Search Results for Guitar

Fender’s parallel universe version of the Maverick Dorado

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[VIDEO] Fender:

Originally released in 1969, the Maverick (or the “Custom”) was a wildly unique six-string guitar crafted from leftover 12-string necks, bodies and pickups. 51 years later, the Parallel Universe Maverick Dorado steps up the swagger of its predecessor with a pair of Tim Shaw-designed Filter’Tron-style humbucking pickups, a Bigsby vibrato and dark ebony fingerboard.

I love the idea of the parallel universe series, updates of old school guitars. Video embedded in main Loop post. [H/T @cyclonus]

Neil Peart, isolated drumming

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[VIDEO] Laughing Squid:

kiboko, a video editor who focuses on drum tracks, took the iconic Toronto Pearson Airport inspired instrumental “YYZ” by Rush and brought the audio of Neil Peart‘s drumming to the forefront while quieting Geddy Lee‘s bass and Alex Lifeson‘s guitar.

Beautifully done. Really showcases the complexity of Peart’s iconic drumming style. Video embedded in main Loop post.

RIP Neil Peart, arguably the finest rock drummer that ever lived

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Watch the video. Neil Peart makes virtuosity look so easy.

From the linked Rolling Stone appreciation piece:

Peart was one of rock’s greatest drummers, with a flamboyant yet utterly precise style that paid homage to his hero, the Who’s Keith Moon, while expanding the technical and imaginative possibilities of his instrument. He joined singer-bassist Geddy Lee and guitarist Alex Lifeson in Rush in 1974, and his virtuosic playing and literate, wildly imaginative lyrics – which drew on Ayn Rand and science fiction, among other influences – helped make the trio one of the classic-rock era’s essential bands. His drum fills on songs like “Tom Sawyer” were pop hooks in their own right, each one an indelible mini-composition; his lengthy drum solos, carefully constructed and full of drama, were highlights of every Rush concert.

Rest in peace, Neil.

Is Rock Music dead?

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Graham Cochrane, a freelance recording and mix engineer:

Does anyone even care about rock music, or real instruments like drums and guitars anymore?!

It’s a question that’s been asked and talked about for years. I believe Rock is alive and well, but it is going through some changes that make many people uncomfortable. Graham has some interesting thoughts on the issue.

Randy Rhoads items recovered after burglary

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A number of items that were stolen from the family of Ozzy Osbourne’s late guitarist Randy Rhoads were recovered early Sunday when an Eyewitness News viewer spotted them in a dumpster.

Someone had broken into the Rhoads family music school in North Hollywood on Thanksgiving night and stole irreplaceable instruments, memorabilia and photos.

I’m so glad the family got these items back. Randy was one of the great guitarists of our time.

The Jimmy Page Telecaster

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When the opening riff of Led Zeppelin’s “Good Times Bad Times” came through the radio in 1969, everything changed. Jimmy Page altered the course of popular music with a single guitar: his 1959 Fender Telecaster. Co-designed with Page, the Fender Jimmy Page Telecaster is an homage to that legendary instrument, which created some of the most iconic riffs of the 20th Century.

I remember Jimmy playing mostly Gibson guitars, but any instrument co-designed by Page is worth a look.

The Apprehension Engine, a horror movie soundtrack machine

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[VIDEO] Dangerous Minds:

While aquaphones and theremins are the go-to instruments when thinking of “classic” horror sounds, I happened to run across the ultimate terror instrument—a home-made device that can produce a wide array of horrific soundscape elements all in one compact unit. “The Apprehension Engine,” as it is called, was created by Canadian guitar maker Tony Duggan-Smith as a “one off” for Mark Korven, who is best known for his soundtrack work on The VVitch.

Watch the video embedded in the main Loop post, tell me it doesn’t raise the hairs on the back of your neck. What is it about these sounds that meld so perfectly with jump scare movies?

