Picking Guitars to Play at Shows.

gball said:
Man, I continued playing Les Pauls in the mide-to-late-'80s even though they were considered about the least cool thing you could strap on at the time. I just didn't care and played what I wanted, and then a few years later Slash made LPs cool again and I seemed ahead of the curve.

Play what works for you!
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The funny thing is that a lot of today's younger players don't care much for Les Pauls, but they do like Telecasters - which are even older.

A lot of younger players like guitars like 335-style guitars and Gretsch, as well.

Interesting to me...
 
smitty_p said:
The funny thing is that a lot of today's younger players don't care much for Les Pauls, but they do like Telecasters - which are even older.

A lot of younger players like guitars like 335-style guitars and Gretsch, as well.

Interesting to me...
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The pendulum always swings and what's cool one day is yer dad's game the next. I mean, I don't really see any of these types being played by the new bands I listen to, but they are mostly hard rock and metal bands, so that stands to reason.
 
I like to mix it up with guitars. I have many, and plenty of 'em don't get much play time - especially at band volume.
Have been rotating through some of the less-often-used gems, a different one for every rehearsal, to help keep the vibe alive in each one.
Often when I pull out an axe I haven't played for a year or two, I'll fall in love with it all over again.
I enjoy the small challenges of working with various different neck profiles, control layouts and tone characters.

Still, when it comes to gigs (not as frequent for me as they used to be) I want something in my hands that I know really well.
For decades my tradition (for non-specialty gigs) has been to bring a PRS as my main guitar.
Usually for a second axe I'll choose one that's less mainstream, maybe even something downright exotic.

But depending on the project, if there's a spot for a non-trem guitar I still might bring an LP. I do love them, and own some nice ones.
I feel a little old to be rocking an Explorer, sometimes. But not always.
 
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gball said:
The pendulum always swings and what's cool one day is yer dad's game the next. I mean, I don't really see any of these types being played by the new bands I listen to, but they are mostly hard rock and metal bands, so that stands to reason.
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Yeah, I can’t talk about modern hard rock or metal. Your perspective is probably better than mine in that area.
 
smitty_p said:
Yeah, I continue to maintain that the Gibson Les Paul is the most aesthetically pleasing, well-proportioned, single-cut solid-body guitar available. It really is a beautiful thing.
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Astral Traveler said:
Only if you really, really nail all the jazz stuff :cool:
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smitty_p said:
Yeah. That's true. If you're gonna use an instrument that steps outside the norm for a particular genre, you kinda need to play extra well to quell the skepticism.
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I knew a cat years ago that had a side gig in Country band but he was nominally in a Hard Rock outfit, and he used his Flying V for both gigs and he had super-long blonde hair. He said people would give him the weirdest looks but then he was such a great player I'm sure he nailed it.
 
eclecticsynergy said:
I like to mix it up with guitars. I have many, and plenty of 'em don't get much play time - especially at band volume.
Have been rotating through some of the less-often-used gems, a different one for every rehearsal, to help keep the vibe alive in each one.
Often when I pull out an axe I haven't played for a year or two, I'll fall in love with it all over again.
I enjoy the small challenges of working with various different neck profiles, control layouts and tone characters.

Sstill, when it comes to gigs (not as frequent for me as they used to be) I want something in my hands that I know really well.
For decades my tradition has normally been to bring a PRS as my main guitar.
Usually for a second axe I'll choose one that's less mainstream, maybe even something downright exotic.

But depending on the project, if there's a spot for a non-trem guitar I might bring an LP. I still love them, and own some nice ones.
I feel a little old to be rocking an Explorer, sometimes. But not always.
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Yep makes sense!
We practiced yesterday. Bro brought his double kick pedal. I was tempted to ask him where the extra kick and 4 more toms were - crowd can't hear 2 kicks but they can see 'em!!:D
 
I’m a rookie when it comes to playing live, but I use a 2018 Gibson LP Studio that I have heavily modified to meet my needs.
I have installed a Ghost Piezo bridge so that I have very convincing acoustic tones at my disposal. This allows me to cover a lot of ground as the band has a very wide range of songs to get through.

As has been said above, the audience typically does know a Strat from a broom handle, so what you play is irrelevant. As long as it sounds good and they like the songs, that is the goal.
 
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ninjaking67 said:
I’m a rookie when it comes to playing live, but I use a 2018 Gibson LP Studio that I have heavily modified to meet my needs.
I have installed a Ghost Piezo bridge so that I have very convincing acoustic tones at my disposal. This allows me to cover a lot of ground as the band has a very wide range of songs to get through.

As has been said above, the audience typically does know a Strat from a broom handle, so what you play is irrelevant. As long as it sounds good and they like the songs, that is the goal.
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Very well said indeed!
 
ninjaking67 said:
As has been said above, the audience typically does know a Strat from a broom handle, so what you play is irrelevant. As long as it sounds good and they like the songs, that is the goal.
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I will agree with this for the most part. But, at my gigs, it seems there have always been a few guitar players who want to talk gear with me, which I enjoy. I've learned to recognize the guitar players in the crowd. They usually stand back and just stare at me the whole time! I'm glad I wear sunglasses when I play so no one can see my eyes!

But, yeah... the vast majority of the crowd really doesn't know one from guitar from the other. It's really about the vibe you create.

But, for me...I also play for my own enjoyment, not just the crowd. I personally like the sound of one guitar over another for some songs. For example, I prefer to play my Strat for funky stuff because I think the bright, percussive, snappiness of a single coil fits that style best. For most classic rock I'll stick with my Les Paul. It just excels in that role. For some tunes, I'll use my Jackson for the Floyd Rose action and for the '80s visual vibe of the guitar. For a good portion of our repertoire, it really doesn't matter what I play though, and I'll gladly use whatever is in my hands.

In fact, we went over our set lists last night for our gig tomorrow night and our gig for a local Fourth of July fireworks show. Our leader has a song order for the July 4th event that will mean I either play a different guitar for some songs than I normally play, or I switch guitars. I've already determined that for most of those songs it really doesn't matter and I'll not bother to switch.

So, I play for what I want to hear as much as what the audience hears. Will the audience care? Probably not. But, I have my preferences, too.
 
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