YES FOLKS, “THE END IS NIGH”(no, not the video game). The clichéd idiom of woeful doomsayers is the pessimistic prediction of impending Armageddon – the end of the world according to God’s final judgement enshrined in religious belief. Not here though. In this instance, I’m referring to the far less fatalistic but probably more imminent finale to the Gregorian calendar year of two thousand and twenty four (NB. The Gregorian calendar was established as a reform of the Julian calendar in 1582 by Pope Gregory XIII). While ‘The End Is Nigh’ may also represent the rallying cry for the biblical apocalypse, that is not my intention or implication, just my peculiar sense of absurdity.
“This is the way the world ends, not with a bang, but a whimper” – T.S. Eliot (1888‑1965)
2024 The End Is Nigh
You are probably tired of all the usual end‑of‑year retrospectives. For those few who aren’t weary of looking back, I am using the hackneyed ‘annual review’ as a convenient mechanism to conclude this particular 12 months of our collective existence. For the list‑o‑philes out there, this is probably the article for you.
Thus far, despite best endeavours, I have singularly failed to make sufficient time and space to work on the novel, ‘The Distortion Diaries’ announced in November 2024, so it looks like shorter articles will be the way of CRAVE Guitars’ regular output going into 2025.
So, without further ado, let’s take a swift look back at 2024 through the languid lenticular lens of CRAVE Guitars…
CRAVE Guitars Gear 2024 (0)
Sadly, and with great disappointment, there have been zero guitars, zero basses, zero effect pedals and zero amplifiers added or sold during 2024. Nothing. Nada. Rien. Nichts. Nulla. Zilch. Ma. Ning. Nihil. Sin. Nichto. Inga. To put it in the western euphemistic vernacular, f‑all ‘new’ old stuff. Sigh.
There have been three on‑going primary reasons for this:
Funds – As the author is on a low, fixed income and CRAVE Guitars is a non‑profit entity, there has simply been insufficient capital to invest in my preferred pastime
Space – CRAVE Guitars exists in an ordinary (small) family home, in which there is insufficient space to accommodate any more gear. The long-frustrating inability to convert the house’s dark damp cellar into a suitable CRAVE Guitars emporium is still on‑going and unlikely to change any time soon (see first reason!)
Competing priorities – In addition to a shortage of funds and space, some other things in life cannot be avoided and require priority attention. Such mundane obligations serve to divert precious funds and consume available space (see first two reasons!)
“Communism doesn’t work because people like to own stuff” – Frank Zappa (1940‑1993)
2024 was the first year since CRAVE Guitars was established in 2007 that there has been no change whatsoever to the ‘collection’. The assemblage of assorted artefacts, it seems, has reached an uneasy equilibrium. It is not my intention for this stagnant state of affairs to continue. Other things, therefore, must change in one, two or all three of the factors above before there is a substantial change to either the quantity or quality of CRAVE Guitars’ vintage gear. Don’t get me wrong, I would dearly love for the ‘collection’ to change and/or grow but, as political economists fail to understand, growth is finite.
After all is said and done, I have to declare that I am massively grateful and eternally thankful for what I have in CRAVE Guitars. It may be modest and humble but, with the dire state of the modern world, I am indeed lucky to be in this fortunate position. As ‘they’ say, things could be a whole lot worse.
“Happiness will never come to those who fail to appreciate what they already have” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
Some of those that left the building in 2024 (20):
As with every year that passes, sadly, there has been a number of notable music artists that have thrown off the mortal coil. Here, in memoriam, are just a few souls that we lost this year:
4 January: David Soul, aged 80
11 January: Anne Nightingale (BBC radio and television presenter), aged 83
23 January: Melanie (Melanie Anne Safka Schekeryk), aged 76
2 February: Wayne Kramer (MC5), aged 75
3 February: Aston ‘Family Man’ Barrett (Bob Marley & The Wailers and The Upsetters), aged 77
17 March: Steve Harley (Cockney Rebel), aged 73
14 April: Dickey Betts (The Allman Brothers Band), aged 80
30 April: Duane Eddy, aged 86
7 May: Steve Albini (Shellac and record producer), aged 61
22 July: John Mayall (The Bluesbreakers), aged 90
5 September: Herbie Flowers, aged 86
5 September: Sergio Mendes, aged 83
28 September: Kris Kristofferson, aged 88
15 October: Tito Jackson (Jackson 5), aged 70
16 October: Liam Payne (One Direction), aged 31
25 October: Phil Lesh (Grateful Dead), aged 84
21 October: Paul Di’Anno (Iron Maiden), aged 66
3 November: Quincy Jones, aged 91
14 November: Vic Flick, aged 87
15 December: Zakir Hussain, aged 73
“Even death is not to be feared by one who lived wisely” – Buddha
2024 album releases purchased (27):
After a prodigious injection of creativity during and immediately after the Covid pandemic, there seem to have been fewer ‘great’ albums to tempt one to part with one’s filthy lucre this last year. More mediocre musical material manifested. Over the last 12 months, there have been only a few new releases to add to the music library – just over one per fortnight. Sigh. As regularly mentioned through this platform, despite embracing music streaming, I still prefer to go ‘old skool’ and buy physical media (on CD, I no longer have vinyl). The 27 new releases purchased in 2024 were:
The Aristocrats – DUCK
Caribou – Honey
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Wild God
Cigarettes After Sex – X’s
Culture – Good Things (reissue)
The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World
The Cure – Songs Of A Live World: Troxy London MMXXIV (live)
Dreadzone – 9
Billie Eilish – Hit Me Hard And Soft
Fat Freddy’s Drop – Slo Mo
Floating Points – Cascade
Four Tet – Three
Beth Gibbons – Lives Outgrown
Jamie xx – In Waves
Jon Hopkins – Ritual
The Jesus And Mary Chain – Glasgow Eyes
Melts – Field Theory
Niney & The Observers – Tubby’s Want The Channel: Dubbing With The Observer 1976‑1978
Opeth – The Last Will And Testament
Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry – King Perry
Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry & Youth – Spaceship To Mars
The Smile – Wall of Eyes
Linval Thompson – Ganja Man
Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She
Various Artists – Jon Savage’s Ambient 90s
Various Artists – Niney The Observer Presents Jah Fire: The Observer 7″ Singles Collection 1976‑1977
Waxahatchee – Tigers Blood
2024 Album Releases
The list above doesn’t include all the other pre‑2024 CDs added to the library over the last 12 months, which run into the several hundreds‑ish.
“If music be the food of love, play on, give me excess of it; that surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die” – William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
2024 major gigs (2)
As with vintage guitar gear and creative new music, it’s also been a pretty moribund year for experiencing live music, with only two sizeable concerts attended, sadly. Thankfully, both concerts were terrific:
Even local pub band gigs have been sparse this year. The local ‘weekender’ event featured largely cover bands and artists dishing out popular hits from the past with little, if any, original material. This paralysing trend has been commented on before. While it is good that live music is out there, it is not so good that very little fresh, new material appears to be coming up from the grass roots.
“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music” – Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)
KEEP MUSIC LIVE!
Various tangential observations about 2024
It is that time of year, with 2025 on the proximate horizon, to round up a few random things together into some sort of convenient (if incoherent) package.
The market prices of vintage guitars and gear has increased significantly over the last 12 months within the context of volatile operating environments across the globe. Many collectors are turning their sights to previously under‑the‑radar models as the economics of supply and demand inflate the so‑called ‘golden era’ vintage guitars beyond belief. The effect of such inflation is that it is putting many ‘cool and rare vintage electric guitars’ out of reach enthusiasts (like me!). Many emerging value‑for‑money vintage guitars that were previously just about affordable, no longer are. The relative shortage and price of vintage guitars presents a difficult challenge for the future of CRAVE Guitars. As a result, I won’t be proclaiming a prioritised list of gear to look for and acquire in 2025.
My aim for 2025 is to attract 50k visits on the web site. At the time of writing, there were 43k visits in 2024. To reach 50K, it will take nearly 150 visits pre day on average. That target doesn’t seem to challenging but, believe me, it is. With the fall off in visitor numbers to the web site (probably also due to the lack of gear turnover), I will need to pay a bit more attention to promotion and social media output, including on Bluesky Social. Currently, at the end of 2024, there is very little in the way of vintage guitar content on Bluesky, so CRAVE Guitars is kinda leading the way in that respect. Bring it!
Reflecting a seriously worrying trend with the economics of the music industry, we lost all 42 Sam Ash Music Stores in the US in May 2024. This loss is the tip of a worrying iceberg and signifies at best a stagnant musical equipment industry and, at worst, a shrinking one. The switch to Internet procurement provides some commercial compensation, although is that really the best way to purchase the gear musicians want and need?
In a similar vein, the owners of the famous Sam Goody entertainment chain announced that it will close its final music stores in 2025, after nearly 75 years of business (founded in 1951). Adios to both Sams.
Mirroring a trend of migrating from printing to virtual publishing, ‘Total Guitar’ magazine sadly met its physical demise in October 2024 after 30 years on the newsagents’ shelves.
Commercially successful bands also seem to be in decline judging by the number of single and album chart successes performed by ‘real’ bands being at a considerably lower level than that of solo artists. Streaming has also demonstrated that ‘the album’ now has less significance than curated playlists and popular single tracks. So… one conclusion that might be drawn from this is that serious music creativity might be under threat (although hasn’t it always been thus?).
Perhaps the comeback of physical media (see below) might reinvigorate greater interest in bands and albums. One band that released a successful studio album in 2024, thereby bucking the otherwise inevitable trend, gets CRAVE Guitars’ Album of the Month (and Year).
As an avid buyer of new and used physical music media, the author has noticed that the market for CDs seems to have experienced an upturn during the last year. According to some sources, 2024 is likely to be the second year in a row that CD sales have shown signs of a resurgence, following the example of vinyl. Coincidentally, according to some research, this turnaround may also be a sign that demand for music digital streaming may have peaked and digital downloads are definitely in decline. The almost‑trend of CD growth, assuming it continues, could potentially match the vinyl revival in demonstrating that music lovers appreciate and value the ownership of tangible media.
The indication is that the availability of second hand CDs has decreased slightly at the same time that the price of used CDs has increased – once again demonstrating the inevitable dynamics of economic supply and demand. Ultimately, though, the method of listening is less important than the fact that people are actually listening to more music in the post‑Covid, pre‑dystopian world.
On the subject of physical media, readers may know about my particular proclivity for reggae and especially dub reggae. I am now finding it quite hard to find and buy quality dub reggae CDs at a reasonable price. The diminishing returns effect means I’m beginning to get into rare and collectable dub reggae CDs, which is competing for finite funds that could be used on vintage guitars. Decisions, decisions, decisions.
Final thoughts on the end of 2024: the future starts here
The world seems increasingly to be descending irretrievably towards society’s End of Times (see top of the article), driven by just a few maladjusted, misguided maniacal, malevolent, malignant, megalomaniacs, seemingly sanctioned by the compliant acquiescence of copious complicit citizens. Critical questioning seems to have been replaced by indolent, possibly ignorant, apathetic obeyance. Harmony, stability and security are fundamental imperatives for human survival and we seem conveniently to have forgotten this, or worse, not to care a jot. Why should I care; no‑one else seems to?
“Frankly, my dear, I don’t give a damn” – Rhett Butler played by Clark Gable in the film ‘Gone with the Wind’ (1939)
Now, the thing is… I do care. War is repugnant and indefensible in the 21st Century. ALL countries need to STOP and reflect on the insanity of where we are heading. Fighting Is Utterly Futile. Fact!
“Hatred does not cease by hatred, but only by love; that is the eternal rule” – Buddha
If we do not wake up soon to this pervasive and insidious threat, I fear it will be too late. The human extinction process has begun and appears to be irreversible without an urgent call to action to create a better civilisation and sustainable future. Peace has to be the first step to global co‑operation, which would then release the potential, ability and resources to tackle global issues in a truly united way.
“We set sail on this new sea because there is new knowledge to be gained, and new rights to be won, and they must be won and used for the progress of all people” – John F. Kennedy (1917‑1963)
How to do that? My (vain) suggestion would be that the United Nations (UN) should be transformed into a potent force that is empowered to act in the interests of all species on our little planet. A strengthened UN could intervene to curtail existing conflicts and counteract new ones through diplomacy and negotiation, using force only as a last resort. The UN is ideally placed to do so but it needs to become much, much more than the impotent talking shop that it is now. It could, and perhaps should, become a genuine peace‑making and peace‑keeping force that is mandated by the collective of all non‑pariah states to supersede unilateral national interests and intercede where necessary for the long‑term sake of humanity as a whole. That, after all, was what the UN was set up to do post‑WWII.
If realised, the UN could also become an international rescue organisation to assist after natural disasters and an aid distribution organisation to help victims of misfortune. However, given that national interests will continue to overwhelm efforts towards collective agreements, sadly, I cannot see that happening, at least not in my lifetime.
“We choose to go to the moon in this decade and do the other things, not because they are easy, but because they are hard, because that goal will serve to organise and measure the best of our energies and skills, because that challenge is one that we are willing to accept, one we are unwilling to postpone, and one which we intend to win, and the others, too” – John F. Kennedy (1917‑1963)
Military conflict, though, is only for starters. We also need to guard against unrestrained population growth, catastrophic deforestation, critical food insecurity, irrevocable climate change, unbridled economic migration, uninhibited ideological extremism, perilous habitat erosion, acute ecological pollution of air land and water, and devastating social division. All are perilous global crises created by humans. Only humans can act together to resolve them. Only the ignorant can sit idly by and ignore them. No biggies then! Perhaps the end is nigher than we think after all.
“The world will not be destroyed by those who do evil, but by those who watch them without doing anything” – Albert Einstein (1879‑1955)
I am, by nature a romantic optimist, almost to the point of hapless delusion. So, I guess we have to retain some sense of belief, purpose and positivity about the future in order to avoid cataclysm and improve our, and future generations’, chances of survival and salvation, starting in 2025.
“We must accept finite disappointment, but never lose infinite hope” – Martin Luther King Jr (1929‑1968)
I propose to you a simple but profound premise – Hope is based on progress resulting in a future that will be better than the past and the present. I don’t pray for a miracle. I pray that we become wise enough that we do not need miracles. Time will tell but will there be anyone around to listen? Apologies folks. Soap box over. Again.
“I Have a Dream…” – Martin Luther King Jr
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Album of the Month (and Year)’
As we are at the end of the year, it only seems fair to select an album from this year’s new releases. Full disclosure here, on this occasion I am biased, as the band has been one of my go‑to favourite bands for nearly five decades.
The Cure – Songs of a Lost World (2024). After 16 long years since the flawed, ‘4:13 Dream’ (2008), The Cure released their 14th studio album, ‘Songs of a Lost World’ on 1 November on the Fiction record label. SoaLW was The Cure’s first album to reach number 1 in the UK album chart since, ‘Wish’ (1992) – a gap of 32 years! It is also their best since, ‘Disintegration’ (1989), up there with, ‘Bloodflowers’ (2000), ‘Pornography’ (1982) and, ‘Faith’ (1981). In its first week, SoaLW outsold all other chart albums in the top 5 combined, a rarity for a band album these days (see above). As it turns out, it is a rare thing and well worth waiting for.
Hyperbole like ‘triumphant’ and ‘monumental’ are regularly thrown about but rarely well‑deserved. SoaLW is high on atmosphere and represents a tremendously powerful achievement, ably showing that there is life in the old dogs yet. There is not much in the way of happy, catchy sing‑along commercial material but, thankfully, The Cure remain true to no‑one but themselves. It is a densely layered intricate and immersive ‘wall of sound’ best experienced in a single sitting; certainly not easily accessible for a casual listener. Rather than selling out to marketable popularism, the band has released a deeply personal and affecting collection of 8 tracks covering just 49 minutes. Robert Smith also took an unusual step in publically thanking everyone for their support and loyalty. SoaLW was also accompanied by live recording of the launch concert, ‘Songs of a Live World: Troxy London MMXXIV’.
The Cure – Songs Of A Lost World (2024)
At this stage in their career, The Cure didn’t have to release an album of such laboured, tortured quality. They could easily have phoned in a profitable release with little effort (see, ‘Wild Mood Swings’ (1996) and ‘The Cure’ (2004)). Such integrity and creativity is rare for a band that has been around for so long, admittedly not always consistently great. Thankfully, Robert Smith and his band have delivered an astonishing late‑career masterpiece (apologies for more hyperbole) that bucks the trend of 2020s popular music.
In other news, The Cure has been a hard‑working band, still touring for a large part of each year as well as fighting against the abhorrent avarice of ‘dynamic ticket pricing’, so that fans can get a fair deal. No wonder that The Cure were recipients of NME’s Godlike Genius Award in 2009 and inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame in 2019. SoaLW took years in the making but it turned out to be a good end to 2024. See, I said I was biased.
“If I go back to how I was when I was a younger man, my plan was to keep doing this till I fall over, my idea of when I fell over wasn’t this old” – Robert Smith (1959-)
BELIEVE IN MUSIC!
Tailpiece
So, there you have it. Another calendar year comes to an end and passes into history. Gone, never to return. For those of us in existence today, it represents another year closer to us all attending that great gig in the sky. However, it’s probably best not to dwell on that particular inevitability.
It has been another full year of CRAVE Guitars articles. With the lack of productivity regarding gear acquisitions, monthly articles have tended to be less focused on old instruments, effects and amps that are the mainstay of CRAVE Guitars. However, this has provided an opportunity to explore other, more holistic, facets of vintage guitars, the wider music industry and cultural musicology.
With the need to make time and space for ‘The Distortion Diaries’ novel (first hinted at December 2023 and covered in more detail in October 2024), we’ll just have to wait and see what CRAVE Guitars articles will be like in 2025. Let us hope 2024+1 proves to be a positive year and that there will be plenty of interest to sustain attention.
Wishing y’all a Happy New Year and thanks for looking in. P.S. I hope you enjoyed the postponed (for now) End of Days! The end, it seems, might not be quite so nigh after all. Hopefully.
“I am here, alone, at the end of the world. I reach out and touch nothing” – Haruki Murakami (1949‑)
Truth, peace, love, and guitar music be with you always. See ya next year. Until next time…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “If nowhere actually exists, how can you possibly know when you are in the middle of it?”
YO GOOD PEOPLES. Welcome once more to the virtual hamlet of non sequitur‑ville, population c.1. You may have noticed my annoying application of asinine alliteration, idiotic idioms and my tendency toward meandering narrative prose (duh!), so perhaps it’s some sort of disorder worth looking into. As hinted at previously, CRAVE Guitars is deliberately changing things around a bit this month. Nothing like a bit of variety, eh? You may well be grateful of a short(er) article after several recent rather lengthy and convoluted tomes, so I’m content to oblige on this particular occasion.
At the time of publication, autumn is wending its inexorable passage towards winter, so here’s a snippet of classical pertinent poetry to get you in the mood for some further flowery philology.
“There is a harmony in autumn, and a lustre in its sky, which through the summer is not heard or seen, as if it could not be, as if it had not been!” Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792‑1822)
Is it just me or do most sensible people wish for a world free from bellicose brutality? If only sensible people ran the world. If only the message would get through to said belligerent barbarians seemingly devoid of any form of reasonable moral compass. War = Bad. Peace = Good. Simple. The relevance, use and impact of words and their ability to generate positive change will become clear… eventually… I promise.
“No matter what anybody tells you, words and ideas can change the world” – John Keating (1927‑)
This time around, I thought I would spend a few moments of superficial but personal self‑analysis, something that I normally feel very uncomfortable about. Perhaps that’s the stereotypical reserved Brit syndrome, I don’t know. I rarely discuss myself, especially in the first person, so this is a very unusual post. While I might refer to this topic somewhat flippantly and to some extent facetiously, it turns out that, perhaps, the author presents somewhat of an enigma and a conundrum.