‘Stairway’ to History: Inside the Met’s dazzling new exhibit of rock instruments in New York

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Rolling Stone:

New York’s Metropolitan Museum of Art is home to an overwhelming collection of historical art objects, including a mummy mask from 60 A.D., Greek bronzes from the 8th century B.C. and the original “Washington Crossing the Delaware” painting. Starting April 8th, it will also welcome a different type of antiques — from the guitar Chuck Berry used to record “Johnny B. Goode” to the knives Keith Emerson would stab into his Hammond organ during the crazier Emerson, Lake & Palmer days.

And:

We can now see Eddie Van Halen’s Frankenstein guitar in almost gruesome close-up; with its pickups and modifications resembling open wounds, it looks like guitar surgery gone bad. A small curvy chunk under glass, with a bit of wire protruding from it, turns out to be a piece of the Stratocaster that Jimi Hendrix played — and burned — at the Monterey Pop festival in 1967. A guitar owned by Joe Strummer comes with a set list for a Clash show still taped to its side.

And:

Five and a half years in the making, “Play It Loud” includes contributions from a wide range of sources. Many of the pieces were donated by collectors. Others come from estates: Yoko Ono donated the 12-string Rickenbacker that John Lennon played on tour in 1964 and on the A Hard Day’s Night album, and Jake Clemons contributed the Selmer Mark VI sax his uncle Clarence used on “Thunder Road” and “Jungleland” and onstage with the E Street Band. A closer look reveals a loop welded onto the horn in two different areas so Clemons could hold the sax with a guitar strap.

And so much more. This is a must see for me.

GarageBand turns 15

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Fifteen years ago, John Mayer joined Steve Jobs on stage to introduce a new app called GarageBand. For those of us who loved to create music, GarageBand was a revolution that would change the world. […]

Springsteen, Netflix, and grabbing people out of the audience to perform

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This is a little bit of a wander, so please bear with me. All of this is in appreciation.

First things first, I grew up in New Jersey, and as is the law, I am a lifelong fan of The Boss, Bruce Springsteen. I know that I am far from alone in this.

Bruce is winding down his career, just wrote his bestselling memoir, the excellent Born to Run. Bruce also created an intimate one-man-show, Springsteen on Broadway, which sold out every single performance of its entire, just-concluded, run.

Sadly, I was unable to make it to see the show. A missed opportunity that, a bucket list item for me. But Netflix worked with Bruce to create a movie of the show. It is truly wonderful, a soulful gift to his fans who couldn’t make the show.

If you are a fan, this is not to be missed. If you wonder what all the hype is about, this should answer the question. The real magic of Springsteen is seeing him live. And not just for the music, but for the storytelling, the preacher side of Bruce, the showmanship of it all.

OK, moving on. So the headline above talks about grabbing people out of the audience to perform. Meaning, an established artist has someone in the audience (likely pre-vetted, but unrehearsed) come up and perform with the star.

This happens far more than you might think. So much so, that Casey Newton pulled together this thread showing examples of this in action:

https://twitter.com/caseynewton/status/1074361409012621313

One of the videos from this thread fits this Loop post just perfectly. Bruce and a kid from the audience singing “Growing Up” (embedded in the main Loop post). Don’t miss the part in the middle where the kid plays along and Bruce talks about the lesson he learned about getting his first guitar. And that selfie at the end. What a moment.

Enjoy!

Queen’s ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ named most-streamed Classic Rock song of all time

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Variety:

Today (Dec. 10), the original song and official video for “Bohemian Rhapsody,” taken from the group’s 1975 album “A Night at the Opera,” surpassed 1.6 billion streams globally across all major streaming services.

And:

Brian May, Queen’s guitarist and founding member said, “So the River of Rock Music has metamorphosed into streams! Very happy that our music is still flowing to the max!”

And:

-“Bohemian Rhapsody” is the only song in history ever to have topped the U.K. charts twice at Christmas.

Whoever pulled together the marketing campaign for the Bohemian Rhapsody movie did a masterful job.

Fantastic footage of Queen rehearsing “We are the Champions”

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[VIDEO] This is a wonderful combination of musicianship, performance, and some great interview clips with Freddie Mercury.

One of the highlights for me is the separation of the instruments, with the piano high in the mix, and those beautiful adds of Brian May’s guitar flourishes. So well done. Video embedded in the main Loop post.

