Auch ich beteilige mich an diesem Blog. Die Kollegen hatten mich gefragt, was denn die richtige Mask 4 Fun Gitarre war. Dazu Bild 1.

Die Hagström D'Aquisto hab ich 1987 in Stockholm gekauft. Sie kommt auf unserer „Lots of Fun“ Kassette (Gibt’s immer noch bei Woanders) beim Song „Pretty Eyes“ zum Einsatz. Die Geschichte mit der Halseinleimung würde den Rahmen sprengen.

Die mittlere ist ein Rockinger Bausatz „mit alles, auch schahfe Ssoße“:

24 Bünde, HSH Bestückung (gabs 1983 noch gar nicht), einem Piezo unter dem Steg, 4 Schalter. Von den 5 Potis sind 3 auch noch Push-Pull Ausführungen…

Ich hab den Bausatz (durchgehender Hals mit Paddelkopfplatte und 2 Mahagoniblöcken 9x4.5x40 cm) 1983 zum Abi bekommen und wir haben den ganzen Winter daran geschmirgelt – also nie Korpora mit Bandsäge sägen lassen. Wir haben sie erst mit Akryl gelackt – klang nich, dann mit Nitro – klang auch nicht. Jetzt ist sie geölt und gewachst und schwingt super. Die ursprünglichen großen Schaller M6 Gold mussten gegen M6 Mini getauscht werden. Das machte die Gitarre weniger kopflastig.

Die Gitarre hat 1000 Sounds, von denen ungefähr 5 gut sind und um die zu erreichen muß man immer ca 5 Schalter umlegen. Sie ist etwas charakterarm, hat aber ein Mördersustain.

Die blaue Rockinger-Strat ist auch ein Bausatz, diesmal von 1986, Reste des blauen Lacks befinden sich in Mekios und meiner Lunge und an einem Mikrostativ, das ausgemustert bei mir steht. Zunächst mit OBLs und einem Rockinger ST-Rat Pu ausgestattet ist nur noch dieser in der Mitte erhalten. Am Steg ein Seymour Duncan Jeff Beck, am Hals weiß ich grad nicht. Das originale True Tune Tremolo (Atze Gölsdorf lässt grüßen) wurde ca 1990? Gegen ein Floyd Rose umgebaut. Aktuell schaltet man mit dem Kippschalter den Stegpu direkt auf den Ausgang. Die Gitarre benutze ich heute fast gar nicht mehr, weil das Floyd Rose zuviel Tonsubstanz klaut durch seine Messing/Gussstahl-Anteile. 1986 gabs aber keine Fender Strat.

Noch ein Bild vom Basteln an der Rockinger-Strat:

Damit kommen wir zu Bild 2.

Auch in den 1980ern hätte ich diese Auswahl lieber gehabt. Dies ist meine erste (Ich kaufe mir keine Variax-Gitarre) Reihe.

Kopfplatten von l nach r:

Gibson LP DX mit Standard HB (Burstbucker 1+2) ca 1972

Gibson ES 345 1966 third Fretbord, Varitone mono

Squier JV Tele 1982

Gibson SG STD 1968

Rickenbacker 360 12 V 64 (mit Trapezsaitenhalter und nachgerüsteter Stereobridge)

Gretsch Country Club 1965/66, Bigsby nachgerüstet, neue Filtertrons

Epiphone Elitist (Japan) Casino

1995 Fender American Classic Custom Shop Strat nachgerüstet mit Blechreiterbrücke und Sperzeltunern

Gibson ES 175, zusammengebaut von Boris Dommenget aus einem 1957er und einem 1958er Modell mit echten PAFs. Yeah.

Nothing to Fear ist einer von Franks (Badenius) Texten, die mich sofort zur Gitarre greifen ließen.

Der besondere Clou war hier, dass ich schon mehrere Wochen mit dem leicht wiegenden Groove herumgespielt hatte, ohne dass mir dazu etwas Passendes (und vor allem Sinnvolles) eingefallen wäre.

Dann landet plötzlich dieser Text in meiner eMail, und die Teile fügen sich gespenstisch von selber zusammen.

