Solo Guitar Gigs: How Many Guitars?

[guitapick]

Just curious how many guitars you solo instrumental (and/or vocalists, too) guitarists bring to your 2 or 3 set gigs?

 

I'm asking because, after a pretty long break from solo performing, I'm playing my first 2 set gig. I've written quite a few instrumental tunes and have a couple of Kottke tunes under my belt (and a lot of classical stuff which probably won't go over well at this bar). Thing is that, unless I bring my nylon, reso, and Martin along, I won't have enough tunes for two full sets. The tunes I've written are pretty specific (in my mind) to those guitars.

 

It's funny: I was thinking that, by getting out of the electric band scene, I'd be escaping the hauling equipment around thing. Now I've got 3 guits, a gig bag, and an amp. Lighter...but not the "free and easy" acoustic thing I had in mind.

 

I'm working on doing the nylon stuff on the Martin. Not the same...but doable. It's a really sweet guitar.

[pipedwho]

I always bring two. I set them both up, and alternate periodically between them. If something goes wrong with one of them, then the other gets used for the rest of gig.

[Freeman Keller]

Can't answer directly 'cause I don't gig in bars, but I think it is totally cool when a player pics up her reso, flashes the crowd, and launched into some funky piece that only sounds good on one. Then mellow out on the nylon for contrast....

 

I've seen Kottke do his entire show with just one six and a 12, but I've also seen him carry four guitars on stage. I figured out how he staged his songs and tunings so that one lead into the next - concert to dropped D to open D to G to C, altho the last time I saw him he didn't retune all night. Clapton had at least 3 gits out when he did "Unplugged".

 

I think you need to take the quiver

[guitarist21]

Guitars? Two. One in standard and one in open D.

 

Instruments? Usually three plus miscellaneous percussion instruments. That's the two guitars plus a banjo which I use for a song. The percussion is small stuff, but sometimes its just the right environment for people to be beating/shaking/scraping/otherwise agitating some sort of percussion.

 

Ellen

[Stackabones]

I'm so laaaazy. I only take one ... and I play five plus gigs a week! Currently, I play a nylon-string at all my gigs. Rock, pop, jazz, country, whatever--all on the same guitar.

 

I have a backup, but I don't lug it around. I'll probably regret this at tomorrow's gig.

[daklander]

Always two six strings and sometimes the twelve string. Before I swapped the reso it went on many of the gigs and now and again I'll drag the banjo along.

 

Stackabones, count on it. A couple of weeks ago I finished my second Saturday gig and all was well. Recently I don't use the gigging guitars for anything else, I have another I use for practice. So I stowed the guitars and they stayed in the cases until the next Saturday. The first thing out of the gate at that next Saturday gig, the first of two, the main guitar, was nothing but a splat, sound wise. Tried different cables and channels. {censored}! Drag out the back up and finish the gig. Between gigs I replaced the battery in the pickup and was back in business.

Ya gotta be prepared...

[d28andm1911a1]

Just the one

[guitapick]

Yeah...when the solo or duet gig was my only means of employment (back when I was rakin' it in), my one and only was my nylon string. I'm very attached to that guit and would feel strange not bringing her along on any acoustic gig.

 

A full quiver it shall be!

[riffmeister]

Bring 'em all and show the audience what you can do!!

 

Acoustically, I've only been performing occasionally with a flautist, and me on CG. I use a small PA to bring up the level of the guitar to match the flute. Still pretty minimalistic, esp compared to my numerous electric gigs (two guitars, amp, pedals, cables, and lucky me I am keeper of the PA).

[Terry Allan Hall]

Minimum - my Guild JF-4 (6-string) and Taylor 355 (12-string).

 

Frequently, I bring along both Guild F-212XL 12-strings (one set-up in Open G, the other Open D/DADGAD), my Dean reso-lectric for funky slide blues in Open E, and my 40's era Harmony 5-string open-backed banjo.

 

Less often, I'll add my Oahu hawaiian lap guitar (Open E), a couple of my lap dulcimers, and even my mandocello if certain friends want to get up onstage w/ me for a tune.

 

Currently rebuilding a mariachi gut-string that'll become a performing axe for mellower stuff.

[F-holes]

I use three. I bring a Taylore 714CE for the steel string stuff, a cutaway nylon a/e(Hirade EF90), and and archtop(ES-165 avatar pic). My material runs from traditional classical to modern fingerstyle. Rotating the guitars every twenty minutes or so makes it more interesting to the listener and more interesting for me. Also since each guitar has it's own tacility, I can play longer sets with less fatigue when I chage over periodically.

 

This is the Reader's Digest version of what I typed last night just prior to my computer freezing up on me.

 

[Whalebot]

Two

 

OM-21

 

And 000-18 (Jane)

 

And I always wear plaid.

[Dave W.]

Don't think I would take the Fernandez though.

[Cldplytkmn]

I generally take one... my main gigger is my larrivee right now, and SOMETIMES i'll haul along my takamine just to do the very few alternate tunings i do (open A for one tune, and double drop D for a couple other) if i'm feeling lazy, that is... i haven't broken a string while playing in a few years...

[Terry Allan Hall]

Originally posted by Cldplytkmn I generally take one... my main gigger is my larrivee right now, and SOMETIMES i'll haul along my takamine just to do the very few alternate tunings i do (open A for one tune, and double drop D for a couple other) if i'm feeling lazy, that is... i haven't broken a string while playing in a few years...

 

I used to occasionally just bring one guitar to a gig, but I'd break a string EVERY time, usually a "G", towards the middle of the set...almost never break a string if I bring two guitars or more!

 

One of those "Murphey's Law"-type deals, I'm thinking!

[min7b5]

I only bring one guitar.

I

[F-holes]

 

Originally posted by min7b5 I only bring one guitar. I

[hubcat]

when i play solo i usually bring just one

taylor 514ce.

occasionaly a old 67 framus 12 string in a deviant tuning.

when i do the duet i bring 3 (seen on the right in this pic)

74 fretless p bass the above mentioned taylor and a rigel mando.

 

 

[Terry Allan Hall]

Cool rehearsal room, hubcat!

[guitapick]

Very cool rehearsal room. Nice guit, too.

 

FYI:

 

I ended up taking the Martin and Radiotone. Left the classical behind. Figure I'll have another dimension to show next time I play out.

 

Worked out great except for 2 tunes. Wrote them both on the Fernandez and they've got some ungodly stretches which, although I can make them on the Martin, also require half bars which, for me, are much easier to do on a nylon than a steelstring. The result was some "cluster clunkers" which, for me, suck. Lesson learned: either don't play those tunes on the Martin or spend a lot of time practicing them on the Martin to get my hand used to that added pressure on the neck.

 

Other than that, I had fun and the gig went very well considering I haven't played a full solo job in 25 years. All bands and duets in that time. I'm a perfectionist, though...so I'll take what I've learned this time and work towards a better show next time.