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Gotta love Keith........


Todd Wilson

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Every guitar player should play acoustic at home. No matter what else you do, if you don't keep up your acoustic work, you're never going to get the full potential out of an electric, because you lose that touch. You get sloppier. Electricity will give you some great effects and some great tone, but if you don't control it, it can easily take you over the edge into some supersonic nowhereland. If you're just on electric all the time, you don't keep the touch. I don't play electric guitars at home. I play acoustic. - Keith Richards

 

 

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I agree 100% with that. I read in the Nov '76 Guitar Player interview with Roy Buchanan that he always liked to have "an acoustic with really tough action" around the house so that when he did jump back onto the Telecaster he could "wrap the strings right around the neck".

 

If I go on an electric kick (which is less and less frequent over the last few years) I find after about 3 days my fingers get really lazy and wussy. Of course I like my acoustics to play nice (duh!) but it's always good to challenge yourself a little.... don't set the action so low, your fingers will get lazy and your tone will suck.... go for the medium gauge strings if the guitar can take it, you'll get a monster tone every day of the week.

 

Yep, I have to talk to myself like that sometimes.

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I have always likened it to a baseball player warming up to bat in the on-deck circle. They will swing a weighted bat to loosen up, and when it's time to step up to the plate with their normal size and weight bat, it will feel lighter and they will have better control.

 

Since most acoustics are strung with heavier strings than an electric, and many do not have the action we associate with electrics, playing acoustic is a good work-out for the transition. Also figure in the fact that an acoustic is much less forgiving for sloppy playing, which helps develop better technique in BOTH hands, it's a win-win situation.

 

I have my acoustic archtops strung with 14's, and my electrics with 11's, both on the heavier side of the string guage scale, but the differential is probably somewhat typical. Besides general playability, I also find that fingerpicking an acoustic also transfers over, and I find myself frequently "palming" my pick and using more right hand finger technique when playing an electric.

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I saw him (on tv) when a "fan" rushed onto the stage.... Keef didn't know whether it was zeal or a threat, so he yanked his Tele off and drew back like he was going to swing it like a baseball bat. Just then security grabbed the guy and Keef just kinda smirked or chuckled, repositioned his Tele and kept on... I don't think the ashes fell off his cigarette!

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Totally agree with the acoustic-baseball-bat-warmup analogy. I play more acoustic around the house, and when I am on the road all of my spare time playing is with an acoustic. Like someone else said, you have to be more precise and accurate when playing acoustic, therefore when you get on the electric the chops are more finely tuned. Great thread!

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