hill
I could see the city light
Wind was blowing, time stood
still Eagle flew out of the night
He was something to observe
Came in close, I heard a voice
Standing stretching every nerve
Had to listen had no choice
I did not believe the information
[I] just had to trust imagination
My heart going boom boom boom "Son," he said "Grab your things, I've come to take you home."

To keepin' silence I resigned
My friends would think I was a nut
Turning water into wine
Open doors would soon be shut
So I went from day to day
Tho' my life was in a rut
"Till I thought of what I'd say
Which connection I should cut
I was feeling part of the scenery
I walked right out of the machinery
My heart going boom boom boom "Hey" he said "Grab your things I've come to take you home."

When illusion spin her net
I'm never where I want to be
And liberty she pirouette
When I think that I am free
Watched by empty silhouettes
Who close their eyes but still can see
No one taught them etiquette
I will show another me
Today I don't need a replacement
I'll tell them what the smile on my face meant
My heart going boom boom boom "Hey" I said "You can keep my things, they've come to take me home."

David Lee Roth Talks About Van Halen's 'A Different Kind of Truth'

Posted by cralph | at 10:15 AM 0 comments

Image via Wikipedia

Image via Wikipedia

Cover of Van HalenDavid Lee Roth Talks About Van Halen's 'A Different Kind of Truth'

From Guitar World:

Van Halen aren't doing much in the way of press around the release of their new album, A Different Kind of Truth, but the L.A. Times managed to track down frontman David Lee Roth to talk about his first new album with the band in nearly three decades. A few excerpts follow.
On Eddie Van Halen's health: "He's doing really well. He's lucid, he's sober, he's playing. You know, I don't know if Ed has ever felt good. There's a thin line between rage and great work. He really never enjoyed his fame or success, and that might be part of what compels him."
On Van Halen trying to live up to their legacy with their new album: "Are there second chances? I don't know, Mr. Faulkner, I'm tending to agree with you: No. We've managed to stretch our adolescence like a Chiclet to the moon and maintained the respectful dignities along the way that got us on that turnpike up in the first place. We love what we do for a living. Even in our wildest, most beer-soaked days we never missed rehearsal."
On revisiting old demos for the writing of the new album: "It's material that Eddie and I generated, literally, in 1975, 1976 and 1977. Usually fellas in our weight division will kind of gamely — or ironically, wink, wink — try to hail back to it [but] keep a safe, mature distance from it."
You can read the L.A. Times' full piece here.

8 year old mini band guitarist Zoe Thomson working on Stratosphere!

Wednesday, January 25, 2012

Posted by cralph | at 9:54 PM 0 comments

8 year old mini band guitarist Zoe Thomson working on Stratosphere!

Ridiculously talented eight year old.

Warning: may cause you to want to sell your guitars immediately!

Physics Buzz: The Graphite Guitar

Posted by cralph | at 9:49 PM 0 comments

Physics Buzz: The Graphite Guitar

Excerpt:

John Decker, who has doctorate in physics from Cambridge University, spent 10 years developing the graphite guitar - an acoustic guitar made of carbon fiber and epoxy resin which looks (and sounds) as good as the name implies. He started a company called RainSong Graphite Guitars that produces about 700 all-composite guitars a year.

Creating a guitar sans wood that would be durable and sound good was a challenge for Decker and his colleagues. The "sound" of a guitar depends on what the soundboard - the top butternut squash-shaped panel - is made of. Traditionally, soundboards are made from a wood like spruce or cedar. Even the different varieties of wood affect the tonal quality of the instrument.

Choosing graphite for the soundboard was not an overnight decision. Decker and his colleagues experimented first with other materials like fiberglass, which was too heavy, and plastic, which was too flexible. They settled eventually on graphite because its fiber structure was similar to that of wood's and would hopefully mimic the tonal qualities of wood. They experimented with adding other fibers and the proper amount of resin until they got a soundboard that worked.

On the RainSong website, Decker uses physics to explain what gives the RainSong guitar its unique "carbon sound". The soundboards on guitars transfer the vibrations of the strings into sound which then resonates in the body. For wood, about half of those vibrations are absorbed and turned into heat instead of sound. This effect, called damping, is heightened at higher vibration frequencies.

For full article: http://physicsbuzz.physicscentral.com/2011/06/graphite-guitar.html

The Breedlove D25 SME acoustic electric guitar review | Strumviews.com - complete acoustic, electric guitar product reviews and more

Monday, January 23, 2012

Posted by cralph | at 10:21 PM 0 comments

The Breedlove D25 SME acoustic electric guitar review | Strumviews.com - complete acoustic, electric guitar product reviews and more

Excerpt below:

Strumviews.com #2 Pick - Best Acoustic Guitars Under $1,000

Out of our top acoustic guitars under $1,000 category, this Breedlove Studio D25 SME came in very close to the our pick for the #1 Acoustic Guitar under $1,000 because I thought the SRT pickup in the Yamaha A3R is one of the best on the market right now.

