Rain

Disclaimer - this may sound like heresy for a rock musician, but I don't like loud music. I can put up with it at a concert, but ultimately, I hate to trade clarity and intelligibility for loudness. Another reason why I prefer studio to stage. Likewise, although I’ve owned many big, loud tube amps throughout the years, to practice and at home, I naturally gravitate towards small, transistor practice amps. I like to be able to play through an amp and still watch a movie or something. Even in Triode mode, I never managed to push the Marshall half stack past 1 in this room. After I bought the Tele a few weeks ago, I did a bit of research and I decided to grab one of these little Champions. I wanted something simple and small that could deliver Fender type of tones without peeling the paint off the walls. I'll not try and pretend that it sounds even just almost as great as the old '59 Bassman or your old Twin - but honestly, to practice, I'll choose this puppy every time over amp sims (hardware and software) and other little transistor amps I've owned. Even the British setting is relatively decent. And it's just a lot of fun to play. Probably my favorite of all the little amps I've owned, including the tube Randall. Again, this is not for purists - but me I do believe in using different tools for different things. Never ceases to amaze me how far we've come. I wish we'd have such affordable and good sounding gear when I started out. The bigger models have some extra features, like a second channel and all, but to me, that defeats the purpose - if this were to play live or record, I'd opt for something different entirely, not a bigger version of this.

That's actually some pretty decent gear for a "low budget" studio, man. Plus, you have a Mac in there - so you get instant pro setup points.

Here. Just to counterbalance the pinkness... All kidding aside, it's pretty nice that you Epi came with a hardshell case. Even more bang for the buck!

My cat Googlie ran away for two weeks while I was in the ICU a few years ago and came back a couple of days after I got home. For weeks afterwards, she followed me everywhere in the house, stood outside my studio door when I was working and would jump in my lap the minute I sat down somewhere. She even hissed at my wife when she approached me. Meanwhile, our dog kept on barking at her own butthole when it itched...

Agree. One of the things I had to let go due to circumstances. I love to play bass (or to try to, anyway). The good thing is, I sold it to my bass player.

I've always had extraordinarily conventional, boring tastes and guitars are no exception. The first quality guitar I've ever played belonged to the father of a friend of mine, and it was a '57 black Fender Stratocaster. I was 12. That became the holy grail to me - even in an era (mid 80's) that was all about flashy superstrats and pointy guitars, that guitar held its own - respected guitarists like Dave Murray, Matthias Jabs and Glenn Tipton played (modded) black Strats. Not like my cheap, sunburst Les Paul copy. That thing was about as metal as a cowboy hat or a bolo tie. Les Paul's really didn't get much love for a while... When I saw David Gilmour in Live at Pompeii, it only reinforced my determination to someday own a black Strat - albeit not necessarily a 57, but if possible, with a similar headstock and neck color. Eventually, I go a cheap Strat copy from Sears, then a Fender Squier black Strat and, ultimately, in 96, the real black Strat I'd always lusted after, and it's been with me ever since. I've sold, traded or given away most of the gear I owned through the years but not that one. That being said, I picked up electric guitar because of Randy Rhoads, and last year I figured it would makes sense to at least test his design - so I bought a super cheap one, just to get a feel. I must say I love the ergonomics. Having studied classical, I feel right at home with the playing position. I may grab a better quality one in the future. But ultimately, my main line up is remarkably traditional - and finally feels complete with the new Tele.

She's her mommy's lap dog. The only time she comes into the studio is when my wife's not home. She just sits there, looks depressed and sighs. Actually, we've lost a few in the last couple of years, we're down to six. Although we've been fostering, so, yeah, back to 9 or 10 most of the time.

I remember I heard a guy playing a Telecaster with a B Bender in a bar - I was only dropping by but I ended up staying until the end of the set just to have a chat with him and to ask him how he did that stuff. Took me forever to learn to love Telecasters, but I was hooked to the B Bender on the spot. Maybe on the next Tele.

Hey, Kenny - good hearing from you, man! And always a joy to hear you play too!

I'd have a tough time picking between her and Arthur. But he lives downstairs, mostly on the fridge or in my gym. She's the only cat allowed in the studio (I don't mind the dog because she's very quiet in here).

Not sure what you mean...

Thanks, Paulo. Considering what some family members, friends and fellow forum members have been through, I have absolutely no right to complain. Hope life's been kind to you.

Wow - that is gorgeous, my friend!

The telecaster bride is the one thing I wasn't sure I'd be able to deal with. Fortunately for me, this one comes with a modern bridge. I love classic designs, and at some point in the future, I'll probably want one of those ashtray bridges, but for now, man, am I glad that I opted for a modern one. Incredibly comfortable.

