I love my Furch LIttle Jane! It’s the perfect travel companion and I will not board a plane without it. How it folds up into a backpack and fits in the overhead compartment is a revelation! One issue I have discovered is that the small form factor of the guitar means a small lower bout. Guitar Ergonomics There is not enough guitar to comfortably rest my forearm when fingerpicking. My wrist bends at an awkward angle, I feel the strain creeping up into my shoulder and wrist when playing for a long period. I’ve went as far as placing a throw pillow on the guitar to get more support but it’s awkward and not a sustainable solution. Enter the Abel Armrest I found the Able Armrest from stringsbymail.com and it’s the only one of its kind, as far as I can tell. Imported from Germany, this device comes at a hefty price ($89.99). The concept is simple: it extends the edge of the guitar outward and slightly upward, giving your forearm a more natural, level surface to rest on. Instead of your arm digging into the sharp edge of the guitar’s side, it floats comfortably on a contoured platform. You …
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March, 2025 I posted my first YouTube short demonstrating my new Furch Little Jane guitar. I was testing the waters to see how to do this. I’ve made a few videos here and there but never really went all in. I posted a short here and there after the March post and started getting the hang of it. Late summer, I was on a mission and I posted one short every day for about 4 months. Sometimes it would be two or three videos. I was absolutely obsessed with getting content made. Funny thing was that it has never felt like work. I’ve enjoyed it immensely and still do. Here are some of the insights that I have gained from developing my YouTube channel. Playing Covers is Still King The same rules apply to YouTube as they do when playing live. If you want people to listen to your original music, you need to get their attention with a solid cover song. My best performing videos are covers and the compromise is that I make it my own. How? Many of my covers are of 80’s/90’s rock/metal songs but I do them on the acoustic. One example is my arrangement …
After about 2 months of working on this arrangment of a Genx\Grunge classic, I finally completed my fingerstyle arrangement of Stone Temple Pilots’ “Plush”. Melody is key when arranging a song for instrumental guitar – need something that is recognizable and memorable. From the iconic guitar intro to Scott Weiland’s melody lines, there is not mistaking Plush for any other song. It must have sounded enough like the original because YouTube flagged me for a copyright violation. I challenged it with the reason of fair use (cover song). We’ll see where that goes. I’ll keep you all posted. Arrangement Notes: In case you’re interested, here are some details on the song. For my second full arrangement for guitar, I’m quite pleased with this one. It’s fun to play and those who have heard it, seem to dig it. Let me know what you think in the comments or better yet, visit my YouTube channel and give the video a like and subscribe. More content to come and if you have any ideas on what my next arrangement should be, let me know.
At eighty years old (soon to be 81 in may), Bruce Cockburn is still touring and entertaining fans at the ready when he comes to town. Picking from his catalogue spanning over sixty years with 35+ albums to his name, he shows no signs of stopping. Age has caught up with Bruce a bit – back and hands not cooperating due to wear and tear and arthritis. Cdhanging fingerings and tunings Bruce is able to play songs that were once thought to be never played again. His guitar chops have diminished but the lyrics and his voice is as strong as ever. It’s been over twenty years and countless shows that I’ve seen Bruce play. This one was special; I’ve learned to not take shows like this for granted because you never know. This could be the last Bruce Cockburn show, you never know. Sounds like a dire prediction but one can’t help but think that. WIth that said, I sat in the front row soaking it in and appreciating the music and inspiration that Bruce has provided me over the years. “Time takes its toll but in my soul I’m on a roll” Bruce drew heavily from his most …
The Age of 80’s Hair Metal Power Ballads. Calling all Gen Exers who loved their hair metal, you will know this song. I loved White Lion (mainly Vito Bratta’s playing) and like every band worth their hairspray, they had their power ballad. When the Children Cry You couldn’t turn on MTV or listen to the radio for any extended period of time and not hear this song. Was a popular request from friends when I would break out the guitar. Thirty plus years later, I still knew the chords and lyrics. One day I was playing along with it on Pandora and noticed that the melody was strong enough to maybe be an instrumental. In order to arrange a solo acoustic guitar song, a strong recognizable melody is must. The beginnings of the arrangement More noodling away and I had a rough draft; a basic structure of what I wanted this song to be. Keeping it simple and then adding embellishments here and there. The arrangement was coming into focus. Now this was the first time I attempted arranging a complete song so it was slow going. Almost four months of messing around, taking a break, trying different types of …