Es gibt mehrere Aufnahmen dieses Liedes; zuerst hatte ich versucht "clever" zu sein – es gab eine Version voller Synthies, und dann eine "klassische" Variante – aber ich war nie ganz zufrieden.

Nach längerem Hin und Her habe ich dann eine Version eingespielt, auf der der originale Gitarrengroove zu hören ist.

Im Solo versuche ich ein wenig an George Harrison zu erinnern, der einen himmlischen Slide-Stil hatte. Ich spiele meine Epiphone Casino.

Die Rhythmusgitarren sind neben der Casino, meine Les Paul Junior und eine Fender Telecaster. Der Bass ist ein selbstgebauter Bass, dessen Hals und MusicMan-artiger Tonabnehmer von Rockinger sind.

Hier ist der Song: Nothing To Fear (2005 version)

Como sabrán mi hermano y yo nos hemos hecho fans de Guitar Hero es por ello que mi hermano decidió que no sólo debiamos de jugar Guitar Hero sino que además deberiamos de tocar como un Guitar Hero, es por eso que llegó el nuevo juguete. Sí una guitarra eléctrica.

Ahora yo sólo he hecho ejercicios e identificar algunos acordes. 

La guitarra es una Les Paul Standard de Epiphone, sí no alcanzo para la Gibson. :(

Por cierto la guitarra es blueserona o sea que nada de andar tocando Battery.

Weil Lennon und Harrison der Sound und Look der Epi gefiel, schafften sie sich Anfang 1966 auch Casinos an: George ein Modell mit Bigsby und John eines ohne. Auf der letzten Welttournee 1966  spielten John und George ihre Casinos. Auch auf den Alben Revolver, Sgt. Pepper oder dem weißen Album stehen ihre Casinos voll im Vordergrund. Lennon entfernte Anfang 1968 den Lack von seiner (bis dahin in Sunburst lackierten) Epiphone. Man sieht ihn mit der naturbelassenen Epi (siehe Bild) in den Videos zu Hey Jude und Revolution, sowie im Film Let It Be. Ich besitze auch eine (koreanische) Epiphone Casino im Lennon-Stil, und diese Gitarre war eine der besten Anschaffungen, die ich je getätigt habe (danke an Sebastian!). Die Gitarre klingt einfach sagenhaft.

Epiphone Double Neck G-1275 Custom Specifications

• Pickups: 4 humbuckers
• Hardware: Chrome
• Scale: 24.75 inch
• Nut Width: 1.85, 1.68 inch
• Neck: Set
• Neck Material: Mahogany
• Fingerboards: Rosewood
• Fingerboard Inlays: Parallelograms
• Body Material: Alder

List Price: $1,880.00

Epiphone Tony Iommi G400 Specifications

• Pickups: Gibson USA Iommi humbuckers
• Hardware: Black Chrome
• Scale: 24.75 inches
• Nut Width: 1.6875 inch
• Neck: Set
• Neck Material: Mahogany
• Fingerboard Inlay: Mother of Pearl Crosses
• Body Material: Mahogany

List Price: $857.00

Epiphone G310 Specifications

• Pickups: 2 open coil humbuckers
• Body Material: Alder
• Neck: Bolt
• Neck Material: Mahogany
• Fingerboard: Rosewood
• Scale: 24.75 inches
• Nut Width: 1.68 inch
• Fingerboard Inlay: Dot

List Price: $407.00

But many of us actually get a shot at playing in front of paying audiences in local clubs and bars. We spend countless hours practicing our respective instruments, loading vans that will breakdown about 100-feet from nowhere, sleeping on floors wherever there's space, saving quarters for laundry, and wondering where the next check is coming from. It's the rock and roll life. Are you sure you want to get in on that action?

Ok, chief. Well, then, let's get rockin'.

Before you can even start to play you need to find an instrument. If you're like us, you chose to rock your brains out with an electric guitar. You want to play earsplitting solos, chunky rhythms, and powerhouse chords. Maybe (if you're of the appropriate age group) you begged and pleaded with your parents to buy you a guitar. You don't know what kind of guitar you want, it just needs to be electric. Chances are pretty good your parents don't know what kind of guitar to buy and they're not about to drop $2,500 on a Gibson Les Paul that you might stop playing tomorrow.

