VERY Interesting article on the Guitar's Demise.....

[alaskaleftybass]

Blues? Clapton certainly did not invent The Blues.

If all you hear from Clapton is blues, you're missing 95% of his legendary talent.
Let's agree to disagree and please cease this conversation now.

 

[EMoneySC2]

As the article detailed, Taylor is the biggest driving force in guitar sales at the moment, at least according to the CEO of Fender.

Taylor Guitars is even experiencing a bit of a renaissance based solely on the surname.

There is no Taylor Swift cutout at the guitar store because there are as of yet no signature guitars bearing her name. This oversight in potential revenue will likely be corrected in the near future.

I know I'm a hater, but that idea just sounds laughable to me! There are so many crazy talented musicians who are out on the road struggling to get some exposure, and the CEO of Fender thinks Taylor Swift is what's going to be the next guitar legend that he can sell signature guitars off of for the next umpteen years. As a edgy metalhead and bonafide hater, I'd advice the CEO of Fender get his head out off his behind, recognize the generation of up-and-coming guitarists, and actually be proactive and make something of them.

 

[Dynomuttasaurus]

Funny. Invalid Link Removed (not retail sales numbers or anecdotes) they found a different story. You may also note, 5% play bass.

Admittedly, the story is 3 years old. But, I trends don't change in the course of a year or two. That would make it a fad, not a trend.

 

[Joe Nerve]

This argument bugs me. Sure, there are lots of YouTube creators recording for fun in the basement, but let's not discount that there are also lots of YouTube musicians making a solid living off their music. Maybe being a YouTube musician playing in a music video of your own in your basement doesn't sound cool to you, but to me (25 years old, by the way) that sounds tremendously cool. It's low key but is a lot of fun to do, and it can reach a worldwide audience. Just remember that being a "rockstar" to some people doesn't mean standing on the stage at a stadium concert...it might mean putting out a cool video that you recorded in your bedroom.

The allure of this to most aspiring 16 year old boys...

Is far more enticing and motivating than the promise of this...

I found lots of pictures for the former that are even more enticing, but I couldn't post them. I'll add that there are lots of much MUCH easier ways to achieve the latter. Ways that come with much better guarantees.

 

[itsalljustaride]

If all you hear from Clapton is blues, you're missing 95% of his legendary talent.
Let's agree to disagree and please cease this conversation now.

If he "invented the style of music he plays" one would think it would have a name to which you could refer? What is Clapton's "style of music"?

 

[Son of Wobble]

Funny. Invalid Link Removed (not retail sales numbers or anecdotes) they found a different story. You may also note, 5% play bass.

Admittedly, the story is 3 years old. But, I trends don't change in the course of a year or two. That would make it a fad, not a trend.

Surprising stats!

This one is not so surprising:

Some 13% of five- to 17-year-olds play the electric guitar, compared with 12% for the violin.

But this one is:

Some 76% of children aged five to 14 told the researchers they knew how to play an instrument compared with 41% in 1999.

 

[Rib 13]

Blues? Clapton certainly did not invent The Blues.

correct........Peter Green did.......

 

[wintremute]

I know I'm a hater, but that idea just sounds laughable to me! There are so many crazy talented musicians who are out on the road struggling to get some exposure, and the CEO of Fender thinks Taylor Swift is what's going to be the next guitar legend that he can sell signature guitars off of for the next umpteen years. As a edgy metalhead and bonafide hater, I'd advice the CEO of Fender get his head out off his behind, recognize the generation of up-and-coming guitarists, and actually be proactive and make something of them.

I'm not sure why you think it's the job of the CEO of Fender to get people interested in different musicians. That seems to be the job of the Musician, and/or their manager, and/or their label.

If you're good enough, you get endorsements. If you're popular enough, you get even bigger endorsements. You seem to want things to go in reverse.

 

[Son of Wobble]

correct........Peter Green did.......

Are you certain? Cuz I thought this was the first blues record...

 

[alaskaleftybass]

If he "invented the style of music he plays" one would think it would have a name to which you could refer? What is Clapton's "style of music"?

What got up your backside? Chill out.

 

[wintremute]

Funny. Invalid Link Removed (not retail sales numbers or anecdotes) they found a different story. You may also note, 5% play bass.

Admittedly, the story is 3 years old. But, I trends don't change in the course of a year or two. That would make it a fad, not a trend.

In England. Not sure that correlates to the USA (which seems to be where this discussion is rooted).

 

[fretter]

My last new guitar was a Bullet Squier $99 shipped. Now, it's not as good as a custom shop, but the quality of cheap instruments has gone up, and so has inflation. $99 today was $12.06 in 1960, and $31.45 in 1980.

 

[Son of Wobble]

My last new guitar was a Bullet Squier $99 shipped. Now, it's not as good as a custom shop, but the quality of cheap instruments has gone up, and so has inflation. $99 today was $12.06 in 1960, and $31.45 in 1980.

!!!

