So… what is “THE SECRET ROOM?

The Secret Room is a website where players will have access to a vast repository of tips, tricks, and techniques — the kind of “secrets” that some musicians jealously protect. But before being admitted to this password-protected site, visitors must contribute one of their own tone secrets — the kind of hard-won musical wisdom that is almost too good to share.

Once players submit a secret, they get access to all the other exclusive secrets. They can also comment on the secrets and rate them. And just to keep things lively, the highest rated secret between now and March 1^st, 2012 will receive a Godin Summit CT, a lovely and versatile carved-top solidbody electric guitar that sells for around $1,000. The second and third place prize winners will receive a set of Seymour Duncan pickups of their choice.

Click the link below to submit your tone secret and to discover a world of the best kept secrets:

Take me to “The Secret Room”…

Looking for Quality Backing Tracks?

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Strat® players can customize their sound and upgrade their electronics in minutes with Seymour Duncan’s new series of Fully Loaded Pickguards.

The Triple Rails Pickguard is locked and loaded for those that play rock or metal using the ferocious Hot Rails for Strat® pickups. The Classic Pickguard features a Custom Stack plus in the bridge, a Classic Stack in the middle and a Vintage Hot in the neck, giving you the sound of a Classic Strat® and then some. The Bring Your Own Pickups Pickguard allows you to choose your pickup combination so that you can create the tone you desire.

Install any combination of pickups in minutes thanks to the Liberator which is installed in the Triple Rails, Classic and Bring Your Own Pickups Pickguard and will allow you to change your pickups in minutes using only a screwdriver.

The Antiquity Pickguard features an artfully aged look with true vintage tone and each is personally signed by Seymour W. Duncan.

Watch this video for more information:

Tom Noll has selected the WINNING NAME in the “Name the Roy Buchanan Painting Contest”.

This afternoon, I received the following email from Tom…

The Roy Buchanan painting… what an experience! Thanks to all of you for the great inspiration you provided along the way which helped the painting foster its ethereal feel.

I’ve got to admit that a few months back, Roy Buchanan was just a name which I associated with a man who was often referenced as a giant influence to many other guitar slingers that I loved, but I’d never explored to find out about him as to why he was so revered. Now, after this brief exposure, I hear why, and I have deep respect for who he was, what he stood for, and what he’s meant to music and to those who have followed.

This contest opened my eyes with the outpouring of emotion and creativity from fans as they expressed what my painting of Roy meant to them. Along the way came a suggestion that is a title of a 1973 song of Roy’s… “Nephesh“, (neh’-fesh) which in Hebrew means soul, or life. This title had a nice connection for me, and it was a singular submission by a person who went on to offer the comment… “and it’s always been one of mine, and my sister Jenny’s favorite songs of dad’s”.

I’m humbled to have my painting of Roy Buchanan named by his son, David J. Buchanan.

As the days of the contest rolled by, David gave us additional little glimpses of his father that enhanced what I was doing, what I was feeling, and shedding some light on what otherwise would have never been known.

Congrats and Thanks David!!! Your complimentary print will be on its way, and I’m sure you will give it a place of honor.

I’ve currently got the painting in the works, making reproductions this week, and will be shipping prints this Monday, February 6th to those who have pre-ordered them. For all others that would like to celebrate Roy Buchanan’s memory with “Nephesh” and would like to own early editions, please email me at Tom@TomNoll.com and I’ll hook you up via a paypal invoice (you don’t need a paypal account). Now that we’ve appropriately named the painting, I am honoring the introductory offer of $222 for prints for another week until February 12th.

Thanks…Tom
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GuitarDaddy adds… As Tom mentioned, along the way David shared many stories with us about his life as a young boy and growing up with a father that so many guitarists and musicians idolized. David shared with me that his Dad gave him a 1969 Telecaster (David was born in 1969)… but David never wanted to be compared to his father, so he just slid the guitar under his bed.

As the years passed, David grew to find his passion in poetry.

Today, his work is published on his web site: www.PoetryBuchanan.com. David also maintains a website on MySpace where he also writes a blog. Check it out at: www.MySpace.com/buchanan69.

A few days ago, David shared some personal things with me and graciously granted me permission to reprint them here on the TheGuitarBuzz.

Presented here is a rare glimpse of a private family photo and a poem that David wrote in 2005 about his father… and his guitar.

I found David’s work to be heartfelt, emotional and very thought provoking.

