GuardiansGuitar

I talked to some Boogie insiders recently, and they are extremely jazzed about the future. The Gibson team seems passionate about music and doing the right thing, and they claim they will leave Boogie alone. Randy himself reportedly told Gibson, if you mess with the staff, they ARE Mesa/Boogie. In addition, Gibson will likely provide Boogie with the investment to do some great things for their own brand and Gibson custom amps, as well. The Gibson of today is NOT the Gibson of Henry J. I'm actually very excited about where this can all go.

On Monday, Leslie West's brother, Larry West Weinstein, announced that the guitarist's "heart gave out and he's on a ventilator." Hoping that Leslie pulls through to make more music for us. Sending good vibes his way.

Winston Psmith â Agree. Back in the day, I remember engineers slapping your hand whenever an artist tried to grab a knob or fader on the board. Hahaha. Now there's that very strange habit of some mixers LOOKING at waveforms and making adjustments, rather than LISTENING to what is in front of them. Had to giggle the first time I was confronted with that situation. But, yes, there is no rule that any artist or recording professional HAS to touch a certain quota of knobs. Hahaha.

KuruPrionz â Ha. I doubt I've earned a "Mr." yet!

Hi Scott... Surprising. But it just goes to show that humans are humans and mistakes are a part of life. I had to quit listening obsessively critically to '60s and '70s hits that I loved, because the "miscues" you sometimes hear from the engineering or performances can be a bummer. I remember the first CDs of SGT. PEPPER betrayed some fizzy distortion on the horns? Not exactly sure where the glitch was introduced, but it shocked me. Hahaha. Got ya on GarageBand and agree. That said, a lot of artists are using it to make music during the pandemic, and I actually dig the audio quality, production, and performances of many of them. It's also nice that so much music is finally coming out of this depressing thing. Stay safe and healthy!

Hi all... I've joined the fab team of bloggers for the Line 6 MODEL CITIZENS site. Have a read: https://blog.line6.com/2020/11/17/five-ways-to-massacre-your-mix/ I hope it's a worthwhile expenditure of your time! Best to all, Mike

Hi all... I've joined the fab team of bloggers for the Line 6 MODEL CITIZENS site. Have a read: https://blog.line6.com/2020/11/17/five-ways-to-massacre-your-mix/ I hope it's a worthwhile expenditure of your time! Best to all, Mike

Hi all... I posted the below text on the Guardians of Guitar FB page yesterday. As many of you know, I was a victim of the diminishing fortunes of the print-mag industry and was laid off from my 20+ year gig as Editor in Chief of GP in 2018. I'm also aware that current owner Future UK has been careful regarding investment in the brand, and the current staff continues to be challenged to varying degrees with resources â especially during the zombie apocalypse we are all dealing with. But I was overjoyed that, despite all of the challenges â including a major content shift and a brutally shortened deadline to ensure the EVH story made it to the press in time â the staff pulled off a truly transcendent celebration of Eddie. Sometimes, the "old pros" are precisely the right team to do something of this magnitude. I was so proud that GP delivered such a wonderful issue. I hope all of the groovy Guitar Forum peeps feel the same... "Disruptions in the mediasphere have not been kind to many "veteran" publications, and certainly Guitar Player Magazine has been compromised â perhaps even embattled â by the travails of an often struggling industry and a culture that appears to devalue print media and deep journalism. BUT THIS IS WHY GUITAR PLAYER IS SO IMPORTANT to the community of guitarists, music lovers, and gear makers. GP's EVH special tribute issue is a comprehensive, scrupulously researched, well written, and adoring celebration of an artist who meant so much to so many, and IT COULD ONLY HAVE BEEN DONE BY GP. No disrespect to any of the other fine guitar publications around the world â and, truth be told, I am a tad biased as a former Editor in Chief â but this issue IS the bible of all things about the guitarist Eddie Van Halen. It is the pinnacle of guitar journalism on the subject of Eddie. And it is a loving tribute penned by players who were in the trenches themselves, intimately know how to approach the subject at hand, and who are truly aware of Eddie's impact on guitar. Bravo to Matt Blackett, Jude Gold, Art Thompson, Jimmy Leslie, Christopher Scapelliti, and everyone else who contributed their heart, words, and insights to this tribute." â MM (via Guardians of Guitar).

One of the articles about this situation quoted someone from the GC camp as attributing COVID's impact on "discretionary income" as one of the reasons for the current troubles. But if I was a savvy investor, I'd ask, "So how come Sweetwater and some other retailers are thriving, and many categories of music-gear sales are way up?"

