I don't think unless you were poor in the early 1900's your first guitar was a CBG.
44 playing for over 30yrs,and still suck.
I'm a metal head from the late 80's early 90's when grunge killed it.
Lessons starting at 11 til I was 14(81-84).Van Halen and Randy Rhoads.I quit lessons,my teacher was a mess and didn't play the style I was into.I learned more from Justin Johnson this morning on youtube than him.
Started a little garage band and writing.
17 I was rockin the mic in front of a couple hundred kids at keggers.
18 we had our first "real" show opening for a national act.
Did the dive bar thing for 10yrs,didnt make it so quit the whole trying to make it as a "rockstar".Window was closed,metal was dead and I was pushing 30.Over.
Kept playing everyday,writing and recording.
That's basically it,bought a cheap slide guitar couple years ago and said screw it,cigar box time.I built my first one 20yrs ago out of a box I made in high school and a neck from a smashed acoustic and it worked.It sat in my closet for 20yrs.
I decided to make one a couple years ago out of an actual cigar box and it was fun,sounded pretty cool and idle hands are the devils workshop.So its just been building and playing since.
Trying to get better at both.
I still fire up the Marshall w/ my Jackson King V,but I seem to be enjoying CBG's the most.
Ok,I know I'm long winded,whats your story?
Replies
Well... I guess the first music which really made me sit up and pay attention was Queen and ELO - which were often played at my parent's house. When I got my first paper round at 12, I used to go to town on pay day and buy myself 2 CDs, the first one I ever bought for myself was Blur's The Great Escape, in 1996. At around the age of 15 I has two epiphanies - one was Radiohead, who are probably still my favourite band, and the other was metal - specifically operatic power metal (Blind Guardian/Gamma Ray) :)
I got my first guitar at 15 (it was a Peavey Raptor 3), and had lessons for about 2 years after that - never bothered since. I joined my first band and played my first gig at 17, in a Manic Street Preachers cover band, which lasted for all of 2 shows before we kept the same lineup but started writing original material. We played quite a few shows around the live scene in Manchester over the next couple of years, but it was never really more than a bit of fun.
During this time I was developing more of a taste for metal (this was around the time Nu-Metal was huge, but very uncool to like) - Pantera, Sepultura, Machine Head, Nine Inch Nails... I had a friend with whom we would compete to find the most obscure/heavy/crazy stuff we could, and this led to Death Metal, Prog Metal etc - Carcass, Meshuggah and Opeth are enduring favourites.
At around the age of 18 I discovered Devin Townsend - who I would say is my favourite artist, for those who don't know he's a Canadian guitarist/singer who started out singing for Steve Vai's Sex & Religion album. He makes everything from super heavy metal, to expansive prog, to ambient electronic music. He even made an album of metal inspired by show tunes :)
In my mid 20s, I started to mellow out a little and took more of an interest in folk music - this was accelerated when I caught a chance glimpse of The Transatlantic Sessions on TV (American and British/Irish folk musicians playing together) - I was captivated. I felt the urge to try a new instrument so I bought a 5 string open back banjo and taught myself how to play it, lots of fun and it got me back into playing after a few years of barely touching my guitar.
I had been aware of CBGs for a while, thanks to Seasick Steve, but had never really considered making one, having not done any woodwork since school. One day last year I saw an article on BoingBoing linking to a guide to making a cake pan ukulele. I had a look though and decided it looked a bit advanced, so I had a go at making a basic CBG instead - the first 3 were terrible, but nonetheless I was hooked. The rest, as they say, is history!
This has been an interesting thread to read, thanks for posting it!
I thank you all for the replys!
Very diverse and interesting stories.
I've been slacking off on the guitar lately trying to play the Ddrums.
Did a few repairs on some of my CBG's and have a few playing really good.
I have several boxes that need built,I'm just more into the drums at the moment.But that's going to translate to my guitar/CBG playing.
Thanks again ya'll,keep this thread going!
BNZ'
born in 1951,grow up hearing Joseph lock(my Mam and Dad fav's) but mostly rock & roll.
yes I'm the baby of the family,there was 7 of us but sadly there are only three of us left now but life goes on.
