Musician Forum - Band Discussion Board - BandMix

so, dayne recently mentioned....

Dayne Nobody IV wrote: I never fall in love with guitars... there is always another guitar coming along soon..

this got me thinking about how people view their instruments. are they simply replaceable "tools"?

or over time do you develop a more intimate relationship w your go to instrument(s)?

i'm not a material guy....but i definitely have an intimate relationship with my instruments. and it's not about accruing a bunch of "material" things....instead, i do believe that certain instruments are imbued w a certain "soul" and have for lack of a better term...a "spirituality" about them.

when they speak to you (and allow YOU to speak) ..... that's a special bond. at least it is for me...and it's one i don't lightly dismiss or take for granted.

i've had an ongoing relationship w my number one bass ...my '63 PBASS for more than 40 yrs now. i've played thousands of gigs w it. besides being my first bass...it's the instrument i learned to play bass on. it's been there for me thru thick and thin and we've had some AMAZING times together. there's no way i can look at that as just some wood w some strings on it.

other instr i have i got from other musicians who i've played w. and i always feel a connection w them when i play "their" axe. other instr i've put together from parts or done a lot of mods upon.....hard not to feel a connection w those too.

i put a wonderful relationship w a great instrument right up there w a wonderful relationship w a great woman!

I've played with several "gear heads" and at one time was in love with my 4 Les Pauls.


But since about the mid 80s, I see guitars as glorified boat paddles. My Les Paul treads water better than my Breedlove acoustic, which holds too much water.

Every time I come to Israel, I cut the strings off my Breedlove and put my dirty clothes in the sound hole when I leave, so there's more room for souvineers in my suit case. Security at the airport always gets a kick out of that.

I understand guitar love, but as a singer primarily, I just don't "do it".

.

My P-Bass and my Firebird Guitar are a lot more to me than mere tools. They are part of my brand, and they fit me perfectly.

Talbot

talbot...from previous conversations i knew EXACTLY on which side of this YOU'D come down!

ted....i had you figured for more of a strat guy back in the day.

I'm materialistic. Not afraid to admit it, either. I also never sell anything. I buy it, use it, upgrade here and there. I've given some gear away to people I think could benefit from it. But I haven't sold any gear in 25 years (that was actually a trade, my first guitar for an amp).
I love my Tele Deluxe and my fretless bass. Couldn't ever see getting rid of either.
I do hope my kid gets into these things. He seems more cut out for sports, though.

jookeyman wrote:

schmedidiah wrote:I do hope my kid gets into these things. He seems more cut out for sports, though.

Hah!! Get ready, Freddy!! My youngest son has my old '62 Melody Maker, my old Madiera flattop, a Marshall JCM800 combo and an Ibanez bass (oh, and a Crate bass amp). Guess who bought him the amps and the bass?? Get out your Led Zeppelin I album because 'Your Time Is Gonna Come' .

Hope so. Music is basically all I care about. Would be nice to share it with him.

My 72 Tele is butter in my hands. the rest of them are just tools.

My instruments, along with a couple other inanimate objects I own, are my babies, they all have names.

My telecaster is Hernando. I didn't name my bass because he's adopted and I forgot what he was called before (I'm a horrible mother , okay his new name is Carl). My melodica is Elliot, ukulele is Thomas (Thom for short), acoustic-electric is Cindy, tambourine is Tammy. My turntable is named Tabitha and my computer is Penelope.

That's good stuff!

GuitarMikeB wrote:My 72 Tele is butter in my hands.

Sounds messy!

Joy la She wrote:My instruments, along with a couple other inanimate objects I own, are my babies, they all have names.

I only have names for two instruments....both named for their previous owners who have special places in my heart.

"Sandy", a '66 GUILD Starfire (the one in avatar) that belonged to a lovely lady and great musician I used to play w.

And 'Doc' a mid 80's Washburn HB35 (335 copy) that used to belong to Doc...the sax man in Planet Jazz.

I stopped naming my instruments after I went overseas. Selling off my hybrid Fender bass I'd named 'Susanne' was just too painful.

I did write a poem once called "I talk to inanimate objects..."

Talbot