Your author's tale of learning guitar is one like that. In the seventh grade, I begged my parents for a guitar and I was in luck, the JC Penny catalog had arrived and in it was a whole section on musical instruments. They looked good. They were shiny and amazing and I wouldn't have known a Fender from an Ibanez from a Gibson from a Kay. That's right a Kay. What the hell is a Kay? I have no idea, but I had one.

The price was right for my parents. For $100 they could buy me a guitar and if I stopped playing after a few days it wasn't a huge loss. And so they ordered that $100 piece of plywood with a few pickups and some crappy strings slapped on it. And it was a guitar. But more than that, it was a door stopper - it was certainly heavy enough.

There was nothing playable about that guitar. It had virtually no sustain. The neck was about as easy to play if someone had taken a baseball bat and put the heaviest, dullest strings they could find on it. The pickups were shotty and the electrical wiring was so poorly connected my father took apart the guitar on more than one occasion and resoldered the connections. But I struggled to play it.

That's one thing people have learned about me: I'm more stubborn than any mule you'll ever encounter. I wanted to play guitar and dammit, I was going to figure it out. And for the first four or five years of my guitar playing life, I played the heck out of this piece of black painted lumber. I wasn't good but I just figured that I wasn't destined to be the next Eddie Van Halen or Eric Clapton. What I didn't realize was that there was a world of guitars out there and mine barely belonged amongst its peers. At the same time one of my best friends was given a Fender Stratocaster. I'd never seen a Fender in person before but I knew it was one of the best guitars. Mine didn't even compare.

And then one fateful day I received a catalog for a mail-order guitar store. They were more than guitars. They had drums, keyboards, recording stuff, microphones, mixers, and guitars. Pages and pages of guitars. There wasn't a Kay to be found amongst them. But there were Fenders. And Epiphones. Ibanez, Gibson, B.C. Rich, ESP, Gretsch. They were all there. And so were their price tags. Some of the guitars started around the same price as my Kay - $100. Others topped out around $10,000! There had to be a difference but what that was I didn't know.

But I knew my guitar wasn't even in the catalog. It wasn't a real guitar. It needed to go. I wanted a Fender. It was a good guitar. I knew that. Was it for me? I didn't know, but it didn't matter. I wanted one. The prices were what had me scared. I knew my $100 Kay was crap but at this time I was 16 and certainly couldn't afford to buy a guitar for several thousand dollars. I could barely afford to buy a guitar for a couple hundred dollars. But I was in luck. Fender had something called a Squire. And for $149.99 I used my first paycheck from my first job and bought a Baltic blue Fender Affinity.

I thought that was the greatest guitar ever. Certainly it was much better than the Kay (which I promptly sold for $20 to a kid who was dying to learn to play guitar and her mother didn't want to drop a lot of cash on a hobby that would be destined to end in 24 hours - a familiar story.) I played that guitar in my band The Sheep Incident but by the time I was a senior in college I was realizing that the Fender just wasn't for me. I had an Ibanez EX that was given to me by a coworker and I never was jazzed by the sound. But the neck! Woah! It blew my Squire's neck out of the water. My hand seemed to move faster on on it and I could move around between chords and notes much quicker.

But I'd been playing guitar since I was 12 and here it was 10 years later and I wasn't much better than I was when I first got that Kay. And it wasn't for lack of playing time. I played every day, practiced every spare moment I had but much to my chagrin I wasn't even close to the guitarist I wanted to be. I liked playing but I hated that I was so bad. Why was I so bad at it?

Again, being stubborn, I wasn't about to quit. I graduated college, moved into an apartment and rediscovered a band that I'd first learned about my sophomore year in college - The Donnas. Their guitarist was fantastic. I wanted to play like that. That was my goal: get as good (or close) to Allison Robertson's playing. There was no way I could do that on my Fender. I tried. Believe you me. I tried and tried and I couldn't even muster the main riff of The Donnas' hit song "Take It Off." What was wrong? Was it me?

