Now it appears that Gibson is in some sort of financial trouble and could be on the verge of bankruptcy after over 115 years in business.
This article covers some of the details associated with this situation and some history of Gibson that you might be interested in…
Jam On! -Ron
Credit given to B.J. Bethel, Dayton Daily News
“According to the Nashville Post, Gibson’s chief financial officer, Bill Lawrence, left after six months on the job and just as $375 million in senior secured notes mature and $145 million in bank loans become due, if they aren’t refinanced by July… The departure of Lawrence was seen as a bad sign for a company trying to re-organize.”
As a musician you no doubt had a least one Tom Petty album in your library of classic references to straight ahead rock. Unfortunately Tom passed away in Oct of this (2017) year at the very young age of 66. It was a heart attack.
Petty had a way of taking what appeared to be soft folk songs of his own and placing some power behind them to create a unique rock ambience. He just had a way of keeping rock n’ roll alive within its original roots.
He’ll be missed… play a few tribute songs at your next gig… for Tom!
As quoted from Rolling Stone (credit – online magz.)… “In the late 1970s, Petty’s romanticized tales of rebels, outcasts and refugees started climbing the pop charts. When he sang, his voice was filled with a heartfelt drama that perfectly complemented the Heartbreakers’ ragged rock & roll. Songs like “The Waiting,” “You Got Lucky,” “I Won’t Back Down,” “Learning to Fly” and “Mary Jane’s Last Dance”
“Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers, which came out in 1976. It failed to make an impact at the time – the album’s lead single “Breakdown” didn’t even chart – but they picked up heat after touring England as support for future E Street Band member Nils Lofgren. They soon became headliners on the tour, with the album topping the U.K. chart. ”
According to wikipedia… Cornell was known for his role as one of the architects of the 1990s grunge movement, for his extensive catalog as a songwriter and for his near four octave vocal range] as well as his powerful vocal belting technique.
Chris released four solo studio albums, Euphoria Morning (1999), Carry On (2007), Scream (2009), Higher Truth (2015) and the live album Songbook (2011). Cornell received a Golden Globe Award nomination for his song “The Keeper” which appeared in the film Machine Gun Preacher and co-wrote and performed the theme song to the James Bond film Casino Royale (2006), “You Know My Name”.
He was voted “Rock’s Greatest Singer” by readers of Guitar World, ranked 4th in the list of “Heavy Metal’s All-Time Top 100 Vocalists” by Hit Parader, 9th in the list of “Best Lead Singers of All Time” by Rolling Stone, and 12th in MTV’s “22 Greatest Voices in Music”.
The singer had played a show with Soundgarden, who were midway through their tour, when shortly after Chris Cornell was found dead on his MGM hotel by an apparent hanging.
“Born Christopher John Boyle in Seattle on July 20th, 1964, Cornell – who took his mother’s maiden name after his parents divorced – was the son of a pharmacist father and accountant mother in Seattle. He had two brothers and three sisters and jokingly likened his family to The Brady Bunch in interviews. Cornell eventually carved a path for himself after taking piano and guitar lessons before finding his way to the drum kit, which he played in an early incarnation of Soundgarden.”
OK, I’m talking mostly about the guitarist… You know, the one that has their amp pointing directly at the audience which blows high freqs right at a group of folks in front of it, going right through the legs of the player.
This long standing point continues to be an issue to this very day, especially with smaller hall/bar set ups. A simple matter of slanting an amp back to an angle that suits the ears of the guitarist would benefit everyone.., especially the audience (you know, the guy or girl with their ears bleeding hearing that amp straight on!).
At larger gigs (if not using forward throw reflectors) I’ve noticed that a good FOH mix guy will actually have the guitarist use his/her amp as their own ‘monitor’ pointing directly at them on stage away from the audience, otherwise using the amp mic for the FOH mix. Total forward hz/gain control this way, without isolated pockets of death freqs!
“So the amp gets louder. The singer (who, from the audience’s PoV, is always the most important person) immediately has a problem, because the guitar sound is now drowning out the vocal on stage (the electric guitar sits in approximately the same frequency range as the human voice, and its harsh upper midrange can obscure the harmonics of vowels that support singers’ diction and pitching)…”
Recently (as of the date of this blog post) guitarist Joe Perry mentioned that the band, Aerosmith, had been tossing around the idea of reaching a time where a farewell tour was in order.
Wow, can you believe it’s been 47 years at this point? Another rock band legend has reached the proverbial milestone. Like many (considered) old-timer rockers, The Aerosmith boys have apparently found this moment in their career to consider ‘wrapping it up’ for their touring and studio album work.
It also appears that Steven Tyler has started another music genre direction… a solo country singer. Yep believe it or not (or you may already know it by now). Here’s a link to his first (solo) venture into country… (it’s not bad). Maybe it’s also a way for him to save his voice for the fore-see-able future.
(via: press release of Aerosmith Farewell Tour from Society of Rock .com)
There are no dates currently in mind for when Aerosmith will hit the road for the final time, and if you’re worried about being able to snag tickets to what’s sure to be one of the greatest farewell tours rock and roll has ever seen, never fear: Steven assures us that while this is the end for Aerosmith, the farewell tour will “probably last forever”.
The musician Prince (died April 21, 2016 @ age 57) and was considered one of our greatest modern era rock/pop singer songwriter. He wasn’t necessarily considered a great guitar player. Yet after further research and review of his expansive musical history (even though he left this planet way to early) it proves that Prince was indeed one of the most acclaimed guitarist in this genre.
Prince also had the early insight of recognizing the record industries manipulative ways of cornering the artistic marketplace. He took it upon himself to be one of the leaders in ‘self-published’ works. As such many musicians to follow expanded on this foundation to distribute their music without the record industry strangle hold on the market.
This article spends a good deal of time getting to the point as to why Prince was considered one of the top greatest guitarist of our times…
“Prince may have been the greatest guitarist of the post-Hendrix era and often seemed to carry Hendrix’s aura more intrepidly than anyone, most notably in his incredible versatility.” further noting in this article… “The story goes that sometime during the 1980s, Eric Clapton was asked how it felt to be the best guitar player in the world, and responded, “I don’t know; ask Prince.”…
Read the whole story about why Prince may have been the greatest guitarist since Hendrix, here…
Mix magazine released a January 2016 report of a bunch of guitar pedals… They cover everything from in-home studio effects to some live gig units. If you’re an axe player and want to take a peak at the options, head over to this article to learn more… Jam On! -Ron
(credit given: via MixOnline.com by:
Kevin Becka)
New Features and Original Effects at Home in the Studio – See more at:
I recently came across a website that mentions the top 20 songs every guitarist should learn to play. Spending time at this site had me realizing that knowing many great tunes is a nice reference, indeed. However, I was further reminded that having a list of guitar ‘tabs’ is one thing. Yet, also having a great reference to how the chords are developed for each song, is a wonderful compliment.
So, take a look at the website (below) and maybe consider grabbing a Music Dial Chart or two, to make your guitar tab reading much easier.
(via: Ultimate-Guitar.com) This week’s traditional Wednesday Question saw the UG community debating the mater of songs that every guitar player should learn to play. Kicking things off with an all-time classic, we have Pink Floyd’s “Comfortably Numb.” Universally hailed as the tune with the greatest guitar solo of all time, it’s quite apparent why this one made the list…
Find the rest of the list of the top 20 songs every guitarist should learn here, and be sure to visit MusicDials.com to compliment your tabs!…
International Guitar Month (IGM) has been an annual celebration of guitars and guitar products that happens every April. Started in 1987, IGM was originally sponsored by Guitar & Accessories Marketing Association (GAMA) and National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM).
In 1996 GAMA decided to focus most of its resources on Teaching Guitar Workshops… subsequently, International
Guitar Month was rolled into their effort of introducing more music instruction.
It seems cool enough to take additional notice @ least once a year, to celebrate the Guitar as a major participant in our music history.
Jam On! -Ron
Grab your All-Around-Guitar-Pack Discount special… Now, all ‘4’ Guitar Dial Charts for just the price of ‘3’… Get One FREE!
Ron Greene Publications is celebrating International Guitar Month with our hand-held visual guides for … music theory, chord structures, melodic notes, keys and scales. All in one, compact 9″ x 11″ portable movable dial that fits inside your instrument case and is readily available whenever you want!
You might find this story of interest as it relates to our music industry and as a musician… Andrew Loog Oldham, the Rolling Stones’ early manager has essentially told the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to go take a hike. The article provides some pretty cool insights as to why Andrew finds the commercialism of their event not living-up to the original intention of Rock’n Roll. I personally have to give him credit for holding-down the rock scene as it was in the 60s! Jam On! -Ron
(by Randy Lewis, Los Angeles Times – via:arcamax.com) Rolling Stones former manager protests Rock Hall of Fame, skips own induction… Andrew Loog Oldham, the Rolling Stones’ early manager, producer and publicist who is being inducted this year into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, has announced that he will skip the ceremony… Read more at https://www.arcamax.com/entertainment/entertainmenttoday/s-1502699#9ttVOHj5Jbcksjbd.99