I've always loved music but due to having pneumonia when a baby this has effected my hearing.
for me to hear music clearly I have to wear hearing aids or in the ear phones.
being at a boarding school for the deaf I never got to learn any kind of music.
tried for years to learn but could not grasp it on my own and then about 7 years ago I thought I'll try bass hell it has only 4 strings surely I could try that ,again failed. the music teacher insisted that I learn theory and all I wanted to do was able to pluck a few strings and make music.gave my guitars to my son as he can play 6 strings etc.
searching for some thing but I can't remember what but found on ebay cbg's eh guitar box??
so I did a few searching and getting info's.I felt so relieved that at last I should be able to play a 3 stringed cbg....
so I can play a little bit and will continue to learn and thanks to those guys on you tube I can plat a little short riffs.
but I think my best bet is to learn from Rick Mckeon on his webb page.
to me he comes a cross a very nice and pleasant man ,its a shame that there is to much water between us!
and a big thank you to the cbg nation forum and members. john
I have to say influence and listening,there was always music playing at my house,Gramps had the country station going in the garage,my uncle was in the airforce in the early 70's,so he listened to Zep,CCR,CSNY,Willie,Waylon,Sabbath,Hendrix,Deep Purple,Cream all kinds of different cool stuff,Moms had Elvis and that stuff going on and I had my KISS and Cheap Trick albums.They bought me a little POS acoustic and a book,johnny comes marching home was the first song I taught myself at 7.
When I started lessons is when I consider I really "started playing".He tried to teach me theory and all the technical stuff,but I just wanted to rock.He said its your money,if you don't want to learn proper,I'll teach you covers.But like said,he was so far from the style of music I was in to,it didn't work.
Thanks for your responses
Rick I'm in Scottsdale AZ
We were lucky too own a radio when I was a little guy, we had one station Country Western. I suppose that's where my love for Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, and that era of country music came from. I was about maybe 9/10 when my grand father gave me an old harmonica that was wore out....I played the hell outta that busted harp...(it was a party in your pocket). At around 16/18 my brother in law introduced me too the Blues.....I was immediateley hooked (Blues=harmonica= COOL!). I played at fests and hootenannis.... for years. I've also had the great pleasure to jam with some of the best in the business...but 2 years ago I came across Cigar Box Nation while reseaching the Boo Diddly cigar box Gretch....and haven't looked back. Up till that time I really never played guitar, although there's always been one around...and to think I would ever build one was outta the question. I've written quite a bit of lyrics...and lately I been practicing my butt of learning how to play a cbg so I can add music too my words..I've learned alot here, and met a ton of really great people. I had lost my inspiration for many many years....and the people here have given me that back....So I thank you all.
P.S
Great topic Sawbones.
Then I stole my brother White Album got my ass kicked. So I stole his Subhumans and SouthSide Johnny And Asbury Jukes, Bruce and ZZ Top. I recorded them onto a cassettes with a microphone placed in front of the speakers.
Major influences Merle Haggard , Bob Dylan, Neil Young, Townes Van Zandt, John Prine , Bruce Springsteen The Beatles, Black Sabbath, Zep, Lynyrd Skynyrd. Being from Bakersfield Country music is in my blood. 1989 to 2009 is a blur.
My story is fairly typical - born and brought up in a Middlesex suburb during the "baby boom" of the post-war 1950's, still mad on Rock'n'Roll, still mad on "The Blues".
Teddy Boy punch-ups, hanging round Coffee Bars, sixpence in the Juke Box, girls wearing suspenders and stockings, getting beaten up at the Travelling Fair, The Beatles playing The Cavern or the Rolling Stones at the local dance hall, Hotel or Cinema, big motorbikes, Mod and Rocker fights at Margate, scooter boys in Parkas, Mod suits, Carnaby Street, the Who at the Railway Hotel, Rockers at the Busy Bee, the Chicken Run at the Ace Cafe, Ford Zodiacs and Vauxhall Crestas, Flower Power and Woodstock, Jimi Hendrix playing the Marquee.......I blooming well missed it all !!
