This week we hear from Aaron Tap in LA. First his intro:

I’ve been playing for 25 years, first in a bunch of indie bands in Boston, most recently been touring with singer-songwriter Matt Nathanson. Now I live in L.A. and am focusing on studio projects for the next few months before getting to work on Matt’s next album and inevitable endless touring cycle.  I regularly post my ramblings, songs of the week, and more at www.aarontap.com.

1) What is the favorite guitar that you own and what is it about that  guitar that makes it special?

I’m pictured here with my ’72 Reissue Fender Tele Thinline.  I had seen an original Thinline for the first time way back when I was a metalhead.  It was the first non-shredder guitar that captured my imagination and I longed to own it, but it was way out of my league.  Flash-forward a few years later and I started shopping around on eBay and took a chance on this used reissue.  I got it and immediately fell in love!

I added the Bigsby about a year later and it became my go-to guitar, replacing my also beloved 1964 Epiphone Sorrento (both for safety’s sake and versatility).   It’s the most playable guitar I’ve ever laid my hands on and it keeps itself together beautifully.  I’ve flown with it, driven it in a trailer through all sorts of weather – it even suffered a fall from a 25-foot stage and was still in tune when I fetched it from the ground below – and I haven’t had to have it set up in years!

Aaron Tap on stage with his '72 Reissue Fender Tele Thinline

2) What’s your dream guitar?

I’m oddly both fussy and also kind of non-committal about guitars.  I’ve only owned probably a dozen or fewer guitars in all the years I’ve been playing.  I just like quality.  So I think that if faced with compiling a wish-list of guitars, near the top would have to be – as cliche as it is – a 1959 gold-top Les Paul with P90s. I played one of those on a project a while back and it was like butter.  That is a really beautiful instrument.

3) When you pick up a strange guitar, for example someone else’s or in  a shop what’s the first thing you play to check out if you like or not?

My go-to is usually a non-song country-rock bunch of riffage around open G and C.  If things go well, then from there it’s on to whatever song has been on my fingers that week.  More often than not, it’s going to be a song from Back In Black.

Thanks Aaron, looking forward to putting up the next one of these

If you want to be featured drop me an email – keith AT dbtwang.com

keith

www.dbtwang.com

This weeks dbTwang member feature is of Jeb Buffinton who is in his own words a musician, papa, fiancé, communications consultant… American-raised, gone native in France since 1990.

This is a photo of Jeb jamming with his son.

Jeb playing his favorite guitar - the custom built 6-string by Michael Sanden of Sweden

1) What is the favorite guitar that you own and what is it about that  guitar that makes it special?

My favorite guitar is a custom built 6-string by Michael Sanden of Sweden (see photo above) . It’s small, OM model, Old growth redwood top, Indian rose back & sides, simple maple & ebony trim. Finger-style only, dammit! Anybody gets a pick within a mile of this soft-topped baby is putting their life at risk. Slot head with high-ratio Gilbert classical tuners. (Guitar tech told me recently these were the nicest machines he’d ever seen.)

Keep this in standard tuning, but a full step down, sometimes to dropped D (so in reality C) or double D (C) for Black Water.

Not particularly loud (has a Shatten bridge PU) but responsive to the lightest breath and perfectly balanced. This was a present to myself when I was hired into the events business. I feel blessed every time I pick it up, which is often.

2) What’s your dream guitar?

Can’t get around this question. A single dream guitar?  I keep dreaming & playing with ideas for acoustics & electrics. Here is one of those.

Jeb works out ideas for his own dream guitar - here is one of them

3) When you pick up a strange guitar, for example someone else’s or in  a shop what’s the first thing you play to check out if you like or not?

Depends on my mood…  The look of the guitar will focus my selections at the beginning. An arch-top calls for some jazz or bossa-nova progressions, some chicken-pickin’ leads on a tele, open chords up the neck on a 12-string. Will eventually get to some blues turnarounds on every guitar I pick up.

Like to tune down most acoustics to double dropped D, then open G, to open up the lower register, and to riff a little on “Water Song”, which tends to attract attention. Nice for the ego.

Thanks to Jeb for sharing those answers with us. Want to be featured? Leave a comment here or email keith AT dbtwang.com

keith

www.dbtwang.com

This is the first in a new series of blog posts where we will ask a dbTwang user the same 3 questions and share their answers with you.

We are starting with Brian Connors – based in California and part of the band The Shanks (featured in our last post) he was one of our Alpha users (the first 15 or 20).

UPDATE: Brian’s intro to himself and a shot of him in action!

I’m a lifelong player with a passion for collecting all sorts of guitars, especially vintage guitars and amps. When I’m not playing, I’m investing in new technology companies in Silicon Valley.

1) What is the favorite guitar that you own and what is it about that  guitar that makes it special?

1969 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop. It’s special because it was the first year Gibson re-introduced the Les Paul. I always fantasized about owning a gold top, and when they came out with them again I had to have one. I saved half and my dad paid half (about $450 total as I recall) and bought it in 1969. The mini-humbucker pickups that came sucked, ut it was all I could afford. So about 15 years later I put some killer pickups in it and it came to life. Making that modification would be considered a crime by some today, but this guitar screams and it ain’t going anywhere. Playability and tone first!

1969 Gibson Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop

2) What’s your dream guitar?

Two answers. #1: I own all my dream guitars! That’s why I own them. Answer 2: I find I keep dreaming. There are plenty more I want or even drool over, so I guess my dream guitar is every one I don’t own.

3) When you pick up a strange guitar, for example someone else’s or in  a shop what’s the first thing you play to check out if you like or not?

If it’s an acoustic I’ll play Clapton’s “Lonely Stranger”. If an electric, it’ll be a blues riff in A. Very good question! We all play the same thing in that situation, always!

Thanks to Brian for sharing those answers. Another one coming up in the next week.

keith

www.dbtwang.com