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His Guitar

All through childhood I heard his guitar
Little did I know he was a star
But man was he so bizarre
Very distant, very far
With manic-depression he was on par
His only release was his guitar
There must have been an unseen scar
Hidden behind that smoky cigar
One night with lawmen he did spar
One final act in a police car
Sweet Dreams to you now you’re truly a star
Strumming Nancy in some heavenly bar
Yet I can still hear him playing
His guitar

– 11-24-10 wwww

Copyright © 2005 David Buchanan

Thank you so much David, for sharing your poetry with us!

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Awarded by Billboard Magazine as the #1 Blues Artist of 2010, watch blues-rock guitarist and singer-songwriter Joe Bonamassa perform Live at The Beacon Theatre with special guest appearances by Paul Rodgers, John Hiatt and Beth Hart.

His 2011 release Dust Bowl debuted at #1, the 3rd consecutive album by Bonamassa to debut #1 on Billboards Blues Albums, and #37 on Billboard’s Top 200, making it his highest-selling and chart-ranking U.S. debut to date.

The DVD and Blu-Ray will be available on March 26, 2012.

I subscribe to several Guitar Magazines.

I’m sure you do too.

One magazine I look forward to receiving is “Fretboard Journal“. It’s not your traditional axe-stuff… there’s no tab, no CD or DVD reviews, no stomp-box wiring layouts, very minimal advertising and rarely anything that would appeal to a metal-head or cover band.

Yet, I look forward to receiving it…(and I thank my in-laws for the holiday gift-subscription!)

Recently, Fretboard Journal published the ultimate guitar player’s “Bucket-List”. What’s a “Bucket List?” Well, without seeing the movie… it’s that list of things you absolutely have to do before you kick the bucket… The list includes ninety-nine things that the staff of the Fretboard Journal thought every guitarist should do before they die.

I will re-publish 10 of the items (below) and link to the FULL LIST HERE.

1. Play a real ’59 Gibson Les Paul Standard.
2. Join an online guitar forum.
3. Get into an argument with someone on an online guitar forum.
4. Get invited upstairs at Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, Tennessee to see the good stuff.
5. Fire a drummer.
6. Take a factory tour at C.F. Martin & Co in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
7. Have at least two quotes from This is Spinal Tap committed to memory.
8. Attend Eric Clapton’s Crossroads Festival.
9. Host a house concert.
10. Play “Eight Miles High” on a Rickenbacker 12-string

 
So… How many of these have you done? And what do you think is missing from the full list?

Those of you who know me, know I’ve been holding out on some really big news.

I’m not sure how I kept from blabbing this the day it arrived, but somehow I kept it all to myself.  No more! Take a gander at my new Gigliotti GFB Tobacco-Burst Firebird!

I know what you are saying… what’s a Gigliotti?

Gigliotti guitars are some of the finest custom guitars in the world. Great craftsmanship, great tone, and each one is an individual work of art and a thing of beauty.

Gigliotti guitars feature a unique and patent-pending Gigliotti Voicing System and unique metal plate top insert. This system allows the tops to resonate like a fine acoustic guitar, giving a rich and luscious tone with or without an amp.

The first time I saw a Gigliotti Guitar was back in 2008 at my first Joe Bonamassa concert.

Joe switches out guitars every couple of songs at his concerts and when his tech handed him his tele-shaped Gigliotti, a lot of heads turned. When the stage lights hit these, they look like they are on fire!

I remember sitting there with my buddy Michael Somma and I looked over at him and said: “I have to have one of those!”

The truth is, I purchased a tele-style Gigliotti a few months ago from Wes at Rebel Guitars. I LOVED the look and feel of the guitar but the more I played it, I realized I could not get the tone I wanted from a single-pickup Tele.  So a few months later, Wes got this Firebird version in his inventory and he was gracious to allow me to exchange…or shall we say, UPGRADE! The Firebird has 3 Humbuckers and the tonal variations are endless. Wes is a great honest guy to deal with and he sells a lot of custom guitars. If you are in the market for something unique, check out the inventory at Rebel Guitars.

So I have had the Firebird for about 2 months and have decided to make it my main guitar (for now!).  Seriously, I love the look of it so much, I think I will replace the Les Paul “logo graphic” on TheGuitarBuzz site with this guitar.

What do you think?

The newest addition to the Fender Pawnshop range is the Fender Excelsior Amplifier. The concept behind this strangely named range began in 2011 by recreating premature unique designs from the ’60s and ’70s. Perhaps a bit ahead of their time the prototypes failed to make it into production and left the factory and entered pawnshops, which is where the name comes from. One of the results is the Excelsior, a vintage looking amp with retro Fender genes.

