Two Guitars or Just One?

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: DrugCrazed
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 09:33 AM

I have the one, and part of me wishes I had another. Problem is I don't have the funds nor the space.

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 09:47 AM

Do you smoke?

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: DrugCrazed
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 12:48 PM

A random question, but no. I'm just a poor student.

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: Backwoodsman
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 02:05 PM

Not a random question, DC!

Let me say first that I've never smoked. But I had problems 'justifying' to myself the cost of my first 'expensive' guitar - a £1,395 Lowden. So I simply calulated the cost of smoking 20 a day for a year which came to roughly the same as the cost of the Lowden. Realising that a lifetime of enjoyment of making music on a fine instrument could be had for one year's-worth of coffin-nails, and the guitar wouldn't damage my health.

Had you been a smoker, I'd have suggested you stopped and spent your fag-money on a nice guitar (and at the same time made a very positive move towards improving your health).

I guess that doesn't work for you as a student, and doing without lager and baked beans probably isn't a choice you'd want to make! :-) :-)

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: GUEST
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 02:19 PM

I have several:

My darling baby never-to-be-parted-with, 1968 Martin D21, acquired from George Gruhn's store in Nashville in 1990.
Price was marked as 1200 dollars. When I paid for it, the great Gruhn himself said it was mislabeled--should have been 1500 dollars. I offered to pay the difference, but he said a deal's a deal: 1200 it stayed. It's been a good guitar for all the types of music I have played: bluegrass, folk, Irish/Scottish, Newfoundland, Quebec fiddle tunes, and more...

It's been adjusted several times over the years, as it aged. The work was always done by Bruce Dowd, a supremely experienced and talented luthier in Toronto. This one will go to my son, if he is interested, or one of my two granddaughters if they show any interest. Otherwise, I expect it will be a down payment on a vacation home for my wife after I pass on...

I also have another Martin: A D-18 12fret-to-the body model based on Norman Blake's similar Martin (a 1933 guitar, if I recall correctly).
A wonderful warm and very full sound! This one is my number two, but only because as a singer, I capo a lot, and need those extra two frets sometimes.

I have had a 1984 Marc Beneteau Dreadnought since the late 80's. It has a Baggs soundhole pickup. I used this one for Irish music gigs.
Very well balanced sound.

My go-to unfamiliar or potentially rowdy jams, guitar is a Blueridge BR-73, a nice smaller body guitar. This one I do lend out at jams. The others, not so much unless I know and have confidence in the borrower.

Hardly ever played is a 1962 Gibson B25-12, a small body 12 string guitar. Also a cheap classical guitar purchased on vacation in Spain in the 70's.
Lastly, a mexican 3 pickup (Nashville style)telecaster purchased on Ebay some years ago...

As a former bass player, I have several electric basses, and my wife and I share two upright basses.

If you are a guitar player, you can never have too many guitars.

One last one, I sold several years ago: a nice 80's Larrivee with cutaway. Nice guitar, I played it for about 20 years.

Oh yes, the one that got away: a 1964 Gibson J50, gifted in the 70's to a songwriter friend, who needed a guitar. It really blossomed soundwise after he had the Mill Wheel in Toronto re-brace the top in standard Martin bracing style. What a cannon it now is.

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: lefthanded guitar
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 03:01 PM

I have three guitars, but that includes the cheapo Korvettes guitar I first learned to play on during last century when I was knee high to an Indian rosewood sprout. So really and practically, I own just that second guitar which I bought with my first paycheck aeons ago, which I rarely (which- means never- lol) use: and the Martin. Which I play, enjoy and adore A LOT.

I keep telling myself to get rid of my second guitar and just keep my Martin. I am always PLANNING to bring the second guitar to gatherings in case it gets knocked about; or that I'm gonna tune it to an open tuning (wonderful advice to myself which I've never followed thru on)
or just have it around as a spare for whatever. Like what if we're invaded by a bunch of aliens from a parallel universe and they insist we all have two guitars...you know...a reason that is substantial and relevant like that. ;D

So I believe .......truly....that I really should just sell that second guitar and put it towards something else; I dunno what tho.

And it's just taking up space. I never play it.

That said, I'm still keeping the second guitar.

Don't ask me why.

Subject: RE: Two Guitars or Just One?
From: PHJim
Date: 09 Aug 11 - 03:31 PM

Guest - I know very few D-21 owners. They only made less than 3000. I wrote the late Mike Longworth right after I got mine and asked him why they quit making the D-21 in 1969. He said that the D-28 was $20 more and folks were opting for the white binding and ebony board and bridge. Mine is a '62 that I bought/traded from Ed Dick at Ed's Music Workshop in Peterborough, ON about 34 years ago. I plan on throwing it a 50th birthday party next year...Shhhhhhhh. It's a surprise.

Backwoodsman - I quit smoking 36 years ago when I found out that I was gonna be a father. I put the 75 cents a day that I was spending on smokes into an old tobacco can (Cigarettes were a lot cheaper in those days) and soon had enough to buy my first banjo.

My other guitars are a 1950 Gibson LG1, a 1958 Goya M-26 and a 5 or 6 year old off-shore Gretsch Synchromatic arch top.

I like the D-21 for playing bluegrass or country/folk gigs.
The LG1 is great for blues/jug band stuff.
The Gretsch is good for swing and slide.
The first guitar I ever owned was a Goya M-26 that I bought used in 1960, so when I found this one, I bought it for sentimental reasons. It's not an expensive guitar, but I really like it and so do others who hear/play it. Solid spruce top, solid flamed maple back and sides, Brazilian board and bridge.
I also own a solid body Tele clone that I play about twice a year. wouldn't mind getting rid of it, but the others I'll keep.

Maybe I'll do a post sometime about my banjos, mandolins, ukuleles, dulcimers and squeeze boxes.