No, I decided. I needed a guitar like Allison's. She had a Gibson Les Paul Standard. I looked it up in the latest issue of my music catalog. There was no way I could afford to drop $2,500 on a Gibson Les Paul. But I wanted one. Needed one. I was convinced that if I had a Les Paul I'd get better. I didn't want an Ibanez Les Paul copy. I didn't want a Hondo. I wanted a Gibson but couldn't afford one. I did some research. Gibson owned a company called Epiphone. I knew about Epiphones. John Lennon played one. So did George Harrison. They were two of my favorite musicians. Epiphone couldn't be crap. And since Epiphone was licensed by Gibson they actually sold a Les Paul. So I found one used in a local music shop (that not-so coincidentally looked remarkably similar to Allison Robertson's Gibson LP Standard) and bought it for $349.

I'd like to say that instantly, practically overnight I became this amazing guitarist. I didn't. But something interesting did happen. I was able to learn songs more quickly. Those "impossible" songs I liked but had never been able to play before were easier to play now. And a few months later I'd joined a new band and was actually able to play some of Allison Robertson's guitar parts. I could even write my own parts. All those years of music theory weren't for nothing. I could play guitar and I could write for guitar.

I had spent 10 years of my guitar playing life being frustrated with my instrument. I couldn't play anything I wanted to play. There seemed to be a disconnect between my brain, fingers, and fretboard. Most people would have given up on their guitar-playing dreams but I'm not like that. I get frustrated and will keep it up and keep it up until I'm successful.

In a very roundabout way I do have a point here. This isn't the story of how I learned to play guitar even though it certainly seems that way. This is advice: no single guitar is right for everyone. Just because Kurt Cobain played a Fender didn't mean it was the right guitar for me. Sure Paul Stanley played an Ibanez, but that didn't mean I should. Ok, I give, Allison Robertson is a Gibson guitarist and I am now too, but that was really a lucky draw.

There are a lot of guitars out there. Play them all. Find the one that fits. You'll know it when you play it. The second I picked up my Les Paul I knew that it was the guitar I'd been looking for. There was no question about it. Since then I've gone through my fair share of guitars and I always know if the guitar is the right one for me. Right now I'm favoring the newest edition to my herd, Korina SG, but the second I had it in my hand I knew that it was my guitar. And I've picked up guitars by Fender, Ibanez and even BC Rich more recently and while they're all great guitars, they're not mine. They don't feel right. They don't play that well for me. But for you? Maybe.

One thing to remember: the price tags do in fact mean something. The Squire was $149 for a reason and in your humble author's opinion, a guitar that cheap should never be given to a beginner. It will only end in frustration and the end of the hobby.

So you wanna be a rockstar? Before you rock, choose your weapon. Play a lot of guitars. Camp out in the guitar store and just play everything. Your guitar is waiting. You just need to find it.

The man whose name graces Gibson and Epiphone guitars the world round turns 93 today. The story of how he helped to come up with the idea of an electric guitar is fascinating to say the least, as this excerpt from a PBS tribute to him explains:

Along the way, he kept tinkering with his instrument.

Hollow body electric guitars were being developed and commercially manufactured as early as the 1920s, but they were prone to distortion when amplified. When he was still in his Waukesha band shell days, Paul often found his acoustic guitar drowned out in a band.

"He was an early innovator," says Alan di Perna, West Coast editor for Guitar World. "There were other people who were technical innovators, but they didn't play like Les did."

By 1941, still only 26, Paul had fashioned a workable solid body guitar he dubbed The Log, since it was essentially a four-by-four block of solid pine with a tailpiece, two pickups and a Gibson neck mounted on it. Later, for appearances, he fixed two side wings from an Epiphone guitar so it would actually resemble a guitar.When he approached Gibson Guitars about the commercial potential of The Log, Shaughnessy reports, they told him it was "nothing but a broomstick with a pickup on it."

In 1952, Gibson launched their first solid body electric guitar, and the endorsement of Les Paul has made him a legend over the years in which the guitar bearing his name has been sold. If my Les Paul wasn’t suffering from a broken string at the moment, I would gladly strum “Happy Birthday” as a tribute to one of the great innovators and inventors of history.

Amazingly, Paul performs 2 shows every Monday night at the Iridium Jazz Club in New York City. Forget the Rolling Stones – here is the ultimate example of musical performance longevity!

Människor som sjunger är en vanlig illustration. Särskilt i populärvetenskapliga artiklar är de lätta att använda för att illustrera något i en faktaruta.