$12 guitars? I'm in.

 

[EMoneySC2]

I'm not sure why you think it's the job of the CEO of Fender to get people interested in different musicians. That seems to be the job of the Musician, and/or their manager, and/or their label.

If you're good enough, you get endorsements. If you're popular enough, you get even bigger endorsements. You seem to want things to go in reverse.

Of course it's not directly the CEOs job, but I'm trying to make a point.

That point being, if the guitar companies want a new group of guitarists they can stand behind to inspire new players and sell instruments, why do they have to stick to the traditional way of endorsing artists that are already front and center? Sure you don't know who Rabea Massaad is, but if Fender put him on the cover of magazines, did sponsored big shows for his band, publicised commercials, etc. maybe we'd find ourselves in a place where he is a household name.

This attitude of "that's the way things are" and "this is the way things are" is used way too often in the music industry. Maybe if Fender or Gibson want to get their sales back up they should work with some new talent, make something new, do it in a new way...because (naming examples) if Fender or Gibson don't, Kiesel and Chapman will.

 

[two fingers]

One way I look at it is that there are still tons of people around my age who grew up with the same things and like a lot of the same things (including rock music) who are a potential audience. And by the time they're all gone, I will be too.

No true. Musicians go to clubs much later in life than their non-musician counterparts. I am 45. I fill in with all kinds of bands. The number of people in my age group or older at shows is LESS and less every year. When I'm 50 I will still he playing out (probably even more than I do now because my children won't be so young) and even less 50 year olds will be going to clubs to see a rock band. So I would argue that way before death you lose a TON of your "potential audience".

And that potential rock fan base isn't being replenished by Generation X, Y, or Z any time soon. They are too busy gaming and crafting their own beer at home and throwing bricks through windows at Starbucks.

 

[Son of Wobble]

Of course it's not directly the CEOs job, but I'm trying to make a point.

That point being, if the guitar companies want a new group of guitarists they can stand behind to inspire new players and sell instruments, why do they have to stick to the traditional way of endorsing artists that are already front and center? Sure you don't know who Rabea Massaad is, but if Fender put him on the cover of magazines, did sponsored big shows for his band, publicised commercials, etc. maybe we'd find ourselves in a place where he is a household name.

This attitude of "that's the way things are" and "this is the way things are" is used way too often in the music industry. Maybe if Fender or Gibson want to get their sales back up they should work with some new talent, make something new, do it in a new way...because (naming examples) if Fender or Gibson don't, Kiesel and Chapman will.

It seemed that Gibson was edging in the direction of your grass roots concept about three years ago, when it was announced that they would be opening a branded store on the Sunset Strip in what used to be the Tower Records outlet. Announcements in 2014 said that the store would include stages and a club and that there would be a push to cultivate live music.

Any wise guys know what became of the bold plan?

.Gibson to open store at former Tower Records site in West Hollywood

 

[two fingers]

Which has little to do with whether people are inspired to pursue it as a hobby and thus buy new gear. How many bedroom bluesmen did Clapton inspire that never made a dime from their hobby and never intended to?

The difference is that most non college bound youths went into pretty good jobs as electricians or mechanics or other OJT jobs that paid enough to live off of. Disposable income among the majority of millenials is dwindling....unless, of course, they live with mom.

 

[gln1955]

My last new guitar was a Bullet Squier $99 shipped. Now, it's not as good as a custom shop, but the quality of cheap instruments has gone up, and so has inflation. $99 today was $12.06 in 1960, and $31.45 in 1980.

Remarkable. It's never been cheaper to outfit a band with giggable instruments and PA. So much for the arguments that the crappy economy is keeping people from buying guitars.

 

[Anachronism]

Of course it's not directly the CEOs job, but I'm trying to make a point.

That point being, if the guitar companies want a new group of guitarists they can stand behind to inspire new players and sell instruments, why do they have to stick to the traditional way of endorsing artists that are already front and center? Sure you don't know who Rabea Massaad is, but if Fender put him on the cover of magazines, did sponsored big shows for his band, publicised commercials, etc. maybe we'd find ourselves in a place where he is a household name.

This attitude of "that's the way things are" and "this is the way things are" is used way too often in the music industry. Maybe if Fender or Gibson want to get their sales back up they should work with some new talent, make something new, do it in a new way...because (naming examples) if Fender or Gibson don't, Kiesel and Chapman will.

All the young girls wanting to play guitar because of Taylor Swift are the new players that Fender and the rest are selling instruments to.
Promoting Rabea doesn't change the market, he'll just replace some older guitarist as one of the faces of hard rock/metal.

 

[JPaulGeddy]

I'm having a hard time reconciling the idea that Fender, Gibson, or any other manufacturer ever 'made' a guitar hero. Eric, Jeff, Jimmie, Eddie, Slash, etc - none of them are bigger because of their guitar endorsements, at least by any substantial amount. Richer, sure, but no way do I see them gaining popularity because they were in a Fender (or whomever) ad.