Women Rock! (Don't Forget That)

by Tish Ciravolo, President and Founder, Daisy Rock Guitars

We’ve all heard the phrase “Behind every great man there’s an even greater woman.”

Well, ain’t that the truth!

Perhaps this is best demonstrated by looking to the music industry where countless male musicians would arguably have not been able to create their iconic sound, had they not been influenced first by a female musician. For example, it’s been said that Led Zeppelin vocalist Robert Plant often sings “Joni [Mitchell]” after the line “To find a queen without a king, they say she plays guitar and cries and sings” during live performances. British folk singer Frank Turner and singer-songwriter John Mayer indicate they were heavily influenced by Joni Mitchell by referencing her in their music. Debbie Harry, front woman for Blondie, had a huge impact on many male-fronted bands, including Smashing Pumpkins. Led Zeppelin guitarist Jimmy Page uses a double-dropped D guitar tuning similar to the alternate tunings Joni Mitchell has become synonymous with. 

But let’s take a step back and rewrite that popular statement of “Behind every great man there’s an even greater woman” to “Behind every great person there’s an even greater woman.” Because let’s face it – it’s not just men being influenced by these great female artists. Women inspire other women, too. Joan Jett showed the world that a girl could rock in what we know to be a male-dominated industry. She was a huge inspiration to the Riot Grrrl movement in the ‘90s, which led to the development of many new groups such as Slant 6, The Need, The Frumpies, and Bangs. Janis Joplin stood out in the male-dominated rock era of the ‘60s and influenced future female musicians, including the great Stevie Nicks. And many contemporary guitar-playing female artists, including Taylor Swift and the sisters from Haim, have made it a point to call Joni Mitchell a significant influence on their musical development.

We can take an additional step back and change the statement to “Behind every great society there’s a greater woman.” Where would we be as a culture if we didn’t have songs like “Magic Man,” “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll,” or “Teardrops on My Guitar?”

The scene in Love Actually where Emma Thompson discovers her husband’s infidelity would certainly be less heart wrenching without the music of Joni Mitchell playing in the background. The majority of Americans may not be familiar with the guitarist from The Go-Go’s, Jane Wiedlin, but every adult in America who has not been under a rock for the past 30 years is probably familiar with the hit song “We Got the Beat.”

When we look at the market share of guitarists within our industry and take into account that it still only one in four are women, we understand why the majority of marketing dollars are focused solely on men. But when we look at the amazing artists and music that arguably wouldn’t be in existence without the contribution of the minority of female guitarists, it’s clear that to ignore women in music would be a tremendous error.

Let’s stop using scantily clad females in guitar advertising and promoting the objectification of women. I can’t tell you how many women tell me they will never buy or subscribe to a guitar magazine because of the biased advertising. By ignoring them – and worse – turning them off to our industry entirely through offensive content, we are missing out on a huge opportunity as business owners and doing the artistic community a huge disservice. What we should be doing, as an industry, is directing equal attention to women in our marketing efforts and finding new and creative ways to encourage women to learn fretted instruments.

Used with the express written permission of MMR Magazine (Musical Merchandise Review)                                                       

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 Tish Ciravolo's roots in music run deep. She's played bass or guitar in bands including Rag Dolls,  The Velvets, Shiksa and the Sluts and Lypstick.

 She founded Daisy Rock guitars in 2000 and has grown the guitar company successfully into a well-known brand.