Foto: Celestial Photography

Djur och Musik

Djur är alltid tacksamma att använda. Barn och djur gillar nästan alla.

Djur i bilder och situationer som för tankarna till musik.

Den här katten ser ut att kanske sjunga?

Foto: fofurasfelinas

Kanske även denna kattunge?

Foto: Southernpixel

Och så den här hunden som åtminstone tilltalar mig mest bland djuren...

Foto: o Bubu

En fisk som kanske för tankarna till vissa musikformer.

Foto: Omar Eduardo

Fler katter som sjunger...

Foto: venusnaturalis

Noter

Noter visar tydligt att något har med musik att göra. Här har vi några jag hittade på Flickr.

Foto: Automania

Foto: XŤЯΣΛМ i

Foto: selva

Foto: Paysage du temps

Musikinstrument

Några musikinstrument fotograferade som kanske är lämpliga för att illustrera musik?

Foto: Thomas Hawk

Foto: snowriderguy

Foto: zen

Foto: lapidim

Foto: Stuck in Customs

Foto: lapidim

Foto: carf

Gitarren kom till när en Anastasios Stathopoulos flyttade till Turkiet i slutet av 1800-talet. Där började han tillverka egna stränginstrument men flyttade tillbaka till New York 1903. De startade ett företag för tillverkning där som köptes 1915 av Epiphone. Under 1920-talet tillverkade också företaget Gibson gitarrer. Dessa är kända som världens bästa gitarrer. År 1957 köpte Gison Epiphone som gick dåligt för $20 000 US.

Foto: bullish1974

Foto: shapeshift

Foto: Eden-lys (temps de pause)

Foto: Emily's mind

Foto: Petr Urbancik

Foto: wakalani

Foto: K ~ The Eternal Spirit

Foto: Bruno55

Instrumentet nedan är en epiphone. Orville Gibson arbetade som kypare  i en amerikansk småstad och började bygga gitarrer och mandoliner hemma 1894. 1902 startade han företaget Gibson (då The Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Co men nu bara Gibson). De tillverkade mandoliner, gitarrer och banjoer.

Foto: shoothead

Gitarrerna Epiphone idag tillverkar liknar mycket de dyrare modellerna hos Gibson som ju också äger Epiphone. Epiphone har emellertid också några modeller som bara de tillverkar. Läs mer i Wikipedia: Epiphone.

Foto: bricolage.108

Grammofonspelare

Foto: darren131

Foto: rogilde

Features: This guitar has 20 frets, 3-way selector, 1 humbucker, 1 single coil and a coil tap. Maple neck and finger board and a alder body with acoustic chambers (semi hollow). One thing though - only 20 frets. But it is easily compensated with its amazing bends. Mirror pickguard (how cool is that!) and a gnarly "characteristic" head stock (it looks like a pincher).

Sound: I absolutely love this guitar's sound, because it has so many! When I'm playing clean I tap the humbucker, switch to middle position or neck position (if I'm soloing) and get some awesome tones. And when I'm cranking the distortion I usually kick back to the humbucker or if I'm jamming with another humbucking guitar I switch to the single coils, because they all sound totally awesome!

Finish: I love the finish. The neck is really smooth and I've never seen a fretboard with such a nice finish. When I play my friend's guitar I get frusturated because they fretboards are polished like the Burns. I also like the green finish, because how many really green guitars do you see?

I play every kind of music, rock, hard rock, blues, jazz, and it has something for every genre. I played it in two of our band's "gigs" and I haven't had a single problem with it. I've had it for almost five years and the finish hasn't shown any decay.

I play it through a Flextone XL and a Vox V847 wah (at times). I got a deal at Apple music but I would definetly pay the full price if it got stolen or lost. I got this guitar because I didn't have a lot of money and it got cool review from Guitar Player. I went in and played it and at first I thought it was a tiny little acoustic guitar. But I've gotten used to it, and I don't want to play anything else. Oh yea, with it's mirror pickgaurd you can shine it around while your playing (I've found this amusing while playing boring rythm riffs).

OK so I said I wouldn't post for another week, but fuck it, this is my blog, only four people in the world read it... I'm going to do what I like.