This exploratory examination is also probably something that will be of little interest to many readers so, if you want to quit at this point, that’s absolutely fine. Thanks for looking in. However, as this change of approach will impact on CRAVE Guitars business‑as‑usual output for a (hopefully short) while, it probably warrants a bit of explanation. If the idiom that ‘those who can’t write, write about writing’ holds water, well, here is all the evidence required for condemnation. Sadly few images this month, only thousands of words.
“If you want to change the world, pick up your pen and write” – Martin Luther (1483‑1546)
Writing (courtesy Suzy Hazelwood)
What I write
This article is something like the 84th since I started CRAVE Guitars’ online presence back in 2014 (more on that next month). Apart from the extended ‘hiatus’ (2020‑2023), articles have been published at the rate of one a month. I don’t actively engage with any other form of writing other than to keep a personal daily journal and the unavoidable daily communications.
As a professional bureaucrat for over three decades, I wrote a great deal of business documents, briefings, academic learning materials, strategic and business plans, project and performance management reports, speeches, presentations, etc. etc. All very ‘real’ and original in their own way; nothing particularly enjoyable or satisfying though. My frustration with organisational writing is that it was all ephemeral and didn’t make any noticeable difference to humanity, at least not directly. Looking back, there was no legacy of lasting change and nothing to show for all the hard work that went into it. Nothing ‘me’. The discipline, though, did teach me how to write but only in a structured, formal way. I would hate to think all those years of ‘training’ were for nought.
“The most valuable of all talents is that of never using two words when one will do” – Thomas Jefferson (1743‑1846)
For nearly the past decade, I’ve been writing about my near‑lifelong craving (sic!) for vintage guitars. Why? I love ‘em. Plain and simple. To me, they are an ‘amour-fou’ (an obsessive passion). Writing about vintage gear has (generally) been rewarding. It started with features on my own vintage guitars before branching out into features on brands, amps, effects and, latterly, bass guitars.
Over time, writing also extended to blog articles and that broadened out even further to include many other related topics – to a greater or lesser extent. Now, I’m writing about writing about vintage guitars et al. The next stage, as we’ll see later, I’ll be writing about writing about writing, all of which is getting just a bit circular, a bit like the mythical Ouroboros (NB. an ancient Egyptian and Greek symbol depicting a serpent consuming its own tail).
Ouroboros (courtesy Coppertwist Wu)
I will return to the topic of vintage guitars in due course; I’m just taking a pause from the risk of getting stuck in a barrel or dredging a rut (as well as mixing metaphors for fun, another annoying trait – apologies). I need to come up with another, different obtuse angle… or even a cute angle (lol) on vintage guitars, hopefully something not done by others.
“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
Article writing about vintage guitars is one thing and it supports the CRAVE Guitars ‘brand’. However, I would like to do something different. Something non‑factual, something light and frivolously engaging, something that bestows some lingering fascination and perhaps something to stimulate debate. The value of the arts lies in its ability to provoke an emotional reaction, rather than simply to represent reality in some way. Discuss…
“Words have no power to impress the mind without the exquisite horror of their reality” – Edgar Allan Poe (1809‑1849)
I could write about many subjects other than vintage guitars and music. I have several other keen interests, although none quite as all‑consuming. However, generally speaking, writing about other disconnected things on this platform would divert focus away from vintage guitars and music.
Language is an interesting area of study. In many ways, language is like music, to be played and crafted into something ostensibly magical. Like music, language can be composed either well into a thing of beauty, or badly into a reprehensible ugly mess. I am fascinated by words and the way in which we can construct the vernacular in novel (sic!) ways. This might explain why I use a broad vocabulary in a discursive, arguably prolix, way. Why use one common word when several obscure ones will do (sorry, Mr. Jefferson)? Languorous language is rejected and embellished English rules Britannia, at least this tiny corner of it. One is not attempting to be ‘too clever by half’ (NB. A ‘Britishism’ used in, ‘The Interpreter’ (1958) by George J. Whyte‑Melville). Honest guv’nor. At least my particular portion of precisely practised poetic prose is entirely first hand. No plagiarism and no AI here.
“All I need is a sheet of paper and something to write with, and then I can turn the world upside down” – Friedrich Nietzsche (1844‑1900)
Latterly, I have been hampered by issues of copyright over images. For instance, I would really like to take a look at guitars as they have appeared in the visual arts throughout history (fine art, popular culture, film, etc.). However, to do that really requires images of the artworks to support the narrative. Without images, such an article (or series of articles more likely) would be utterly pointless. As a non‑profit entity, I cannot publish images without permissions and royalties, thereby rendering the entire concept moot, null and void before it even gets off the ground. Sigh.
“Your intuition knows what to write, so get out of the way” – Ray Bradbury (1920‑2012)
Why I write
A more difficult question requires a moment of introspection. I sometimes wonder what motivates people, me included, to write. Thus far, a good enough answer eludes me. One thing might be that I just feel compelled to write (not convinced). Another might be a wish to leave some sort of tangible record (if not possible to do so in other ways). Yet another may be that I simply enjoy the writing process (again, not convinced), regardless of whether anyone actually takes much notice. I have tried to estimate the audience and it is likely to be no more than a handful in total. In the end, it seems I can’t not do it (excuse the double negative).
An issue with writing for a virtual platform is that it could be wiped out entirely in an instant, never to be recovered, even if anyone wanted to resurrect it. Recently a malicious incident at my Internet Service Provider caused a near‑catastrophe; fortunately, everything was recovered after a few difficult days. Alternatively, once I end my tenure on this planet, CRAVE Guitars’ documents will disappear overnight. Forever. So much for a lasting legacy, eh?
So… if the absolute readership level is so trifling, the only possible conclusion I can reach is that article writing seems to be an immense amount of hard work and effort for such a small audience. Does that actually matter? Which brings me back to thorny question of why I bother. Perhaps the change of direction for a while might help to aid such contemplation. Perhaps it may be time to review my ‘return on investment’ and divert some effort from feature and article writing into another personal pet project, just for a while. The slowdown in acquiring vintage guitar gear also points in that direction.
“There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are” – W. Somerset Maugham (1874‑1965)
Is it just that I’m just a bad writer? I hope not and I trust someone would have the courage to tell me if the content was genuinely awful, either in subject matter or narrative style. It seems, though, that I need to have some sort of restless creative outlet, something to relieve the intense pressure cooker raging in my chaotic cranium.
All in all, not a very deep analysis so far. There must (must there? Really?) be some other reason why I feel the urge to put fingertip to keypad and compose unfocused prosaic narrative for other folks to consume. Just a thought? How does one go about measuring competence in a subjective field such as writing?
Which brings us onto my idiosyncratic writing process. Pretentious? Undoubtedly. Profound? Perhaps, occasionally. Original? Is anything original these days? Entertaining? I would like to think so. Pointless? I hope not. I attempt to carve and mould my own distinctive style, rather than copy the approach taken by those far better at it than I will ever be. My unusual technique has developed into something weirdly eccentric and eccentrically verbose. I know that. I can’t help it. An eclectic style can certainly be divisive. Readers will probably either love it or hate it – no middle ground. I cannot, however, be apologetic for the facts. Sorry folks.
“Either write something worth reading or do something worth writing” – Benjamin Franklin (1706‑1790)
Why I do not allow comments
Apologies for hobby‑horsing for a moment. Time for a little biased judgemental opinion. You may have noticed that CRAVE Guitars’ does not allow comments on blog articles. Like most dudes with a massive superego and crippling self‑doubt, I am inherently super‑sensitive and have an innate fear of criticism and rejection.
I invest a considerable amount of time and effort in researching and writing monthly articles, probably 7‑10 full working days per article. So much so, that I am not prepared to submit my efforts to ridicule by acerbic trolls who put absolutely zero time, effort and intellect into being confrontational for no other reason than they can. I am willing to forgo the occasional positive comment in order to evade many negative ones. I welcome constructive criticism but I will not lay myself open to ignorance, reactionary contempt and derision.
Anti-social media has sadly become a vitriolic battle ground for the disgruntled to promulgate their abhorrent brand of ‘free speech’ (Musk et al take note). In the ‘free’ world, it may be a right to express one’s opinion but true rights carry significant moral responsibility in order to balance out deviant extremes. Freedom is not about being able to do and say whatever one wants with impunity. ‘Free speech’ is not a poorly conceived unilateral entitlement, it carries with it weighty conscience and considerable consequence. Hard fought for freedoms are a privilege within tolerant societies and should be cherished and nurtured, not abused on a whim.
“Virtue is persecuted more by the wicked than it is loved by the good” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
Don’t get me wrong, I am a staunch anti‑censorship advocate but, let’s be honest here, that isn’t what these self‑appointed critical pseudo‑moralists are all about. These self‑styled evangelists want selective liberties that support their prejudiced dogmas and insist on selective suppression of anything that does not accord with such partisan doctrines.
A quick soapbox aside… I have a similar anathema to the PC minority brigade wanting to re‑write established literature to remove or alter what they feel is inappropriate. I would go as far as to suggest that it is a wrongdoing against history and a precipitous thin end of the wedge. If we condone the censorship of authentic literature once, where will it end? If we don’t take a stand, one can envisage the repeated re‑writing of literature over time until it bears little resemblance to the original. Literature, for good or bad, should be respected intact and we can learn from the cultural context it provides.
The eradication of swathes of authentic heritage on the whim of a few just because they ‘don’t like it’ (however intellectually argued) is unconscionable to anyone with any common sense. Exactly who decides how selective censorship is used? Who decides the revisionist version of history on behalf of humanity? Who decides what previous generations’ art is culturally acceptable or not? Who decides what future generations are permitted to read/see/hear? Discuss…
I do not shy away from genuine, healthy debate (whether ‘intellectual’ or not) but I abhor confrontation, especially pointless assaults based on indoctrination or proselytization. It is even worse for disagreements on petty principle to be played out visibly in the public domain. I’ll leave all that contemptuous cacophony of cruelty to self‑opinionated ‘influencers’ and ‘celebrities’ and their trite, trivial tantrums.
Neither do I wish to commit far too much of my life wasting time and effort on people who have no special interest in the subject matter. If someone really wants to get in touch, they can – the e‑mail address is at the bottom of every page on the web site. All I ask for in any communication is authenticity, integrity, dignity and respect. Everything else will be summarily blocked and deleted.
People, eh? Not a fan. ‘Nuff said. (NB. A colloquial idiom and contraction of ‘enough said’, implying the end of discussion, first documented in 1778 by playwright Henry Brooke)
“One day I will find the right words, and they will be simple” – Jack Kerouac (1922‑1969)
Deep Thinking
Apologies folks, we’re going on a quick diversion for a trifling titbit of cognitive psychology. That’s the discipline which helps us to understand how humans obtain, process, store and use information. It is about perception, memory, language, attention, creativity, intuition and reasoning. Don’t panic! It will make sense. The idea of deep thinking is not new, Greek philosopher Socrates (c.470‑399BCE) suggested that we reflect on and question the world around us.
Having tried many times over many years, it seems that I am totally incapable of diving deeply into my own internally‑focused thought processes to resolve who I really am, what I really need and why I am the way I am. I simply cannot ‘find’ myself, using common parlance. My inner psyche remains concealed from me. Yet, I seem to have little difficulty contemplating universal unknowns, suggesting an external focus. Perhaps, I thought, it was worth investigating what’s going on.
“Creativity is intelligence having fun” – Albert Einstein (1885-1955)
The author’s dipolar struggle may explain a lot while also raising many questions. It appears, for want of an emotive label, to make me a ‘conflicted soul’. This is not a medical or psychotherapeutic prognosis, simply an entirely amateur observation. However, it triggered some shallow yearning for insight. For the list‑o‑philes out there, this is one of only two this month. Enjoy.
Twelve traits of deep thinking people include:
Introverted – Reserved and quiet. A loner who doesn’t seek social interaction and actively avoids contact with people. Reclusive
Observant – Say less, observe more. Pausing before reaching a conclusion. Not easily swayed by popular opinion
Quirkily humorous – Silly, juvenile, witty, comical and often self‑deprecating, often misunderstood
Avid reader – Thirsty for knowledge with an innate need to learn more and expand understanding
Forgetful – Overlook trivial social obligations and daily chores, as these things don’t much matter. Easily distracted. Tendency to overthink. Hard to relax
Intensely curious – Highly inquisitive. Never bored. Question assumptions. Interested in BIG issues. Passionate for learning and knowledge. Embracing of ambiguity and complexity
Forward planner – take time to think about the future and where to fit in (or not). Strategic and not detail oriented
Problem solver – Analyse patterns, identify potential obstacles, build innovative approaches and develop potential practical solutions
Socially awkward – Dislike many culturally accepted norms, roles and expected behaviours on a daily basis. Meaningful conversations matter, not small talk
Fiercely independent – Highly self‑reliant, content with solitude as a conscious choice. Doesn’t seek contact with, or dependence on, others
Creative – Artistic, imaginative, inventive, original, resourceful. Interested in the new and different (NB. ‘new’ implies ‘different’ by default)
Empathic – Emotionally sensitive. Compassionate and understanding, able to see both sides of a situation. Open minded
I check at least 13 out of the 12! So, does that make me a deep thinker? I genuinely don’t think so. What I do know, though, and this the point, I don’t think like other people. I never have. What does this actually mean in the real world? How long have you got? It also might explain why I don’t know what to do when (if!) I ever grow up. I fear that I will (have to) grow up one day. It may account for my aberrant behaviour, delusional thought processes and deviant misanthropic attitude. I said this was going to be short, so the answers to these querulous questions are possibly best left for another time and place. If at all. Ever. Don’t hold your breath.
“The important thing is not to stop questioning. Curiosity has its reason for existing” Albert Einstein (1885-1955)
Ambitions and aspirations
I am long past being driven, self‑seeking and ambitious. That was my decades‑long professional life working for ‘the man’, thankfully now behind me. Now, it is (largely) up to me what I do. My post‑employment lifestyle doesn’t accord with ruthless go‑getting, not that I ever had a game‑playing ‘killer instinct’ anyway. The rat race (NB. The term rat race dates back at least to 1783, used to describe a literal race between rats, now used as a metaphor for a pointless and relentless, competitive struggle) is now for others to endure. I still have lofty aspirations. Probably deluded ones but aspirations nevertheless. Doing something that matters is a key stimulus.
The one thing that I would like to achieve is to be a better human bean. Failing that, I would like to play guitar better and learn the language of music. Failing that, I would like to write better. It seems important to me to have my work valued and appreciated – for some sort of external validation (not very Zen). In addition, for some reason I really cannot glean, I yearn to leave some form of lasting legacy behind; a simple mark on the universe rather than the total obscurity of being just one anonymous, invisible momentary placeholder in the 8+ billion transient souls on this infernal rock of ours. Basically, I do not want to be forgotten – as if I’d never existed.
“Fiction is an improvement of life” – Charles Bukowski (1920‑1994)
That’s it in a nutshell. That’s not too much to ask is it? Probably. So what? A knotty question that leads me neatly onto…
This is IT – The Distortion Diaries
If, by this point, you are wondering where all this is going, it is now time for the ‘BIG REVEAL’. I have hinted that I would be changing my approach for a (hopefully) short period of time and that there was a genuine reason for doing so. Now is time to divulge my poorly premeditated plan. The result is… ‘The Distortion Diaries’.
Last year (2023), I wrote a first draft of a fiction novel. As already mentioned, I wanted to do something different. Something imaginative and original, not factual and not opinionated. I intended to undertake a first edit earlier in 2024 and to expand the content considerably during the summer and be going through a second, harsh edit around now. Unfortunately, other unavoidable activities and my diligent approach towards research and writing CRAVE Guitars articles has prevented me from sticking to the plan. With everything else going on, something had to give. Capacity is finite and there simply wasn’t enough of it to dedicate to a novel as well. Such a venture requires better than that.
So… the aim is to make a bit of space and time to do some of the focused work on the novel. Writing fiction is quite different from articles and presents a new discipline. It isn’t something that can be picked up and put down on a whim. It takes lengthy periods of comprehensive concentration. If the novel is ever going to reach fruition, it implies a bubble of space and time in which to do it.
“Description begins in the writer’s imagination but should finish in the reader’s” – Stephen King (1947‑)
When I started writing ‘The Distortion Diaries’, I intended it to be a fictional part‑biography of a wannabe musician. However, very early on, I realised two key things. The first key factor was that the subject matter on its own could not avoid cliché – it would be utterly predictable and therefore probably exceedingly dull. The second key factor was that such a story would be very short unless there was a significant amount of irrelevant, boring filler (to be avoided!). So the shape and style morphed into something completely and utterly different. Once I’d had the epiphany, everything fell into place. Like the CRAVE Guitars name, the title, ‘The Distortion Diaries’ has multiple meanings.
‘The Distortion Diaries’ could now be described as a rom-sex-com-music-bio-mystery-drama-thriller-fantasy about man’s eternally favourite tripartite – sex, drugs and rock & roll (not necessarily in that order). Oh, and the meaning of life (42, according to author Douglas Adams), as well as a coming of middle‑age saga. That is a very broad ‘genre’ mash‑up. It could potentially prove to be a disastrous mess, even with careful handling.
‘The Distortion Diaries’ will carry a strong ‘Parental Advisory’ warning, for two reasons. One is that parents should probably not read it. Another is that it is extremely explicit. The latter is something that authors try to suggest rather than be overt. Why? I find political correct avoidance of fundamental human motivations and behaviours exasperating and represent a centuries‑long unwritten rule just begging to be broken, whether people like it or not. Nobody forces someone to read something, it is an entirely discretionary activity. If you don’t like it, go and read something you do like. Your choice.
“Words can be like X‑rays if you use them properly–they’ll go through anything. You read and you’re pierced” – Aldous Huxley (1894‑1963)
‘The Distortion Diaries’ is very different from your average high street and supermarket pop novel. Neither is it ‘pulp fiction’ (NB. Popular grimy and lurid genre novels printed on cheap paper, called ‘pulp’, dating from the early 20th Century). This ‘epic’ work is written intended for universal consumption and represents an uncompromising condensation of mainstream mundanity, intense sexuality and serendipitous happenstance. The Distortion Diaries is a colourful tale about the monochrome lives of plain ordinary people with a controversially unorthodox denouement. Let’s not get carried away, ‘Fifty Shades of Grey’ or ‘Bridget Jones’s Diary’, this is not. Sorry ‘bout that.
“There is no real ending. It’s just the place where you stop the story” – Frank Herbert (1920‑1986)
The story eschews traditional three‑act structure and attempts to avoid bland ‘creative writing’ clichés. Neither does it fall into the beatnik‑style stream of consciousness one‑act structure. It does, however, attempt to tell a straightforward story while also trying (hopefully) to subvert expectations. The only formulaic concession is its adherence to a well‑trodden linear, episodic diary‑type structure (the hint is in the title folks!).
Who is my writing inspired by? No‑one in particular. Just good writing in whatever form. Who is my writing like? I would never be so vain as to venture comparison. Who is The Distortion Diaries written for? Everyone (adult) and no‑one. I guess I wrote it for myself. Why should anyone read it? Difficult one. Perhaps someone seeking a temporary, idle distraction from the hard realities of birth, life and death. What do I like to read? A very diverse range of fictional works with few particular commonalities. Moving on…
“Words have a magical power. They can either bring the greatest happiness or the deepest despair” – Sigmund Freud (1856‑1939)
The novel’s synopsis is a crucial summary that tests from the outset whether there is anything worthwhile to the concept. The following outline is intentionally vague and ambiguous. If too much is given away in a ‘teaser trailer’, it won’t hold any surprises later on.
“The Distortion Diaries.
Terry plays in a band. He doesn’t have a Girlfriend. He hasn’t had a Girlfriend for some time. Terry has a dreary job in IT. He lives alone with his feline overlord. One day, Terry decides to document his wretched existence in a journal. Rather than the journal reflecting and recording Terry’s dreary life, the journal begins to change it. A Lot. Is Terry’s life pre‑determined by fate or is his destiny in his own hands? Only his journal knows.
Based on a false story”
Intrigued? I hope so. Even I was pleasantly surprised how it turned out, even in rough first draft form. No profound insights into existential enquiries on this occasion. Let’s be clear, this is not serious literature; it is purely for entertainment purposes. Light and fluffy it certainly ain’t though.
