Free Republic

Tony Soprano once famously said, “'Remember when' is the lowest form of conversation.” This never dawned on Kiss’ Gene Simmons, whose recent “rock is dead” rant amounted to little more than waxing nostalgic about the days when his band ruled the roost — and revealed his ignorance and disinterest in the current state of the genre. Simmons made his latest proclamation on an episode of The Zak Kuhn Show. When asked if he believed rock was still dead, Simmons replied: "It is. And people don't understand how I can say that when we all have our favorite songs and we...

... U.S. Customs and Border Protection officials on Saturday announced the largest seizure ever of counterfeit Gibson electric guitars. Working with U.S. Homeland Security and the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, agents recently seized more than 3,000 counterfeit guitars at the Port of Los Angeles, the nation’s largest seaport complex. ... All three agencies will be on hand with Gibson officials Tuesday morning in Carson, just a few miles north of the Port of Los Angeles, to detail the seizure and — in advance of the holiday shopping season — to caution consumers about fraudulence products sold on e-commerce platforms...

I play mainly acoustic, finger picking and blues styles. I find that sometimes I need to cut through the mix a little more. Best electric? Go.

Stringed Instruments in History.

Fender’s CFO Matt Janopaul has revealed that in 2022 the electric guitar giant had to deal with almost $100 million worth of canceled orders. Most players know by now that one of the few upsides of the pandemic was a boom in guitar sales. Indeed, after some years on the wane, guitar sales returned to their highest figures since the ’60s Beatlemania boom. Of course, what goes up, must go down, and a decline has subsequently followed. Now we have some concrete figures from the world’s biggest guitar brand, Fender. Speaking to business publication Pyments as part of its Tough...

On behalf of his family, it is with deep and profound sadness that we share the news of Jeff Beck’s passing. After suddenly contracting bacterial meningitis, he peacefully passed away yesterday. His family asks for privacy while they process this tremendous loss.

A Rap DJ is blown away by Roy Clark's skill on the guitar. He has since become a huge Roy Clark Fan. Indicative of nothing except perhaps there is hope for this world after all.

U.S. Customs And Border Protection officers at Washington Dulles International Airport seized 36 counterfeit guitars recently that if authentic, would have had a manufacturer's suggested retail price of $158,692. The guitars arrived in 36 different shipments from China on December 15. Officers suspected the guitars to be counterfeit and detained them to continue their investigation. The collection consisted of 27 Gibson, six Fender, two CF Martin and one Paul Reed Smith guitars. Many of the Gibsons were of the Les Paul line of custom guitars. Even Jimmy Page's Gibson double neck made the collection, as did an axe purportedly autographed...

Jimmy Page's announcement of new signature Telecasters comes almost exactly 30 years since Fender released its very first signature models, although even then the idea of a signature or artist model was hardly a new one. Way back in the 1920s, it was Gibson who jumped on the popularity of Nick Lucas, the first American to become a big star through guitar-and-vocal hits. Nick's bestsellers included "I'm Looking Over A Four Leaf Clover" (1927) and "Tip-Toe Thru The Tulips With Me" (1929), and he also cut some fine guitar-centric stuff like "Pickin' The Guitar" and "Teasin' The Frets." Gibson's Nick...

I interviewed Don Randall in 1992, when I was researching my first book about Fender. In the beginning, Don had worked for Fender's distributor, Radio-Tel, but in the early '50s he joined Fender as the head of sales, staying there until a few years after CBS' takeover in 1965. I met Don at his office in Tustin, California, and spent a couple of enjoyable hours chatting about the old days, necessarily concentrating on his view from the business side of Fender—and, in particular, discussing the controversial CBS purchase. Sitting in his wood-paneled office, he looked to me a little like...

Storied guitar maker Gibson Brands Inc. filed for bankruptcy protection Tuesday as the company has struggled with its debt load after a series of acquisitions. The company, which filed for chapter 11 in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Delaware, said it will continue to operate during the proceedings as it focuses on reorganizing around its core businesses. Gibson plans to wind down its Gibson’s Innovations business, which is largely outside of the U.S. The Nashville-based maker of Gibson Les Paul guitars has been struggling with debt it took on to finance acquisitions of home-entertainment and audio-equipment makers years ago. Among businesses...