Like tell you that the beauty showing above is an Epiphone ES 335.

And I've just bought one.

And I'm very fucking happy about that. I've wanted an ES-335 (a Gibson 335) ever since I was 16, but the price tag was always pretty... how to put this, er... heavy. To go into a shop today and buy one, it will cost about £1650 for a basic one, before you've done some custom jobs on it, like swapping the pickups for the ones you really want, custom paint job... blah...

Of course, the colour to have is cherry red, but I'm not following the crowd on this one. Let them have their red guitars. Mine's a black one with chrome hardware thanks; and yes, it says Epiphone, and for years, an Epiphone was a poor man's Gibson, but they've really pulled their finger out in the last few years and although it is cheap when compared to a Gibson, it's far from cheap in real terms. Plays nice, sounds great, build quality is excellent for a axe of this price bracket...

And look at it.

Now... a few custom additions, like chromed metal pot-controls, and this baby is ready to rock out.

So... of course you're thinking now: he plays guitar as well? That's right. Artist, musician, sometime-writer, technical geek, photographer, muser... I am the Renaissance.

Un homeless borracho y drogado hasta las trancas intenta entrar en un bar, el "Midnight Bottle Club". En ese estado el gorila de la puerta se niega a dejarle pasar. En segundos se lía la de Dios es Cristo, gritos, forcejeos y empujones hasta que el borracho termina muerto en el suelo de una monumental paliza.

El borracho se llamaba John Francis, sus amigos le llamaban Jaco. Tenía 35 años, y había sido unos de los más grandes de la música Jazz tocando su bajo eléctrico sin trastes construido por él mismo.

Jaco Pastorius estuvo en lo más alto. Era único, inconfundible e inimitable. Pero sus problemas con el alcohol y las drogas le convirtieron en un tipo peligroso maníaco depresivo, lo cual adelantó su retirada de la escena internacional en el año 84. Desde el 86 vivió en la calle entre mendigos y vagabundos, siempre con su bajo a cuestas. Su prematura muerte le convirtió en leyenda.

Cuando escuché por primera vez a Jaco me dieron unas ganas locas de tirar a la basura mi guitarra Epiphone e ir a comprarme inmediatamente un Fender Jazz Bass. ¿Cómo se puede tocar el bajo de una manera tan sugestiva?

Recomiendo cualquiera de los discos que grabó con Weather Report (sobre todo "Heavy Weather"), aunque sin duda lo mejor de su virtuosismo se encuentra en su primer disco "Jaco Pastorius".

Ah, "Portrait of Tracy", "Continuum", "Donna Lee", ...

Now, not only do I love listening to music, but I also love playing instruments as well. The drum kit is something I'm gaining more knowledge and experience with as time goes on, and I'm really REALLY interested in learning how to play piano. Yet, the one instrument that started it all was the guitar.

Way back in 3rd grade, my parents decided to give me for Christmas my very first electric guitar, which was made by Japanese company called Vantage. Since there are no pictures of the model I have floating around the internet, and my digital camera bit the dust, I can only describe how it's a natural wood color, two humbuckers, and kinda has the look and feel of a decent Paul Reed Smith model. Since I was just a wee lad, I managed to create more noise than melody out of that thing, courtesy of a trusty Squier practice amp (with dual cascading gain, so it kicked ultra ass). My inexperience with how to handle the guitar and its controls ultimately led to its demise, with the input jack busting and the tone knobs becoming fully clockwise (which should NEVER happen). Nowadays, the Vantage (named "The Fonz," don't ask why) just stands in the corner, a nice reminder of the past.

After a period where I lost interest in playing guitar (hey, Nickelodeon was far more cooler to me back then), I managed to get sucked back in again in the 8th grade when my dad gave me his old-as-hell Jackson Fat Strat knockoff. It looked like something that fell off the Queensryche tour bus, with a SHARP ANGLED headstock, a whammy bar, and a neck that was thin enough for me to try my best Eddie Van Halen tapping impression. It even sounds like the image; this guitar (I named it "DeGarmo," after the Queensryche guitarist) was meant to be played with distortion and other special effects, not as a clean guitar (unless there was a nice chorus or flange effect). It worked for my pseudo Cobain guitar skills, but I knew I needed something more.