“What is written without effort is in general read without pleasure” – Samuel Johnson (1709‑1784)
Mock‑up cover artwork has already been designed, although I feel it’s a bit premature to publish at this juncture, as it may change drastically. Sorry folks. Hopefully, I’ll drop that if/when there is a future update.
‘The Distortion Diaries’ AI Art
I guess it could have been called, ‘The Karma Chronicles’ but I prefer the chosen title. Just to set the record straight, it is NOT in any way autobiographical. The fact that I play guitar (badly) and I am owned by a cat is neither here nor there. As a ‘writer’, I do occasionally steal the ‘good stuff’ from my own repertoire, so there may well be the odd choice phrase from CRAVE Guitars’ articles appearing in the script.
At some point, I will have to produce a more detailed ‘pitch’ that summarises the content but that will come once the task of expanding the narrative, fleshing out the characters and editing the full novel for coherence has been completed. I think the ‘pitch’ is important, as it provides an important reality check during the process. If the ‘pitch’ doesn’t work, the whole thing won’t work. Simple as that. I hope to finish writing and editing the novel in 2025. No pressure then.
“The first draft is just you telling yourself the story” – Terry Pratchett (1948‑2015)
Ideally, I would like to go against the norm (nothing new there!) and self‑publish this little vanity project of mine. I have absolutely no idea how to go about self‑publishing or even if it possible, let alone feasible. Then there are the not‑inconsequential issues of distribution and sales. That, though comes much later. Currently, there is nothing to deliver and peddle. So, first things first.
The trick, if there is one, is to find a way to build an identity that cuts through and stands out from the thousands of other works churned out every day, week, month and year. CRAVE Guitars hasn’t succeeded yet (sadly), so it is clear that there is absolutely no chance of a breakthrough by simply existing these days. If anyone has any bright ideas or can help bring this assignment to fruition, please let me know.
Readers may have noticed over the last decade that I do not seek fame and fortune. I keep my private persona very much out of the limelight and I try to remain intentionally anonymous. For this reason, ‘The Distortion Diaries’ (if it ever enters the public domain) will appear under a nom de plume (the pseudonym has already been decided, to be revealed at a later date). I shall endeavour to remain an enigma hiding behind the keyboard’s shadow.
“There is nothing to writing. All you do is sit down at a typewriter and bleed” – Ernest Hemingway (1899‑1961)
I did contemplate publishing ‘The Distortion Diaries’ in serialised form on the website. I decided against it for three main reasons. The first is that a purely fictional tale doesn’t really ‘fit’ with the CRAVE Guitars ‘brand’ – basically it has nothing to do with vintage guitars. Even if the novel’s protagonist is a guitarist, the stretch is too far to make sense. The second is that it is, as mentioned above, extremely explicit, which isn’t what I want CRAVE Guitars to be known for. The third is that the duration of a serialisation would side‑line all other subject matter for a couple of years, which I am not really prepared to do. However, if it is ever published, I am sure that I won’t be able to resist promoting it here.
If, as forecast by my overly well‑telegraphed lack of confidence and low self‑esteem, I don’t get anywhere with writing and publishing it as a novel, I may decide to abridge it and publish sanitised excerpts on the web site. It would not be an ideal outcome but possibly better than it being lost in the infinite void of forgotten and cancelled dreams, like the noblest endeavours of so many other wannabe authors.
“Words do not express thoughts very well. They always become a little different immediately after they are expressed, a little distorted, a little foolish” – Hermann Hesse (1877‑1962)
20 Questions
What follows is a mock ‘interview’ with the author of ‘The Distortion Diaries’
Will ‘The Distortion Diaries’ ever be published? Probably not but I hope so.
Will it be an international best seller? Definitely not.
Awards worthy? Not a hope in hell – and I’ve been there.
Will it be worth a punt? Our protagonist insists on that being the case.
Is it sordid and seedy? Yup, for sure, for sure. Full of sleaze and exploitation.
Unhinged? Not even close. Bad things do happen but so do good things.
Is it edgy? It depends on the reader’s perspective. I try to manipulate ideas, as well as to challenge assumptions and undermine preconceptions.
Is it controversial? Hopefully it will generate credible debate. And criticism. Lots of criticism.
Will it offend people? It is not intentional but, inevitably, someone will always find something to complain about.
It sounds divisive? Like Marmite. Lots and lots of Marmite.
What’s all this about ‘distortion’? It has multiple meanings. You’ll have to read it to find out.
Is it a feel good or feel bad story? It doesn’t matter, as long as you feel something.
Isn’t it just the same old tortured muso type, struggling in a tired pop music industry cliché, overcoming the odds? I haven’t read every genre saga but I don’t believe that it is overly derivative. Nothing is truly original these days.
Will readers learn anything about the human condition? If they are open‑minded, possibly. The male experience is woefully under‑represented in contemporary fictional literature. This may help to address the imbalance.
What message is it trying to convey? Whatever the reader wants to deduce.
Will there be other stories or sequels? Who knows? I don’t. I have some ideas for a cunning spin‑off though.
If you had to use just one word to sum up the story, what would it be? Compelling.
How will people be able to read it? To be determined. It’s too early to say.
Who would you like to direct a movie of the story? Irrelevant. It’s never going to happen.
I personally do not seek social recognition or even the prospect of it. However, I would like to think that the product of my creativity might one day be admired. That would be a bonus rather than a rationale. Simply a desire to stimulate thoughts through my work and the knowledge that such thinking exists, albeit ephemerally. My satisfaction and reward comes in the execution of the process to the best of my ability (good or bad). I may write the story that no-one will ever read. However writing it is my achievement and my only necessary reward. Any success would constitute welcome deferred gratification. Very Zen.
Final thoughts on the power of words
I started off by saying that words have the power to generate positive change. Well… CRAVE Guitars’ features and blog articles haven’t really achieved that, have they? So, will The Distortion Diaries change the world? Sadly, it won’t. However, in the meantime, it might generate some harmless satisfaction and gentle fulfilment as a diversion from our otherwise mundane existences.
Closing the loop started at the top of this article… Should I attempt to change the world? Yes, absolutely. We all should do our bit to promote a better civilisation, society, communities, families and ourselves. We should not accept anything other than peace. We are, after all, partly responsible, even accountable, for how things are today, tomorrow and all the days thereafter. Future generations will scrutinise what we did to our planet and species.
“So, I want you to get up now. I want all of you to get up out of your chairs. I want you to get up right now and go to the window. Open it, and stick your head out, and yell: ‘I’m as mad as hell and I’m not going to take this anymore!’” – Howard Beale (character in the film, ‘Network’ (1976), played by Peter Finch).
Together, if the collective will is there, a united movement for a better world can achieve greatness. Easily said, hard to accomplish. It is way too easy to abrogate our moral and ethical duties, and look to others for blame, redemption and salvation. The lame “it wasn’t me, I didn’t do it” argument is simply not good enough.
“I didn’t do it, nobody saw me do it, you can’t prove anything” – Bart Simpson
Great words, carefully chosen can help to bring about great things. There are not enough vocal advocates for good. There are fewer vocal advocates who have the means for good. There are even fewer vocal advocates with the will and the means for good.
“An idea that is developed and put into action is more important than an idea that exists only as an idea” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
Poorly chosen words can do a great deal of harm, as can carefully chosen words of bad people. Most of the rhetoric we hear from those in positions of power today is largely negative and critical. Propaganda obscures the truth such that we no longer know what truth is. War has never brought peace, only cataclysmic carnage. Only diplomacy through sincere words can stop war and deliver lasting reconciliation.
“Whatever words we utter should be chosen with care for people will hear them and be influenced by them for good or ill” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
You may say that such a simplistic stance is all a bit of ‘pie in the sky’ (NB. a phrase coined by itinerant immigrant labourer Joe Hill in 1911 to describe unrealistic goals), and an outmoded hippie pipe dream (NB. a 19th Century phrase referring to the dreams experienced by opium pipe smokers). You may say that such hope is just delusional romanticism and impossible wishful thinking? Guilty as charged. One has to have hope in a better humanity, otherwise we are all doomed. Time to change, then.
“I do not believe in a fate that falls on men however they act; but I do believe in a fate that falls on them unless they act” – Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama – c.480 400BCE)
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Album of the Month‘
As I’m changing things around a bit, there is no relevant reason for this month’s selection. So… what was the first ever album you bought for yourself, with your own money? Well, the simple answer to that question for me was…
Pink Floyd – Meddle (1971). ‘Meddle’ was the 6th studio album by the English progressive rock band Pink Floyd. It was released in November 1971 on the Harvest record label in the UK. The first side of the album comprises 5 tracks including the opener, ‘One of These Days’, while the second side is a single, epic 20 minute track, ‘Echoes’. The cover art is a strange photo of a submerged ear, designed by Storm Thorgerson at Hipgnosis, the trendy design studio of the time. Hipgnosis was famous for creating other Pink Floyd album covers, as well as artwork for other famous rock bands of the time, such as Led Zeppelin, Genesis and Yes. To me, ‘Meddle’ marks a watershed between early Floyd and later Floyd, as well as a personal transition from pop music to serious ‘real’ music. A coming‑of‑age LP in you like.
Pink Floyd – Meddle (1971)
Why was this album my first? DJ John Peel played the album in its entirety on release on his late night show on Radio One in the UK. I hadn’t heard anything like it before and it ‘blew my mind’ (man!). I guess most people have that ‘one’ album that changed their life. ‘Meddle’ was that one for me. I just had to own a copy. It still stands the test of time today.
“Music is the universal language of mankind” – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807‑1882)
Tailpiece
Well, there you have it. That turned out longer than I’d anticipated and took more time than I had allowed for. I haven’t made much time or space for writing fiction so far. Sigh. Note to self… be more succinct, pithy, brief, concise, epigrammatic, etc. Second note to self… use less tautology.
So, a new perspective and a new side venture for CRAVE Guitars. Not a core CRAVE Guitars activity but a definite spin‑off. ‘They’ say there is nothing like a bit of variety, so a change in style and content for a few articles can’t be a bad thing in my opinion. Right? Remember, you heard about, ‘The Distortion Diaries’ here first. Write on.
You may have noticed that I regularly splatter the odd quote throughout CRAVE Guitars articles. These aren’t just random asides for no reason; they are relevant to the exposition and, hopefully, add some essential colour to an otherwise monochrome pallet of words. This month, the selection of quotes is particularly pertinent and, I hope, a little thought‑provoking. If only my meagre, mediocre mind could articulate such inspiring ideas in so few words.
To quote actor Patrick McGoohan’s character, No. 6 in ‘The Prisoner’ (1967‑1968) TV series, “Be seeing you”.
Truth, peace, love, and guitar music be with you always. Until next time…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “I would rather be an anonymous genius than a well‑known idiot”
GOOD DAY AND GREETINGS, MUSIC‑MINDED CITIZENS. For this month and for the next two we’re taking a 3‑part sojourn in uncharted lands (as medieval cartographers once denoted, ‘terra incognita’) and what monstrosities may inhabit those unexplored territories (‘hic sunt dracones’, literally translated as ‘here be dragons’). Yes folks, it is time for CRAVE Guitars to explore a current‑day innovation that once seemed surreal but is rapidly becoming increasingly real; a phenomenon that the original makers of what we now know as vintage guitars could never have envisaged (probably).
Whether we like it or not, the faddish fuss around Artificial Intelligence (AI) is a ‘BIG THING’ at the moment. At the forefront of the debate are the societal dilemmas posed by sophisticated systems potentially becoming more intelligent than human beings (in my experience, not particularly difficult in many cases!).
“I’d rather see artificial intelligence than no intelligence” – Michael Crichton (American author)
In a worst case scenario, how does a supposedly civilised society prevent malicious actors using AI technology for nefarious means? A profound question indeed. Prescient Hollywood film director James Cameron’s bleak vision of Cyberdyne Systems, Skynet and Terminators can, perhaps, be taken as an extreme but stark lesson. The rise of the machines, taking over the world and resulting in the potential obliteration of humanity is a chilling proposition. It seems we already have too many twisted tyrants willing and attempting to achieve that end right now with and without AI and robotics as the means. Just spare a moment to think what deranged despots could do with the technology and what the consequences may be for everyone in the very near future. AI’s potential demands that collectively we address the challenge of what needs to be done to avoid the annihilation of civilisation through unhindered autonomous technological advance.
“Throughout human history, we have been dependent on machines to survive. Fate, it seems, is not without a sense of irony” – the character Morpheus from ‘The Matrix’ (1999)
What on Earth does this divergent dystopian diatribe (apologies, folks) have to do with vintage guitars and music you may well be justified in asking? Very little, other than as an existential context. From here on, we’ll be taking a far more parochial and prosaically pedestrian path.
Like many people, I have become curious about what AI means for culture and specifically for the creative crafts. Given my obsession with vintage guitars and music, I thought I’d turn my attention to what AI might have to say on the matter. So… that is the basis of this month’s article. For once, I can say, quite legitimately, that AI was used to research and write this article. This interesting (?) examination will not change the world but, then again, neither will it jeopardise it.
Artificial Intelligence Part I
“Choice is an illusion created between those with power and those without” – the character Merovingian from ‘The Matrix’ (1999)
Before we get to vintage guitars and what wisdom (or not) AI has to impart, we have to do some homework about AI so that the rest of the article makes sense. We’ll start with an English hero and take it from there.
Alan Turing and the Turing Test
The following description of one of the world’s most influential geniuses in the world of computers and artificial intelligence, comes direct, courtesy of Wikipedia… “Alan Mathison Turing (1912‑1954) was an English mathematician, computer scientist, logician, cryptanalyst, philosopher and theoretical biologist. Turing was highly influential in the development of theoretical computer science, providing a formalisation of the concepts of algorithm and computation with the Turing machine, which can be considered a model of a general‑purpose computer. He is widely considered to be the father of theoretical computer science and artificial intelligence.”
During World War II, civilian Alan Turing worked as a codebreaker based at the Government Code and Cypher School at the Bletchley Park country estate in Buckinghamshire, England. While there, Turing devised complex techniques for breaking German ciphers used by the Nazi’s military encryption device, the Enigma Machine, which had been invented by a German engineer Arthur Scherbius (1878‑1929) shortly after WWI. The Germans were confident that the system could not be broken. However, in 1942‑1943, Turing and his colleagues played a vital part in successfully cracking intercepted German encoded messages transmitted using the Enigma Machine. Turing’s historic achievements enabled the Allies to defeat the Axis powers in, particularly, the Battle of the Atlantic (1939‑1945).
After the end of the war in 1945, Turing invented the Automatic Computing Machine the world’s first digital computer capable of using stored programs. By 1950, Turing developed an experiment to gauge the ‘intelligence’ of a computer. His simple test requires that a human being should be unable to distinguish the machine from another human being by evaluating replies to questions put to both. The Turing Test, as it was known, is still regarded as a fundamental benchmark for assessing machine intelligence.
“Artificial Intelligence is what we don’t know how to do yet” – Alan Kay (American computer scientist)
Defining Artificial Intelligence
Now for the techy bit… Sorry, bear with me. The term ‘artificial intelligence’ was first used in 1956 at a Summer Research Project on Artificial Intelligence held at Dartmouth College, a private Ivy League research university based in Hanover, New Hampshire, USA. The conference was organised by computer scientist and Assistant Professor of Mathematics at Dartmouth College, John McCarthy (1927‑2011). The project proposed, “that every aspect of learning or any other feature of intelligence can in principle be so precisely described that a machine can be made to simulate it”.
In 1958, American psychologist Frank Rosenblatt (1928‑1971) outlined what he regarded as “the first machine which is capable of having an original idea”. Rosenblatt’s concept was the ‘Perceptron’, a program inspired by the way the human brain works, which ran on a state‑of‑the‑art IBM mainframe computer. The Perceptron was a rudimentary version of a neural network, comprising interconnected nodes (neurons) that process and learn from data, enabling tasks such as pattern recognition and decision making. Rosenblatt was regarded as ‘the father of deep learning’.
As early as the 1960s, computer scientists and neuroscientists were already teaching computers how to mimic human decision‑making processes, which developed into research around what is known today as ‘machine learning’.
“If the human brain were so simple that we could understand it, we would be so simple that we couldn’t” – Emerson M. Pugh (American physicist)
In 1997, IBM’s ‘Deep Blue’, an expert chess program running on a unique, purpose‑built IBM supercomputer, beat the Russian chess grandmaster, Garry Kasparov, leading to the description of rules‑based ‘Traditional AI’. While Deep Blue may have been excellent at playing chess, its talents were capable of little else.
“AI is the most exciting tech of our time” – Tim Cook (CEO, Apple Inc.)
Artificial Intelligence is now a mainstream branch of computer science that refers to IT systems capable of performing complex tasks that attempt to replicate human thought and intelligence. AI’s systematic tasks include analysing data, identifying patterns, recognising speech, solving problems, proposing solutions and taking decisions.
“Artificial intelligence is one of the most profound things we’re working on as humanity. It is more profound than fire or electricity” – Sundar Pichai (CEO, Google and Alphabet Inc.)
As of early 2024, not all AIs are created equal. Traditional AI (a.k.a. Weak AI or Narrow AI) is an umbrella term for computer systems that employ supervised learning and discriminative models to solve specific tasks using predefined rules, Natural Language Processing (NLP) and Large Language Models (LLMs).
“Denial is the most predictable of all human responses” – the character The Architect from ‘The Matrix’ (1999)
The category of AI that we will be looking at in this article is called Generative AI, also referred to as GenAI or GAI, which is a relatively new subset of AI. Generative AI allows users to input a variety of prompts to generate content, such as text, images, videos, sounds, 3D designs and other types of media.
“We’re living in the golden age of AI” – Jeff Bezos (founder, Amazon)
The distinctive aspect of GAI is that it uses unsupervised deep machine learning models to generate new material based on patterns of data acquired from existing sources. GAI models work on large unlabelled data sets that require complex mathematical algorithms and a great deal of computing power to analyse and build constructs.
“While AI has tremendous potential to transform industries, we must not forget the impact it could have on society and must work to mitigate potential risks” – Elon Musk (CEO, Tesla and SpaceX)
Generative AI models don’t stand still; they continue to evolve at an increasingly rapid rate, as they learn from additional data as it becomes available. It is the quality of the data sets that enable the AI to predict responsible outcomes and undertake a range of cognitive tasks in the same way that a human might.
“The question is not whether intelligent machines can have any emotions, but whether machines can be intelligent without any emotions” – Marvin Minsky (American computer scientist, MIT)
Over time, it is inevitable that GAI’s ability will catch up with, and ultimately surpass, that of humans. The nature, pace and potential of GAI is causing concern among some experts and policy makers because of the moral and ethical issues it raises, particularly if AI’s unbridled behaviour is not moderated in some way by responsible human intervention. The risks of uncontrolled or poorly controlled AI models are swiftly becoming both tangible and potentially unsafe.
“We should not be afraid of AI. Instead, we should hope for the amazing amount of good it will do in the world” – Mark Zuckerberg (founder, Meta Inc.)
So, the next question is, what comes after GAI? Well, GAI still has a long way to go and that will keep innovators such as OpenAI and Deep Mind hard at work pushing the boundaries of what is possible for some time yet. After that, the most likely development would be Artificial General Intelligence (AGI) or Artificial General Superintelligence (AGS). The aim is to build a device that can do anything the human brain can do (and more) and to integrate that with the rapidly developing parallel field of advanced robotics to create a machine that can do anything the human body can do (and more). Scary? Super intelligent super robots may well finally demonstrate that yesterday’s science fiction is becoming today’s science fact.
“I am in the camp that is concerned about superintelligence. But I don’t think we need to be fatalistic about it” Bill Gates (founder, Microsoft)
However, let’s not get bogged down by credible or fanciful conspiracy theories and get back to the matter in hand.
