The Search for the "Perfect" #ElectricGuitar Never Ends

The Chord of the Day was Gbmaj7.

When I was younger, I thought the perfect guitar was a Fender Stratocaster with a black paint job, white pickguard, and a maple fretboard. It was aesthetically pleasing, played quite well, and was almost perfect for me, until ...

Within a couple of years, I purchased a cheaper backup guitar. It was an Epiphone Special II, which didn't quite play as well above the 12th fret. I didn't quite like that the output jack is on the side of the guitar, whereas my Strat's output jack is on the face of the guitar's body. I always feel a bit paranoid to lug around a guitar with an angled headstock in a gig bag; you're better off with a hardshell case for most Epiphones and Gibsons (the parent company of Epiphone). However, my fretting hand loved the Gibson scale length of the neck, as opposed to the longer scale length in most Fenders, including my Strat. For example, string bending feels easier on a Gibson-scale guitar versus a more tense, Fender-scale guitar.

Fast forward a couple of decades, a couple of years ago, I had the opportunity for find a nearly-perfect fit for the criteria I've been developing over the years. The Fender Cyclone (or more inexpensive Squier Cyclone, which I purchased), is shaped like a Fender Mustang. Now the Mustang has a very short scale, shorter than the usual Gibson scale guitar. The Cyclone has the exact scale length as a typical Gibson. Additionally, the output jack is on the face of the guitar, and the straight Fender headstock is ideal for lugging around in a gig bag. It is nearly a perfect electric guitar; I just wish that the neck radius felt as "flat" or "shallow" or had the same exact feel as my Epiphone -- but it's good enough.

I wonder if I could find a guitar with the same specs as my Cyclone, but with more expensive wood and "better" hardware and electronics. The search continues in the background, but I'm very happy with my Cyclone.

The "lesson" in this blog post: No matter what instrument you play, you should always know what you want in that instrument, especially when your preferences change over the years. Cheers, and keep jamming!

Advice to Non-Drummers: Get a #DrumMachine

In case you were wondering, our Instagram Chord of the Day was G-flat diminished (Gdim).

If you're not a drummer, or do not have regular access to a drummer, then it is in your best interest to acquire a drum machine. It'll help you with practicing rhythm skills, no matter what instrument you play, and it makes solo or partial band situations a bit more fun. Okay, a metronome can do much of the same, but it isn't as fun. I suppose a drum machine/loop app could do the same, but it probably isn't as fun ... to program.

Once you acquire a drum machine, you might want to disregard the preset patterns and create your own. If you have specific songs to cover, a site like Songsterr probably has the most decent drum tabs to program on your drum machine. Before you get that far, just program some generic drum patterns that can fit almost any popular music situation.

Off the top of my head, since I'm trying to blog as fast as possible, here are some of the basics:

1. 4/4 backbeat
2. 4/4 snare on 3
3. 3/4 waltz
4. 6/8 snare on 4
5. 4/4 all kick
6. 12/8 shuffle
7. What else ...?

To program (or even perform!) a 4/4 backbeat, play the kick on the first and third beats of a measure. Play the snare on the second and fourth beats of a measure. Keep time with the hi-hats or ride cymbal or floor tom in either quarter notes (one, two, three, four, one ...) or eighth notes (one and two and three and four and one and ...). Program variations on this pattern by using a hi-hat for one pattern,  a ride for another pattern, a tom groove, etc. Using more or less kick drum will also influence the overall groove of your pattern.

To program a 4/4 snare on 3, at the very least, have the kick on the first beat and the snare on the third beat. You can keep time (e.g., hi-hats, ride, or tom) in either quarter notes or eighth notes. Vary the amount of kick drum. The snare on 3 is useful for somber songs, as well as heavy rock songs.

To program a generic 3/4 waltz with drums, keep time with three quarter notes per measure: One, TWO, THREE, one, TWO, THREE ... etc. At the very least, play the kick on the first beat. The snare is sort of optional. Have it hit on the second and third beats, or just the third beat -- or not at all. If you don't plan on playing traditional waltzes and waltzy hymns, you can skip the 3/4 in favor of the pop song-friendly 6/8, below.

To program a generic 6/8 beat, have the kick play on the first beat and the snare play on the fourth eighth note. You'll keep time (e.g., hi-hats, ride, or tom) in eighth notes: One, two, three, FOUR, five, six. I like to use Eddie Vedder's way of counting 6/8: One, two, three, FOUR, two three ...

To program all kicks, just play the kick drum for every quarter note in a measure: One, two, three, four, one, two, ... you get the idea. You might do a variation and program the snares on the AND beat: One SNARE two SNARE three SNARE four SNARE, etc., for a less-than-competent version of "Ace of Spades" -- but still fun!

You'll figure out how to shuffle, eventually. I think of a 12/8 pattern as "One and the Two and the Three and the Four and the One and the ..." as there are 12 eighth notes per measure. This might not translate well in text, but I haven't the time to find an audiovisual example on the Web at the moment. Forgive me if I simplify too much, but the shuffle removes the "and" from the 12/8 pattern while keeping the timing the same: "One, the-Two, the-Three, the-Four, the-One ..." The swung notes are mostly heard by your time-keeping (e.g., hi-hats, ride, or tom), as well as any special kick drum patterns and syncopated snare.

Once you have the above generic drum patterns programmed, you can pretty much play any pop song and the 12-bar blues, with some "drums." From there, you can program the drum patterns from your favorite songs, as well as come up with your own multi-use patterns!

That's all for today! Keep jamming!

#ALittleThunder Guitar Pickup: #ALTbass

Yes! I'm finally checking in on this blog after nearly a year. Of course, Chord du Jour has been active on Instagram during that time. I'll try to post a blurb here as often as I can.

During my absence from this blog, I have been jamming with a pickup called A Little Thunder, installed in my Gibson-scale guitar manufactured by Fender. (Perhaps, in the future, I might write a quick post about choosing a guitar to your own preferences.)

In the latter-20th Century, there was a rock band -- a duo, really -- called Local H, and they didn't have a bass player. Singer/guitarist Scott Lucas' friend modified Lucas' guitar and placed a bass pickup under the Low E and A strings, and output that signal through an octave pedal to provide the bass sound, in addition to the guitar sound.

A Little Thunder is basically the sleek, 21st century version of the Scott Lucas' improvisation. Invented by guitarist Andy Alt, the ALT pickup's octave effect is built-in, and there is a battery that can be charged with a USB cable. I can go on and on about the various features of the pickup, but it is better to listen to some samples for yourself.

Throughout the summer and to this day, I have been posting 15-second live, one take, one-man band performances featuring A Little Thunder on Instagram -- hashtag ALTbass.

Until the next post! Keep jamming!

Pre-Grand Opening Entry

1. Check out our Technorati Profile for semi-related madness.

2. Buy, or somehow acquire, a guitar or piano or ukulele...etc.

3. Stay tuned for the unveiling of the Daily Chord (by DeRamos.org)!