This would begin my era of using Squier guitars, the affordable Fender brand from Asia. From 8th grade to 10th grade, I would acquire four guitars from the company: A 1997 Affinity Series Duo-Sonic in black, a 2002 Affinity Series Telecaster (pictured above), a red 2003 S-65 (an SG copy formerly made by Guild's affordable DeArmond brand), and a 2003 Telecaster Custom. Now, there is an unfortunate stigma attached to the Squier name (especially in my high school years) which would have me automatically ejected from bands. But, affordability aside, they are genuinely good guitars for the player on a budget.

Now, the Squiers were pretty good to me. But, I needed to evolve in my arsenal. My dad would give me his cherished (and very heavy) 1977 Wine Red Gibson Les Paul Standard, equipped with strap locks, coil tap, and DiMarzio Super Distortion pickups. It's probably one of the most RAWK guitars I have, but its age and wear keeps me restrained from totally going bonkers with it. So, as I was still on a budget (and still am, thank YOU college), I found comfort with Epiphone. They didn't have the stigma Squier guitars had and their guitars sound remarkably on par with their more expensive Gibson brothers. Two guitars from them, a 2007 Epiphone Les Paul Jr. 90 (pictured above), and an vintage white SG, would enter my collection.

I may not be tooooo nuts about entering the music industry as a musician, as the many pitfalls and risks honestly scare me straight. But, I enjoy the guitar as a wonderful hobby; it's the best way (along with blog writing, duh) to release whatever is lurking inside my head.

Judas Priest - The Sentinel *just learned this the other day!!*

Cari amici, dopo un lungo silenzio, ritorno alla carica con un'iniziativa di Terre des hommes, spero abbastanza non convenzionale da meritare la vostra attenzione: da oggi è partito il primo TDH Video Music Contest.

Protagonisti:
- l'ormai mitico Superhero di TDH in versione rock;
- la mitica les paul della Gibson come premio;
- le band italiane, emergenti, affermate, alternative... e anche composte da un solo artista ;-) con la loro musica, la loro creatività e i loro video (rigorosamente equipaggiate di SuperHero);
- un blog: www.tdhcontest.org
- e ovviamente i bambini, al centro dell'impegno di  Terre des hommes dal 1960.

Come si fa a partecipare?
1) Si realizza un video su una propria canzone o brano musicale originale
2) Nel video deve essere presente il SuperHeroTdh, scaricabile alla pagina download SuperHero
3) Si inserisce nel video, in forma scritta o orale, la frase "La musica dà voce ai bambini, amplifica la loro voce con la tua musica!"
4) Si fa l'upload del video realizzato sul proprio spazio YouTube entro il 30 maggio 2008, inserendo le tag: Video music contest, Terre des hommes Italia, Gibson, Epiphone.
5) Si segnala il link dell'upload all'indirizzo g.didonato@tdhitaly.org specificando anche nome, cognome, indirizzo e telefono.

Selezioni, votazione e premio
I video segnalati verranno embeddati nel blog www.tdhcontest.org dove i visitatori potranno votare il loro video preferito fino alla mezzanotte del 30 giugno. Il video che avrà raccolto più voti sarà proclamato vincitore e riceverà in premio una chitarra Epiphone Les Paul Studio, offerta dalla Gibson Foundation.

Anche i visitatori potranno fare la loro parte per sostenere i progetti di TDH Italia facendo una donazione on line nell'apposita sezione del sito.

Se poi volete partecipare con il passaparola, abbiamo preparato un video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93QSJxjDeBM, sì proprio quello in alto) e un banner (chiedete e vi sarà dato).