Applying Artificial Intelligence to the world of vintage guitars
Phew! Back to basics and more familiar territory. After all that preliminary exposition, I think we can all probably agree that AI is one of topical themes of the first half of the 2020s. Not wishing to be left behind, I thought CRAVE Guitars should try to get AI to respond to a series of questions about my favourite topic, vintage guitars. From my experience so far, all that the easily accessible public AI (as opposed to military‑grade AI) can do is to extract information that is already available on the Internet (whether right or wrong) and to compose it into straightforward responses to an input.
Before we start, I will lay my cards on the table and state my starting position, which, may or may not change by the time this article has concluded. My naïve biological brain came up with eight statements that set out what AI does not (or cannot) currently do. In my view, AI struggles…
To understand a question correctly without over‑specificity (i.e. it can’t deal with vague ambiguity)
To interpret and extrapolate relevant information objectively within a wider context (i.e. the bigger picture)
To present a cogent argument that can adequately be judged and/or challenged
To form a genuine opinion from scratch without relevant information being readily available in the first place, in the same way that a person might do in the case of uncertainty (i.e. its ability to make genuinely informed assumptions from limited information)
To debate the initial result to achieve a potentially better outcome (i.e. to learn from the interaction on the spot and adjust its responses accordingly)
To produce a creative response that improves on the original information input by humans
To remember what it has already output (i.e. as part of a continuous ‘dialogue’ – as here – each question is treated as a new subject with no memory of previous questions)
To understand fully what humans want or expect from ‘intelligence’ (i.e. something coherent and interesting)
Assessing AI’s responses against those eight points is this article’s main challenge.
Below, I pose 20 (plus 2) questions to AI and present its verbatim response to each question (bar correcting the occasional heinous ‘typo’ or bad grammar, which in itself is a bit ironic!), so that you can judge for yourselves just how close AI might be to succeeding at transcending its silicon‑based electronic components (‘deus ex machina’ – god from the machine – if you will). More importantly, you can gauge whether AI can make any sense of the intricately complex subject of vintage guitars. So… can AI pass the CRAVE Guitars Test? We’ll see.
There are no images in the main part of this article. AI did not present any pictures to support its answers, so I haven’t embellished the words with anything additional, as it might skew the results. What you see below is what I got, no more, no less; untainted in any way.
The material presented here is not appropriated as belonging to, or being the view of CRAVE Guitars in any way; it is presented here solely for information, intellectual evaluation and critique.
“Change is never painful, only the resistance to change is painful” Buddha (Siddhārtha Gautama ‑ c.480‑400BCE)
Right. That’s my involvement pretty much at an end for now. I’m off to make a cup of tea or ten. See you again at the end of the article with my appraisal of how I think AI did.
20 Questions about vintage guitars posed to AI
Question #1 – What is the definition of a vintage guitar?
AI Response #1 – A vintage guitar is an older guitar that is usually sought after and maintained by avid collectors or musicians. The term can indicate either that an instrument is merely old or that it is sought after for its tonal quality, cosmetic appearance, or historical significance. While there is no strict chronological definition for what makes something vintage, guitars around 30 years old or older typically fall into this category. Even newer instruments are often labelled as vintage by sellers. So, if you come across a beautifully aged guitar with a rich history, it just might be a vintage gem!
Question #2 – Why should I be interested in vintage guitars?
AI Response #2 – Vintage guitars have a unique appeal and charm due to their age and history. They often possess a certain character and sound that cannot be replicated by newer guitars. In addition, vintage guitars can appreciate in value over time, making them a valuable investment. However, they can be expensive and require careful maintenance. Understanding the vintage guitar market, knowing what to look for when buying, and appreciating the unique sound and playability of these instruments are key to making a worthwhile purchase. Ask professional guitar dealers on how to navigate the vintage guitar market.
Question #3 – What are the best things about vintage guitars?
AI Response #3 – Vintage guitars have several unique qualities that make them highly desirable for musicians and collectors alike:
Tonal Character: Vintage guitars often have a distinct and rich sound that sets them apart from newer instruments. The aging of the wood, hardware, and electronics contributes to their unique tonal character. Musicians appreciate the warmth, resonance, and depth of vintage guitar tones.
Craftsmanship: Many vintage guitars were meticulously handcrafted by skilled luthiers. These instruments showcase exceptional attention to detail, fine workmanship, and quality materials. The craftsmanship of vintage guitars reflects the artistry and dedication of their makers.
Historical Significance: Vintage guitars carry a piece of musical history. They have witnessed decades of music, performances, and cultural shifts. Owning a vintage guitar connects you to the past and allows you to be part of a musical legacy.
Collectability: Vintage guitars are sought after by collectors and enthusiasts. Their scarcity and historical value contribute to their collectible status. Some iconic models, such as the Gibson Les Paul or Fender Stratocaster, have become legendary in the music world.
Investment Potential: While not all vintage guitars appreciate significantly in value, some rare and sought‑after models can be excellent investments. If you choose wisely and maintain the instrument well, it may appreciate over time.
Visual Appeal: Vintage guitars often exhibit beautiful designs, unique finishes, and intricate inlays. Their aesthetics evoke nostalgia and admiration. Whether it’s the graceful curves of a vintage hollow‑body or the simplicity of a vintage Telecaster, these guitars are visually captivating.
Playing Experience: Many musicians find that playing a vintage guitar is a special experience. The feel of the neck, the responsiveness of the fretboard, and the way the guitar resonates under their fingers create a connection that transcends mere functionality.
Story and Provenance: Each vintage guitar has a story to tell. Who played it? Was it used on famous recordings? Did it travel the world with a touring band? Uncovering the history and provenance of a vintage guitar adds to its allure.
Remember that owning a vintage guitar requires careful consideration. Factors like condition, authenticity, and playability matter. Whether you’re a seasoned guitarist or a collector, the allure of vintage guitars lies in their blend of art, history, and music.
Question #4 – What are the worst things about vintage guitars?
AI Response #4 – While vintage guitars have their allure, there are some potential downsides to consider:
Condition and Maintenance: Vintage guitars may have endured decades of use, wear, and aging. Their condition can vary significantly. Some may require extensive repairs, refrets, or replacement parts. Regular maintenance is essential to keep them playable.
Fragility: Older guitars can be delicate. The wood may have dried out, making it more susceptible to cracks or warping. Vintage finishes are often thin and prone to chipping. Handling them with care is crucial.
Cost: Authentic vintage guitars can be expensive. Rare models or those associated with famous musicians command high prices. If you’re on a budget, acquiring a well‑preserved vintage instrument may be challenging.
Limited Availability: Truly exceptional vintage guitars are scarce. Finding the right one—especially in good condition—can be time‑consuming. Patience and persistence are necessary.
Playability: While vintage guitars have character, not all of them are easy to play. Neck profiles, fret sizes, and action may differ from modern standards. Some vintage instruments may feel less ergonomic.
Incompatibility with Modern Gear: Vintage guitars may lack features found in contemporary models. For example, they might not have versatile pickup configurations, tremolo systems, or locking tuners. Compatibility with modern amplifiers and effects can be an issue.
Weight: Some vintage electric guitars, especially solid‑body models, can be heavy. Prolonged playing sessions may strain your back and shoulders.
Risk of Fakes and Forgeries: The vintage guitar market attracts counterfeiters. It’s essential to verify authenticity and provenance. Consult experts or reputable dealers to avoid purchasing a fake.
Investment Uncertainty: While some vintage guitars appreciate in value, it’s not guaranteed. Market trends fluctuate, and economic factors play a role. Buying solely for investment purposes can be risky.
Sentimental Value: Owning a vintage guitar with historical significance can be emotionally rewarding. However, if you’re purely focused on practicality, the sentimental aspect may not matter to you.
Remember that each vintage guitar is unique, and what some consider drawbacks, others may view as part of their charm. Consider your preferences, playing style, and budget when deciding whether a vintage guitar is right for you.
Question #5 – What are the most desirable vintage guitar brands?
AI Response #5 – Vintage guitars have a rich history, and some lesser‑known brands have become highly desirable among collectors and musicians. Here are a few vintage guitar brands worth exploring:
Bartell: Although less known, Bartell guitars gained attention when one of their models was associated with Jimi Hendrix’s collection. The Black Widow is one of their notable guitars. Bartell was a Californian‑based company that produced around 2000 guitars between 1964 and 1969.
Electra: Active during the 1970s and early 1980s, Electra guitars were made in Japan and sold in the United States. They gained popularity for their good quality and reasonable prices. Notably, Electra introduced the MPC (Modular Powered Circuits) guitars, which featured replaceable effect modules—a unique concept at the time.
Hondo: Often mistaken for the automobile brand Honda, Hondo was an American guitar company founded in 1969. They aimed to produce quality entry‑level instruments in Korea and Japan while maintaining consistency with U.S.‑made guitars. Hondo’s steel‑string acoustics and electric guitars gained recognition. In 1978, they even used DiMarzio pickups, making them pioneers among overseas guitar manufacturers.
Airline: Airline guitars, popular in the 1960s, were produced by Valco and later Harmony. Their quirky designs, including the ‘Jetsons’ look, make them sought after by collectors today.
Supro: Supro guitars were part of the Valco family and gained prominence in the 1960s. Their unique tone, often associated with blues and rock, appeals to vintage enthusiasts.
Teisco: Teisco, a Japanese brand, flooded the market with budget‑friendly guitars in the 1960s. Their funky designs, including offset bodies and unusual pickup configurations, have a cult following.
Hagstrom: Hagstrom, a Swedish brand, produced guitars with innovative features like the ‘resinator’ fingerboard. Their vintage models are prized for their playability and distinct sound.
Remember that desirability varies based on personal preferences, rarity, and historical significance. Exploring these vintage brands can lead to hidden gems and unique instruments that resonate with your musical style.
Question #6 – What instruments are the most desirable vintage guitars?
AI Response #6 – Vintage guitars hold a special allure for collectors and musicians alike. Let’s explore some of the most desirable vintage guitars based on their historical significance, rarity, and iconic status:
1958‑’59 Gibson Explorer:
Value: Between $250,000 and $310,000.
Why: The Explorer, with its futuristic design, initially received little attention from buyers. However, its African limba (marketed as ‘Korina’) body and unique sound have made it highly sought after by collectors.
1936‑’42 Martin D‑45:
Value: Ranging from $250,000 to $400,000.
Why: Martin dreadnoughts are revered, and the D‑45, adorned with Brazilian rosewood back and sides, ivory binding, and intricate fretboard inlays, remains a pinnacle of steel‑string acoustics.
1958‑’60 Gibson Les Paul Standard:
Value: Approximately $225,000 to $375,000.
Why: Initially overlooked, the Les Paul gained prominence after Eric Clapton and Michael Bloomfield played it. Today, it’s not only a collectable solid body but also a symbol of guitar history.
1930‑’33 Martin OM‑45:
Value: Estimated at $265,000 to $350,000.
Why: Rarity drives its value; only a handful were made each year. The first‑year ‘Deluxe’ version commands the highest prices.
1958‑’59 Gibson Flying V:
Value: Around $200,000 to $250,000.
Why: Like the Explorer, the Flying V’s Korina body design was ahead of its time. Only 98 were produced, making it a prized collector’s item.
These guitars not only represent exceptional craftsmanship but also evoke the magic of music history. Whether you’re a player or an investor, vintage guitars continue to captivate enthusiasts worldwide.
Question #7 – Are American vintage guitars better than ones from other countries?
AI Response #7 – The quality of guitars is determined by a variety of factors, including the materials used, the craftsmanship, and the design. While American‑made guitars are often considered to be of high quality, it’s not necessarily true that they are better than guitars made in other countries.
In fact, many guitarists prefer guitars made in Japan, Korea, or Mexico, for example. These countries have a long history of producing high‑quality instruments, and many guitarists appreciate the unique sound and feel of guitars made in these regions.
Ultimately, the best guitar for you depends on your personal preferences and playing style. It’s important to try out different guitars and find one that feels comfortable and sounds great to you.
Question #8 – What is the state of the vintage guitar market today?
AI Response #8 – The vintage guitar market has been through ups and downs over the years. According to a 2009 article by Premier Guitar, the vintage market was down 20 to 30 percent from its 2007 peak, with oversaturated pockets of the market down even further. However, a 2021 report by Market Strides suggests that the vintage guitar market is expected to grow in the coming years, with key market trends and dynamics analysed for major geographies and countries.
If you’re interested in buying or selling vintage guitars, you might want to check out Reverb’s Price Guide. It records the sale price of used or vintage instruments sold on Reverb, providing a fair market range for buyers and sellers.
Question #9 – Are vintage guitars a worthwhile investment?
AI Response #9 – Vintage guitars, like a well‑aged wine or a classic novel, evoke a sense of nostalgia and craftsmanship. But are they a wise investment? Let’s explore the fretted path of vintage guitar investments:
Historical Appeal:
Vintage guitars carry a piece of musical history. Owning an instrument that has been played by legendary musicians can be emotionally rewarding.
Collectability: Rare models, limited editions, or guitars associated with iconic artists tend to appreciate in value over time.
Market Trends:
The vintage guitar market has seen fluctuations. While some models skyrocket in value, others remain steady or decline.
Research: Investigate trends, consult experts, and track auction results. Knowledge is your tuning peg.
Condition Matters:
Originality: Unaltered vintage guitars fetch higher prices. Modifications can dampen their investment potential.
Wear and Tear: Light wear adds character, but excessive damage affects value.
Supply and Demand:
Scarcity: Limited supply drives up prices. Seek out guitars with low production numbers.
Desirability: Popular brands (Gibson, Fender) and models (Stratocaster, Les Paul) remain sought after.
Playability vs. Investment:
Play First: Buy a vintage guitar because you love its sound and feel. Enjoy playing it!
Investment Second: While some vintage guitars appreciate, it’s not guaranteed. Don’t solely rely on them as financial assets.
Diversification:
Portfolio Approach: If you’re investing, diversify. Don’t put all your strings in one guitar case.
Other Instruments: Consider violins, mandolins, or rare basses.
Long‑Term Commitment:
Vintage guitars require care, maintenance, and storage. They’re not a quick flip.
Patience: Appreciation often takes years, not months.
In conclusion, vintage guitars can be a rewarding investment if you’re passionate about music, appreciate craftsmanship, and understand the risks. Whether you strum for profit or pleasure, let your heart and ears guide you.
Question #10 – Which vintage guitars are simply not worth investing in?
AI Response #10 – Vintage guitars can indeed be a rewarding investment, but not all of them are equally valuable. Let’s explore which ones might not be worth your investment:
Mass‑Produced Models:
Guitar factories churned out many models in the past. Some of these are abundant and lack the rarity that drives up value.
Avoid: Generic models with little historical significance.
Obscure Brands:
Lesser‑known brands may not have the same collector appeal. Their limited demand affects their investment potential.
Avoid: Guitars from obscure or defunct manufacturers unless they have unique features or historical context.
Poor Condition:
Wear and Tear: Severely damaged or heavily modified guitars lose value. Repairs can be costly.
Avoid: Instruments with extensive cracks, warped necks, or missing parts.
Overpriced Celebrity Associations:
Be Sceptical: Some sellers inflate prices based on dubious claims of celebrity ownership.
Avoid: Guitars with exaggerated stories unless there’s solid evidence.
Fads and Trends:
Beware of Hype: Trends come and go. What’s hot today may not be tomorrow.
Avoid: Investing solely based on current trends. Look for timeless appeal.
Avoid: Assuming every old guitar will skyrocket in value.
Remember, research is your best ally. Seek advice from experts, explore reputable dealers, and play the guitars yourself. Whether you’re strumming for passion or profit, choose wisely!
Question #11 – What vintage guitars are likely to become more desirable in the next 5 years?
AI Response #11 – The world of vintage guitars is a fascinating blend of history, craftsmanship, and musical magic. While predicting the future is akin to tuning an old guitar by ear, here are some intriguing candidates that might appreciate in value over the next five years:
Gibson Les Paul Signature (1974):
Often overlooked, the Les Paul Signature from the ’70s has hidden potential. Its versatility shines through various genres, especially when cranked through a Marshall amp. Keep an eye out for these criminally underrated semi‑hollow beauties.
Fender Starcaster (1976–80):
Originally overshadowed, the Fender Starcaster has gained traction. Ted Turner of Wishbone Ash fame owned one, and its unique pickups contribute to its allure. Expect further value appreciation in the coming decades.
Silvertone 1446 (1960s):
Crafted by Harmony, the Silvertone 1446 boasts Gibson‑made pickups with a distinct tone. It may not be the most refined instrument, but its sound and sexiness compensate. A vintage gem that could resonate with collectors.
Kay K775 Jazz II (1960s):
Eric Clapton’s early learning ground, the Kay K775 Jazz II, is gaining recognition. Despite Kay’s quality control reputation, this bolt‑on neck thinline surprises with its laminated figured maple top, Bigsby vibrato, and Barney Kessel–designed Kleenex Box single‑coils. A naughty guitar indeed.
Supro and Kay Archtops:
These old Supro and Kay guitars remain undervalued. While the overall vintage market fluctuates, these archtops haven’t fully rebounded. Their unique character and historical significance make them intriguing investments.
Remember, the guitar market dances to its own rhythm, influenced by players, trends, and nostalgia. Whether you strum for passion or profit, let your heart guide your choices.
Question #12 – What is the sort of return on investment that one might expect from collecting vintage guitars?
AI Response #12 – Collecting vintage guitars can indeed be a rewarding investment, combining passion for music with potential financial gains. Let’s explore why vintage guitars are an excellent strategy:
Tangible and Attractive:
Vintage guitars provide more than just financial value. They’re tangible pieces of history, beautiful to display, and enjoyable to collect.
Unlike stocks or bonds, you can admire and play them.
Stability and Appreciation:
Vintage guitars have consistently outperformed the stock market in terms of stability.
As they age, their value tends to appreciate, provided you maintain them well.
Superior Craftsmanship:
Vintage guitars often surpass modern counterparts in quality. They were meticulously crafted using fine materials.
Brands like Gibson Les Paul, Fender Telecaster, and CF Martin remain popular among collectors.
Guitar Brands to Consider:
Gibson Les Paul: These older models, made of oak, mahogany, and other fine materials, are highly sought after.
Fender: Look for ’50s and ’60s Telecasters, Stratocasters, and Thunderbirds.
CF Martin: Known for their acoustic excellence, Martin guitars from the 1960s hold significant value.
Guild: Although less famous, older Guild instruments are on par with Martin guitars of the same era.
Investment Potential:
While not every vintage guitar will skyrocket in value, a well‑chosen collection can yield substantial returns.
Research, learn about the models, and make informed decisions.
Remember, whether you’re a musician or simply appreciate the beauty of old guitars, vintage instruments offer a harmonious blend of passion and investment potential.
Question #13 – Are vintage guitars better than new guitars?
AI Response #13 – Vintage guitars and new guitars each have their own merits, and the answer depends on various factors. Let’s explore both sides:
Vintage Guitars:
Historical Charm: Vintage guitars carry a sense of history and nostalgia. Owning an instrument that has been played by legendary musicians can be emotionally rewarding.
Unique Tone: Some vintage guitars have aged tone woods that resonate differently. The wood dries out over time, leading to a more resonant tone with better sustain, especially in acoustic guitars.
Collectability: Rare models or those associated with iconic artists tend to appreciate in value over time.
New Guitars:
Advancements in Craftsmanship: Modern manufacturing techniques have improved significantly. CNC machines and precision tools allow for consistent builds.
Reliability: New guitars are generally more reliable. They undergo rigorous quality control and benefit from advancements in materials and construction.
Customisation: Custom shop guitars offer the best of both worlds. You can get a new guitar tailored to your preferences, combining vintage aesthetics with modern playability.
Quality Comparison:
Subtle Differences: Vintage guitars may have unique quirks due to handcrafted processes. For example, old Les Pauls had smaller frets and thicker necks.
Precision and Consistency: Modern CNC machines ensure precise fretwork and consistent results. Every Gibson today goes through a PLEK machine for levelling and crowning frets within micrometers.
Subjectivity:
‘Better’ Is Relative: The definition of ‘better’ varies. It’s subjective and depends on personal preferences.
