Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

Interested in hearing what you guys play when you've got that $3000 axe plugged in at the guitar store.

Aside from the cliches 'Smoke On the Water', 'Stairway to Heaven', etc.

My defaults have always been 'Over the Hills and Far Away' by Led Zeppelin - just a fun one to play.

And the 'Discovery' passage from Rush's '2112' is a great one for tone testing and dynamics, especially on acoustic guitars.

Having played acoustic guitar and only lately plugged in, I'm often found picking up guitars made by Collings or some other high end guitar maker. I might play Blind Blake's West Coast Blues or if I happen to spot a particularly attractive 12 string, I might play a riff from Roger McGuinn's Echoes which is really a free improvisation on Eight Miles High and a few other things thrown in.
JimK

I generally avoid sitting down and playing licks to popular songs. If i'm just having a bit of fun then i'll put together some improv in the store, I like to hang out infront of the Boss booth at Sam Ash and use the looper they've got set up.
I also have some finger-stretching riffs and a chord list to try if i'm entertaining the idea of taking something home, to get a good handle on how comfortable i'll be with the guitar.

If the $3,000 guitar is a Rickenbacker 12-string ( ), I'll play a few from the following:

The Byrds {Mr. Tambourine Man, Feel A Whole Lot Better, Turn!Turn!Turn!, Chimes of Freedom, Bells of Rhymney}

The Beatles{I Should Have Known Better, Ticket To Ride, What You're Doing, If I Fell, You Can't Do That}

The Smiths {This Charming Man, William It Was Really Nothing, Stop If You Think You've Heard This One Before, Cemetery Gates, Some Girls Are Bigger Than Others}

R.E.M. {Talk About The Passion, Green Grow The Rushes, Near Wild Heaven}

For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.

collin wrote:For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.

I hadn't heard that before so I just looked it up on Youtube. That's a cool song! If I hear someone playing it in a guitar store I'll know it's you!

stsang wrote:

collin wrote:For reasons beyond my comprehension....it's "Alice's Restaurant" by Arlo Guthrie.

Doesn't matter on the guitar either, I would play that on a Flying V if it was in my hands.

I hadn't heard that before so I just looked it up on Youtube. That's a cool song! If I hear someone playing it in a guitar store I'll know it's you!

Yep!

It's a simple acoustic pattern, but it's pretty infectious since they repeat it....for twenty-two minutes.

I play that too , but not in a store. Usually, it is an original song or concept I am working on that I will play.

I don't get many chances to go to music stores the last few years since i moved to a small town,but if i am checking out a Ric bass,i usually gotta play the opening riff to "does it really happen?". Anything else i pick up,it probably just gonna be "woodynoodles".

Edgar Winters Frankenstein. 'Cuz nobody else does...