The Breedlove Studio D25 SME (Cutaway with Electronic Pickup)

The Breedlove Studio D25 SME - best price is at Amazon.com

The Breedlove Studio D25 SME is the Dreadnought that is built so well it "just keeps ringing" when strummed with open chords as one owner recently boasted. And, that is a great test for the craftsmanship and quality of tonewoods for any acoustic guitar. Strum an open G or E chord and listen to how long the soundbox (body) resonates and vibrates. Though that is not the only quality test for summing up an acoustic guitar's quality, it is a great start.

Other tests include "playability" and intonation while moving up the fretboard (does the guitar stay in tune when you chord and play up the neck and when you place a capo on the guitar). All 3 of the guitars picked in this top 3 review keep great intonation all along the fretboard, which equates to fine craftsmanship and excellent set-up before leaving the factory (set-up being the height of the strings as determined by the truss rod setting, the nut height and the saddle height).

This Breedlove Studio D25/SME (an Atlas series model) is ready for the studio, the road, the stage, or around the campfire with its resonant, dense woody-textured overtones and distinct lows, mids and highs. It boasts top of the line electronics with L.R. Baggs LR-T CV Tuner Preamp, which has been designed for meticulous and serious professional performers. It has a full 3-band EQ, presence tuner, phase switch, and an onboard chromatic tuner for quick-tuning on the fly for the most serious acoustic ear. This model is A+ in quality, and what you would expect from Kim Breedlove's award-winning design elements and craftsmanship. Not only is it distinctly and well-balanced, but is excellent for the studio (plugged in and miked), as well as live and unplugged.

Here are some of the Breedlove Studio D25 SME specs to compare:

Solid Sitka Spruce top for the most responsive, highest strength to weight ratio top
Dreadnought Body Style - the most common and most balanced projection in all 3 registers
Nato Mahogany Sides and Back - Great sound like Eastern or Western Mahogany - not as deep or full as Rosewood
Satin or Gloss finish - for moderate or high brilliance or "crispness" in projection
Grover Chrome mini tuners - always reliable Grover tuners can't go wrong
Rosewood fretboard for easy fingering and chording
Full scale 25.5 inch fretboard
Tusq nut and saddle material (synthetic but similar to bone or ivory for excellent vibration transfer)
L.R. -T CV Tuner Preamp - Lloyd Baggs top of the line pickup and pre-amp

Full article at:
http://www.strumviews.com/Breedlove-D25-SME-acoustic-electric-best-acoustic-guitar-under-1000

How to buy an acoustic guitar -comparing guitars based on price range | Strumviews.com - complete acoustic, electric guitar product reviews and more

Posted by cralph | at 10:14 PM 3 comments

How to buy an acoustic guitar -comparing guitars based on price range | Strumviews.com - complete acoustic, electric guitar product reviews and more

The Budget Intermediate Guitar Player $400-$750: In this range there is as much variance as in any other lower-budget to moderately priced range guitars. There are acutally some guitars on the market in this price range that do not hold up to some of the standards we mentioned in the $175 - $400 range, and we will steer you away from those disappointing models, yet one would expect to find most guitars in this Budget Intermediate Guitar Range to be better in quality and playability than those in less expensive price brackets. Some of the differences that distinguish guitars in this range from guitars in the "under $400" range include different features like:

cutaway options
rosewood sides and back
more ornate inlays (decoration)
more options with the lacquer finish
potentially higher quality tuners and keys
other tone wood options

Though there are plenty of quality guitars in the lower budget range, the guitars in the $400 - $750 range should be considered for the player who is a little more picky on the tone quality, the long-term playability, a few more tone wood options, acoustic electric options (with some), more sophistocated designs and ornaments and other subtleties.

In this beginner- intermediate range, we will divide them into two groups for more clarity: Acoustic and Acoustic Electric. Acoustic electric guitars come equipped with some kind of electrontic pick-up (various manufacturers) that allow the acoustic guitar to be played alone or plugged into an amp. Essentially, almost any acoustic guitar can later be fitted with on-board electronics to plug into an amp. Choosing the right kind of pick-up system for the truly picky guitar ear is another set of reviews in itself as differnt picku sytstems have different pros and cons. We will review pickus in a different section as most of these acoustic electric guitars come with a pickup that is fairly decent for a beginner or intermediate player. The more advanced player perhaps would be more specific when shopping around for different pickup systems as he or she would have a definite sense of the sound profile and versatility he or she would want from the pickup. For these following reviews, the pickup systems will be recommended as high quality for this price range of guitar.

The top 4 Acoustic-Electric Budget Intermediate guitars $400-$750 reviewed are:

Takamine G Series EG340SC Cutaway Dreadnought Acoustic-Electric Guitar, Natural

Seagull Performer CW Flame Maple HG QI Guitar

Alvarez Acoustic Guitar MF80C Cutaway Grand Concert Top Solid Spruce Back & Side Solid Mahogany

Taylor Guitars 110e, Dreadnought, Solid Sitka Spruce, Sapele Back/Sides, ES-T

The top 3 Acoustic Budget Intermediat guitars $400-$750 reviewed are:

Epiphone AJ-500M Masterbilt Collection Advanced Jumbo Guitar, Natural Satin

Epiphone AJ-500R Masterbilt Collection Advanced Jumbo Guitar, Natural Satin

Taylor Guitars 110, Dreadnought, Solid Sitka Spruce, Sapele Back/Sides

The Budget Professional Guitar Player $750-$1100:

Above the budget intermediate guitar range are the more bottom line high quality professional grade guitars. This is the range of guitars where my newbie friend almost blew $1100 dollard on an inferior model because of the great brand name. Fortunately, I was able to redirect him to a much finer instrument and he is happier today for having asked me before making the investment.