Hello Guitar Forum Members... On May 1, Wroclaw Poland's Guitar World Record Festival is moving online due to the COVID-19 crisis. If you are looking for something cool and collaborative to do this coming Friday, then grab your favorite guitar and join players across the planet in a massive world-guitar orchestra to perform a Jimi Hendrix-inspired version of "Hey, Joe." Here's an article I did on the 2019 festival: https://guardiansofguitar.com/2019/05/15/guitars-jimi-hendrix-and-the-uniting-vibration-of-music/ Here's the broadcast link: For more information: http://en.heyjoe.pl/ I have attached directions, as well. The festival is originating in Poland, so for guitarists on Pacific Time, the performance starts at 7 am (if you're an early riser, rehearsals begin at 5 am and 6 am). For rockers on Eastern time, it's 10 am (with rehearsals at 8 am and 9 am). Please join me and rock on! Have fun! Best, Mike

Ha. Well, ya gotta do what ya gotta do, Danny. Be safe! M

Hi all... Interesting feedback from the https://www.facebook.com/KingdomOfRockPodcast/ I've been co-hosting with Matt Gibson. We've interviewed artists such as Steve Vai, Steve Stevens, Elliot Easton, Johnny A, Bruce Kulick, Michael Sweet, and Joel Hoekstra, as well as a platoon of producers, business people, and everyday musicians affected by the coronavirus crisis. Some of the counsel has reflected on one's personal outlook â such as Steve Vai, who advocated NOT giving into fear â and other comments have focused on what a specific artist is doing to keep busy while sheltered at home. Keeping busy. Yes. That... After all, it would be truly tragic if guitarists DID NOT use the extra time we have all been given to write songs, learn new techniques, practice familiar and unfamiliar exercises, work on social-media and website promotion, devise a marketing plan for when we can gig again, and absorb other practical and essential tools of the musician's creative life. "After I engage with my children and wife each day, I could spend the evening zoning out watching Netflix, or I can choose to work on answering social-media comments, practicing my craft, and finishing my upcoming album," said Joel Hoekstra (Whitesnake, Trans Siberian Orchestra, Cher). In addition to upping your productivity game, I have to believe that working on your music will also calm your soul, anxiety, and frustrations during the apocalypse. So, GUITAR FORUM... What are YOU doing to enhance your talents, aspirations, techniques, and creativity during this time?

Marky â Join the party. Email me, and I can share the schedule with you. Best, Mike

Hi all... I'm posting again, because I'm kinda surprised that NO ONE took me up on my previous offer to appear on the Kingdom of Rock video livecast on COVID-19 AND THE MUSIC INDUSTRY. It's a great opportunity to share knowledge, hope, disgust, and strategies with the larger music community at large, as well as a nice way to get you in front of potential fans. Check out the link to see past episodes: https://www.facebook.com/KingdomOfRockPodcast/ So... If you want to appear, please email me at gpeditor@gmail.com, and I'll see if I can get you "on the air" so to speak. BTW: Episodes to date have included STEVE VAI, MICHAEL SWEET, ELLIOT EASTON, JOHNNY A, JORDAN RUDESS, and on and on and on. Cheers and Be Safe, Mike

My PSA for the Day: Those musicians who are currently rehearsing together, or who plan to start rehearsing very soon, should click to read the LA Times article below, which I just saw posted by my friend Jane Tyska. https://www.latimes.com/world-nation/story/2020-03-29/coronavirus-choir-outbreak?fbclid=IwAR0k-dv8K_Ufy069GfIfloBAaKUw3iN1H9nagfF8-TDO5u_2LmNOv6-LHdA The main takeaway is this: "[There is] a growing body of evidence that the virus can be transmitted through aerosolsâparticles smaller than 5 micrometersâthat can float in the air for minutes or longer." In other words, a typical band rehearsal could cause the virus to be unleashed into your practice environment, and settle on your face and hands. WHY RISK IT? BTW, I DO NOT view articles such as these as sensationalized, hysterical, or fakeâeven if elements of the reports may indeed be overwrought or inaccurate. What is NOT overwrought or inaccurate are the posts we are all seeing now about family members, friends, and "friends of friends" coming down with COVID-19, as well as players of all levels of success DYING. Whether you trust big media or not, I would submit that being OVERLY careful ain't such a bad idea these days. Sometimes, paying attention to cautionary tales can be a basic survival skill. SO PLEASE... I desperately want all of my musician brothers and sisters to take precautions and NOT GET SICK! Don't let boredom, distance from your band mates (and the much-missed collaboration and camaraderie), and the desire to start ramping up for that wonderful time when we can perform for the public again rush you into a badâand possibly tragicâdecision. I can wait to hear your music again, and I want to see YOU playing it.