Back to the Future and Guitars Collide
Plus, a spotlight on the incredible Julian Lage
This week, two of my favorite worlds collided - guitars and Back to the Future - and the hunt for Marty McFly’s Gibson (Trogly’s Guitar Show has some good insights into the whole thing). I’m diving into that and way more in this issue: soloing secrets, unsung guitar heroes, a killer bluegrass-meets-jazz moment, and even some solid advice for when you feel like quitting guitar altogether. Also, most issues I put links inside of links, so be on the lookout for more content in each paragraph!
Plus, don’t forget I have all of the new sections from last week, an album rec, a question for you, and a request to show me your setup. Let’s get into it!
🔊Turn This Up
This week’s album recommendation is Arclight by Julian Lage. I’ve been singing the praises of Lage for nearly a decade now. He’s one of those players who turns a genre and what you think about it, upside down on its head. He was a true breath of fresh air for the jazz world, and I’m constantly going back to his albums to learn new things.
His lead lines are playful and clever, along with his amazing sense of timing, and incredible use of dynamics. All of those things are on full display on Arclight, as Lage mostly used a ‘54 blackguard Telecaster into a Fender Super for the tones.
The album front to back is good, but some of my favorite tracks are “Presley”, “Persian Rug” and “Ryland”. Check out those tracks first and see if this is something you’d be into. If you do end up liking Julian’s playing, you’re in luck - he has a great catalog for you to check out. He’ll actually be doing a 10 year anniversary tour soon for his World’s Fair album which showcases his acoustic work. I’d also seriously recommend Modern Lore from 2018 and his latest Speak to Me. If you do end up liking Julian’s playing, let me know. I’d be curious to know what tracks resonate the most with you.
❓Sunday Sound Off
Hitting you with an age old question this week that was inspired by friend of the newsletter, Kirk B. (Hi Kirk!) If you have an answer outside of these two options, let me know in the comments or by replying to the email!
🏡 The Player’s Corner
Copying this section from last week. If there are no submissions this week, totally ok - I’m all about trying little experiments and moving sections in and out of the newsletter to try new things.
OK, let’s talk about what the Player’s Corner is all about. I think it’s a blast to find out what’s working for other guitarists, so here’s my call out to you - reply and send me photos of your setup. It could be your guitar, amp and pedalboard. Heck, it could even be what DAW you’re using to record and your recording gear. It could also include things like apps that are making your life easier. Also, why do you like your setup and what’s your favorite piece of gear? If I get enough submissions I’ll feature them in an upcoming newsletter.
🔗 This Week’s Guitar Links!
The Search for Marty McFly's Back to the Future Guitar - This week two of my favorite things were combined in one video - guitars and Back to the Future. Apparently the team is looking to find the original Gibson used in the movie to document it, but there might be more behind it. One gear channel I watch on YT regularly is Trogly's Guitar Show - I love the way he picks up guitars and breaks down every little spec, literally taking them apart when they hit his bench. He put out a response video to the BTTF one where he talks about some things that might help the team find the guitar - stuff like how the 12th fret inlay looks, along with some history on how the guitar "technically" couldn't have been in the time period because it wasn't even released yet. The juicy part is a claim that some folks have been talking about online - does Gibson already have this guitar and are only using this as marketing to ship a signature instrument down the line? We'll have to see. Norman's Rare Guitars who put out the BTTF video, also uploaded a great compilation of some excellent performances from the shop, which you can check out here.
The 10 PRO secrets that saved me 4752 hours - I love Rotem Sivan videos - not only is he a fantastic player, he often has great advice from his years and years of playing guitar. This video talks about 10 tips that'll help you with your own playing. My favorites were being intentional about what you want to learn. Rather than saying I want to play guitar, define it further - I want to be able to play jazz/fusion like Oz Noy and use "outside sounds". I also liked his advice about learning songs, rather than just learning scales/chords. This is something I've been preaching through my own lessons as a teacher for years - you should always take whatever theory you learn and apply it to a real musical context as soon as possible. If you want to go a little more technical, Rick Beato did a livestream this week where he talked about a lot of "cheat codes" when it comes to guitar - stuff like the avoid note method in jazz, and why he thinks people should actually embrace these notes, how to practice arpeggios, dealing with open string chords and more. You can check out his video here.
Soloing Secrets - Peter Frampton - I wanted to include this soloing secrets video from David Brewster, not only because it covers some amazing Peter Frampton licks, and David has some excellent tone, but because I love his channel and get value from it so often. If you can think of a guitarist, it's likely Brewster has done a video or multiple about them! If you like his teaching style, search out some of his educational books he's released over the years.
Five Incredibly Influential Guitarists Who Deserve More Credit - I always love these types of posts, because they often remind me of guitarists I need to listen to again. I'm including this post because of two of the five guys on the list - Danny Gatton (who wowed me as a kid with his amazing Telecaster playing) and Lonnie Mack, who significantly influenced another one of my heroes, Stevie Ray Vaughan. Who do you think is a guitarist that everyone needs to listen to, but not many people know about?
Who Said The Lydian Dominant Mode Can't Be BLUEGRASS! Bluegrazz Guitar? - I had to include this video in this week’s issue for a few reasons. I’m a big fan of Julian Lage’s playing, and I’m just getting started with Jake Workman’s incredible picking. Not only do both guys seamlessly blend in and out of the “right” notes, making their lead lines sound incredible, but Levi Clay also has a fantastic tab if you’re interested in trying your hand at these lines.
I Almost QUIT GUITAR (But This Changed Everything) - I’m not sure if you’ve ever been there before, but I certainly have. After decades of playing guitar, you’d just rather do something else, and fall into a funk of not wanting to play. Brian Wampler from Wampler Pedals put out a helpful video this week about how to fall back in love with guitar. I had to laugh when he said to buy new gear as his first tip - that being said, getting a new pedal, guitar, amp, even a new recording software can refresh your perspective. Check out the rest of the tips in Brian’s video.
Beginner's Guide to Guitar Strings (Find the Perfect Gauge!) - The next two videos are basically product ads, but they’re both super helpful. I’ve tried out all the products mentioned and can totally recommend them. The first one is Marty Schwartz explaining different gauges of strings, with D’Addario as the backdrop. What’s your favorite string set, and who makes them?
How to Clean & Polish Your Guitars Like the Pros & Top Repair Shops Do - Have a couple of guitars that are looking a little rough? Check out this great video from MusicNomad, where they show us how to clean, polish and wax up your guitars. I'm a big fan of the MusicNomad line of tools - they're not quite as pricey as some of the other brands, but they still last forever. Also, did you know how important dusting is before you get to anything else? This video is definitely worth five minutes.