I was at school until 1969, but entered the "real world" in the Skinhead era - witnessed the growing Football aggro at Stamford Bridge and on the streets as a biker, literally got "kicked" out of Ruislip Lido by hundreds of Skinheads , then went Hippy and frequented dingy smoky Pub cellars checking out the underground Prog Rockers, something which has stayed but still appreciate the cultures of the previous years, I eventually got to see many of my old heroes including the Who and Led Zeppelin, was a typical 70's Chart follower, a few Festivals....those were the days, if you asked me today what is the No.1 single i wouldn't have a clue.... but i still have "Be Bop a Lula"...!
As an avid music fan I heard and loved many Rock-based trends and fads that come and go over the years; The Beatles, local band The Who, the 'Stones, the 60's white-boy Blues Boom of John Mayall, Cream, Free, Fleetwood Mac, The Groundhogs and Led Zeppelin - Jimi Hendrix was huge, Prog Rock with all its diversity still holds a great fascination for me, and the emergence of Heavy Rock and Metal, Classical Music revealed its magic to me in the 90's, and Post-bop Jazz - over the years I built up a good collection of Vinyl LP's and 45's which still remain my favoured music storage medium.
I saw many bands live over the years including Queen, Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, and Bo Diddley on stage in London with his big red square guitar which left a great impression on me. After a very messy second divorce and "mid life crisis" in 2002 I decided to learn to play guitar - I had a recurring dream where I was standing on a stage in a huge stadium in front of thousands of people, but froze with embarrassment as I couldn't play a note...
I took guitar lessons from a very good local teacher but was hampered by a hand injury received some years before, and struggled along as a lefty...I also learned the basics of Drums and Bass after almost giving up on six string guitars completely. I saw Seasick Steve on Jools Holland using three strings, eventually did a bit of research and found CBG's !
I messed around with so called "real" guitars for 10 years and never really got anywhere, i was always pulling them apart as they never sounded right anyway, and the acoustics were so big and clumsy, too many strings got in the way of the music, i could never "connect" musically - i was never even inspired enough to write a song on them, they sounded like everything else - a Gibson sounds like a Gibson, Strat sounds like a Strat, just like all the others...but i still hanker for a Telecaster, a genuine American Telecaster of course, but tuned my own way...! ;-)
They say that those that can do and those that can't teach. I reckon there's some truth in that.
My earliest memories are of the old mans' Chuck Berry 45's and hearing Sunshine of Your Love on the radio as a 6 year old. The only thing I could draw as a kid were guitars, only now I see that from a young age I just wanted to be a musician. Problem was I was no good at it.
So I did other things, got a real job, all that. Continued to learn though, even went back to uni in my 40's and did that music degree that'd been bugging me all those years. Now I'm 50 and can play OK, getting gigs, a late bloomer maybe.
I'd still rate myself as an average player but I'm a bloody good teacher. All those years I couldn't just make it happen naturally so I had to learn how it works and how to make it work. If I hadn't nutted all that out for myself I don't think I'd be in a position to help others do the same thing.
Interesting. I am one of the oldest and yet lesser experienced. Born in 1950. Sang in Junior High Chorus and liked it. Missed it. Bought an autoharp at age 50 or so. Could not keep it tuned. Traded for a guitar. A friend taught me a D chord, an A7 and a one finger G. I am forever indebted. Gradually learned more.
Built my first dulcimer about that time and later a travel guitar - a crappy one. Been building CBGs for more than 6 years but could not do much with them until I found CBN a few years later. Have had a blast with CBGs and now I seem to be transitioning into blues uke, open G 5 or 6 string, standard tuning and keeping on with the CBGs. A few years of CBG playing did wonders for my understanding and playing of the store boughts.
Oh, along the line there, I picked up straight harp harmonica, a little cross harp, tin whistle, rudimentary banjo and mandolin and advanced kazoo.
Sometimes it is a frustrating hobby, but over all, I am having a great time.
I stole my sisters Beatle records. Hooked
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