In all honesty, I used to feel exactly the same. The headstock in particular seemed an assault on good taste. It also didn't help that they became very popular with hipsters for a while. But the design eventually grew on me.

Took me decades to get the Telecaster buzz. Then when I finally started considering getting one, I was always thinking of which configuration could best accommodate all my musical needs - with humbuckers, and this and that feature, until the only thing Tele left was the basic shape. So I kept buying Les Paul's and SG's. But recently, I spent quite a bit of time listening music where the tele was prominently featured, and I decided that I needed just that. Who cares if I don't use it with the metal band? I even decided that I wanted the classic butterscotch blonde finish. The Player series seemed like a good place to start (I owned a Player Strat for a while and it was a fine instrument). That thing stands out like a sore thumb in the studio - or like Celine Dion in Ozzy Osbourne's mansion - but I absolutely love it.

The pickups in my old Epi Les Paul Traditional were actually pretty good. Tuners were never an issue either. The things that almost systematically gave me issues with Epiphone's are: the switch, the pots, the input jack which constantly needs to be re-tightened and the chrome finish on the pick up and bridge - but the last one isn't a common issue, just something my body does to cheaper hardware and to a guitar's finish. A recent picture of my favorite guitar, the one known as the Angry B!tch (Gibson Les Paul Studio), kept in a smoke free environment and well cared for. I'm basically a human relic'ing machine...

Truth be told, 2020 has been one of the most unmusical year in my life - unless you calculate selling gear as "musical". My creativity went towards writing a book instead and the home studio looks more and more like a study with guitars in it. That being said, I've been meaning to kick my own rear end and get back into it for the last few weeks, and reading Dave's story provided just enough guilt to make the move. (Oh yeah, and I have a new Telecaster arriving tomorrow - that always help too.)

Good to see you around, Dave!

If you're still not convinced, off the top of my head, I could introduce you to Clint Malarchuk, Borje Salming or that poor kid playing junior league in Ontario who practically had his leg sectioned by a skate a few weeks ago... Me, I suffered a few concussions, a broken arm, injured knees - but overall, I inflicted more damage than I suffered (I was a nasty player, I'm told). But that's all very superficial compared to those guys, or Jacques Plante and Terry Sawchuck (last photo), who stopped pucks with their face...

Those guys in tights who spend most of their time bending over in rows, passing a cigar-shaped object between their legs, staring at each other butt and then trying to pin each other down? Yeah, I guess that's the kind of sport where girls are not allowed - they just wouldn't get it. But if you really are into big strong hairy men, I guess you can always look up Dave The Hammer Schultz, Bob Probert, Dave Williams, or Terry Tasmanian devil O'Reilly. Should satisfy your urges and cravings. Be advised though - they don't just try to pin each other down - they actually beat the crap out of each other. Teeth flying all around, blood everywhere - even blades to the face... Might be too much for a football fan. (FWIW, all jokes aside, this Canadian IS doing his best to get acquainted with football).

FWIW, I ADORE those guys and consider them brothers - but I don't think this recording does anyone justice, my wife included.

It's actually my favorite guitar - although I really like to practice on the Jackson Randy Rhoads because it's so comfortable for someone who likes to play in the classical position. But I always get back to that white LP. Rock and Roll over is the first KISS album I heard but I didn't really discover them until a few years later, with Creatures of the Night. One could say that that record set the tone to my musical life - it was dark, heavy, simple and coherent and with HUGE drums. Funny anecdote - I started listening to KISS again around the same time as I met my wife. I remember one evening in our room in Russia I was listening to I Still Love You and she asked me "What's that song you're always listening to?" Fact is, I was listening to the whole album but she noticed this one in particular. She was no fan of KISS back then so when I told her I could imagine her singing that song, she didn't really care for the idea. But after we moved here and met the KISS Night folks, they invited us to play and asked what song we'd play - to which I immediately replied I Still Love You. We played it together and the crowd went nuts (if I'm not mistaken, at least two of those pictures above were taken during that song). It became HER KISS song, so now she gets to sing it every year with the biggest names on the bill. When they released the first single, of course they wanted it to be that one.

I am ashamed to admit that I never really liked Rush - that is until a few years ago. Probably because they were so ubiquitous in my entourage, and everyone held them in such high esteem - but their music was like a foreign language to me. I could appreciate pieces like La Villa Stangiato and YYZ, but the music they were releasing when I was discovering rock and roll in the mid 80's was just to synth-y for my tastes - back then. Plus I didn't really like prog, so... But I had my epiphany a couple of years ago and became a HUGE fan of theirs. The good thing about that is that, this left me with many great classic albums to discover, so no matter what's released by contemporary bands, I have a backlog of awesome Rush music to discover.

You perform Oomox on your cat?! That's disgusting! Nah, I do it too. To all 7 of them and they can't get enough.