Playability: Some players prefer the feel of vintage necks, while others enjoy the sleekness of modern profiles.
In summary, both vintage and new guitars have their place. Whether you seek historical charm, unique tones, or cutting‑edge craftsmanship, choose based on your playing style, preferences, and budget.
Question #14 – Should vintage guitars be used or preserved in museums?
AI Response #14 – Vintage guitars, like ancient manuscripts or Renaissance paintings, straddle the delicate balance between utility and preservation. Let’s explore both perspectives:
Playing and Using Vintage Guitars:
Sonic Legacy: Vintage guitars were crafted to be played. Their rich tones, unique characteristics, and historical significance come alive when strummed or picked.
Musical Connection: Owning a vintage instrument allows musicians to channel the spirit of past players. It’s a bridge across time and genres.
Art in Action: A vintage guitar’s true purpose is to create music. It yearns for fingers on frets, resonating strings, and melodies that echo through decades.
Preserving Vintage Guitars in Museums:
Cultural Artefacts: Museums safeguard our collective heritage. Vintage guitars, like ancient artefacts, tell stories of creativity, craftsmanship, and musical evolution.
Educational Value: Displaying vintage instruments educates visitors about music history, luthiery techniques, and the evolution of sound.
Conservation: Museums provide controlled environments, protecting guitars from wear, humidity, and light damage.
A Harmonious Balance:
Rotating Exhibits: Some museums allow playable vintage guitars in temporary exhibits. Musicians can strum them, and visitors appreciate their beauty.
Replicas and Demonstrations: Museums can create replicas for hands‑on experiences while preserving the originals.
Digital Archives: Recordings, videos, and virtual tours can complement physical displays.
In the grand symphony of cultural preservation, vintage guitars play a vital note. Whether they resonate in concert halls or rest behind glass, their melodies continue to echo through time.
Question #15 – Are collectors a good or bad thing for vintage guitars?
AI Response #15 – Collectors, like the silent guardians of a musical time capsule, wield both light and shadow upon the vintage guitar realm. Let us strum through their impact:
The Good Harmony:
Preservation: Collectors cradle vintage guitars, shielding them from the ravages of time. These instruments whisper secrets of bygone eras.
Curators of History: They curate private museums, preserving luthiery artistry and the soulful echoes of past players.
Financial Support: By investing in rare models, collectors contribute to the market’s stability and encourage craftsmanship.
The Dissonant Notes:
Inaccessibility: Some vintage guitars languish behind velvet ropes, yearning for calloused fingertips. Their music remains unheard.
Price Inflation: Collectors can inflate prices, making it harder for musicians to acquire playable vintage instruments.
Frozen Artefacts: When guitars become mere artefacts, their purpose shifts from music‑making to display.
The Ongoing Duet:
Balance: Collectors must harmonize preservation with accessibility. Rotate exhibits, allow touch, and share the magic.
Collaboration: Collaborate with musicians, luthiers, and enthusiasts. Let vintage guitars sing in live performances.
Legacy: Remember that these guitars once graced stages, studios, and hearts. Their legacy transcends wood and strings.
In the grand symphony of vintage guitars, collectors play a vital role. May they strum chords of reverence and resonance, bridging past and present.
Question #16 – What is the best advice for someone considering collecting vintage guitars?
AI Response #16 – Collecting vintage guitars is a harmonious blend of passion, history, and craftsmanship. Whether you’re a seasoned collector or just starting out, here’s some valuable advice:
Do Your Homework:
Know Your Instruments: Dive deep into the guitars you’re interested in. Understand their history, features, and quirks.
Learn Anomalies: Beyond books and the internet, explore anomalies not widely documented. Sometimes, hidden gems lie in those details.
Connect with Experts:
Trustworthy Sources: Build relationships with reputable dealers, collectors, and experts. Seek advice and learn from their experience.
Avoid Shady Sellers: Beware of untrustworthy sources. Not everyone has the same integrity in this world of vintage guitars.
Brand Matters:
Collectible Brands: Focus on heritage brands like Fender and Gibson. These classics tend to rise in value over time.
Rickenbackers: Often overlooked, Rickenbackers (played by the Beatles, Byrds, and Tom Petty) offer great American‑made guitars at reasonable prices.
Avoid eBay Frenzies:
While eBay is a treasure trove, it can also be a frenzy of bidding. Be cautious and aware of shill bidding.
Consider other platforms and auctions for a more measured approach.
Budget Wisely:
Set a Budget: Determine how much you’re willing to invest. Vintage guitars can range from affordable to astronomical.
Quality Over Quantity: Rather than amassing many guitars, focus on quality pieces that resonate with you.
Remember, collecting vintage guitars is not just about financial gain; it’s about connecting with music history and craftsmanship. Let your heart guide your collection, and may each guitar sing its unique melody in your hands!
Question #17 – What are good criteria for evaluating whether to buy a vintage guitar?
AI Response #17 – When considering buying a vintage guitar, it’s essential to assess various factors to ensure you’re making an informed decision. Here are some valuable criteria to evaluate:
Check The Frets:
Examine the condition of the frets. Worn frets can significantly impact playability.
Consider the cost of refretting if necessary. Lacquer issues on maple fingerboards may also need attention.
Electrical Components:
Don’t be alarmed by minor crackling or cutouts in the electronics.
Vintage guitars often need a little love in this area. Budget for potential repairs.
Moving Parts and Hardware:
Inspect tuners, bridges, and other hardware. Ensure they function smoothly.
Some vintage parts may be hard to find or expensive to replace.
Cosmetic Condition:
Don’t judge a book by its cover. Sometimes slightly worn or ‘cosmetically ropey’ guitars sound better.
Look beyond surface imperfections and focus on playability and resonance.
Research and Knowledge:
Understand the specific model you’re interested in. Learn about its history, features, and common issues.
Read reviews, consult experts, and explore online resources.
Budget Realistically:
Set a budget that considers not only the purchase price but also potential repairs or upgrades.
Vintage guitars often require adjustments to optimize playability.
Remember, vintage guitars are more than just instruments; they carry stories, character, and a connection to music history. Let your passion guide you, and may your chosen guitar resonate with your soul!
Question #18 – How to detect a fake from an authentic vintage guitar?
AI Response #18 – When evaluating a vintage guitar for authenticity, keep these criteria in mind:
Weight:
Authentic guitars have consistent weights based on their model and wood type.
Compare the weight of the guitar you’re examining with the average weight for that model.
Guitar Logo:
Download an image of the authentic model’s logo from the manufacturer’s website.
Compare it with the logo on the guitar you’re considering. Look for differences in size, shape, position, font, and staining around the logo.
Components and Hardware:
Inspect tuners, bridges, and other hardware. Authentic guitars use specific components.
Be cautious if anything looks off or doesn’t match the original model.
Sound hole (for Acoustic Guitars):
Authentic acoustic guitars have perfectly round and symmetrical sound holes.
If the sound hole appears irregular or poorly crafted, it might be a fake.
Serial Number:
Check the guitar’s serial number against databases or guides specific to the brand.
Serial numbers can reveal the guitar’s production year and authenticity.
Consult Experts:
Seek advice from reputable dealers, collectors, or luthiers.
They can spot subtle details that indicate authenticity.
Remember, a genuine vintage guitar carries history and soul. Whether you’re a player or collector, choose wisely and let the music resonate!
Question #19 – Are vintage bass guitars worth collecting?
AI Response #19 – Vintage bass guitars, like the heartbeat of a rhythm section, resonate with their own allure. Let’s explore why they’re worth collecting:
Historical Significance:
Vintage basses carry the pulse of music history. They’ve grooved through genres, recording studios, and live performances.
Owning one connects you to the basslines of legends like James Jamerson, Jaco Pastorius, and Paul McCartney.
Tonal Character:
Each vintage bass has a unique voice. The wood, pickups, and craftsmanship contribute to its signature sound.
Whether it’s the thump of a Fender Precision Bass or the growl of a Rickenbacker 4001, vintage basses offer distinct tones.
Investment Potential:
While not all vintage basses appreciate significantly, certain models do.
Brands like Fender, Gibson, and Music Man have iconic basses that hold value.
Craftsmanship:
Vintage basses were meticulously built by skilled luthiers. Their attention to detail and quality materials shine through.
The patina of age adds character, like the lines on a seasoned musician’s face.
Collectability:
Some basses are rare due to limited production runs or unique features.
Collectors seek these gems, creating demand and driving up prices.
Playing Experience:
Vintage basses feel different. Their neck profiles, weight, and balance offer a tactile experience.
Whether you’re a player or a collector, the joy of plucking those strings transcends time.
In the rhythm of life, vintage bass guitars provide the low notes that anchor melodies. Let your passion guide your collection, and may your basslines resonate!
Question #20 – What is CRAVE Guitars?
AI Response #20 – CRAVE Guitars is a fascinating venture that celebrates and showcases vintage American electric guitars, effects, and amplifiers. Let me break it down for you:
Name and Acronym:
The name ‘CRAVE’ is a clever play on words.
As an acronym, it stands for ‘Cool & Rare American Vintage Electric’ guitars.
Literally, it also means ‘to yearn for’ or ‘to want greatly’.
All these meanings are fitting for the world of vintage guitars.
Mission and Focus:
CRAVE Guitars aims to bring you some of the coolest American vintage electric guitars from iconic brands like Fender and Gibson, among others.
These guitars aren’t necessarily the most expensive or desirable ones but definitely have that special something that makes them stand out.
Non‑Profit Approach:
Unlike traditional dealers or collectors, CRAVE Guitars is a non‑profit enterprise.
It celebrates vintage guitars both as important musical heritage and as real instruments meant to be used and played.
The focus is on more affordable, underdog, and often quirky vintage guitars, effects, and amps.
Instead of the exotic and rarely played classics, CRAVE Guitars delves into the heart of the vintage guitar world.
Wabi‑Sabi and Imperfections:
CRAVE Guitars also embraces the Japanese concept of wabi‑sabi.
Wabi‑sabi appreciates the imperfections in objects, finding beauty in their flaws.
Vintage guitars, with their unique wear and history, embody this concept.
More Than Guitars:
Beyond guitars, CRAVE features galleries and information on vintage effect pedals (from brands like Electro‑Harmonix, MXR, BOSS, and Ibanez) and a small collection of vintage American valve amplifiers.
It’s a treasure trove for guitar enthusiasts and those who appreciate the magic of vintage gear.
So, if you’re curious or have a craving for all things vintage, explore the world of CRAVE Guitars and immerse yourself in the legacy of these remarkable instruments!
In addition, I also asked AI 2 supplementary questions relating to vintage amplifiers and vintage effects. Here is what AI put forward, very much in the same vein as the previous examples.
Question #21 – Are vintage amplifiers worth collecting?
AI Response #21 – Vintage amplifiers are like sonic time capsules, each carrying a unique story and tone. Here’s why they’re worth collecting:
Historical Significance:
Vintage amps shaped the sound of countless recordings. They’re the secret sauce behind iconic guitar tones.
Owning one connects you to the artists and eras that made music history.
Tonal Magic:
Vintage amps have a warmth and character that modern counterparts often lack.
Whether it’s the creamy overdrive of a Dumble Overdrive Special or the gritty blues of a Marshall JTM45, vintage amps offer distinct flavours.
Investment Potential:
While not all vintage amps appreciate significantly, certain models do.
Brands like Fender, Marshall, and Trainwreck hold value and continue to inspire players.
Craftsmanship:
These amps were handcrafted with care, using quality components.
The patina of age adds to their allure, like the wrinkles on a seasoned musician’s face.
Playing Experience:
Vintage amps respond differently. Their tubes, circuits, and speakers create a tactile connection.
Plug in and feel the magic—the way they react to your playing is unmatched.
So whether you’re a collector, player, or both, vintage amplifiers offer a symphony of history and sound.
Question #22 – Are vintage guitar effect pedals worth collecting?
AI Response #22 – Vintage guitar effect pedals are like hidden treasures waiting to be discovered. Let’s explore their allure:
Historical Gems:
Vintage pedals offer a glimpse into the evolution of effects. They’re like musical fossils, preserving sonic eras.
Owning one connects you to the creativity of past players and the birth of iconic sounds.
Tonal Mojo:
Each vintage pedal has a distinct flavour. The analogue circuits, aged components, and quirks create magic.
Whether it’s the warm fuzz of a Dallas Arbiter Fuzz Face or the psychedelic swirl of a Uni‑Vibe, vintage pedals offer sonic character.
Investment Potential:
While not every vintage pedal appreciates significantly, some models do.
Brands like Boss, Electro‑Harmonix, and Ibanez have cult classics that hold value.
Nostalgia and Inspiration:
Vintage pedals evoke memories of classic albums and legendary performances.
Plugging into a vintage pedal can spark creativity and transport you to musical moments.
Collectability:
Some pedals are rare due to limited production or unique features.
Collectors seek these gems, creating demand and driving up prices.
Remember, whether you’re a guitarist, collector, or sonic explorer, vintage pedals offer a symphony of history and sound.
Well, there you have it. 20+2 questions and 20+2 answers (and a haiku thrown in for good measure). What do you think? Apologies, that’s a rhetorical question. My thoughts on the matter are purely my own opinion based on what I was presented with. I am no expert on AI technology, so my observations are therefore, by nature, liable to organic fallibility and bias. I should state at this point that, in no way did I attempt to outwit or trick the AI models. The questions were very simple and the intent was purely to see what would happen. The results are uncorrupted by me in any way.
There are some truly cringe worthy phrases buried in amongst the relevant outputs – AI trying to be ‘clever’. AI can’t seem to master the human traits of irony, satire, wit, whimsy and sarcasm! Mind you, AI also doesn’t exhibit the less desirable human traits of arrogance, hubris, deceit (intentionally or innocently) or biased opinion, which is probably a good, although potentially less entertaining, thing. This jocular aspect, however, is a bit like the 17th Century Spanish idiom, ‘the pot calling the kettle black’ (NB. from a 1620 English translation of ‘Don Quixote’ by Miguel de Cervantes), especially given my innate trademark penchant for pretentious prose and affinity for asinine alliterations (QED!).
Given that simulated responses draw directly on diverse material from a range of (human?) contributors, AI could be accused of plagiarism, as it simply extracts these sources of information and re‑presents them as a rational, objective summary. In terms of credibility, many of the responses make common sense, while others are less believable (see, particularly, the off‑kilter response to Questions #5 and #12).
Each question taken in isolation is one thing but when taken together, the repetitiveness of both content and presentation (and is a dead giveaway that this is not the sort of rational intercourse that would take place between, say, a knowledgeable human interviewer and interviewee. It simply wouldn’t be like that in practice.
Are there any factual errors exposed through this process? Not necessarily (although the reference to older Gibson Les Pauls being made of oak in response to question #12 is peculiar). However, this question does raise the issue of interpretation, i.e. the action of explaining the meaning of something. Inevitably, some perspective may be gleaned from information that is neither technically true nor false, especially where that information is dependent on subjective opinion and/or ambiguity that is difficult to corroborate or prove. The interpretation issue may constrain the ability of AI methodology to explore subject matter diligently and thoroughly in the way a human investigation might. While arguably forensic, it clearly isn’t ‘thoughtful’ in its approach.
The responses generally seem to be ‘playing it safe’, as though AI’s output was written by a committee to iron out any wayward emphases. The sanitised responses may well be useful as a starting point for a novice or someone lacking knowledge about the subject. It doesn’t, however, add anything over and above the basic level of human understanding. AI wouldn’t really impress someone who knows what they are talking about, let alone an expert.
“That’s how it is with people. Nobody cares how it works as long as it works” – The character Councillor Hamann from The Matrix (1999)
AI seems unable to extend a concept beyond the current boundaries of the question. It may be able to develop ‘vision’ at some point but clearly not yet. AI also seems unable to distinguish between poor, acceptable or high quality information – it is innately non‑sceptical of what it is fed with, leading potentially to unreliable outputs. AI currently depends heavily on humans to contribute and moderate content and that is another limitation at the time of writing, perhaps inhibiting its more creative potential. In some ways, AI avoids the question, again, the response to Question #12 doesn’t indicate the range of ROI that one might anticipate from investing.
What the responses do is to focus solely (unnaturally?) on the subject matter without even a hint of the possibility of a wider context. The ‘big picture’ omission struck me throughout the exercise. The current new gear market is strongly oriented – almost obsessively (and irritatingly) so – toward stressing the ‘vintage’ qualities, characteristics and specifications of brand new gear. Many new products are clearly aimed at imitating as closely as possible the idiosyncrasies and technological limitations of the past, frequently as if that is the only game in town. The current new guitar marketplace is not really progressive and, in many cases is clearly regressive. No reference to this marketing incongruity exists in the responses. The vintage past is not actually ‘authentically recreated’ in new products. AI therefore comes across as past‑oriented, not future‑focused.
One of the conundrums with AI at the time of writing is actually how these supposedly intelligible responses were compiled. Presumably, as AI simply mines information originally created by humans (expert or otherwise) in one form or another at some point in time, its generated outputs are not genuinely ‘new’. AI couldn’t possibly conjure a believable level of detail out of an information vacuum, it had to have something from which to start.
The ‘memory’ question is a big issue for AI. When asked basically the same question twice, either consecutively or separated by others, AI will respond to the second question as if the first had not been asked. A human would either, say “I’ve already answered that” or would respond in a slightly different way. AI lacks nuance and is totally oblivious of the regurgitation issue. It seems incapable of a continuing dialogue without tripping up.
The extent to which the human input has been manipulated by AI isn’t readily made clear. One therefore might wonder what was omitted (or added) and what was the result of machine intervention? Also, how did AI decide what should and shouldn’t be processed and the methodology by which it is output? What would AI come up with if it had nothing at all on which to base its algorithmic recipe?
Question – What will happen when AI starts building information based on the output of another AI over several iterations? It would be like a photocopy of a photocopy of a photocopy, etc. Does the integrity of information degrade significantly as it is repeatedly manipulated such that it bears little or no relationship to the authentic original (i.e. much like artificial Chinese whispers)?
“Perhaps we are asking the wrong questions…” – the character Agent Brown from The Matrix (1999)
Sometimes, less is more and getting something from AI can feel like being bombarded with a relentless barrage of words, rather than selective profound insight (hypocritically guilty as charged!). It is like the difference between learning by rote and repeating facts compared with genuinely understanding a subject matter through critical reasoning, or like reading a dictionary and expecting to comprehend the real world. The responses are more like a pre‑prepared structured lecture based on a text book exemplar, rather than a process of meaningful critical analysis and acute deductive reasoning.
AI is clearly getting a lot closer to human behaviour than simple search results from any standard Internet search engine and it will undoubtedly get better. However, it is not (yet) the last word on the matter. There is something to be gained from the responses, as long as they are taken as one of many inputs into a conclusion, rather than to be taken as a determining factor. My advice, for what it is worth, is to consider what AI presents you with but always take it with a figurative ‘pinch of salt’ (NB. yet another idiom; ‘a grain of salt’, from Pliny the Elder’s ‘Naturalis Historia’, 77CE). A genuine fascination with the subject matter – vintage guitars – is as much about subjective experience as it is about objective black and white bullet point facts. Currently, as far as I’m aware, that degree of authentic articulation of ‘shades of grey’ (i.e. sometimes reality is subtle and complex, and the boundaries are not always clear‑cut) cannot be gained readily from the Internet, AI or no AI.
“The deepest sin against the human mind is to believe things without evidence” – Aldous Huxley (American author, 1894‑1963)
While the AI processes are undoubtedly impressive, did AI inspire or stimulate curiosity as a skilled mentor might? Categorically not. Did I actually learn anything new about vintage guitars from AI? Nope. But then again, I believe, somewhat conceitedly, that I was already reasonably well informed on the topic.