Although there is no clear cut line as to the exact cutoff for grading a guitar based on price in it's ability to support more advance players, these guitars will be similar to some in the previous price range, yet they may have more options, and perhaps different quality of tonewoods, more body styles and more "bells and whistles". While a player may be equally satisfied with perhaps a Taylor guitar in the previous price range, he or she may find the different sizes, options, electronics and the cutaway to be more suitable to advanced techniques, especially when playing scales further up the neck. Additionally in this next price ranger are some very high quality Left-Handed guitars for the much neglected southpaw. Every guitar suggested here will be comparable in quality. The differences will be based on body styles and more particular slections of the tonewoods used for the back and sides, as well as onboard electronics differences. You may want to review some of these guitars and compare them side by side to see the subtle differences.

The top acoustic guitars reviewed in the $750-$1100 range are:

Taylor Guitars 214e, Grand Auditorium, Solid Sitka Spruce Top, Rosewood Back/Sides, ES-T

Taylor Guitars 214e, Grand Auditorium, Solid Sitka Spruce Top, Rosewood Back/Sides, ES-T, Left (left handed)

Taylor Guitars 114ce, Grand Auditorium, Solid Sitka Spruce Top, Sapele Back/Sides, Cutaway, ES-T

Taylor Guitars 214-G Grand Auditorium Acoustic Guitar, Natural

Taylor Guitars 214, Grand Auditorium, Solid Sitka Spruce Top, Rosewood Back/Sides, Left (left handed)

Breedlove Atlas Stage C25/SR Acoustic-Electric Guitar

***
Full article at:
http://www.strumviews.com/How-to-buy-acoustic-guitar-based-on-price

Acoustic Guitar: Buying Guide

Posted by cralph | at 9:49 PM 0 comments

English: A photo of a 3 4 acoustic guitar.

Image via Wikipedia

Image by Sweetwater Sound via FlickrAcoustic Guitar: Buying Guide

Whether you're playing in front of a coffee house full of loyal fans, or your fireplace in your home, an Acoustic Guitar from Sweetwater is the perfect instrument! This Sweetwater Buying Guide includes information that can help you choose an Acoustic Guitar for your needs.

Acoustic Guitar

Body Style:
Acoustic guitars come in a variety of sizes and shapes, from small travel size, to jumbo, to dreadnought. The body style in an acoustic guitar determines sound projection and tonal emphasis. Things to consider are tonal quality vs. playing comfort. Some acoustic guitar bodies come in a single cutaway design like the shape of the Gibson Les Paul. This gives access to the higher frets.
Electronics:
Some acoustic guitars come with pickups and preamps built in for playing larger venues where your acoustic sound needs to fill the room. Some instruments have preamps mounted in a hole cut in the side of the instrument, while others mount inside the soundhole. There are systems that combine preamp, microphone, piezo pickups , EQ, and tuners.
Neck:
The concept for necks on acoustic guitars is the same as it is for electrics; the size of your hand is key. Generally the thickness and width of the neck is based on the size of the body of the instrument as well as how many frets the neck has. Usually, acoustic necks are listed as 12-fret or 14-fret. This refers to the number of frets clear of the body, not how many overall.
Intonation:
Intonation determines whether or not the notes play in tune as you move up the neck. If the distance between the frets (usually above the 12th fret) is off, the guitar will be incapable of playing in tune and therefore useless as a recording or performance instrument.
Tonewood:
The choice of wood determines the sound of an acoustic guitar. Different types of wood produce different tones, but most guitar makers believe that the top is the most important for determining tonal quality. Spruce is the standard material for tops with Sitka spruce being the most common. The cost of an acoustic guitar increases dramatically based on the rarity of the tonewoods, such as rosewood, but due to decreasing supplies of certain tonewoods, guitar makers are successfully finding alternative materials to make great sounding instruments.
Tuning Machines:
The type of tuning machine your guitar has is very important. This is what allows you to fine tune and hold pitch. Enclosed machine heads resist rust and airborne corrosives, and therefore don't require as much maintenance or replacement as open tuning machines.
Bridge and Fingerboard:
The materials used for bridge and fingerboard do have an effect on sound, but this is minimal compared to the body of the guitar. Put simply, the effects of bridge and fingerboard materials cannot make or break a guitar's sound.
Finish:
Different types of finish can affect the way the wood vibrates, but there is nothing you can do about this. These decisions are make by the guitar maker and they usually choose wisely.

***
Read more at Sweetwater:
http://www.sweetwater.com/shop/guitars/acoustic/buying-guide.php