Cape Cod Acoustics
  • Home
  • Your Lessons
  • Performance services offered
  • About Gene
  • Contact
  • Guitars, Ukes & Accessories
  • Acoustic Guitar Blog
  • Tips for guitarists
  • Guitar Gallery
  • More...

The wolf is at the door. And he's hungry.

12/28/2012

0 Comments

 
     There is a pretty interesting rumor circulating on the guitar forums right now that, if true, could have important repercussions in the guitar industry – and affect the way we buy guitars.

If the story is to be believed, the massive Guitar Center/Musician’s Friend/123Music empire is in serious trouble. Saddled with a debt of $1.4 billion – yes, BILLION – they are in serious danger of not being able to pay even the interest on that debt, to the tune of $127 million, which is going to come due in a couple months. So what does that mean for you and me?

Well, first a bit of background. It seems that Bain Capital – yes, the venture capitalists that Mitt Romney was involved with – bought the company a couple years ago. They then began pulling massive amounts of money OUT of the company and laid the debt (the price of the acquisition) on Guitar Center. This way of doing business is insidious but sadly all too common in the world of venture capitalists, called by some “vulture capitalists.” Their game plan goes like this. Buy a large company, transfer the cost of the deal to that company, then begin pulling out every penny that would have been used to pay down the debt and either paying it to their shareholders or executives, or use it to buy MORE companies and start the process again. Then, when the debt is overwhelming to the bought company, let it go belly up, stop paying small and medium size vendors (who do not have enough clout to go after Bain) and pick the bones clean by liquidating whatever tangible assets the company may have.

Thousands of people lose their jobs, small and medium size vendors are severely or fatally hurt, but Bain rumbles on. This is just sick, folks.

Complicating matters is the fact that Fender and Gibson are themselves in dire straits (no pun intended, musically speaking!) and have inexorably tied themselves to Guitar Center and Musician’s Friend by offering dirt cheap product, in many cases much lower than what can be bought by mom-and-pop stores, and giving GC/MF outrageously liberal terms. The rumor mill is whispering that GC/MF is NOT paying anything close to what they owe Fender and Gibson and they too are tottering on the brink of insolvency.

And worst-case scenario goes like this. Bain lets GC/MF die. Fender, Gibson and who knows how many other recognized names in the music business die too. Suddenly we are left with few options when it comes to buying our equipment other than offshore manufacturers who in many case make inferior products. To make it even worse, as with Walmart vs. your local hardware store, GC/MF has succeeded in putting hundreds if not thousands of mom-and-pop music stores out of business in the last decade. So now where are you going to go to buy anything from guitar strings to having the opportunity to actually TRY that new guitar you’ve been hoping for?

It will be very, very interesting, to say the least, to see how this all plays out (another bad pun, sorry). Will Fenders and Gibsons become much sought after relics of the free market system? Will thousands of those instruments suddenly show up on the market at deep discounts as GC/MF crashes and burns? Your gut reaction may be that this would be a good thing, but think that through. What will happen if you need warranty work? Will those manufacturers take ALL their manufacturing overseas, eliminating thousands more American jobs? Assuming they can survive at all….

I find it interesting that in the discussion that’s going on right now, Martin’s name hasn’t entered into it. I think this is a great thing and it’s very likely that Martin owner and CEO Chris Martin’s far-sighted business practices have at least partially insulated his wonderful AMERICAN company from the firestorm that is brewing. Yes, they sell to GC/MF but my guess is that Martin will be less severely affected if that worst-case comes to pass.

Time will tell. A very short amount of time.

Peace & good music,
Gene

0 Comments

Music, Mayans and Merry Christmas!

12/21/2012

0 Comments

 
Time for yet another post with random thoughts and observations of stuff related to guitar, music and who knows what! Bear with me and as always, your input is gratefully received and appreciated.

With Christmas almost here much of what I’ve been doing musically is related to the season. For the last month I’ve been playing lots of my own instrumental arrangements of Christmas tunes at my regular Saturday morning gig at The Daily Brew Café in nearby Cataumet. There are basically two types of Christmas songs: religious type melodies (Oh, Holy Night; Good Christian Men Rejoice; Angels We Have Heard on High, etc.) and more lightweight fare (Walking in a Winter Wonderland, Jingle Bells, We Wish You a Merry Christmas, etc.). What I’ve found very interesting is that most people tend to prefer one or the other. I’ve thought about this and my conclusion is that those who had a fairly church-oriented childhood are attracted to the religious ones and people for whom Christmas was not primarily a religious event (as it was for me) like the other stuff better. This is all well and good. The fact is, all Christmas music that is primarily vocal (versus classical music such as selections from The Nutcracker) is very tuneful and people love to sing or just hum along. As I’ve said in this space many times, I think EVERYONE should sing, no matter how much they believe they are not so good at it. Singing just makes you feel better and the joyful and positive nature of Christmas songs reinforces those feelings even more.

Now, from a musician’s standpoint, those songs can be a bit daunting, not because they are hard to play in most cases but because they are all so well-known. That is, if I screw up the melody to a little ditty like Let it Snow, Let it Snow, everyone in the room knows it – even those who may not be actively listening! I know I should begin practicing them again in, like, September, but who the heck wants to play Christmas songs in September?! So those first couple Saturdays at the Brew always seem to feature some rather, shall we say, creative interpretations of the Christmas classics! The irony is that I have them down pretty well at this point, but I’ll only get to play them once more (tomorrow) and then back in the mental music vault they will go. I swear I’ll start practicing them in the fall, next year. Yeah, right.

Anyway, they’re fun to play and people seem to enjoy them so I guess I’ve done what I set out to do.

On to another subject. I happened upon a really great country musician recently by the name of Jamey Johnson. He was highly recommended in a year-end retrospective on music in the Boston Globe and I bought his latest album after hearing just one song. Here is a guy who is a throw-back. His love of real country music is obvious and I think his style is timeless. If you are dismayed as I am at the current state of commercial country music, check him out:  www.jameyjohnson.com

I was saddened to learn that one of my favorite Americana-style groups, the duo The Civil Wars have officially decided to call it quits after their rapid rise in popularity in the last year or so. They performed their song “Barton Hollow” on the Grammy award show last Spring and they were fabulous. It is rare to hear a man and woman’s voices blend and compliment each other so perfectly. Their Facebook page says: “We sincerely apologize for the canceling of all of our tour dates. It is something we deeply regret. However, due to internal discord (SP) and irreconcilable differences of ambition we are unable to continue as a touring entity at this time. We thank each and every one of you for your amazing love & support. Our sincere hope is to have new music for you in 2013.

- Joy Williams & John Paul White.”

Most fans I think assumed they were romantically involved but Joy is married to the bands’ manager Nate Yetton. She and her husband had a baby boy last summer. Whether the rumors are true, or if Joy just wanted to spend more time with her baby, only the parties involved know. All I know is that I hope they do get back together and produce more great music. The pressure of fame. That is a sad, old, familiar story.

Well, I think I’ll change my strings and get ready for the Brew tomorrow. And oh yeah – looks like we’re OK – the world didn’t end today. IN YOUR FACE, MAYANS!

Peace & good music,
Gene

0 Comments

No words.....

12/18/2012

0 Comments

 
You know, maybe we had it right back in the Sixties. You know – those silly and innocent and naïve and hopeful days of “love, peace and flowers.”

For the three years I’ve been posting here on my little blog I’ve made a conscious effort to avoid talking about political issues or current events except perhaps as they relate to the music industry. Well, time to vent.

The events in Connecticut last Friday are horrible beyond human understanding. I have strong and increasingly radical feelings about gun control but that’s not what I want to write about. There are myriad reasons why we have come to this point in American history. But I absolutely believe the media in general and the music industry in particular is a big part of the culture of violence.

I’ll say this up front. I despise hip-hop, rap, whatever you want to call that so-called music. Machine generated beats with sing-song, bad poetry laid on top may be a form of entertainment, but please don’t tell me it’s music because it is not. Yes, I know that at times there are positive messages conveyed but all too often in the “gangsta” style the message is about violence, misogyny, and lust for “bling,” which is attained with a Glock and an attitude.

I have heard the rationale that it is just a reflection of a culture and does not encourage those attitudes but I don’t buy that for a minute. Urban youth listen to this dreck and hear about this rap star being shot, that one wrecking his quarter million dollar sports car and proudly posting a picture of it on social media sites, and what are they supposed to think? Yo, mutha fu*cka, I be a bad @ss nigga, got to slap my bitch ‘cause she disrespected me!

OK, look. I am a white guy who grew up in a stable, loving family and environment so no, I cannot relate to that world. But the monster who perpetrated the event of last Friday was closer to my world than the inner city. I would lay odds that the police will find examples of “death metal” and gangsta rap on his Ipod or computer. Did those things make him do what he did? No, of course not. But when you combine that with gory video games, movies where we lose count of dead and dismembered bodies, daily reports of horrific shootings and much more, it may make someone who is as unhinged as that young man feel that his actions are normal, or at least logical.