“AI will be the most transformative technology of the 21st century. It will affect every industry and aspect of our lives” – Jensen Huang of Nvidia Corporation
Final thoughts on AI
In conclusion, I would suggest that AI as it stands, at least on this specific subject matter fails the Turing Test as described at the start of this article. It comes across as ‘artificial’ and the sort of assignment a student might construct from prima facie sources without thought, genuine research, analysis, insight or intellect. The clincher for me was AI’s derivative description of CRAVE Guitars, which isn’t presented as a narrative and not at all how I would (and have) articulated it.
So… Cutting to the chase, how would I rate AI’s responses compared to say, the responses of a specialist to the same questions. Probably, I’d give it about a 5‑6 out of 10 and that is, I think, being generous. AI is leaps and bounds ahead of standard Internet search engine results but still a long way behind what I would expect a rational, knowledgeable human professional to say, not necessarily in terms of what is said but definitely in how it is said. AI could do better (and it definitely will, believe me). It may best be described as ‘work‑in‑progress’.
I posited my starting position at the top of this article, written before embarking on this extravaganza. Reading it again after disembarking, my view has not shifted substantially and I think those eight criteria remain relevant, at least as of March 2024. Perhaps I am falling foul of ‘confirmation bias’, another human flaw. My bad.
Putting it bluntly, AI comes across as having no personality. Some sort of identifiable persona is, I believe, a prerequisite for passing the Turing test. Without a sense of character, AI will always seem a dry, clumsy imitation of an average human. Arguably, AI just wasn’t convincing as being interested in the subject matter. For now, I’ll stick with ‘natural stupidity’, thanks.
Like the character Sarah Connor inaccurately forecast in James Cameron’s 1991 film ‘Terminator 2: Judgment Day’, AI didn’t quite get it right, “Three billion human lives ended on August 29, 1997”. Skynet hasn’t grown up… yet. Thankfully.
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Album of the Month’
I am not going anywhere near the mechanistic and sterile AI for this section of the article. Consequently, I’m going for one of the most organic and natural sounding albums I know (and like). Once again, it is a fairly well‑known recording, so nothing obscure or inaccessible this time around.
Cowboy Junkies – The Trinity Session (1988) – The second album from the Canadian alt‑country band, recorded live in the Church Of The Holy Trinity in Toronto in November 1987 and released in 1988. Its atmospheric beauty is partly due to its imperfections and the natural reverb of the building, all captured by a single microphone. The raw recording was purportedly not adulterated, mixed, overdubbed or edited in any way. Interestingly, the sublime, ‘Blue Moon Revisited (Song For Elvis)’ wasn’t on the original vinyl release. While not to everyone’s tastes (and otherwise probably not normally to mine either), it represents fifty three minutes of exquisite alchemy. It is 100% human in all its gentle, fragile, ragged glory – in a good way. It is hard to envisage AI ever coming up with music like this, now or in the future.
Cowboy Junkies – The Trinity Session (1988)
Tailpiece
Phew! That is way more than enough from me and my erstwhile AI co‑author for now. Please don’t blame me for the majority of this outing, it is mostly down to the synthetic nature of its creation. I must admit that, while a very interesting little (?!?!) project, it was ultimately a bit (?!?!) of a long and arduous slog, bordering on boring (sorry folks). I trust you can discern what was written by me and what was produced by AI.
Finally, a word of sagely counsel. Whatever we do, humanity should always strive to harness the potential of output AI/GAI/AGI for good and to guard against the risks of it being exploited for evil.
I also stated at the beginning that is only Part I of this 3‑part AI adventure! Next month, we’ll take a look at another aspect of AI and vintage guitars. I can tell you are eagerly ‘champing at the bit’ (NB. another human idiom; from ‘Joseph, A Religious Poem’ by the Reverend Charles Lucas, 1810)!
Truth, peace, love, music be with you always. Until next time…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “Whoever thinks pets are non‑judgemental has clearly never been owned by a cat”
WELCOME ONCE MORE to CRAVE Guitars’ unhurried cruise through the planet’s turbulent waters this November 2023. While there has been much to protest about in the rapid disintegration of the prevailing ‘world order’ during the 2020s thus far, one has to grasp onto any positive prospects that may present themselves. Arising from the debris and carnage of grinding attrition, the poppies of opportunity are optimistic symbols for hope and prosperity, albeit fleeting. That’s basically all flowery language for carpe diem (from Roman lyric poet, Horace’s work, ‘Odes’ in 23 BCE – literal meaning ‘pluck the day’, commonly interpreted as ‘seize the day’).
“While we speak, envious time will have fled: seize the day, to the least extent possible trusting in the next one.” Quintus Horatius Flaccus (Horace, 65-8 BCE)
I recognise that there has been little in the way of exciting news on CRAVE Guitars core ‘business’ for many reasons outlined in the previous article (October 2023). It has been slow but it hasn’t been a total wipe‑out though and I’ll come back to that on another occasion. Here, I’m focussing purely on recorded music and principally a persistent quest to unearth something a little bit different.
Once again, no AI was used to research or write this article, only the author’s meagre cranial capacity and a bit of old school pre‑AI technology.
Context
The one upside of recent times has been an opportunity to embark on an intentional journey to explore off‑the‑beaten‑track modern music. As in physics, the musical micro‑universe is continuously expanding. The challenge is that the musical catalogue since the 1950s is absolutely massive and, with each passing day, becomes even bigger – far too much to begin with, let alone keep up with. While, on the basis that one’s knowledge is inherently extremely limited, it means that any adventure has plenty of scope for discovery, even if it is only vainly scratching the surface of the iceberg’s tip (there I go mixing metaphors again!).
“I know nothing except the fact of my ignorance.” Greek philosopher Socrates (c.470-399 BCE)
On this particular excursion into the unknown, music discovery means expanding the author’s knowledge and appreciation across many aspects of contemporary music. The exercise is about not only consolidating existing music but also about travelling lands un‑trod for new music, which may mean older music that is new to me as well as recently released music that is new to everyone.
Fortunately, 21st Century explorations are sedate experiences. No longer do we have to fear ‘hic sunt dracones’ in ‘Terra incognita’ (here be dragons in unknown land). Note: The former derives from the Hunt‑Lenox Globe (1504), the latter from Ptolemy’s Geography (c.150).
Over far too many years than I would care to contemplate, I have been buying and listening to music. Nothing unusual about that. For many reasons (space, funds, etc.), music was largely revolved around established genre preferences. Fair enough; isn’t that what it’s all about, buy what you like and don’t bother with everything else? However, such an exercise becomes largely self‑perpetuating and insular. This I was aware of and felt that there was much more to be revealed. Where to start?
During CRAVE Guitars’ 3‑year hiatus (see last month’s article, ‘Return to and from Obscurity’), I became fascinated by exposure to ‘new’ music, rather than the habitual repetitive listening to a small repertoire of familiar choons. This is no new epiphany. When much younger, I made a point of listening to BBC Radio 1 DJ John Peel (1939‑2004) and valued his nonconformist approach towards exciting new bands and their music, especially but not solely during the punk rock era. The late John Peel may not be familiar to readers outside the UK. It was because of John Peel that I bought my very first LP album – ‘Meddle’ by Pink Floyd (1971), after he debuted it in its entirety on his late night radio show.
While so many other things were getting in my way, I consciously elected to spread my musical wings again, mainly because it is something I had wanted to do and it was actually eminently do‑able, especially economically (at first!). I engaged in the hobby of ‘crate digging’ or simply ‘digging’ in the Internet age, i.e. searching anywhere for content, online suppliers and auction sites, charity shops, second hand record shops, brick‑and‑mortar retailers, etc. Buying used albums makes the exercise much more economic, fun and sustainable.
Record Store (credit: Cottonbro Studio)
“Music is an important part of our culture and record stores play a vital part in keeping the power of music alive.” Chuck Berry (1926-2017)
Alternative sources include ‘recommendations’ from other music aficionados and using the Shazam app on a smart phone to identify something unfamiliar and interesting that pops up wherever one might be at the time.
One of the first steps was to identify what I had and where there were obvious gaps. I had already created a Microsoft Access database so that I could scrupulously catalogue the albums, EPs and singles in my possession. That soon ran into the application’s upper limit of 2 GB per database, so had to be split into multiple databases. Now that I readily know what I have (little), what I haven’t (massive). It also enabled me to log what I might want (a continuously growing ‘most wanted’ list). The systematic categorisation was reinforced by importing everything I had from source onto Apple iTunes. Between these two key resources, it became relatively straightforward to keep track of things. Then, it was on to, thankfully dragon‑free, pastures new.
My investigations are basically limited to modern contemporary music from the early‑mid 1950s – basically from the emergence of rock ‘n’ roll – to the current day. It also includes going back further into the history of some long‑standing top‑tier genres such as blues, country and jazz that were direct predecessors to, and influences on, everything from rock ‘n’ roll onwards, as well as continuing to evolve in their own right.
There have to be boundaries or I would go insane just collecting for collecting’s sake, which is not only unrealistic but also pointless. American rapper and entrepreneur Dr. Dre once stated that he accumulated 80,000 albums and kept them in storage, before realising just that basic error. I’m sure that somewhere out there is a comprehensive British Library‑esque collection of music releases over the last 100 or so years, catalogued for historical posterity. That would be one heck of a monumental task. My endeavours are, unsurprisingly, much, much more modest.
One has to enjoy, as well as feel that an avocation is worthwhile, or there is no worth in doing it. It is for this reason that I have to exclude classical music. For some reason, classical music leaves me stone cold dead. Always has done. I’ve tried repeatedly to get into it but to no avail. However, in contemporary music, there are styles of modern classical and minimalist music that blend, fuse or crossover into contemporary electronic sensibilities with classical instrumentation that I can grasp but I’m afraid that’s it. The likes of Max Richter, Tim Hecker, Philip Glass, Jóhann Jóhannsson, Walter/Wendy Carlos and Isao Tomita I can engage with, otherwise, meh. I genuinely apologise to classical music fans. I’m sure it’s fabulous n’all but it just doesn’t do anything for me and going down that particular rabbit hole is an experience I don’t want to pursue… so I won’t. My choice.
Here are just a few figures relevant to the 3‑year hiatus to bandy about. During that period, I’ve purchased circa 3,000 albums along with a (large) handful of EPs and the odd single. That equates to around 90 per month (averaging c.3‑ish per day). I dread to think of the gross expense but at least it is little and often, unlike buying vintage guitars. It’s also relatively quick and easy to do, filling those occasional idle moments. The last 3 years has basically doubled the hoard. The ‘most wanted’ (for want of a better term) list hovers around 1,500‑2,000 depending on timing and motivation. The ‘find out more’ about list of artists is, by comparison, relatively short at around 200‑250. The conclusion is that there is plenty of scope for improvement. Additions to the hoard cover about 100 genres with the largest proportions being mainstream ones.
I haven’t ventured into the realms of rare music collection – most albums I have been looking for are relatively available with patience and digging. Indeed, many have been from bargain bins. I can’t justify or afford two expensive artefact hobbies! Neither has this mission been to create any sort of ‘standout albums of the last 75 years’ or so. I don’t think anyone could possibly agree on what that might comprise.
Right, let’s get down to the business at hand; colouring in the sketch of the musical landscape, so to speak.
“Though this be madness, yet there is method in’t.” From ‘Hamlet’ (c.1600) by English playwright William Shakespeare (1564‑1616)
Genre gap‑filling
Like most people, one has favourite genres, so‑so ones, and disliked ones. However, to rule music out just because it belongs to a hitherto underappreciated genre tends to limit one’s exposure to some highly regarded music. As an example, I was never very keen on country music. Then I watched an 8‑part documentary called, unsurprisingly, ‘Country Music’ which first aired on American TV channel PBS in 2019. I was struck by a whole bunch of music that I was completely unaware of and had summarily discounted out‑of‑hand because of what it was labelled. I was fascinated by the documentary and what it portrayed. PBS also produced another documentary series called ‘Jazz’ from 2001 that opened my eyes to what that genre also had to offer. Both PBS series were directed by Ken Burns. Actually, finding out more about the cultural history that surrounded the genres provided a context that enhanced the experience of the music greatly. This observation reinforces the (perhaps) blindingly obvious fact that societal change and musical development are both interdependent and co‑dependent. Having fired my imagination, I extrapolated the concept to other genres as well. Sometimes, ‘various artists’ genre compilations can provide a suitable entrée to a musical world less wandered.
Are there any contemporary genres that are considered out of bounds? On the whole, other than aforementioned classical, generally no. I am up for pretty much anything, while still retaining my core preferences, which include reggae/dub, IDM/EDM, ambient electronica, downtempo/chillout, dreampunk/vaporwave, indie, alternative, heavy metal, gothic, dream pop, drone, rap/hip‑hop, shoegaze, grunge, punk, garage, funk/disco, deep house, blues, rock and neo‑psychedelia. That’s a pretty broad spectrum.
My two recent articles on ‘Dub Reggae Revelation’ and ‘Adventures in Ambient’ (August and September 2023 respectively) I think adequately demonstrate the potential of genre gap‑filling. That was just breaking down two genres.
One ‘genre’ that sits outside the normal categories is the Original Soundtrack (OST). Film and TV soundtracks tend to fall into two types, one camp compiles existing music brought together to accompany what happens on screen, while the other camp employs music composed (scored) specifically for the medium. Both camps can be helpful when discovering new music.
“I’m a big collector of vinyl – I have a record room in my house – and I’ve always had a huge soundtrack album collection.” Quentin Tarantino (1963‑)
There are only so many genres (my database lists over 140 of them!) but when you consider the bewildering multiplicity of sub‑genres and micro‑genres within the umbrella of, say, heavy metal, dance or electronica, there seems no end to what can be achieved. One great thing about music is that there is always something out there somewhere to match one’s prevailing mood. Genre gap‑filling actively opens doorways into finding a whole raft of ‘new’ artists, and the next task of filling in some of the blanks was added to the ‘to‑do’ list. One simple example was a brief dalliance with Cajun and zydeco music. These originated from the 20th Century intermixing of French Canadian Acadian immigrants, native American peoples, African slaves, and freemen in Louisiana in the deep south of the USA. Fascinating. And, thus, the search goes on.
Artist gap‑filling
There were, as you might expect, quite a few artists already covered, while there were many more that I knew about or was curious enough about to complement existing artists with ones that I hadn’t previously coveted. Some of these artists work could best be exposed by buying ‘best of’ or compilation albums, especially when I wasn’t prepared to go all out and get multiple original albums. This worked well for some artists that I wasn’t overly keen on. The relative randomness of the ‘digging’ process led to many new artist discoveries, simply through browsing and taking a gamble on something that looked intriguing. ‘Digging’ is easier in brick‑and‑mortar shops than online. Although the latter works, it is definitely much less enjoyable. We need to support our mainstream and independent record shops or they will be lost forever (as in the case of Virgin Megastores, Tower Records and many others). We almost lost the HMV chain in the UK, which would have been disastrous for high street music retail. Artist gap‑filling is a never ending expedition with untold treasures to be uncovered beyond the famous big names. Along with the household headliners, there is a multitude of lesser and unknown artists producing some fantastic music. An open mind unlocks entire vistas begging to be perused.
I soon realised that my personal favourite artists are actually few and far between, many of which have had long, consistent careers. During any artist’s long‑term output, there would inevitably be good, average and poor albums. Picking out the wheat from the chaff became an integral part of my newfound preoccupation.
Surprisingly, there are some very famous artists that simply do not resonate with me, including (believe it or not) respected giants like The Beatles and The Who. Yup. Heretical I know. I have tried over and over to get into them but without success.
There are many lesser known artists that I really like at the moment and only time will tell whether they create any sort of lasting legacy. I came across many great artists that I hadn’t even heard of, many with surprisingly extensive back catalogues. They are all out there, just waiting to be found. I realised that artist gap‑filling was the simplest way to stretch one’s listening goal posts. And, thus, the search goes on.
“For me, to turn people on to new music, on to things that are going on in the world, is important.” Nikki Sixx of Mötley Crüe (1958‑)
Release gap-filling
One logical method was to fill obvious gaps in some of the existing artists’ back catalogues or the solo careers by members of established bands. I would have some releases but not others, generally through an essentially arbitrary process, rather than any sort of systematic approach. Some additions were credible releases, while with others, there turned out to be an obvious reason why they weren’t there in the first place. Oops. Other avenues to explore in addition to studio albums include live albums, EPs, singles, compilations, dubs, remixes and various artist DJ mixes. This process wasn’t intended to be comprehensive – some releases simply weren’t/aren’t available, some have been long discontinued while others were obviously a waste of space anyway. Some albums were originally on limited release and have subsequently become rare and valuable. I know that there are plenty of collectors out there prepared to pay vast sums for some of these one‑offs. I’m not in that game and can’t afford to be. There are still plenty of missing pieces but broadly speaking the main bases have (possibly) been covered.
It would be all too easy to fall into the trap of ‘completism’, i.e. getting absolutely everything released by an artist. Given how prolific some artists are, completism would be a venture all unto itself. Frank Zappa has released over 50 studio albums, Brian Eno over 65, Johnny Cash over 75, Lee Perry over 80, Tangerine Dream over 100, and Willie Nelson over 130, not including live albums, EPs, singles, compilations, videos and bootlegs. From now on, release gap‑filling will be a case of diminishing returns, as the gaps decrease along with the overall quality of content.
One notable trend during the coronavirus pandemic was a proliferation of live music releases. Artists couldn’t get out on tour and many couldn’t access recording studios, so record labels scoured existing unreleased resources as a pragmatic stop gap during the lockdowns. Some of these live concert recordings are OK and many would normally be regarded as superfluous under ordinary circumstances. However, when needs must. One silver lining to arise out of the so‑called ‘Chinese Virus’ plague has been the rate and quality of subsequent studio releases once the ‘new normal’ was established. And, thus, the search goes on.
“I look forward to the future – and going into the studio to make new music.” Diana Ross (1944‑)
Record label gap‑filling
Some collectors also go for label gap‑filling but that’s a step too far for me, although there are some great independent labels worth giving a shout out to, such as Ninja Tune, Italians Do It Better, PIAS, Sub‑Pop, XL‑Recording, Jamaican Recordings, 4AD, Bella Union, Pressure Sounds, On‑U Sound, Ariwa Sounds and Hyperdub Records. Beyond the major corporations, there are thousands of record labels out there, so chasing artists and releases starting with a record label is neither quick nor easy. If it wasn’t for the small independent labels, though, we would be subject to commercially driven mainstream mediocrity. However, the method of looking at artists belonging to a certain label can prove promising for finding ‘new’ artists, which can then lead directly onto gap‑filling of their previous works.
“John Peel made his reputation with his radio show and his record label, Dandelion, by championing the underdog.” Jimmy Page (1944‑)
Musical discovery
There is much to be said for and against ‘taking a punt’ on something with which one is unfamiliar. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesn’t but there is always some sense of eager anticipation involved in lucky dips. This intentionally random exercise can lead onto other artists, and so on, basically ad infinitum. Due to the finite number of listening hours in any given day, week, month, year, this means that some music can only be listened to once or twice, while others warrant repeated auditions. Buying one‑off listens is not really very productive but it happens. One day, they can be re‑used by going to someone who might appreciate them more than I do. Often, genuine appreciation or enjoyment can only be gained by listening multiple times, especially with more experimental, leftfield or avant‑garde music.
“What motivates us is always new music.” Nuno Bettencourt (1966‑)
While physical media has been a main source of content for at least the last 40 years, this is rapidly changing. According to Spotify in 2021, over 60,000 tracks are uploaded to their platform every day. One, perhaps, might wonder about the depth of quality behind such figures. I know I do but then again, I’m a sceptic. There is no shortage of music to discover and no hope of listening to even a tiny fraction of it all. Spotify is also the platform that boasts the most effective method of curated music discovery. Even so, there is still a lot of inherent chance to finding something that will stay with you over the years. One might think that genuinely new discoveries would be infrequent, especially as time goes on. Far from it in practice.
Just one example, I recently came across late Canadian composer, Mort Garson (1924‑2008), renowned for his album, ‘Mother Earth’s Plantasia’ (1976), tag lined, ‘warm earth music for plants… and the people who love them’. When looking more into him and his music, I felt that, somehow, I should have been more aware of him before now. There is plenty of info on him on the hinterwebby thingummy but our meandering paths had not crossed before now. This sort of experience, which many readers who are familiar with Garson will probably snicker at my evident naivety. Such experiences are annoyingly common.
