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Here's the latest from the Steam Powered Studio. A while ago Victoria and I took a trip Somewhere Out West. (Oregon, actually) While planning the trip I thought it would be nice to have a guitar along. (when we went on a trip last winter we had a lot of fun singing with friends using a borrowed guitar) But I'd heard so many horror stories about trying to fly with guitars, and I didn't want the extra baggage. Then it occurred to me that we were flying into Portland- a "big city" with a lot of music history. Couldn't I buy a cheap guitar once I got there? I figured I could just leave it on the street somewhere when I left- maybe start someone's busking career. I checked Craig's list but didn't see anything promising. I checked the Guitar Centers in the area, but no luck there either. Then I found Hank's Music Exchange. They had two used guitars for under $100. We got off the plane, picked up our car, and rushed downtown. (it was a Sunday afternoon, but Hank's is open every day of the week) When we parked I saw a guy getting into a car with what looked like the $50 guitar I wanted in his hand. Rats! We went inside- sure enough that guitar was gone. I asked about the next best option- a $99 Hohner. Still there! And then I noticed that it had a pickup. Bonus! |
 At Hank's Music Exchange in Portland OR. |
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I strummed a few chords. I would have been OK with the usual cheap guitar action and sound, but hey- this thing sounded pretty good. The action was perfect, the intonation was good, it was comfortable to play and I couldn't find anything wrong with it (the sales guy said "I don't know why the tag says "as is"") After I plugged it into an amp to check the Fishman pickup I got the big smile. It sounded great through the amp. I paid (no sales tax), walked out and chucked it in the back seat of the car. Perfect. So- the only problem, as you may imagine, was that (like, it had crossed my mind earlier) I might want to keep it. It would have been easy to just bring it back to Hank's- they are a music exchange and pay cash for used instruments. That would have amounted to the equivalent of renting the guitar for two weeks for $50. Not bad. But it seems that this is THE guitar that I've been looking for. After a week I knew I had to ship this one home. Now, the cynical, or people who have known me for a while, might just attribute my love for this guitar to the fact that it had new strings on it, or was under $300, and you might have a good case. But everyone who plays this thing agrees that it's a fine instrument. It records well, and sounds great live through a PA. It's the kind of thing that inspires me to play, and to write songs with it. The feel of it reminds me of my old Ibenez, the one I wrote so many songs with in the 1990's. Only this one sounds much much better. Happy day. |
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