My point is this. In its purest sense, art in all its forms should endeavor to elevate social structure, not glorify the basest human tendencies. I hope the music industry takes a long, hard look at their amplification of the culture of violence in this country and begins to show some restraint. They probably won’t because there is too much money in being shocking.

My heart aches for everyone affected by the massacre of innocents in Connecticut. If there is any way, positive music should – and can! – help us heal.

Peace & good music,

Gene

0 Comments

New guitar excitement

12/8/2012

0 Comments

 
        Just had a wonderful experience, which reminded me of something that is truly special among we guitarists: the joy and excitement of purchasing one’s first really nice guitar. A young man just bought one of my better guitars, a recent Gibson Songwriter Deluxe. This one was (and is) absolutely exceptional, in fact the best sounding, easiest playing and most spectacular looking Gibby I’ve ever known. In spite of my avowed rule of not getting emotionally involved with guitars anymore, I just couldn’t help it with this one. I seriously doubt I’ll ever find a Gibson that is its equal.

      OK, enough of the maudlin stuff. What was so, so cool about this transaction was the young man’s enthusiasm. When he left I thought back to my first really nice guitar, which was a Martin D-35 that I bought with the $500 that my late grandfather had left me when he passed. I can’t remember for sure (this was in 1971) but I think that was just about the cost of the instrument, believe it or not. I bought it from a discount music store in New London, Connecticut. They were not even a Martin dealer but somehow had some sort of “arrangement” with a nearby store that was, so there was no problem registering the warranty. Today of course that would have been impossible – Martin is absolutely strict about warranties only being issued by authorized dealers, and to the original purchaser.

      Anyway, I was in love, to say the least! I couldn’t wait to open the case each day and smell that wonderful aroma that new Martins still have, especially the rosewood ones. Then to pick it up and strum an open G or Em minor chord and hear that Martin depth and resonance. Pure bliss. Unfortunately, things ended badly between me and that guitar as a few short years later it was in severe need of a neck reset and I had no knowledge of such things. I thought the neck had warped and even though it was covered by Martin’s lifetime warranty, at that time even simple repairs at the factory (there were no authorized outside repairmen then) were taking months and months, even years. Between my broken heart due to my once pristine D-35 now being all but unplayable and the possibility that I might not see it again for a year if I sent it back I did something very stupid: I traded it in for a top of the line…… Yamaha! Dumb, dumb, dumb. But I learned something, I guess.

      OK, I said I wasn’t going to continue to be maudlin, right?! I’m reasonably certain that the young man who just bought my Gibson will NOT have such a problem and in any case would be smarter than me!

      But back to the joy I witnessed. In order to truly appreciate a great guitar you have to have spent time – lots of time – on a not so great one. This is something I totally believe. Once in a while I get a new student who shows up with a shiny new Martin, Gibson, Taylor or even one of the boutique guitars and he has not a clue how good he has it. Sure, he may have been told by a friend who plays or the salesman in the big store that this guitar is one of the “best” but really, by what standards? Certainly not by any gained with experience.  

      Many years ago I had a student show up for his first lesson with a brand new Martin D-18K, a short lived koa wood version of the venerable D-18. It was a very, very nice instrument indeed and it was purchased with total innocence – and ignorance. The gentleman was the heir to an unimaginably vast fortune from his family’s pharmaceutical company and he was well known in the town as being quirky but also generous. Nothing wrong with that. But he was used to having the absolute best of everything and when he decided to learn to play the guitar he went to Wurlitzer’s Music in Boston, then one of the largest Martin dealers in the country and told them he wanted a “good” guitar. That was what they sold him. To make a long (but in terms of his guitar lessons, short) story short, he just couldn’t understand why having such a good guitar didn’t automatically translate to the learning process being easy! He lasted about six lessons before giving up, if I remember correctly. Sometimes I wonder what happened to that guitar…. (!)

      I’m not saying everyone should start with a BAD guitar of course, but in the long term as it relates to the learning process, stepping up as your skills advance is truly inspirational. A raw beginner can certainly do just fine on an expensive guitar, no question about that, but what they may miss is excitement that equates to playing even more, with a much better instrument than they’ve been playing. That is what I mean about the joy and excitement I mentioned at the beginning. I am absolutely certain that the young man who bought that Gibson WILL turn out to be a very good guitarist, because playing that new guitar will be something he looks forward to doing – a lot.

In fact, I’m pretty sure he’s home playing it right now.

Peace & good music,

Gene

0 Comments

No blood or tears, but plenty of sweat!