La sfida è aperta... e le sorprese per chi partecipa non sono finite. State sintonizzati su www.tdhcontest.org e grazie per l'aiuto che riuscirete a dare a Terre des hommes anche in quest'occasione

Epiphone
Site: http://www.epiphone.com/
Romania: Proguitar
Artisti: John Fogerty, Ace Frehley (KISS), Billy Greer (Kansas), Chris Henderson (3 Doors Down), My Chemical Romance, Tony Iommi (Black Sabbath), Jim Laurey (Motorhead), John Lennon (The Beatles), Bob Marley, Paul McCartney (The Beatles), Lynyrd Skynyrd, John Morris (Judas Priest), Willie Nelson, Eddie Ojeda (Twisted Sister), Nichelback,
Despre: Este o submarca a Gibson

Fender
Site: Fender.com
Romania: ProGuitar
Artisti: Avril Lavigne (Telecaster), Eric Clapton(Stratocaster), Jimi Hendrix(Stratocaster), Sum 41(Telecaster)
Despre: Unele dintre cele mai renumite chitari din lume.

Gibson
Site: Gibson.com
Romania: din cate stiu eu nu exista reprezentanta in Romania
Artisti: Duran Duran,  Angus Young (AC/DC), BB King, Billie Joe Armstrong (Green Day), Billy Gibbons (ZZ Top), Aerosmith, Los Lobos, Chad Gilbert (New Found Glory), Foo Fighters, Lynyrd Skynyrd, The Eagles, Gretchen Wilson, INXS, Joel Madden (Good Charlotte), Neil Diamond, Prince, Richie Sambora (Bon Jovi), Rudolf Schenker (The Scorpions), Shakira, Shania Twain, Sheryl Crow, Slash (Velvet Revolver)
Despre: Sunt considerate cele mai bune chitari de serie din lume.

Gretsch
Site: Gretsch.com
Romania: Proguitar
Artisti: Billy F Gibbons (ZZ Top), Bono (U2), Eric Johnson, George Harrison (The Beatles), John Frusciante (Red Hot Chili Peppers), Malcolm Young (AC/DC), Martin Gore (Depeche Mode), Neil Young, Sheryl Crow
Despre:

Hora-Reghin
Site: Hora.ro
Romania: in mai toate magazinele de instrumente muzicale
Artisti:
Despre: Suna destul de bine doar ca trebuie sa ai grija de ele. Cea mai mare problema a lor sunt cuiele de acordaj care au tendinta sa se strice. Am auzit des acest lucru dar se poate sa fie si din cauza ca hora e o chitara de incepatori si se tinde sa se duca la extreme. 

Ibanez
Site: Ibanez.com
Romania: M&C musical
Artisti: George Benson, Chris Broderick (Megadeth), Brad Delson & Mike Shinoda (Linkin Park),  Cristi Gram (Phoenix), Billy Graziadei (Biohazard), Dexter Holland & Noodles (The Offspring), Jani Liimatainen (Sonata Arctica), Munky (Korn), Mike Mushok (Staind), Matt Roberts (3 Doors Down), Barry Stock (Three Days Grace),
Despre:

Jackson Guitars
Site: Jacksonguitars.com
Romania: Proguitar
Artisti: Phil Collen & Rick Savage (Def Leppard), Adrian Smith (Iron Maiden), Phil Demmel  (Machine Head), Hammish (My Dying Bride), Outkast, Derrick Green (Sepultura), Serj Tankian (System of a Down),
Despre:

Maxine
Site: -
Romania: Se gasesc in magazinul muzica la etajul 1
Artisti: -
Despre: Sunt ieftine si suna destul de curat.

Schecter
Site: Schecterguitars.com
Romania: M&C musical
Artisti: Robert Smith and Simon Gallup (The Cure), Jerry Horton (Papa Roach), Tommy Lee, Evil Jared (Bloodhound Gang), Adam (Three Days Grace), Mark & Frank & Aaron (Crematorium)
Despre:

Squier
Site: Squierguitars.com
Romania Proguitar
Artisti: Sum 41 (Telecaster), Avril Lavigne (Telecaster)
Despre: Chitari facute de Fender pentru low-end user.

Stagg
Site: http://www.staggmusic.com/
Romania: erau importate de M&C musical, acum nu mai apar pe siteul lor
Artisti:
Despre:

Yamaha
Site: http://www.yamaha.com/guitars/home/
Romania: E un magazin pe undeva pe Bdul Victoriei, cum mergi dinspre muzica spre Bdul Regina Elisabeta.
Artisti: Brian May (Queen), Sammy Hagar & Michael Antony (Van Halen), Tony Kanal (No Doubt), Vivian Campbell (Def Leppard)
Despre: