All Good Things

come to those who wait ... even the ones who wait impatiently.

Like yours truly.

My present was delayed by a couple of days, due to having been ordered at the last minute. Long story, that, and perhaps grist for the blog mill at some other time.

Most of y'all know that I'm a musician, principally a guitarist, although there are other instruments out of which I can coax a tune. But I digress.

I got my first guitar in 1969, during the summer between 8th and 9th grade. It was a catalog order from Montgomery Ward*, and cost a whole $35. An arch-top, F-hole acoustic jazz guitar. But we didn't have much in those days, and that represented all I had - and felt like a LOT, at the time.

It didn't take me long to aspire to copy the rock songs of the era, of course. But I listened, open-mouthed in astonishment, to artists like Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page. So I practiced, and learned, and got faster/smoother/better.

And I figured out soon enough that part of the trick was to have a decent electric guitar. The two which most can immediately recognize are the Fender Stratocaster, and the Gibson Les Paul.

I first got my hands on a Les Paul in 1978, when I was hired to manage a small music store while in college, post-Navy.

It was the most wonderful instrument I'd ever played. Smooth when needed, crisp/rough/snarling when needed, and such a rich sound ... I thought I'd died and gone to heaven.


But while I saved desperately to buy it, it was sold to another. I was very disappointed.


In the intervening years, I've never stopped longing for one ... but there's always been something else that my family needed more. We've bought more expensive things, but dropping a chunk of greenbacks on an expensive guitar was always for "someday."


But this year, with the girls moved out and their household established, I decided it was time and asked for only one thing for Christmas.

So without further ado, I present:

It's not the most expensive model they sell (some of those go for the price of a used car!), but it's a gen-u-wine, honest-to-gosh Les Paul. It sounds wonderful ...

And it's mine. :)

I'm a very blessed man.



* A blast from the past, for you younger readers.

Baby, It's Kinda Cold Outside

AccuHunch says it's -10, and guesses we'll be lucky to see zero for today's high.That's far from Fairbanks weather*, but it's cold enough.

Today's agenda is not complicated. Let's see ... stay warm, drink more coffee, guitar jam session this afternoon, stay warm.  Sounds like a plan.

What? The guitar thing? We're going to look at some new (to me) Celtic pieces, and just jam a bit. We'll see.

I've been playing long enough that my jam sessions get rather eclectic. A typical session has been known to include songs from Led Zeppelin, Jim Croce, C.C.R., John Denver, Fleetwood Mac, Gordon Lightfoot, Cream, Beatles, Derek & the Dominoes, and anything else that pops into my head. After 42 years, there's a lot of music floating around in there.

There are probably some other things rattling loose in there, too, but let's not open that can of worms, shall we? :)



* Fairbanks routinely has temps in the -60 to -65 range, so no complaints here.

This Old Guitar

I hesitated to post this story, but then realized that if I were to write about a vintage firearm, it most likely wouldn't be questioned.  This story's merely about a different kind of collectible.



About 10 years ago, I bought an electric guitar for my birthday. A Fender Stratocaster, bought at Mars ("The Musician's Planet") Music ... a year or so before they went out of business. That's to say that I got it for a decent price.

It was a decent guitar, too, although I've never been a fan of the vibrato bar (the so-called 'whammy' bar), as use of it causes the instrument to go out of tune. Nevertheless, it filled my need for an electric guitar at a time when I needed one. A couple of years later, I went back to an acoustic-electric model, which did a pretty fair job of rockin' the house with the proper effects pedal.

There was a guy named Andy, at church, who had admired the Strat several times, and I'd let him play it once or twice. I no longer needed said instrument, so I gave it to him.

A few months later, just before we relocated to Alaska, Andy presented me with a guitar case one Sunday morning. Inside was an older Martin guitar ... in good shape, and since Martin guitars are spendy by nature, probably worth a few bills. I was properly appreciative.

1963 Martin guitar

It's a 1963 Martin 00-21 in mint condition. According to the notes in the case, the purchase price was $750. There were also some appraisals conducted in the mid-90s, putting the value of the Martin in the $2000 to $2300 range. Cool.

I admired it, took a couple of pictures of it, put a fresh set of strings on it, and stuck it back in the case.

I have taken it out and played it a few times. It has a smallish body, whereas I prefer a larger one. Also, it's a classical guitar - meaning nylon strings - and I much prefer steel. But that's just me. It doesn't take away from the guitar, nor diminish my gratitude for the gift.

Stay with me; I'm going somewhere with this.




Fast-forward to today.  I posted a few days ago about the new guitar I bought. But my wife needs a keyboard, and the Martin is clearly valuable ... so I took it to the same store for an appraisal.

When I opened the case, all the staffers behind the counter stopped what they were doing & stared at it. "What year did you say it was?"

"1963."

"But we never see one in that kind of condition. Ever."

(smiles) "Well, you have now. What do you think it's worth?"

They wrote down the model & serial numbers, went to the blue book of instruments, and came back with a print-out. "Sir, that model in mint condition, like yours, is worth between $8,500 and $9,300."

(cough, cough)




After I could talk again, I asked casually (at least I hope it was casually), "Would you consider taking it as a trade-in for store credit?"

I'm to take it back for the general manager's opinion tomorrow, so I have my fingers crossed. Even at trade-in prices, it ought to be worth the piano my wife wants, plus a boatload of sheet music for her, and perhaps even another guitar or amplifier for me.



On the other hand, I'm not the only guitarist in the blogosphere. Anyone interested in a vintage Martin? Reasonable offers, anyone?  Anyone?  Bueller?

A New Year, a Turn of the Page, and

this has been a good weekend already, even if it's only Saturday morning.

I haven't discussed this much ... at least not lately ... but I've been playing guitar since 1969.

When my wife & I took sabbatical from ministry, a few years ago, we were serving in the capacity as music ministers of our church. She plays keyboards, and I play guitar - six strings, 12, and bass. Rhythm & occasionally the odd lead break, if the song permits. I also finger-pick. (I love finger-picking!)

I went through a series of different guitars while at that church, starting out with an Italian electric 12-string which I bought in Naples in 1975. It played well, but the pickups were ... well, let's just say it had a funky sound ... sounding sometimes more like an electric banjo than a guitar. It took a bit of experimentation with tone controls & the sound man to make it okay.

After that, I had an Alvarez Yairi acoustic-electric ... then a Fender Stratocaster ... and finally wound up with another Alvarez acoustic-electric.

But then we had to step down. We'd been providing the music for two different churches (three, in my case) for 20 years, and finally became burnt out.


But it's been five years, and the muse is finally stirring again. Time to get out the guitar, replace the strings, and start building calluses. I pulled out the Alvarez, but it didn't inspire me. It's a nice guitar, but there was no excitement there.

After some conversation w/ Mrs. Paul, we agreed that we both need new instruments: she wants an electric piano, and it's high time she had one of her own.

While her keyboard has been selected, it will be a month or two before we pick it up. We went shopping yesterday for the guitar, and I found my new toy.

Happy New Year!