An elderly woman was arrested in Palo Alto early Sunday morning after surveillance video captured her allegedly breaking into a church. Palo Alto police took into custody 70-year-old Ethel Jean Hays an hour after officers say she burglarized Trinity Lutheran Church on Middlefield Road, which officers later discovered Hays had broken into once before on Feb. 9. She was booked on two counts of burglary. That's when, police say, she allegedly stole cash donated by parishioners, which was being stored in the church office. Police found Hays walking on Lytton Avenue and saw that she matched a description of the...

A guitar played by Bob Dylan at notable concerts in 1970s is expected to sell for more than $300,000 when it goes up for auction next month. Heritage Auctions said the 1963 Martin D-28 acoustic guitar that once belonged to the singer-songwriter will be offered up Nov. 11 in Dallas. Heritage says Dylan played the guitar through his set at George Harrison’s Concert for Bangladesh in New York City in 1971 and during his Rolling Thunder Revue tour from October 1975 to May 1976. The guitar is being sold by Larry Cragg, who was Dylan’s guitar repairman when Cragg bought...

Ay, ay, ay, ay! As Mexico’s security situation continues to deteriorate -- along with public trust in law enforcement -- some police officers in the country are trading in their guns for guitarrónes in an effort to help improve the image of the force. A group of 21 federal police officers, who also just happen to be professional musicians, have formed a mariachi band in order to show the human side of law enforcement and break down widespread mistrust in the force -- a chronic issue in a country plagued by the underreporting of crimes. Playing one of the country’s...

John McCaw is a building contractor from San Diego who struck jackpot way back in 1969 without even knowing it. The story actually began in 1962, when John Lennon and George Harrison of The Beatles got themselves a pair of matching Gibson J-160E guitars. About a year later, John's six-string was stolen after the band's pre-Christmas show in London. A few years later Mr. McCaw's friend had unknowingly bought Lennon’s Gibson in a local music shop. In 1969, that friend sold it to McCaw for about $175, or about $1,100 when inflation-adjusted for 2014. 45 years later, after using the...

There's a certain Je ne sais quoi about a guy holding a guitar. Or so says a new study from France, which suggests that a man is perceived as more attractive to women if there’s a guitar in his hands. The study's results are similar to the findings of a 2012 study from Israel. France, Israel, Hoboken or Bumpass, Virginia — it doesn't matter where the guitarist is from. The point is, male guitarists are generally viewed as promising mating material (as if we didn't all know that already)!

In 2011, the Department of Justice conducted raids on the Tennessee facilities of the famed Gibson Guitar company and confiscated large quantities of tonewood that had been imported from India and Madagascar. The action included armed SWAT teams, with automatic weapons, who apparently feared being garroted with a guitar string by an enraged Gibson employee. These raids were conducted due to the Lacey Act, which bans the importing of certain woods. The issue at hand was not that the wood was endangered or illegally harvested, but that it was not of the proper thickness that would have meant that some...

In 2011, the Department of Justice raided Gibson Guitar facilities in Memphis and Nashville, alleging a violation of the so-called Lacey Act, a law that bans the importation of certain kinds of wildlife, plants and wood. At the time of the raid, Gibson Guitars CEO Henry Juszkiewicz told Hugh Hewitt on his radio show that the feds confiscated tonewood imported from India for the guitar Gibson manufacturers which would result in a cost of $2 to $3 million for his company. At a great expense in legal fees and time, Juszkiewicz fought the federal government tooth and nail. But in...

U.S. law enforcement agencies are conducting thousands of investigations using a law that makes violating state wildlife statutes a federal crime, often ensnaring hunters and fishermen for seemingly minor infractions. Some even suffer stiff federal prison sentences. Special agents and wildlife inspectors for the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service conduct about 2,500 investigative cases a year of violations of the Lacey Act, a 1900 law meant to combat illegal trafficking of wildlife. ... Rock star Ted Nugent, an avid hunter and fisherman .. "Good, decent families' lives are being turned upside down and ruined by out-of-control jackboot game agencies, particularly...

"Property from the estate of Les Paul" - Auction was held June 8 & 9 in Beverly Hills CA Page through this e-book or download a copy for posterity.