Moving Life with Guitars

I encountered my first guitar while attending Pine Island Camp in Maine during the late 1950's. P.I.C. was (and still is) an all-boys camp on an island in the middle of a lake - no electricity. Entertainment was provided by story-telling, made-up skits and guitar-playing counselors. I fell in love with the guitar the first time I got my hands on one, and music has dominated my life ever since.

Through being a musician, I have had occaision to learn a bit about the history of the instrument and its relatives, the science of acoustics, and repair and rebuilding tips and techniques. I've run across a lot of experiments and “mutations,” suffered hearing loss, and been exposed to other musics and cultures. It's been, as the Grateful Dead tune suggests, a long strange trip. I've enjoyed every minute and it ain't over yet!

In these pages, I've pulled together some beginning resources on the history of the (acoustic) guitar and some of the players, how they work, tips on repairing & rebuilding, etc. I've also linked to some sites that provide information on the physics of sound, hearing loss & its prevention, and Tex-Mex border music, my current area of interest. This list is not exhaustive but is intended as a basic “toolkit.” In the links provided, you will find many other paths to explore. Have a good trip and as the song says: “Follow the music, it takes you where you want to go...” (Follow the Music by Michael Baldwin.)

I've organized the site into four main pages. The 12-string page has information on the 12-string guitar and on border music. The 12 string is used more in Mexico than in the United States. Many of the archtypes that we consider truly American we got from the Latino cultures. The J-200 page has information on how guitars work, links to sites with tips and techniques for repairing them, and sources for supplies. The L-7 page has links to information about the history and development of the guitar, some future trends, and some looks at unusual instruments of the past and present. The P-Bass page has information on the most important aspect of music - for players and listeners alike - hearing loss and its prevention. Most of these sites have extensive additional information on them.

To get started, just click on the guitar cases to “open up” the pages. Please use the comment form to suggest more links, report dead or moved links, or just plain sound off. Most of what I've learned has come about through serendipity - off-hand suggestions or conversations with others that opened up new paths to wander. I look forward more chances to expand my own horizons and will add them so others may too.