Guitar Gear

Besides music and golf, another passion I have – though nowhere near the level of the former – is wine. I’m not a collector, but I keep a modest amount of great bottles in my small wine cooler. But apart from the wine itself, I love keeping up to date with what’s going on in the wine industry, so I’ve subscribed to some magazines: Both physical and digital. In particular, I have a subscription to “Wine Spectator” which, to me, is the standard in wine industry coverage.

A couple of days ago, as I was perusing the through the latest issue of Wine Spectator, I ran across a column in which the author shared how he was cleaning up his office and ran across his tax forms going back over twenty years, and looked at his itemized deductions; especially those expenses related to wine, and that led to a short discussion on what kinds of wines he had purchased for both work and personal consumption. But one thing the author said really struck home with me.

Near the end of the article he said that had he not spent all the money he had on wine, he’d probably be much better off financially today. But had he not made those purchases, he would have missed out on everything that he had learned over the years. That one statement got me thinking about the guitar gear that I’ve purchased over the years, and how, at least for me, much of it reflects my personal journey in both music and the gear that I use.

In that respect, when I look back on all the money I’ve spent on gear, which literally runs into the tens of thousands, I could’ve invested that money and, like the author, be much better off financially. Instead, I made an investment myself and my passion for making music. Had I not purchased all that gear (I’ve sold off most of it, by the way), I don’t think I would have grown nearly as much I have as a musician.

For me, the gear I’ve purchased – and sold – are a direct reflection of where I’ve been on my personal musical journey. I’ve seriously gone through a lot of gear. Just looking back over my rig configuration five years ago, and compare it to what it is today. I just smile at how I’ve arrived at my current place.

GuitarGear.org itself is a marker. In fact, tomorrow, February 14, 2017, will mark GuitarGear.org’s 10th anniversary. I started it as an online diary of moving into the tube amp world, and to put my thoughts down on what I was feeling and the philosophies I’d develop. Yet it morphed into something so much more than that. Yes, I still share my thoughts as I am now, but who knew I’d do reviews and in the process connect with so many different people!

This has been a great journey, and here’s to another 10 years!