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Why my guitar gently weeps (The death of the electric guitar industry -and why you should care)
Washington Post ^ | 6/22/17 | Geoff Edgers

Posted on 06/22/2017 4:29:03 PM PDT by Drew68

The convention couldn’t sound less rock-and-roll — the National Association of Music Merchants Show. But when the doors open at the Anaheim Convention Center, people stream in to scour rows of Fenders, Les Pauls and the oddball, custom-built creations such as the 5-foot-4-inch mermaid guitar crafted of 15 kinds of wood.

Standing in the center of the biggest, six-string candy store in the United States, you can almost believe all is well within the guitar world.

Except if, like George Gruhn, you know better. The 71-year-old Nashville dealer has sold guitars to Eric Clapton, Neil Young, Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift. Walking through NAMM with Gruhn is like shadowing Bill Belichick at the NFL Scouting Combine. There is great love for the product and great skepticism. What others might see as a boom — the seemingly endless line of dealers showcasing instruments — Gruhn sees as two trains on a collision course.

“There are more makers now than ever before in the history of the instrument, but the market is not growing,” Gruhn says in a voice that flutters between a groan and a grumble. “I’m not all doomsday, but this — this is not sustainable.”

The numbers back him up. In the past decade, electric guitar sales have plummeted, from about 1.5 million sold annually to just over 1 million. The two biggest companies, Gibson and Fender, are in debt, and a third, PRS Guitars, had to cut staff and expand production of cheaper guitars. In April, Moody’s downgraded Guitar Center, the largest chain retailer, as it faces $1.6 billion in debt. And at Sweetwater.com, the online retailer, a brand-new, interest-free Fender can be had for as little as $8 a month.

What worries Gruhn is not simply that profits are down. That happens in business.

(Excerpt) Read more at washingtonpost.com ...


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: electricguitar; fake; fakenews; guitar; music; rockandroll
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To: Nevadan

You went to the wrong artist.
Go to a Melody Gardot concert and see who is there.


41 posted on 06/22/2017 4:59:42 PM PDT by MrEdd (MrEdd)
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To: Marie Antoinette

I know a lot of HS kids that play classic rock as well as we did when it was new rock.

BUT I agree with the shrinking market, as today’s music is more electronic techno and that there are many manufacturers and Chinese made imports that have created downward price pressure. Just not the demand for a high Strat, Les Paul, or PRS.

I see guitars where function meets form and therefore “art”


42 posted on 06/22/2017 4:59:51 PM PDT by Jimmy The Snake
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To: Drew68

Demographic change and the fact that CNC routers have made it so easy for relative amateurs to make high quality instruments.


43 posted on 06/22/2017 5:00:12 PM PDT by Prolixus (Drain the swamp!!!)
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To: Steve_Seattle

I’ve never seen that decline associated with the British Invasion before. I’ve always heard that the cause was kids not getting started, mostly due to the emergence of video games in the 1980s.


44 posted on 06/22/2017 5:00:26 PM PDT by SoCal Pubbie
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To: Drew68
Long article. I Don't think they ever got around to saying why we should care.

But yeah, being part of a band doesn't seem to be such a big thing now.

Maybe rappers and DJs have replaced guitarists nowadays.

45 posted on 06/22/2017 5:01:12 PM PDT by x
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To: Steve_Seattle

all we have are divas and fruits.


46 posted on 06/22/2017 5:01:30 PM PDT by ronnie raygun (Trump plays chess the rest are still playing checkers)
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To: Drew68
I started playing in 1975 with a beat up Tesco. I still have my Strat Squire (with beefed up pick ups) and my turtle back Ovation acoustic. That's all I need.
47 posted on 06/22/2017 5:01:30 PM PDT by 4yearlurker (Government can make you feel so small and mean.-John Steinbeck)
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To: Drew68
It's more than just a guitar, but you'd be hard-pressed to find a combination of stringed instruments in one great song like this one:

Steve Earle -- Copperhead Road

48 posted on 06/22/2017 5:04:11 PM PDT by Alberta's Child ("I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris." -- President Trump, 6/1/2017)
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To: Steve_Seattle
Yeah, the acts that still show a bit of testosterone are getting long in the tooth.


49 posted on 06/22/2017 5:05:40 PM PDT by Charles Martel (Progressives are the crab grass in the lawn of life.)
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To: SoCal Pubbie
Do you mean coin collecting, model building and so forth?

Those, along with control-line planes, tether cars, slot cars, chemistry sets, erector/meccano sets, etc.

I used to occasionally have meetings with a guy who had formerly worked for Monogram back in the day, and he laid out a convincing case along with not a little bitterness.

Mr. niteowl77

50 posted on 06/22/2017 5:08:33 PM PDT by niteowl77 (Trust- but verify.)
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To: Drew68

In the sixties every one of my male friends played guitar.


51 posted on 06/22/2017 5:08:55 PM PDT by heights
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To: Marie Antoinette

Same here with my kid.


52 posted on 06/22/2017 5:08:59 PM PDT by RushIsMyTeddyBear
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To: truth_seeker

I’m 66 and find the new American folk and bluegrass by young bands to be largely excellent. As always there hits and misses, but the genre is really good. I’m listening to lots more custom music lists thanks to Spotify, Pandora and Tidal. I bought a BlueSound Node 2 streamer and love it.

It’s a different era without a few channels on AM and FM dials picking winners. Now you have thousands of crystal clear channels at your beck and call.


53 posted on 06/22/2017 5:09:19 PM PDT by ProtectOurFreedom
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To: Charles Martel
I don't know why, but your post just reminded me of this. LOL.


54 posted on 06/22/2017 5:09:25 PM PDT by Alberta's Child ("I was elected to represent the citizens of Pittsburgh, not Paris." -- President Trump, 6/1/2017)
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To: Mama Shawna
Thinking of selling my '65 Fender Strat(sunburst)with(same year)Deluxe Reverb Amp...

Any idea the market value on these right now?

55 posted on 06/22/2017 5:10:38 PM PDT by RckyRaCoCo (FUMSM)
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To: Drew68

That’s a thing?

I love a good guitar solo, or better yet, 3 guitars in harmony (Iron Maiden).


56 posted on 06/22/2017 5:11:48 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: FreedomPoster

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2MUzYR_2eM


57 posted on 06/22/2017 5:12:22 PM PDT by truth_seeker
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To: batterycommander

Good stuff.


58 posted on 06/22/2017 5:12:29 PM PDT by RushIsMyTeddyBear
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To: Steve_Seattle

Beatles weren’t rock and roll, there were pop.

The rest of the list looks decent.


59 posted on 06/22/2017 5:13:06 PM PDT by Bulwyf
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To: Drew68

One of the other contributors is cable tv. Average bill is 110.00 per month and I have friends who pay 250.00 per month.

I tell people that the reasons I don’t have cable is that
1.You can buy a Stratocaster every six months if put that money in an envelope.

2. Cable tv is basically a process of watching other people have fun. Not my favorite thing to do. A waste of time. I spend a good deal of time in the garage having a good time.


60 posted on 06/22/2017 5:13:27 PM PDT by buffaloguy
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