12/2/2012

0 Comments

 
 As anyone who frequents this site knows, I buy and sell a few guitars. My mode of operation is really quite simple: offer a small but well thought-out selection of guitars in price ranges from quite low to fairly high (by most people’s standards anyway). In all cases and especially with my higher end instruments I do my absolute best to find instruments that are in as close to perfect condition as possible. This means I generally shy away from “vintage” guitars – what the heck does that really mean, anyway? – because unless you are a very astute buyer you may be put off by the various dings, scrapes, even cracks that older guitars suffer through their lives. But hey, they are meant to be played so the true collector can look past those things.
I try my best to offer what I find at very reasonable prices, too. Now I know there is always room for debate on that subject but I stick by what I just said.

In order to do these things I have to buy very carefully and living on Cape Cod means I don’t have access to much of what may be available in urban areas. This makes it all that much more important that I have a good knowledge of guitars, trends in the market and generally just what people are looking for. However, sometimes in spite of my best efforts I do get burned – or I come damned close and heed the ringing of the alarm bells going off in my head. Here is an example that I hope will help you if you’re thinking about spending big bucks on a premium guitar.

A couple years ago I bought a fairly nice guitar made by one of the big name makers. In this case I was able to play the guitar as it was located just an hour or so from my studio. It truly appeared to be everything the owner had said. It was six years old but in absolutely perfect condition. Or so I thought. It was also desirable because it was from a fairly limited edition run so I figured it would be an easy sell. It sounded really nice and played easily. The price was right so I snagged it.

Well, I got home, brought the cased guitar out to the studio, opened the case and then went in the house to make a cup of coffee. I figured I’d change the strings on it a little later. After about an hour I went back into the studio. Oh my God, was my immediate reaction. What the heck is that smell? I’m sure I took a shower this morning…

It was my new guitar. And its case. The thing smelled like the owner had gone to the gym and worked out for an hour, then picked up the guitar and played for another hour. The smell brought me right back to high school locker rooms! Not exactly a desirable feature of a guitar and case that I was hoping to sell for about $2g.

Why did I not notice this at the guy’s house when I first played it? To this day, I have no idea. But something had to be done, without a doubt. My wife suggested Fabreeze but even if that stuff had worked I didn’t want to substitute one smell for another. I got to work, doing two vigorous cleanings with the wonderful Virtuoso Guitar Cleaner I sell, then following that up with an application of Virtuoso Polish. This worked – on the outside of the guitar. But sad to say, much of the smell was emanating from INSIDE the guitar. The unfinished wood inside had actually absorbed the guy’s sweaty ambiance. There was nothing I could do about that. I did not want to risk spraying anything in there for fear of loosening the glue or God knows what else. Also, it would again be a case of substituting one smell for another. So all I could do was air it out, which promised to be a long-term process.

The case was a bit easier to deal with. After much consultation at my local hardware store I settled on a fairly new product from a company called Fresh Wave. It was their Home Spray, a “natural odor eliminator” made from water and extracts of lime, pine needles, aniseed, clove and cedar wood. This seemed like a good choice as I didn’t want to spray anything on the lining of the inside of the case that might contain something that would react with the finish on the guitar. I sprayed in lightly on the inside top, bottom and sides and then closed the case in hopes it would work as advertised. A couple days later I opened it and lo and behold the stuff had worked. All that was left behind was the fainted odor of clove and pine.

Some weeks later the guitar began to loose its “bouquet.” Eventually it was all but gone and I did sell the guitar a few months later and the buyer was pleased.

So I guess the lesson here is: no matter how much knowledge you have or homework you do, you are ultimately at the mercy of the buyer. Just today I was looking at Martin 00-18SH (limited edition Steve Howe model) with interest. On the guitar forums the owner admitted the action was high and it would probably need a neck reset – but otherwise it “close to mint.” However, I found a more obscure site where he had listed it (I know it was the same guy because his screen name was the same on all the sites) and he owned up to the guitar having a significant crack running from the bridge almost to the bottom of the guitar. And the price on THAT site was $500 less than he listed it on the others! Just about the cost of a neck reset (!).

As with everything, buyer beware. I pledge to list my guitars as accurately as I can and in any case, I avoid guitars with “issues.” I’ve gotten burned a couple other times but live and learn, I guess. All I know is you can be sure my guitars are as I say they are, and I don’t go the gym!

Peace & good music,
Gene

0 Comments

    Author

    Gene Bourque

    Archives

    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    July 2019
    June 2019
    May 2019
    April 2019
    March 2019
    February 2019
    January 2019
    November 2018
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    February 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    October 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    August 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    August 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    April 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    January 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    June 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    October 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011
    May 2011
    April 2011
    March 2011
    February 2011
    January 2011
    December 2010
    November 2010
    October 2010

    Categories

    All

    RSS Feed