It’s clear to see why the Fender Excelsior was deemed ‘too out there’, visually at least. It takes the word vintage to a new level with a vinyl cover and ‘E’ shaped grille finished with a golden logo. You can almost picture it surrounded by miscellaneous junk in an antique or indeed a pawnshop.

‘Underneath the hood’, or so to speak, we clearly see that Fender have based this on a vintage amp. A practice amp 13-watt design around a 15” custom designed driver. Fender have described the amp as being capable to provide tones from ‘refined’ to ‘raucous’ thanks to the amp being an all-tube design, two 6V6 tubes and two 12AX7 tubes, the more tubes the better (apparently).

The Excelsior has a pretty unique feature unusual to amps; it has a separate microphone, instrument and accordion input. This may not be to everyone’s benefit but could be very useful to blues harmonica players. It also features a tremolo with speed control, treble/bass switch and an external cable output.

In my opinion this is a love it or hate it amplifier. It wasn’t designed to everyone’s taste and I think Fender are targeting, how shall I say this, the experienced guitar player. It really does have an authentic vintage feel to it and just seems to have character, something I’ve rarely found in an amp.

GuitarDaddy Note: This is a Guest Post from Steve Williams, a friend of mine who works for a music shop in the UK. He loves playing and writing about guitars and amplifiers. Thanks Steve!

Larry Carlton Trio: The Paris Concert

Larry Carlton’s The Paris Concert, recorded in April 2008, has been released on CD and digital download.

The trio includes Larry’s son, Travis Carlton, on bass, and also drummer Toss Panos.

The performance took place at the famed New Morning in Paris.

A DVD version of the concert, with bonus materials, is also available.

GuitarDaddy Tip: Listen to sample tracks, or better yet… download the entire CD from eMusic.com for only $5.39!

Not sure how long that deal will last…

It’s time for another “Name the Painting Contest”!

Artist Tom Noll has been busy pouring his talent into a stunning masterpiece of the legendary Roy Buchanan!

Roy was a pioneer of the Telecaster sound. He was a brilliant sideman and solo artist, with two gold albums early in his career and two later solo albums that made it on to the Billboard chart.

Despite never having achieved stardom, he is still considered a highly influential guitar player. He was often called “The Greatest Unknown Guitar Player” or “The Greatest Guitar Player that Nobody has heard of”.

He is credited for influencing many guitarists, including Gary Moore, Danny Gatton and Jeff Beck. Beck even dedicated his version of “Cause We’ve Ended as Lovers” from Blow by Blow to Roy. His work is said to “stretch the limits of the electric guitar” and he is praised for “his subtlety of tone and the breadth of his knowledge, from the blackest of blues to moaning R&B and clean, concise, bone-deep rock ‘n’ roll.”

Roy was ranked #57 on the Rolling Stone list “100 Greatest Guitarists of all Time,” Guitar Player praised him as having one of the “50 Greatest Tones of all Time.”

I think you will agree that Tom has captured Roy’s “vision”, he just needs a “name”!

Now, on to the contest…

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SO HOW DOES THE CONTEST WORK?
ALL YOU HAVE TO DO TO ENTER THIS CONTEST IS LEAVE A COMMENT TO THIS POST WITH YOUR SUGGESTION FOR A NAME OF THE ROY BUCHANAN PAINTING!
TOM WILL SELECT THE OFFICIAL NAME OF THE PAINTING FROM THE COMMENT ENTRIES AND THE WINNER WILL RECEIVE A FREE PRINT OF THE ORIGINAL OIL PAINTING!

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GUITARDADDY TIP: As you can see, this painting is already in the works and according to Tom, is about one week from completion. So this contest will be short! The winner will be announced on FEBRUARY 1, 2012 and will receive a FREE PRINT from the original oil painting!

Tom is also offering a discount for pre-orders with an introductory price of $222 plus shipping for “pre-order low-number reservations” and only $199 for orders that are “pre-paid”.

Tom’s Promise: If you are the winner of the contest and you also pre-ordered a print, your money will be refunded! So go ahead and CONTACT TOM at Tom@TomNoll.com to pre-order now!

CLICK HERE TO LEAVE YOUR COMMENT AND ENTER THE CONTEST!

Note: In the case of duplicate submissions, the person who suggested the name first will have claim to that name. Also note, the winner will forfeit any and all rights to the name to Tom Noll if it is selected to be the winner.

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PRINTS CAN BE ORDERED BY CONTACTING TOM AT THE WEB SITE LINK BELOW:

Tom Noll
22236 W. Hillcrest Dr.
Waukesha, WI 53186 USA
cell 262-844-7499

http://www.tomnoll.com/
http://stores.ebay.com/Creative-Bone-Artworks-Art-Prints

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