“I actually spend as much time listening to new music as to old. Probably more. I just try to get something out of it all.” Mark Knopfler (1949‑)
So, after all that preparatory exposition, you might well be wondering, just who the heck has been ‘discovered’? Here are just a few artists that I came across during the last 3 years. Some of which readers may know, some not. I might, though, challenge anyone to tick them all off so as to expose, pour scorn and ridicule my raw ignorance for what it is, sheer witlessness. Time to position the currency where my oral cavity is (lol!). The following list covers any genre and is in alphabetical‑ish order (Note: These are indicative only and should not be regarded as recommendations)…
*Shels, 100 Gecs, 2814, 9 Lazy 9, A.M.P. Studio, A Winged Victory for the Sullen, Agnes Obel, AK/DK, Aggrolites, The Airborne Toxic Event, The Album Leaf, Arms And Sleepers, Atoms For Peace, Autechre, Be, Benis Cletin, Bent, Big Thief, Blue In Tokio, The Burning Of Rome, Burnt Friedman, Cave In, Chezidek, Clark, Cloud Control, Craven Faults, Creation Rebel, Deadbeat, Deptford Goth, Desire, Devics, Dirty Loops, Divination, Dubkasm, Dynamic Syncopation, Ekoplekz, Ethel Cain, Fink, Flanger, Fragile State, Gallows, George Faith, Girls In Synthesis, Glass Candy, Goblin Cock, Helium, Hint, How To Dress Well, Hybrid, I. Benjahman, The Irresistible Force, Ital Tek, King Creosote, Konx‑Om‑Pax, Labradford, Laurel Halo, Lemonade, Lindsheaven Virtual Plaza, Loop Guru, LoveTrio, Machinedrum, Male Bonding, Man With No Name, Martyn, Midnight Juggernauts, My Sleeping Karma, ott, Plastikman, PreCog, Pretty Girls Make Graves, Psychonauts, Pure Bathing Culture, Purity Ring, The Qemists, Rakoon, Red House Painters, Rhombus, RJD2, Romare, Scrapper Blackwell, SkyTwoHigh, Sleep Token, The Slew, Sentre, Some Girls, Sparklehorse, StarOfAsh, Steve Roach, Suckle, Sunda Arc, Sundara Karma, Sunmonx, Swayzak, Symmetry, The Syncope Threshold, T e l e p a t h, Temu, Trembling Blue Stars, The Vacant Lots, Vessels, Wooden Shjips, Yellowcard and Yppah.
… plus many, many, many more. Phew! Some amazing, some good, some interesting, a few less so, etc. One may wonder how many of these artists – regardless of how ‘good’ they are – may attain the superstar status of, say, another Rolling Stones or The Beatles from the ‘good old days’. Not many, I’ll wager. And, thus, the search goes on.
“The times, they are a‑changin’” Bob Dylan (1941‑).
Live Music
Physical media
From the beginning of recording and playback in 1877 (although there were earlier experiments dating back to 1857), with Thomas Edison’s phonogram, first through wax cylinders and then shellac discs, followed by vinyl discs with the advent of the gramophone, people have been collecting music. For decades, vinyl was really the only practical medium for collectors. Collecting became more popular by the late 1970s with magazines dedicated to the hobby and suggesting values for some rarer releases. Magnetic recording technology added to, rather than replaced, vinyl and became popular with reel‑to‑reel, eight track (remember that?) and audio cassettes.
Portable music was made possible for the masses by the Sony Walkman (TPS‑L2), introduced in 1979, using the then‑ubiquitous analogue compact cassette. Perhaps the most significant portent for the demise of physical media was the introduction of the Apple iPod way back in 2001, sadly now no longer made, which led into the convenient access to music on the go, now with today’s smart phones.
Digital music, mainly through the introduction of digital music Compact Discs (CDs) in 1982 led to a revolution in collecting. CD sales peaked in 2000 at over 2.5 billion worldwide accounting for 91% of the market. By 2020 sales had fallen 95% and accounted for only 5% of global sales. However, CD sales increased again in 2021, although it is too early to predict a revival. The introduction of downloads and streaming has significantly impacted CD sales, precipitating a dramatic decline in physical album sales, as more and more consumers switched to digital streaming services.
Some alternative digital formats arrived in the wake of CD but didn’t survive for long, including Sony’s Mini Disc and DAT (Digital Audio Tape), as well as Philips’ DCC (Digital Compact Cassette). HDCD (High Definition Compatible Digital) and SACD (Super Audio CD) were promising but ultimately failed to supersede CD.
By the 1990s, I had disposed of my collection of then‑seemingly redundant vinyl LPs and singles (and my turntable) and embarked on collecting CDs, starting off with replacing what I had on vinyl and then adding new content over time. Ditching vinyl was something I might have regretted, but don’t. Vinyl represents nostalgia to me and I’m not going back. It is neither practical, desirable nor possible to embark on such a regressive approach now. At the time of writing, my music hoard of CDs comprises well over 6,000 releases by over 2,500 artists. This conglomeration has recently been organised into over 50 crates packed to the gills with the little silver discs. That equates to around 85,000 tracks on iTunes and counting. I don’t know whether this is a lot or not, with all things being relative. Currently, CD remains my main medium of choice. I predict that CDs will not become totally extinct and will experience a resurgance at some point.
The advent of CD was a catalyst to the long‑running analogue versus digital debate. For what it’s worth, my view is the debate is not about encoding, it’s about something far more subjective. Vinyl reproduction flatters music in a way that digital doesn’t and that appeals to us. Digital is technically superior but not as warm and cuddly as vinyl. Simples. Fans of analogue still swear that digital is a poor representation of real music. Fans of digital swear that analogue (and even digital CD) is outmoded and obsolete. That’s a lot of swearing. Streaming has added further fuel for opposing viewpoints with the compressed versus lossless argument. The truth is, does it really matter? As long as we enjoy the music, that’s what counts, isn’t it? Focus on the content, not the carrier. If we have a preference, make the most of it. I do think that the audiophile press is somewhat hypocritical in only going along with the latest tech after having criticised it before it became commercially established. That way, we all keep buying new kit. That is a personal opinion. Ain’t hindsight great?
“The digital world is so convenient and nice, but just playing back a vinyl record is a much warmer, hotter, more present feeling.” Steve Miller (1943‑)
Physical Media (credit: Andre-Moura)
Music streaming
A brief recap of developments may be in order, so a short diversion first. Let us rush past the short‑lived phenomenon of downloads, which have largely been superseded by streaming (which includes off‑line listening). The storage problem associated with physical media has led to the next revolution in listening, which is to dispense with physical media altogether and access music on remote servers held in huge data centres somewhere. This marks a watershed where the listener no longer owns a tangible product but only purchases the right to listen to it. You cannot easily donate tracks to charity or sell purchased music on to other people. Mixtapes? A thing of the past. How unromantic. All this is, to me, a major drawback. I like having something tangible that I can pick up, look at, read the liner notes, view the artwork and so on. Somehow, the old‑school ownership of a physical item is something I value. Streaming just seems like an ephemeral audition of someone else’s music, rather than something personal, bestowed by genuine ownership. Is this simply a transitional symptom? Probably, maybe.
Although streaming was introduced in the early 1990s, it wasn’t until the launch of Napster in 1999, using the new compressed MP3 digital format and exploiting new Internet‑based Broadband services, that downloads and streaming became widely popular. The licensed subscription music service Spotify was launched in 2008, rising from the ashes of the flirtatious fleeting dalliance with illegal downloads. Once again, the industry ‘big boys’ have found a way to re‑assert their dominance over us. Digital streaming now accounts for more than 80% of global music industry revenues.
The Internet and the major music streaming platforms (Spotify, Apple Music, Tidal, Deezer, Qobuz, Amazon Music, YouTube Music, etc.) have facilitated exploratory listening greatly while, at the same time, enabling artists to gain exposure in a way that they couldn’t previously through the traditional studio/record label system. Streaming generally can be on demand, through curated playlists or via Internet radio stations. All are valuable resources for the curious listener. The streaming platforms often state that they have 100,000,000 (100m) or more tracks available to customers. In practice, this is both a mind‑boggling and meaningless figure. There is such a thing as too much choice. It also gives some sense of scale, although it may call into question the balance between volume and quality. Suddenly, my meagre 85,000 tracks seems somewhat miniscule in comparison. I do, however, find it a sign of progress when more than 50 crates of CDs can be stored on an SSD (Solid State Disc) that’s less than half the size of a cigarette packet (remember those too?).
“I can’t understand why people are frightened of new ideas. I’m frightened of the old ones.” John Cage (1912‑1992)
Another problem exposed by streaming is that there is now plenty of material that is not distributed or sold on physical media at all and is only available via the Internet. Streaming‑only releases are essentially simpler and cheaper than managing traditional physical distribution channels. It also pushes new customers towards expensive streaming subscriptions whereby they earn money whether they are used or not. Talk about milking a cash cow! This online‑only approach affects some genres more than others but it means that, in order to continue with this ambitious side project of mine, streaming has become a necessary additional resource. In effect, physical and virtual music has to co‑exist; being an ‘and’ rather than an ‘either/or’ approach. For info, after much deliberation, CRAVE Guitars subscribes to Apple Music.
Some streaming services provide high definition listening, such as Tidal, and they charge a premium for it. Others, such as Spotify are content to go for volume at low definition. The lesson to take from this is that streaming services are not all alike despite peddling similar wares to punters.
“You pays your money and take your choice” A British lexicographic irregular that first appeared in print in Punch magazine in 1846
Does streamed high definition music (i.e. better than CD quality) make a difference to most listeners? Big question. Well, apparently, not really. The evidence suggests that most average (i.e. non‑industry) people cannot tell the difference in blind listening tests conducted under ‘normal’ conditions. Trained listeners can, allegedly, differentiate formats but “If there’s any discernible difference, it’s so subtle and so slight, you’d have to be somebody who’s been in the business for decades like me to hear it.” (recording and mixing engineer, Prince Charles Alexander, Berklee Online study, 2019). A case of fidelity vs artistry vs money, always good for an argument. Why on Earth spoil music listening by teaching people to identify comparative digital encoding anomalies when they are so small as to be meaningless? Spotify’s strategic positioning seems to agree, while Tidal doesn’t. People who go down the high definition route are, perhaps, hedging their bets. If they have the best, it doesn’t matter whether they can hear a difference or not. No doubt there is some audiophile snobbery lurking in there too. For the sake of throwing my two penny worth into the ring, I can neither tell the difference nor can I be bothered to waste my time trying to spoil the enjoyment that music brings by attempting to do so. Time for some good ol’ fashioned snake oil to leech the contents from your bank account?
Does streaming stop me ‘digging’ for used CDs? NO. Does it stop me buying new CDs? NO. Does it encourage me to buy more CDs? Actually, YES. I still prefer to purchase and store music on CD, while recognising the inevitability of embracing the dark side of streaming culture. On the basis that vinyl and cassette have seen a popular resurgence, CD is not going away anytime soon. In practice, and probably being totally hypocritical in doing so, I tend to rip music from CD on iTunes and then stream (or rather cast) it to my music system. I know that this practice probably makes little sense but, for me, it is the best of both worlds, I have the physical media and the convenience of digital storage. Which leads neatly onto…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘music room’
If you read my October 2023 article, ‘Return to and from Obscurity’, you will know of the sad loss of ‘mi media naranja’ (my better half) due to the vile and relentless ravages of cancer. Initially crestfallen, once accepting the loss, I set about repurposing the small ‘dining room’ which had been my wife’s bedroom into a dedicated ‘music room’, used for noodling on vintage guitars and listening to recorded music. NO TV or clock allowed! Having previously lost our home and the vast majority of our belongings (another story altogether!), I had to rebuild a hi‑fi from scratch which, in itself, was quite an exciting experience, along with uniquely decorating the room to provide a suitable listening/playing environment. It took a year of painful sacrifices involving the sale of some beloved A/V gear (I’m also a film & TV buff) to raise funds and some lengthy (re)searching for used ‘bargains’. I fully acknowledge that this indulgence seems an excess of a luxury, given everything else but other things had to be compromised to enable it. My choice.
The ‘music room’ is used every day for music listening. For those who are interested in the techy side of things, the main hi‑fi system comprises:
Naim Uniti Core music server with 2TB SSD storage
Naim ND5 XS2 music streamer
Naim CD5 Si CD player
Bryston BP17 pre-amplifier
Bryston 4BSST power amplifier
PMC Twenty.24 floor standing speakers
CRAVE Guitars Music Room
While this is neither a high‑end system nor a budget system, it has been carefully selected to meet the need for critical and enjoyable listening of both physical and streamed music (and within budget). My 500 or so most preferred CDs are immediately to hand in the room, as well as being stored in lossless digital form on the music server, thereby also making them available throughout the house via Wi-Fi (in due course). It’s certainly more than good enough for my tired, aging ears. Being pragmatic, the electronics are, after all, only a means to an end, which is to stimulate an emotional response through music.
At this point, you may be wondering whether I actually listen to all that music. Fair question. Well, yes, is the answer. There wouldn’t be much point in writing about it if I didn’t experience the results of my labours. While I try very hard, there may be the odd track here or there that gets shunted down a listening list but I would hope that’s the exception, rather than the rule. Heck, it’s a tough job but someone’s got to do it!
“Don’t tell me baby you gotta go, I got the hifi high and the lights down low” from, ‘I Need Your Love Tonight‘ (1959) by Elvis Presley (1935‑1977)
Personal top 20 ‘desert island’ albums
Depending on mood, I do go back to long‑term favourites, simply for the comfort and familiarity of a ‘known quantity’. Like chatting with an old friend. At the outset, I said this wasn’t about compiling any sort of ‘best albums of the last 75 years’. That doesn’t mean that there aren’t some albums for which I hold a special affection and which have been part of the hoard for many years (so not ‘new’). Here are 20 of them, all pretty well known mainstream releases, and which I feel have stood the test of time. Regular readers will see no surprises here. This is very much a personal list, chosen at the time of writing – it would undoubtedly be different on different days/weeks/months. Some entries hold special meaning and are therefore highly evocative.
I call this my ‘desert island’ security list. That is, if I could only have 20 albums as a castaway, what would they be? Perhaps, more accurately, it could also be called ‘top 20 memories’ or ’20 comfort classics’. Now how’s all that for wistful nostalgia? For what it’s worth, here is today’s list:
The Cure – Disintegration (1989)
Black Sabbath – Black Sabbath (1970)
The Doors – L.A. Woman (1971)
Pink Floyd – Meddle (1971)
John Martyn – Solid Air (1973)
Steve Hillage – L (1976)
Talking Heads – Remain In Light (1980)
Lee “Scratch” Perry – Roast Fish, Collie Weed & Corn Bread (1977)
Rage Against The Machine – Rage Against The Machine (1992)
Burning Spear – Garvey’s Ghost (1976)
Bob Marley & The Wailers – Live! (live) (1975)
Deep Purple – Made In Japan (live) (1972)
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Push The Sky Away (2013)
Depeche Mode – Violator (1990)
Massive Attack – 100th Window (2003)
David Bowie – Let’s Dance (1983)
Burial – Untrue (2007)
Tangerine Dream – Rubycon (1975)
John Lee Hooker – Boom Boom (1993)
Beck – Sea Change (2002)
“Music is the one incorporeal entrance into the higher world of knowledge which comprehends mankind but which mankind cannot comprehend.” Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827)
The future
OK, that’s the past, so now let’s take a brief, casual look at what may happen into the near future. While vinyl is doing remarkably well and CD is showing possible signs of life, it is clear that streaming is the future until something better comes along. It is certainly in the interests of the music industry to retain tight control over their valuable assets, although many artists say that the practice is detrimental to their income. However, this actually means little to the consumer. Better returns for the companies and artists simply mean higher prices for the public who have no say in the matter. The reality is that the few rich get much richer and the many poor get much poorer; sadly the dysfunctional norm of the modern capitalist world.
The commercial interests of multinational companies like Sony BMG, Universal, EMI and Warner Brothers rule their respective roosts. Interestingly, the major corporations don’t own the streaming companies, unlike in the parallel dimension of film and TV where the studios control all levels of vertical integration.
Mega‑artists with mega‑egos to match like Taylor Swift, Madonna, Adele, Jay‑Z/Beyoncé, U2, KISS, Dr. Dre, Timberlake and Ed Sheeran, along with many other big names in the lofty reaches of the higher socioeconomic hierarchy are laughing hysterically all the way to their already mega‑well‑stocked tax‑free offshore bank accounts. The industry ‘big four’ major record labels and powerful business artists together make up a resilient ‘pyramid of power’, that will continue to dominate the economics of the music biz for many years to come. Sadly, your ordinary talented hard working musicians don’t attract such filthy lucre. When push comes to shove, it’s all about the money. T’was ever thus, or more accurately…
“Oh! Ever thus from childhood’s hour” from the poem, ‘The Fire Worshippers’ (1817) by Irish writer and poet, Thomas Moore (1779‑1852)
Perhaps more worrying for creative artists and for many music enthusiasts is that the focus is clearly moving away from coherent album releases and more towards the production of single tracks out of context of other material by the same artist. By that statement, I don’t mean a rejuvenation of chart singles, which have long ceased to mean anything. The evidence shows that people are streaming individual songs, rather than a collection of tracks that would historically have made up a cohesive LP. Just look at the streaming stats of albums on any digital online platform and the predominance of maybe one or two tracks over the rest is unmistakeable. There is a feedback loop that encourages artists to change the way they make music and which goes on to influence curated playlists, radio coverage and, ultimately, sales, then repeat. The modern equivalent of the old‑fashioned radio playlist.
In 2016, it was reported that album releases were plummeting while EPs and single tracks were skyrocketing. Will we ever see (or, rather, hear) any more all‑time classic albums like ‘Sgt Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band’, ‘Dark Side Of The Moon’, ‘Rumours’ or ‘Thriller’? Only time will tell. Will the way that music is created, distributed and accessed mark the death knell of the ‘album’ as we know it? Highly likely, but not just yet. The album may, like many things, see a revival. We’ll just have to wait and see (if we live long enough). Personally, I grew up with the antiquated concept of the album or LP, so it retains a certain sensibility but, then again, I am destined for premature oblivion myself, so what the heck do I know?
The topical buzz around Artificial Intelligence (AI) will inevitably play its part in music creation with virtual artists and AI composed tracks. It’s already here and can only evolve from here on. AI isn’t new, its roots go back to 1956 and the American Dartmouth College in New Hampshire. AI generative music goes back to the mid‑1990s. Is AI a threat? The jury is currently out. Thankfully, if AI is used for music, literature and art, it won’t be used to annihilate mankind (except, perhaps, through technological mediocrity). The ultimate demise of humans is up to humans, directly or indirectly, at least for now. Who needs doomsday generative AI when we all have to endure the antics of egregious corrupt despots like Putin, Xi, Kim and too many others of their insane immoral ilk? Don’t you just love mankind’s determined destiny of denial and doom? I digress (again).
“If we don’t end the war, war will end us.” H.G. Wells (1866‑1946)
One certainty is that music will survive in its manifold forms. One hopes that tired and clichéd genres like the current vapid world of commercial pop and dance music since the new millennium will rejuvenate into something more interesting at some point. Conversely, let us also hope that the more dynamic genres don’t descend to the deplorable depths of hideous homogeneity.
Musicians will proliferate. Music will proliferate. The way we access music will change. Whatever happens, change is inevitable and it will be fascinating to see how it evolves and how we adapt. Music as an essential component of the human condition will prevail in one form or another as long as humans exist. Music is, after all, a phenomenon unique to the human race. Thank goodness for that. And, thus, the search goes on.
“When I hear music that parents hate, or older musicians hate, I know that’s the new music. When I hear older people saying, ‘I hate rap or techno’ I rush to it.” George Clinton (1941‑)
Amateur musicology?
