Guitars As Children

I could hardly believe when I opened my Christmas gift from brother, Randy, this year.  It was a guitar!  That’s pretty frickin’ rad!  It was a white Fender Squire Stratocaster.  Certainly not one I would have personally hunted down to buy, but that’s exactly what makes it such a great gift; that I normally wouldn’t go out and buy one myself. 

This is now my fifth guitar.  And quite honestly, I dig that.  I appreciate guitar aesthetics like vintage tour posters.  They look nice.  They all have their own personalities, their own sound and forte.  With five in the stable, it looks like I could actually make a go of this collection thing!  Hey, it keeps me out of trouble.  So as a first installment, I thought I would write about my little strung out children and who they are.

Norman 

http://www.normanguitars.com/b15brown.html

This was my first guitar; my oldest child.  I bought it at the age of 30 in the year 2001.  I had always wanted to learn guitar, but never did anything about it.  Then came a time in my life when a changed a lot.  I suppose turning 30 may have had something to do with it.  I had just come out of a 10 year relationship and was single for the first time as a “real” adult.  My pals and I had just started our own business so I was not only newly in charge of my single/ social/ private life, I was also in charge of my work life as well.  In a little bit of a more twisted bent on the story, my great aunt, Ivy, had also just passed and left me a little bit of money in my first ever inheritance.  Looking back on it now, what a culmination of events. 

Anyway, I just gave my head a shake one day and thought, “Why haven’t I learned guitar?”  So, I found a guitar teacher, bought my first guitar and that was that.  The best part was that Aunty Ivy was not only as a school teacher as her profession, but she was also somewhat of a musician, as was her second husband, Bill.  Somehow, spending some money she left me on learning to play guitar was very fitting and stands as a bit of a legacy tribute.  I can tell you right this minute, if it wasn’t for Aunty Ivy, I would have never even ventured to pick it up.

So, there I went down to Long & McQuade to buy my first guitar.  Dude there was very helpful in it.  He didn’t snuff his nose at me some snotty salesman that hates beginners.  He did me well.  He sold me Norman. 

Norman is indeed both the name of the Canadian manufacturer and, by default, this guitar’s name.  It’s a straight up B15 acoustic, burgundy in color with a rosewood fingerboard and a tortoise shell pick guard.  The top and sides are made of laminated wild cherry wood.  It cost me $279.00.  Along with learning my first ever chords, the first song I ever learned to play (on my third guitar lesson) was The Mountains Win Again by Blues Traveler.  That’s still the first song I think of when I see Norman.  One thing that I’ve learned, or rather am still learning, is that different guitars suit different songs.  Now, I don’t mean that in the most obvious of ways, because of course they do.  But for me, personally, I can really attribute different songs for different guitars and continue to try and figure that out every time I play.  You can play any song on any guitar but some of them just…well, fit.  I cannot play Mountains near as well on any other guitar. 

Norman’s role is now one of the utilitarian and, truth be told, doesn’t come out of the case all that often anymore.  But he’s the one I take camping or traveling, out to fire pit parties or when I’m sitting in the backyard during summer.  The one that can fall down without me freaking out.  It’s also my loudest acoustic.  And it’s tough.  And now, I don’t know why, it has become the recipient of stickers.  I try to keep the decals musically compliant, but form time to time they break the mold.  Whenever I go to a show or something, I try to pick up a band sticker to take home and put on Norman.  It’s starting to get a bit better now, having gained a bit of personality over the years.  I’m starting to like the look, but need to “dirty” it up some more.  A little more convoluted would be nice. 

Since I’m usually sitting down while I play, I have rarely had real cause for wearing straps.  It is something I’d like to change, though.  You wouldn’t believe how hard it is, after having been seated on your ass for all of your guitar playing life, to play standing up.  Man…I gotta find some folks to jam with.  Anyway, I did receive a strap for Norman as a Christmas gift that suits him just fine.  Plain brown, roughed-up leather. 

A cheers to Norman, my original gee-tar pal.  We’ve grown a bunch over the years and you’ve been there for all of it.  Well, at least since I was 30.

Norman’s Songs    

·         The Mountains Win Again – Blues Traveler

·         It’s Good To Be King – Tom Petty

·         Misguided Angel – Cowboy Junkies

·         Banana Pancakes – Jack Johnson

·         Everyday – Dave Matthews Band

·         Original Blues Jam