While the record industry continues to stamp out guitar and music tabs on the internet, the question arises: how can we cope? I sincerely hope that one day, transposers and musicians will be able to freely exchange music on the internet. In the meantime, we can pursue legal alternatives. Of course, everyone would love to be able to play a Hendrix riff on the guitar, and for that, there are sites that provide such tabulature. Fighting the record labels is a task that I would love to pursue - but frankly - do not have the resources required for such a venture.
So what are the legal options for exchanging guitar tabs? The answer is open source music. In other words, music that lies in the public domain. As long as a song is not copyrighted and the transposed tab is an organic product, the tab is free for anyone to use and learn from. Feel free to contact me if you have any open source tabs to contribute! I hope to provide some legal options for learning guitar.
A funky southern-rock band recently grabbed my attention at a local concert in Portland. The band, known as Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, is led by Grace Potter (vocals/piano/guitar) and guitarist Scott Tournet. The band was independent and self-promoting until 2005 when they signed on with Hollywood Records.
In person, Grace is gentle and mild mannered. On stage, however, her presence is vivid and explicit. While the band’s performance was mainly focused on Grace’s vocal and organ talents, she has a surprisingly skilled hand for guitar.
The band’s lead guitarist Scott Tournet demonstrated a wide range of techniques on the guitar. Blues, rock, funk - he walked all roads throughout the night in his own country/southern style.
The real highlight of this band is in their live performances. The guitar-heavy jam sessions draw from the best sounds of the 60’s/70’s. Their studio albums are a real disappointment in shadow of the concert. Hopefully they will release a live cd in the future. Until then, the best way to catch Grace is on the road.
Gibson, the maker of the world’s most famous solidbody electric guitar, the Les Paul, is pursuing the future of instrumental design. One of their newest prototypes is quite unique. The beta model is known simply as the Gibson Robot Guitar. The prototype was officially launched on December 7th at a retail price of $2,499.
The Robot Guitar uses technology to simplify the process of tuning and intoning the guitar. The real usefulness of the robotic technology comes into play when you need to quickly switch between tunings. By default, the Robot supports Open E, Drop D, DADGAD, Open G, Hendrix style tuning, and Double drop D. However, you can program any tuning you want into the guitar’s system.
The regular model of the Gibson Robot Les Paul will be released in late 2008. Pricing has not been announced yet.
While the Gibson Robot Guitar definitely looks like a fun toy, how useful will the general market find the technology? Are we going to see a day when people no longer know how to tune a guitars themselves? Is this just an exceptional gimmick? The Robot certainly brings up some interesting questions about the future of instruments. One thing is for sure, though - this guitar wont be leaving the shelves until we see some famous names make the switch to robotic technology.
Every guitarist has their own preference of strings depending on their playing style. In reality though, pretty much anything you find at your local music store will do the trick. It’s the player that makes the strings, not the strings that make the player.
That being said, choosing the right strings for your guitar can greatly improve your tone - and in some cases - your abilities.
I’ve tried a number of strings. For a long time I used Ernie Ball Slinkys. The name is fitting - Ernie guitar strings almost feel like very small slinkys. In my experience, the downside to Slinkys is the subtle metallic tone that carries out the end of notes. Some people may actually like this aspect, but it just wasn’t for me.
After recommendations by a hometown guitarist and a foreign exchange student with a knack for speed metal, I switched to DR Tite-Fits (medium). I was surprised by the difference. While Slinkys usually took a few days of rigorous playing to achieve their notable flexibility, the Tite-Fits were delivering quality performance as soon as soon as they were in tune.
DR Tite-Fits have proven to be very reliable as all-around strings. However, advanced guitarists may want to look at some of DR’s special order lines for a string more in line with their desired tone.
Granted, strings are as personal as the clothes on your back. I had a friend suggest that I should buy 6 different brands of strings, and use one of every kind on my guitar to figure out what I like best. I don’t think this would be very efficient or economical. In any case, the only way to know what works best for you is to try some out! Happy stringing!
If you hadn’t noticed, I haven’t posted any new guitar tabs in quite a while. Why is this? I don’t have a simple answer for you.
The complex answer is that tabulature is on the fence of legality. Don’t get me wrong, I see absolutely no problem with people sharing guitar tabs. The issue here is that the MPA believes that fan-made tabulature violates copyrights.
I disagree with them 100%. And keep in mind, the artists themselves aren’t even the ones upset.
Unfortunately, going to court is expensive. Really really, expensive. The truth is that the American justice system is setup so that those with the deepest pockets have the greatest advantage. There is no way that I could compete with the MPA monetarilly in court.
Hopefully, one day, the MPA will be overthrown and guitar tabs will be upheld under freedom of speech. Until then my friends… until then…
In light of this week’s announcement, here is a little Zeppelin for you to enjoy. One of the many overplayed and overused Zeppelin hits. Even so, it never seems to get old.
Sweet mother. The one and only godfather group of rock Led Zeppelin is back! On November 26, 2007, the group will band together for a one night stand.
The show will be held at London’s 22,000-capacity O2 arena in honor of Atlantic’s late founder Ahmet Ertegun. Good luck getting in though. Tickets will retail at $254 and be distributed lottery style via Ahmettribute.com. I’m guessing we’ll see a few of these pop up on eBay for the $500-$1500 range.