I do not pretend to be some sort of self‑appointed authority on contemporary music. My main obsession is still vintage guitars and vintage guitar gear. Perhaps, though, my passion for music predated my addiction to guitars. Over the decades my love of modern music does, I believe, provide a reasonable insight into the science as well as art of music, with a little alchemy thrown in for good measure.
Strictly speaking, musicology is the analysis and study of music. Musicology belongs to the humanities and social sciences, although some music research also belongs to the fields of psychology, sociology, acoustics, neurology, anthropology and computer science.
Musicology covers three general disciplines; music history, new musicology (the cultural study of music) and ethnomusicology (the study of music in its cultural context). For the life of me, I can’t really (be bothered to) differentiate between the last two of those.
Clearly, I cannot compete with professional experts in the field and my research methods are hardly scholarly. I am, however, happy to be an amateur sleuth, as it allows for significant enjoyment. Music should be overwhelmingly pleasurable, rather than playing second fiddle to methodical and clinical academic enquiry. Again, my choice.
“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music” Aldous Huxley (1894-1963)
In addition, and hopefully obviously to readers by now, I also play music (very badly it must sadly be said). I wouldn’t hoard vintage guitars unless I could actually conjure up something vaguely creative and emotional out of them. Perhaps interestingly, I don’t play other people’s music; I much prefer to ‘do my own thing’ for better or worse. Usually the latter.
I am incessantly amazed at what I don’t know. I know that shouldn’t be the case, but society tends to prejudge ignorance as a weakness and expertise as a virtue. What others regard as the blatantly obvious is utterly oblivious to me until I encounter it. However, isn’t that what exploration and discovery is all about?
If we accept that “Music is the universal language of mankind” Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807-1882), one can only trust that exploration is the means by which we enhance and articulate our own individual musical linguistic skills.
Musicology may not be quite the right word for my approach towards modern music but I sure can’t think of a better one. Musicology Lite perhaps? Deluded dilettante? Possibly. Biased? Definitely. We all have our own opinions, right? And, thus, the search goes on.
“Music is the strongest form of magic.” Marilyn Manson (1969‑)
Sex, Drugs & Rock ‘n’ Roll
Musicology suggests an interest in music psychology, which is how music affects the cognitive functions of the human system. Building on some of my opinionated comments last month, here’s a thought for the day. Let us remember that music carries with it enormous power to improve our mental health and wellbeing. Music can boost serotonin, dopamine, endorphin and oxytocin levels that work on the pleasure receptors of the brain. Put simply, these magic substances can act as effective natural anti‑depressants and can help to improve both mood and behaviour. All in all, mostly good stuff then. As we all know, music, can also irritate the heck out of us sometimes, so remember to love what you love.
Now here’s an interesting diversion into music cultural history. All three human activities, sex, drugs and music directly affect the pleasure centres of the brain, so there is something scientific behind the old rockers’ adage, ‘Sex, Drugs and Rock ‘n’ Roll’ after all. While some suggest the phrase came from Ian Dury’s 1977 single, its roots derive from a much earlier hendiatris, ‘wine, women and song’, emanating from Germany in the 1770s, although there is some debate as to who actually coined it. Many scholars attribute its origins date back even further to theologian, Martin Luther.
“Wer nicht liebt Wein, Weib und Gesang, der bleibt ein Narr sein Leben lang. (Who not loves not wine, women and song, remains a fool his whole life long).” Martin Luther (1483‑1546)
The first modern use of the phrase was printed in a LIFE magazine article that dates from 1969, “The counter culture has its sacraments in sex, drugs and rock.” In 1971, The Spectator magazine printed, “Not for nothing is the youth culture characterised by sex, drugs and rock ‘n’ roll.” Ian Dury certainly made the most of it.
CRAVE Guitars ‘Record of the Month’
Once again, as this is a bit of an outlier in the overall scheme of CRAVE Guitars’ articles, I cannot leave without at least mentioning one of those albums that warrants repeat listening (for me). While last month, I was clinging onto sultry summer with dub reggae, this month, with the rapid decline into grim winter, I’m going for something a little more contentedly contemplative.
Biosphere – Microgravity (2015 reissue of the 1991 studio album with additional tracks). Biosphere is electronica artist, Geir Jenssen (1962‑) from Tromsø, Troms, Norway. The 16 tracks fall broadly into the ambient, ambient techno, ambient house, field recording and progressive electronica genres. Microgravity was Biosphere’s debut studio album. Laidback ambient grooves are a wonderful way to escape and transport one’s consciousness into an otherworldly, serene dimension, great for relaxation, stress relief and focus. It is also great for testing the hi‑fi.
“If music be the food of love, play on, give me excess of it; that surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die” from the play, ‘Twelfth Night’ (c.1601/1602) by William Shakespeare (1564-1616)
Tailpiece
Well that’s another monthly article done and dusted. Number 75 to be precise since I started writing CRAVE Guitars’ articles way back in November 2014. It’s come a long way.
I am genuinely grateful to be in the position whereby I am able freely to undertake such projects as this one. The author is acutely aware of the extreme difficulties faced by innocents around the globe.
The pursuit of new stuff is unlikely to abate now that it has begun in earnest. Is there anything I regret uncovering? Nope. I try hard not to regret anything; I would rather use any missteps along the way as a learning experience. Are there any guilty pleasures that have been adopted? Probably, but now isn’t the time or place for shaming my deviant musical proclivities! Surprises? Plenty. Pleasure? A mixed bag. Top tips? A few. Anticipation? Always.
What is most encouraging is that there is an almost unlimited wealth of awesome, incredible music out there waiting to be discovered if you want to look hard enough. Enjoy!
The plan is to get back to more CRAVE Guitars core raison d’être for the next article. However, we all know what happens to “the best laid schemes o’ mice an’ men” from the poem, ‘To a Mouse’ (1785) by Scottish poet Robert Burns (1759‑1796), so no promises. OK? Thanks for reading.
Peace, love, truth and guitar music be with you always. Until next time…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “Material possessions feed the vanity of the ego, while music nourishes the spirit and sustains the soul”
Before we get going, I can’t help but comment on the current crisis. We live in truly remarkable times. It seems unimaginable how rapidly and fundamentally the COVID‑19 pandemic has negatively impacted on our global society. Just one month ago, the coronavirus outbreak didn’t even register as a ‘thing’ in the last article. How quickly things change. Is the current madness possibly some Promethean portent? One can contemplate conspiracy theories until the cows come home; ultimately, it matters not whether it is intentional biological terrorism, divine intervention or arbitrary happenstance, the consequences of today’s events will undoubtedly resonate through our species’ future history (if there is any!).
With the very real threat of the ‘coronapocalypse’ doing its best to destabilise our fragile civilisation, thank you for bothering to pop in here and take a look at the latest in this series of articles. The cruel irony of documenting mankind’s musical history up to 2020 is not lost on me. If society, as far we know it, ends c.2020, this evidential record may, after all, tell the full story of man’s last days of making music on this Earth. One can only hope that there may be some surviving souls left to learn and convey the salutary tale of our artistic legacy to upcoming generations.
Anyhoo, as an idle distraction from looking into the abyss (paraphrasing German philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche), we really should stick to the knitting (referencing American business author Tom Peters) – apologies for merrily mixing my metaphors. You may have thought that after 11 lengthy articles, several hundred documented global events and around 1,700 discrete music facts that we’d be done by now and we could simply move on to another topic altogether. Not quite. To me, the narrative remains a touch inchoate and there are a few things that I felt needed to be added in order to give more life to the sterile specifics.
Before we move onto the next morsel on the menu, it’s time for that regular monthly recap. If you would like to (re)visit the first eleven parts (and 370 years) of the story, you can do so here (each link opens a new browser tab):
So far this series of articles has chronicled more than three‑and‑a‑half centuries of musical evolution through a multitude of factual snippets. However, the trouble with facts is that they are just that, facts. There is little subjectivity associated with them. If nothing else, music is important to us because of the way express ourselves and how it makes us feel. Music may evoke strong memories or trigger deep emotional responses and will surely be different for every individual. What I want to convey in this article is how profoundly and vitally important music is to us mere Homo sapiens (which, paradoxically, is Latin for ‘wise man’, coined by Swedish botanist Carl Linnaeus in 1758).
If you recall my previous 9‑part series on the ‘History of the Guitar’, that particular chronology covered several millennia, so it is clear that people have been making and listening to music for many centuries and, consequently, people have also been thinking, talking and debating music’s contribution to civilisation for a similar period. In many ways, the ‘History of the Guitar’ and the ‘Story of Modern Music’ make for good companion pieces and can be correlated and cross‑referenced.
Musicians are understandably a biased sample of the population. They are embedded in their craft to the point that, for many artists, life is an adjunct to music, rather than vice versa. What I want to explore with this article is the attachment that so many non‑musicians from hugely diverse backgrounds have to music in all its manifestations. While it is certainly possible for me to pontificate on such matters (as I’m sure you are well aware that I’m prone to do), it is better that the insights herein come from recognised commentators on the human condition and who have at one time or another over several hundreds of years made statements about music. Their vocabulary is far more eloquent and succinct than mine you’ll be pleased to hear. The source of these insightful anecdotes is a rag‑tag grouping of people with some historical stature, so as to bring some further credibility to the feelings we all may have about the subject matter.
The aim is hopefully to provide a completely different perspective on music in its infinite diversity, as well as be entertaining along the way. Is it just me or is there is some intrinsic irony in using only words to describe music without any melody or harmony involved?
The other advantage of this (first) epilogue is that it is significantly shorter than any others in the series so far. I haven’t tried to go for quantity here, rather I have endeavoured to document some quality observations. You may well recognise a few of these words of wisdom. Similarly, there will undoubtedly be many that I have omitted or missed, so feel free to fill in any gaps with your own favourites.
80‑ish essential quotes about music by non-musicians
The following quotes are in alphabetical order of the person, rather than any attempt to document the sayings in date order, as with the previous articles. I hope these fascinating and varied idioms carry you off to a different place, albeit temporarily.
Beethoven tells you what it’s like to be Beethoven and Mozart tells you what it’s like to be human. Bach tells you what it’s like to be the universe – Douglas Adams (1952‑2001)
Where words fail, music speaks – Hans Christian Andersen (1805‑1875)
Life is like a beautiful melody, only the lyrics are messed up – Hans Christian Andersen (1805‑1875)
Music was my refuge. I could crawl into the space between the notes and curl my back to loneliness – Maya Angelou (1928‑2014)
Everything in the universe has a rhythm, everything dances – Maya Angelou (1928‑2014)
The most exciting rhythms seem unexpected and complex, the most beautiful melodies simple and inevitable – W.H. Auden (1907‑1973)
Music washes away from the soul the dust of everyday life – Berthold Auerbach (1812‑1882)
Without music, life would be a blank to me – Jane Austen (1775‑1817)
Music is the voice that tells us that the human race is greater than it knows – Napoleon Bonaparte (1769‑1821)
A lot of music is mathematics. It’s balance – Mel Brooks (1926‑)
There is no truer truth obtainable by man than comes of music – Robert Browning (1812‑1889)
Who hears music feels his solitude peopled at once – Robert Browning (1812‑1889)
To me, the greatest pleasure of writing is not what it’s about, but the music the words make – Truman Capote (1924‑1984)
Music is well said to be the speech of angels – Thomas Carlyle (1795‑1881)
Music with dinner is an insult both to the cook and the violinist ― G.K. Chesterton (1874‑1936)
A bird does not sing because it has an answer. It sings because it has a song – anonymous Chinese proverb
Music is the soundtrack of your life – Dick Clark (1929‑2012)
Music produces a kind of pleasure which human nature cannot do without – Confucius (551‑479 BCE)
If one should desire to know whether a kingdom is well governed, if its morals are good or bad, the quality of its music will furnish the answer – Confucius (551‑479 BCE)
Extraordinary how potent cheap music is – Noël Coward (1899‑1973)
We are the music makers, and we are the dreamer of dreams – Roald Dahl (1916‑1990)
If I had my life to live over again, I would have made a rule to read some poetry and listen to some music at least once every week – Charles Darwin (1809‑1882)
Music touches us emotionally, where words alone can’t – Johnny Depp (1963‑)
Most people die with their music still locked up inside them – Benjamin Disraeli (1804‑1881)
If I were not a physicist, I would probably be a musician. I often think in music. I live my daydreams in music. I see my life in terms of music… I cannot tell if I would have done any creative work of importance in music, but I do know that I get most joy in life out of my violin – Albert Einstein (1879‑1955)
It is always fatal to have music or poetry interrupted – George Eliot (1819‑1880)
Life seems to go on without effort when I am filled with music – George Eliot (1819‑1880)
You are the music while the music lasts – T.S. Eliot (1888‑1965)
Music causes us to think eloquently – Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803‑1882)
Music is the language of the spirit. It opens the secret of life bringing peace, abolishing strife ― Kahlil Gibran (1883‑1931)
Where words leave off, music begins – Heinrich Heine (1797‑1856)
Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent – Victor Hugo (1802‑1885)
After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music – Aldous Huxley (1894‑1963)
Music expresses feeling and thought, without language; it was below and before speech, and it is above and beyond all words – Robert G. Ingersoll (1833‑1899)
I need music. It’s like my heartbeat, so to speak. It keeps me going no matter what’s going on – bad games, press, whatever! – LeBron James (1984‑)
The only truth is music – Jack Kerouac (1922‑1969)
You couldn’t not like someone who liked the guitar – Stephen King (1947‑)
Music in the soul can be heard by the universe – Laozi (6th Century BCE)
It requires wisdom to understand wisdom: the music is nothing if the audience is deaf – Walter Lippmann (1889‑1974)
Music is the universal language of mankind – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807‑1882)
The great tragedy of the average man is that he goes to his grave with his music still in him – Henry Wadsworth Longfellow (1807‑1882)
Music is the art of the prophets and the gift of God – Martin Luther (1483‑1546)
My heart, which is so full to overflowing, has often been solaced and refreshed by music when sick and weary – Martin Luther (1483‑1546)
Next to the word of God, the noble art of music is the greatest treasure in the world – Martin Luther (1483‑1546)
Music and silence combine strongly because music is done with silence, and silence is full of music – Marcel Marceau (1923‑2007)
A musician must make music, an artist must paint, a poet must write, if he is ultimately to be at peace with himself – Abraham Maslow (1908‑1970)
I try to apply colours like words that shape poems, like notes that shape music – Joan Miró (1893‑1983)
I painted the picture, and in the colours the rhythm of the music quivers. I painted the colours I saw – Edvard Munch (1863‑1944)
Music brings a warm glow to my vision, thawing mind and muscle from their endless wintering – Haruki Murakami (1949‑)
And those who were seen dancing, were thought to be insane, by those who could not hear the music – Friedrich Nietzsche (1844‑1900)
In music the passions enjoy themselves – Friedrich Nietzsche (1844‑1900)
Without music, life would be a mistake – Friedrich Nietzsche (1844‑1900)
If you want to make beautiful music, you must play the black and the white notes together – Richard Nixon (1913‑1994)
Music is a whole oasis in my head. The creation process is so personal and fulfilling – River Phoenix (1970‑1993)
Music and rhythm find their way into the secret places of the soul – Plato (c.428‑348BCE)
Music is a moral law. It gives soul to the universe, wings to the mind, flight to the imagination, and charm and gaiety to life and to everything – Plato (c.428‑348BCE)
Music is the movement of sound to reach the soul for the education of its virtue – Plato (c.428‑348BCE)
Musical innovation is full of danger to the State, for when modes of music change, the fundamental laws of the State always change with them – Plato (c.428‑348BCE)
I would teach children music, physics, and philosophy; but most importantly music, for the patterns in music and all the arts are the keys to learning – Plato (c.428‑348BCE)
Love is friendship set to music – Jackson Pollock (1912‑1956)
There is geometry in the humming of the strings, there is music in the spacing of the spheres – Pythagoras (c.570‑495BCE)
Music is a very big participant in everything I do, from the moment I wake up to the moment I go to bed – Zoe Saldana (1978‑)
I would say that music in our schools should be a must. When all other things pass away, music and art are still the things that are remembered. Music is one of the things, like the ability to laugh, that has kept mankind going for thousands of years. Music keeps us sane – Charles M. Schulz (1922‑2000)
There are two means of refuge from the miseries of life: music and cats – Albert Schweitzer (1875‑1965)
If music be the food of love, play on, give me excess of it; that surfeiting, the appetite may sicken, and so die – William Shakespeare (1564‑1616)
The earth has music for those who listen – William Shakespeare (1564‑1616)
The man that hath no music in himself, Nor is not moved with concord of sweet sounds, is fit for treasons, stratagems and spoils; The motions of his spirit are dull as night, And his affections dark as Erebus. Let no such man be trusted. Mark the music – William Shakespeare (1564‑1616)
Hell is full of musical amateurs: music is the brandy of the damned – George Bernard Shaw (1856‑1950)
Music, when soft voices die, vibrates in the memory – Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792‑1822)
Our sweetest songs are those that tell of saddest thought – Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792‑1822)
How is it that music can, without words, evoke our laughter, our fears, our highest aspirations? – Jane Swan (1925‑2010)
Doctors can heal the body, but it is music that lifts the spirit – Mother Teresa (1910‑1997)
When I hear music, I fear no danger. I am invulnerable. I see no foe. I am related to the earliest of times, and to the latest – Henry David Thoreau (1817‑1862)
Music is the shorthand of emotion – Leo Tolstoy (1828‑1910)
No matter how corrupt, greedy, and heartless our government, our corporations, our media, and our religious & charitable institutions may become, the music will still be wonderful – Kurt Vonnegut (1922‑2007)
Virtually every writer I know would rather be a musician – Kurt Vonnegut (1922‑2007)
Music is the art which is most high to tears and memory – Oscar Wilde (1854‑1900)
Music makes one feel so romantic – at least it always gets on one’s nerves – which is the same thing nowadays – Oscar Wilde (1854‑1900)
Music enriches people’s lives in the same way paintings and literature do. Everybody deserves that – Victoria Wood (1953‑2016)
Music is an element that should be part and parcel of every child’s life via the education system – Victoria Wood (1953‑2016)
I listened, motionless and still; And, as I mounted up the hill, The music in my heart I bore, Long after it was heard no more – William Wordsworth (1770‑1850)
Tailpiece
That was, I believe, quite an interesting yet valuable diversion. Hopefully, you can now understand the rationale for seeking perceptions that are far more articulate than the absurd utterings of a heretical hierophant like me. One more quote that I like, which I cannot attribute to anyone in particular but which seems relevant and appropriate to current tragic events is, “Sometimes music is the only thing that takes your mind off everything else”.
What next, I hear someone say? As American amateur anthropologist Robert Ripley might say, “believe it or not”, there is a bit more ground to cover yet so my labours require a little more perseverance. Having come this far, though, I hope you’ll stick with it until the very end, which is now in plain sight.
With the artifice of our flimsy and ephemeral culture unravelling before our very eyes, please take care, stay safe, be healthy, look after yourselves and extract solace from some of the great musical milestones covered in these particular periodical parlances (sorry, I can’t help the allure of pretentious alliteration). Perhaps, if there is a sliver of something positive to take from being so close to the wretched mortal precipice, it is to ‘take nothing for granted’ and ‘make the most of every moment’. Clichés perhaps but also truisms for our tragic times. Surely, to do otherwise is eschewing sanity.
It will probably be no surprise that I relish presiding in splendid self‑imposed isolation and seclusion. This conscious choice is less to do with any prevailing contagion but more to do with being a curmudgeonly reclusive misanthrope. As I am sure you are well aware, I can’t resist the addictive magnetism of cool vintage guitars, effects and amps so, in between these inane cogitations and avoiding the prevalent plague, you probably know where I’ll be and what I’ll be doing. I hope I’m still here for ensuing articles. Until next time…
CRAVE Guitars’ ‘Quote of the Month’: “The science of the universe is the rule book by which our music is created. The mystery of the brain is the filter by which our music is felt as emotion”