Fingerboard Stories

Part two of our interview with Tommy.  Read on to hear about what he is listening to now, his thoughts on electric vs. acoustic and more.

At the tail end of last year, Thalia Capos had the privilege of talking to the legendary Tommy Emmanuel while he was on tour with Jerry Douglas. Over the course of an hour, we got into everything from Chet Atkins to YouTube stardom.

It’s the most wonderful time of the year… Or so the saying goes. And hey, we can’t deny that we’re big fans of the holiday season here at Thalia capos.

But, we do have a bit of a bee in our bonnet when it comes to the Christmas season, and that’s Christmas music. For six-string aficionados, typical holiday music fare can be a bit of a bummer. The mighty guitar tends to play a supporting role in popular seasonal songs. Tis the season to be jolly? Sure. The season to shred and strum? Not so much.  So what can you do about it?

Back in August, the Thalia community voted Mr. Tommy Emmanuel as the greatest fingerstyle guitarist of all time. It’s not at all surprising. As we’ve already stated a couple of times in this blog, Emmanuel is as complete a guitarist as you’re likely to find. He’s got style, he’s got flair, and he’s got an undeniable sense of melody and musicality that makes him a joy to listen to.  For today’s blog post, then, we’ve decided to compile a list of our favorite Tommy Emmanuel quotes. 

Why won’t your partner buy you a guitar for Christmas? Probably because she thinks you own too many of them. You can try and justify it all you want: “I keep that one in DADGAD. That one’s a parlor guitar, that one’s a dreadnaught. Strats sound different to Les Pauls!”

Unfortunately, though, none of this will fly. As far as she’s concerned, “too many guitars” is less than the amount you currently have.

When we think about Thanksgiving, we think about the festivities. Turkey and Cranberry sauce, Thanksgiving day football, Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade – you know what we mean. But, at its core, Thanksgiving is about, well, giving thanks. And that goes for us guitarists as well. Here at Thalia, we’re been thinking about the guitar-related things to be thankful for this holiday season. These are some of our observations.

“When I picked it up, I was completely humbled. It was a shock-and-awe moment. It changed everything I’d ever thought about acoustic guitars leading up to that point… It was the most amazing acoustic guitar I’d ever played or heard.”

“The Tree” is something of a legend in guitar luthier circles. It’s the source of a mythic, unusually dense, centuries old mahogany that’s uniquely quilted, uniquely beautiful, and coveted by master guitar builders and their rock star clients. If you want a guitar made from this legendary wood though, it’ll come at a price – somewhere in the region of $30,000 to $40,000. But what is “the Tree,” and where did it come from? Read on and find out…

When it comes to tonewood, mahogany carries some serious weight in the guitar world, both literally and metaphorically.

A mainstay in both acoustic and electric guitar manufacturing, it’s been used to make some of the most iconic instruments of all time. And, it’s prized in lutherie for both its aesthetic and sonic properties.

Today, we’re getting to grips with mighty mahogany; its varieties, its tonal characteristics and its sustainability. 

When you think about British guitar heroes of the late 1960s and early 1970s, a few names are likely to crop up:

Jimmy Page; Eric Clapton; Jeff Beck; Keith Richards; George Harrison; Peter Green.

We’ll call these guys the usual suspects.

Richard Thompson, however, is not a usual suspect.

When you think of horror movie soundtracks, it’s probably screeching strings and spooky synths rather than fingerstyle guitar that first come to mind.

But, in anticipation of Hallows’ Eve, we – the Thalia ghoul squad – have been doing a bit of digging to find some acoustic guitar goodness with a suitably seasonal edge.

There are plenty of acoustic guitars out there that’d we’d describe as “classic.” “Iconic?” that’s another thing entirely. In our book, truly “iconic” guitars are few and far between. Often, when that term gets used to describe a six-string, it’s more marketing man hyperbole than true fact.

Partial capos used to be something of a niche product, but in the past few years, they’ve grown exponentially in popularity. But what is a partial capo, and why do you need one? Partial capos have amazing applications for players at every stage of guitar playing. They’re incredibly useful for beginners struggling with learning chord shapes, they make alternate tunings a breeze, especially when playing live, and they unlock new sonic possibilities, facilitating sounds you didn’t know your guitar could make.

When it comes to electric guitars, you don’t get much more iconic than the Gibson Les Paul. Along with the Fender Stratocaster and Telecaster, it’s the instrument that cemented the solid-bodied electric as a bona fide guitar phenomenon, rather than just a passing phase.

Here at Thalia capos, we love open mic nights.

They’re a great opportunity to meet other musicians, as well as to take your guitar playing out of your house and into the great wide world. 

But much more than that, the awesome thing about open mic nights is that they’re, well… open. Unlike a bona fide, ticketed gig, literally anyone can get up and play.  

Historically, maple is synonymous with the manufacture of stringed instruments. Violins, violas and cellos have been made of maple for hundreds of years, and the wood was the resource of choice for many a revered luthier in the world of classical music. 

"It's hard to imagine what contemporary music would be like if people like John Fahey had not been obsessively fascinated with roots American music from the 1920s and 30s. That's the secret of a whole swathe of modern rock'n'roll.”

In the last edition of this blog, we asked for your thoughts on the greatest fingerstyle players of all time. You guys responded in droves, and now the results are in.

Here at Thalia Capos, fingerstyle guitar playing is a true passion. There’s nothing quite like hearing an amazing finger-stylist doing their thing, and watching someone working with their left and right hands in complete synchronicity is one of the things that keeps us pushing to play to every day. With such a love for great fingerstyle playing, it might not surprise you to know that debates about the greatest finger stylist of all time are a frequent occurrence in the Thalia studio. And, that finding consensus amongst the staff here is a rarity!

Throughout my teenage years, posters of guitar heroes were in regular rotation on my bedroom wall.

Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison and James Hetfield were all given “hall of fame” status by me for a time, coming and going as my tastes and fascinations changed, and then changed back again.

You might not know what a capo looks like, but you’ve almost certainly heard one being used. They’ve long been the secret weapon of many a guitar hero. Keith Richards, George Harrison, Jimmy Page, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty have all kept one in their gig bag at one time or another, and used them on many a classic song.

Even if you’re not a fan of his music, you’re probably familiar with Peter Frampton’s Gibson Les Paul, “Phenix.”  It’s the “Frampton Comes Alive!” guitar; the one that he plays on the album, and the one that he’s photographed with on the cover. Today, we’re going to share the story of the iconic “Phenix” guitar; how Frampton got it, lost it, and finally got it back.

The small, but mighty capo is a seriously useful tool to have in your gig bag.

It opens up your fretboard, means you can learn lots of songs without learning complicated chords, and makes transposing songs into different keys a breeze.
Capos are great for making guitar playing simple. But, figuring out which fret to place your capo on can sometimes be confusing.

When we think of the Doors, the first person that comes to mind is Jim Morrison. Mr. Mojo Risin’; The Lizard King. Call him what you want, the man was an icon. He’s not just synonymous with the band; to most of the general public, he is the band.