Mnemonic generator

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Love this. Jump to the page, type in a sequence of words or letters, and the site will generate a mnemonic to help you remember the words.

Type in the planet names, or the guitar string open notes (E A D G B E), anything you like. Fun!

[H/T @bobtiki]

Opinion: Apple Music’s human curation falls apart when it comes to less mainstream tastes

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Terrific analysis by Ben Lovejoy, 9to5Mac. Apple’s motivations aside, I think music curation is a tough problem to solve.

My musical tastes are all over the place. People who know me very well, musicians who share much of my musical tastes, have a difficult time making recommendations for me. It’s just not easy to figure out what music will press that button for someone.

That said, I’d like to see more experimental interfaces that make it possible for me to wander my musical tree on the fly. I’d like to play some music that I love, then have an interactive training session, via Siri, purely dedicated to exploring “more like this” kind of music, where I can do more than just love or hate the presented choices. Something more conversational that allows me to express specifics of what I enjoy or dislike.

For example, I love soulful music that contains technical artistry (e.g., great singing, complex harmonies, or technical guitar, piano skill, etc.) If you and I were listening to music together, I could point all these things out. But if all I get is “love” or “don’t love”, it becomes much harder to convey the subtlety of my personal tastes.

All this said, I think this ability is coming. With advancements in processing complexity and machine learning, I believe a new window to modeling musical tastes is opening. I have no doubt that someone, somewhere will crack this problem.

Thanks for the surprise integration with my website, Apple!

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Fun story, in which someone who runs a popular guitar chord and scale calculator website finds themselves part of Apple’s iOS Shortcuts rollout. A pleasant surprise, and a terrific example of the power of Shortcuts.

Learning the Delta Blues

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Brent Simmons:

Lately I’ve been trying to learn to play delta blues. I’m not ever going to play like Robert Johnson — nobody ever will — but I’d like to learn it as well as I can. Well enough so that, if you like the blues, and you heard me at a coffee shop, you’d enjoy it.

First, Robert Johnson is the most amazing Bluesman I’ve ever listened to in my life. If you talk to any guitarist, the conversation will eventually make its way back to Johnson and what he did. I can attest to Brent’s difficulties with learning the Delta Blues because I’ve tried it before too. I’ve had the pleasure of strumming a few songs with Brent and he’s a great guitarist, but this type of blues is something really special.

5 minute tip: Universal Audio’s dbx 160 Compressor/Limiter

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In this video, learn how to add parallel compression to drums, even out a bass performance, and bring presence to acoustic guitars with the dbx 160 Compressor/Limiter.

This is one of my favorite plug-ins from UA. This video will show you why.

The Dalrymple Report: iMac and Rock ‘n Roll with Dave Mark

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Dave and I take a look at the the iMac’s introduction and what it meant for Apple, even today. We also talk about this year’s Rock ‘n Roll Hall of Fame inductees and guitar players.

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Gibson files for bankruptcy

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Speaking of Gibson:

The company, which filed for chapter 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, said it will continue to operate during the proceedings as it focuses on reorganizing around its core businesses. Gibson plans to wind down its Gibson’s Innovations business, which is largely outside of the U.S.

This is mismanagement at its worst. The Les Paul is my favorite guitar and I’m hopeful that someone will be able to save that instrument.

Gibson and Tronical sue each other

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Last week, we reported that Tronical—the German company most well-known for its “robo-tuning” devices—had sued Gibson for $50 million. Now, Gibson has responded to Tronical’s lawsuit with a lawsuit of its own.

It’s true that most guitar players didn’t like the robot tuners that Tronical made, but I didn’t mind them. I have them on one of my more recent Les Pauls and they work fine, but I get why people don’t like them. Still, all of this Gibson mismanagement, financial problems, and lawsuits make me sad.

Selling HomePod

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Jean-Louis Gassée, MondayNote, on trying to find a way to sell the Mac in the dark days of 1985, with Steve Jobs recently gone:

Position the Mac as a Graphics Based Business System (GBBS). The Business System part was adman puffery meant to project gravitas, but the reference to graphics made unarguable sense: The Mac’s Graphical User Interface (GUI) was clearly a distinguishing factor at the time.

