Men are from Martin and Women are from Gibson

[catdaddy]

Been to several music festivals this spring and saw lots of performers that played acoustic guitars. In general (of course there are always exceptions) the women performers I've seen have been playing Gibsons or other brands that have a lot of bling (ie abalone rosettes, fingerboard inlays, sunbursts etc) while the men generally have been playing standard Martin models or higher end Martin clone types like Collings, Santa Cruz, Bourgeois, etc that have at most some herringbone trim and many didn't even have fret markers let alone inlays. Coincidence or true gender specific bias? Anyone else noticed this trend?

[aeschylus]

Maybe women just don't have time for guitars with too much bass.

And this is just a shot in the dark, but are you a Martin man by any chance?

[TXTooMuch]

hmmmmm

I play a Gibson and I am very much a man. Whats wrong with beautiful wood and a tiny bit of bling.

[Hudman]

Originally posted by aeschylus Maybe women just don't have time for guitars with too much bass. And this is just a shot in the dark, but are you a Martin man by any chance?

I disagree - most Gibsons have a very full bass tone.

[TXTooMuch]

I find the tone of my Gibson to have a lot of bass, as well as complex warm overtones.

[Freeman Keller]

Paging SusanV. Paging Rada. Paging Cheryl Crow.

OK, now Paging Rory Block (but then, as she says on one of her songs, "she plays just like a man").

[Hudman]

Elvis and Robert Johnson played Gibsons.....enough said.

[Rada]

Well, I can't disagree.....You men can keep ALL the Martins

Give me a J-200 and a Hummingbird, and I'll be very happy

[catdaddy]

Originally posted by aeschylus Maybe women just don't have time for guitars with too much bass. And this is just a shot in the dark, but are you a Martin man by any chance?

Your aim is faulty. I've never owned a Martin. I do however own a Gibson Hummingbird.

Also I'm in no way suggesting that there is some inherently good or bad choice when it comes to brand or bling just that the gender thing seems to me to be fairly consistent.

Sorry Rada I'm not gonna donate my Hummingbird to ya:D

[Sweb]

My first major dread purchase was at a store with a Gibson Hummingbird hanging on the wall right next to a Martin D-35. I really, really liked that Hummingbird but it just didn't have the D-35 sound and that's what I walked out with. Sigh...

[carguy]

I own a Gibson and a Martin.

Does that make me bi?

[catdaddy]

Originally posted by carguy I own a Gibson and a Martin. Does that make me bi?

In my book it makes you a very lucky guitar player....ok so maybe you've got some bi-polar tendencies too

[d03nut]

Can't we just appreciate a clever thread title without getting into the specifics of it for a change? Can't we all just get along?

Having said that, what of the transgendered?

[thirdstone]

My j-45 is sweet!

[egtact]

does this mean most women are secretly "Gibsbians?"

oops! Wrong thread!

[Gretsch Fan]

I would guess it is more of a market divide issue between the plain to bling factor and the number of professional guitarists who are women. As the number of women to men moves to parity the bling factor will probably do so as well. Think of how many men like the fancy Gibson J-200 fret board inlays and pick guard but also like the simple approach of the HD-28. When I look at a dread it is always being compared against a benchmark style from Martin or something similar at least yet when I think of a jumbo the j-200 is more of the point of comparison for me so jumbos get more bling in my eye than dreads. Of course, I realize if a j-200 is has more bling to my eye then my tastes in guitar decoration are fairly tame anyway.

[DonK]

Originally posted by Hudman Elvis and Robert Johnson played Gibsons.....enough said.

Elvis? Elvis? PLAYED a Gibson...I think that's a disservice to Gibson; how about Buddy Holly instead?

[DonK]

I never thought about, but now that I do it seems to ring true. I started thinking about prominent women guitar players as well as those known for their singing and songwriting, and other than Joan Baez and Shawn Colvin (Martin) and Kaki King (Ovation), all of the ones I could think of either play Gibson's or Taylor's rather than Martin's:

Sheryl Crow
Emmy Lou Harris
Gillian Welch
Lisa Loeb
Sara MacClachlen

One thing that suggests itself is that the above players are mostly strummers, whereas Baez and Colvin are fingerpickers. Wonder if that has anything to do with the apparent preferences.

[Queequeg]

All I can say is...

[Frets99]

Originally posted by Rada Well, I can't disagree.....You men can keep ALL the Martins Give me a J-200 and a Hummingbird, and I'll be very happy

+1








I mean about the guitars.... not the other ... well you know... oh just forget it.....

[Rada]

Originally posted by Queequeg All I can say is...

All I can say is....

[guitarcapo]

I've noticed a slight tendency for wome to be playing Taylors but other than that I got nothing.

[Michael Martin]

Martins are so plain-jane. So completely lacking in aesthetic interest, with a few models as exceptions. Whatever that Martin is in the photo on the cover of Neil Young's greatest hits CD looks pretty cool...seems to have binding and the Martin name is spelled out vertically, unlike the traditional scripty thing. But most Martins are just painfully dull-looking, right down to that plank of a headstock. They're the Checker cab of guitar aesthetics. Nobody with a sense of style--be they woman, gay man, or straight man who sees guitars as objects of desire (my category) would ever buy a boring Martin, no matter how great the sound. BTW, my primary guitar is a '73 Hummingbird. And yes, I have played many a Martin, and I love their sound--but I can't stand to look at them.

[bigby]

Originally posted by Michael Martin Martins are so plain-jane. So completely lacking in aesthetic interest, with a few models as exceptions. Whatever that Martin is in the photo on the cover of Neil Young's greatest hits CD looks pretty cool...seems to have binding and the Martin name is spelled out vertically, unlike the traditional scripty thing. But most Martins are just painfully dull-looking, right down to that plank of a headstock. They're the Checker cab of guitar aesthetics. Nobody with a sense of style--be they woman, gay man, or straight man who sees guitars as objects of desire (my category) would ever buy a boring Martin, no matter how great the sound. BTW, my primary guitar is a '73 Hummingbird. And yes, I have played many a Martin, and I love their sound--but I can't stand to look at them.

hehehe!

Well, I'm on of the types that always prefers the sound/performance of an instrument over appearance and actually like the fact that my Martin looks like, well, an acoustic guitar.

[Queequeg]

Originally posted by Michael Martin Martins are so plain-jane. So completely lacking in aesthetic interest, with a few models as exceptions. Whatever that Martin is in the photo on the cover of Neil Young's greatest hits CD looks pretty cool...seems to have binding and the Martin name is spelled out vertically, unlike the traditional scripty thing. But most Martins are just painfully dull-looking, right down to that plank of a headstock. They're the Checker cab of guitar aesthetics. Nobody with a sense of style--be they woman, gay man, or straight man who sees guitars as objects of desire (my category) would ever buy a boring Martin, no matter how great the sound. BTW, my primary guitar is a '73 Hummingbird. And yes, I have played many a Martin, and I love their sound--but I can't stand to look at them.

All I can say is...