May 2012 Blog Posts (26)

I just added my own version of the Van Morrison song "Into The Mystic" to my page here. Any feedback is appreciated.

Pops Medley- Meagan Cramer

I was rummaging through stuff trying to find something or another, and lo and behold I found my old microphone used back in the day, a Sennheiser MD416-U dynamic cardiod. …

Listening to Skip James version of "Hard Times Killing Floor Blues" and the version that Chris Thomas King did in the film "Oh, Brother..." inspired me to give this tuning another try.  I used it before many years ago, but just couldn't get into the groove of it.  Today, though, it's a different story.  Some folks play this tune in open D, and it does sound pretty good, but I think the tune in Open D minor gives it some extra texture and more of a bluesy feel.

Now, I do like Chris…

Here's a pic and link to see more pics of this Yairi YW800G current bid US $987.79, with 2 days left to bid.…

I build in a part of Canada that has dramatic changes in humidity throughout the year.  This has caused me some trouble when building.  It forced me to invest in some major climate control in my shop.  This way I could maintain a consistent humidity while building.  However, I find it difficult to determine the moisture content of a top and simply use "time" since I got the wood to judge whether or not it is worthy to build with yet. 

I recently started exploring the topic and found…

Does anybody happen to own a Recording King Guitar? The one I'm interested in in particular is a very good knock off of a Gibson j45. Can"t find a dealer or anyone that owns one

This is a biiiiiiig step from last week but is very helpful in learning and writing songs. This week you can start on your journey to learning music theory. Read more here: http://www.acousticfingerstylemusic.com/learn-music-theory/.

This probably should have been toward the beginning of this series but oh well, here it is. If you don’t know how to read tabs (tabulature) yet, learn now. Read the full post at: http://www.acousticfingerstylemusic.com/reading-tabs/.

I'm a bit behind so I'm going to blast three blog posts today!

This week's tip won't directly improve your guitar playing, but it can help improve your ability to write music. Stretch your mind by listening to new and different music.

http://www.acousticfingerstylemusic.com/listen-to-new-and-different-music/

Caught a matinée performance of "Once" recently on Broadway, the most Tony-nominated show of 2012, with its acoustic guitar-heavy score, set, and book.  What a great show!  Think Irish Sesiun with a contemporary edge.  Even as the audience files in for the show, the actors - all musicians - are on stage…

Blues and Faith

Rampant individualism and obsession with national and personal interests have robbed us of the gift of community, of looking out for each other. Walter Trout in his new album Blues for the Modern Daze asks “Am I my brother’s keeper”?

I was listening to Stephan Stills' recording "Just Roll Tape" this morning.  I really enjoy listening to bare bones recordings of my favorite performers, and listening to these recordings just gives a great glimpse into the genius and artistry of Stephan Stills. As it happens, there is a really nice article/interview available that was done around the time this recording was being released.  If you haven't listened to the recordings, I highly recommend putting it on your playlist. …

In 2009 I officially started a small business for building and repairing guitars. I was enthusiastic and invested heavily in getting things going since all my friends and family thought putting my luthier training to good use would be a rewarding endeavor.  So, I invested...and invested and if it was not for the fact that I had a full-time job as a high school teacher I might have had to give up something drastic like eating or wearing clothes.  I invested a lot and was disappointed to…