Everyone in the room loved the idea. Rather than take on the whole market, Apple would define and dominate a niche. As the Valley marketing sage put it (quoting Julius Caesar), better to be the chief of a small village in the Alps than second-in-command in Rome.

And:

Thanks to Jobs’ vision and powers of seduction, a couple of “serious developers”, Adobe and Aldus, helped transform the GBBS air guitar into a reality. Adobe contributed the PostScript software engine for the LaserWriter’s breakthrough typography and graphics. Aldus came up with the PageMaker program that made exemplary use of the Mac + LaserWriter combo. Aldus Chairman Paul Brainerd coined the term Desktop Publishing (DTP), a phrase that replaced the GBBS straw man and remains to this day. The Mac became #1 in the DTP village.

In the rest of this smart, well-written piece, Jean-Louis asks, and attempts to answer the question, “Is there an Alpine hamlet that the HomePod can claim as its own?”

One major difference between the original Mac and HomePod (besides the obvious ones) is that the original Mac had no ecosystem, no huge, dependable, cash-abundant audience on which to draw. With an iPhone/Apple Music-backed ecosystem, Apple has the luxury of a steady stream of HomePod early adopters to keep the cash flowing and feedback coming while the product evolves.

How to get yourself out of a funk

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Jason Kottke:

On Tuesday, I woke up feeling a bit tired, uninspired, and just generally not in the mood to tackle my to-do list for the day. I understand myself well enough by now to know how to react to this situation (most of the time) but was curious about how other people deal with such episodes. So I asked on Twitter: “What do you do to get yourself moving when this happens to you?” I got tons of interesting responses, which I’ve organized into some broader categories in the hope that they’ll help someone out in the future.

I may go for a walk and play some guitar today.

Gibson “running out of time — rapidly”

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Nashville Post:

“Gibson Brands, Inc. today announced that the company made a $16.6 million coupon payment to holders of its $375 million, 8.875% senior secured notes due 2018.”

That simple statement issued a week ago — at all of 26 words, it’s less than a quarter the length of Gibson’s boilerplate company description that accompanied it — suggests a business-as-usual tone of a company taking care of its contractual commitments.

But the situation facing the iconic Nashville-based music instrument maker, which has annual revenues of more than $1 billion, is far from normal: CFO Bill Lawrence recently left the company after less than a year on the job and just six months before $375 million of senior secured notes will mature. On top of that, another $145 million in bank loans will come due immediately if those notes, issued in 2013, are not refinanced by July 23.

Reading through all of this, things do indeed look dire. But I can’t imagine the Gibson brand going away. I’d be more concerned with new hands coming in to run the company and changing a process which produces some of the finest guitars in the world, diluting a brand synonymous with guitar craft.

Damn.

[H/T Josh Centers]

Universal Audio releases the Friedman Buxom Betty amp plug-in

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The 50-watt Friedman Buxom Betty is what guitar amp fantasies are made of — a gorgeous, hand-wired single-channel amp that delivers the dynamic shimmer of American vintage tube combos as well as the comely roar of classic British stacks.

I really like the unique sound of Friedman amps. The Buxom Betty cleans up really well, but it also gives you some grit when you need it.

At what age do you form the strongest attachment to particular music?

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Seth Stephens-Davidowitz, New York Times:

When do the strongest adult musical preferences set in?

And:

For this project, the music streaming service Spotify gave me data on how frequently every song is listened to by men and women of each particular age.

And:

Consider, for example, the song “Creep,” by Radiohead. This is the 164th most popular song among men who are now 38 years old. But it is not in the top 300 for the cohort born 10 years earlier or 10 years later.

Note that the men who most like “Creep” now were roughly 14 when the song came out in 1993. In fact, this is a consistent pattern.

I did a similar analysis with every song that topped the Billboard charts from 1960 to 2000. In particular, I measured how old their biggest fans today were when these songs first came out.

I was about 11 when I first really latched on to music, 12 when I got my hands on my first guitar. And by 14, I was deeply immersed in what would become my forever comfort music.

Fascinating article.