HippyKritz Music and More in Abilene Texas

Good morning music lovers, hope all are well on this last day of June!!  I have blogged in the past about the fact that for the most part I believe most people are Coke or Pepsi, Beetles or Elvis, and Fender or Gibson.  I made it clear that as far as the latter, I was definately in the Fender group.  I am a blues guitar player by heart; it is my favorite genre of music to play and a Fender Strat is my axe of choice.  My beautiful USA Sunburst Strat has played a lot of blues licks over the years, and it just fits me, and sounds great, and looks great, and yada yada.  About 3 weeks ago a fellow came in the store with a Gibson Les Paul and when he opened the case something happened that I did’nt expect.  I drooled a little.  It was absolutely beautiful and the Desert Burst finish just grabbed me. I couldn’t stop looking at it every time I walked by and saw it hanging on the wall.  I played it all the time and finally had to have it, and the rest is history.  Here’s the deal folks: this Les Paul is totally awesome and I now question my whole Fender or Gibson theory.  I am now a lover of both and have decided that is an ok way to be.  I wanted to customize it a bit so my buddy Ric installed Seymour Duncan pick-ups on her yesterday, a 59 Humbucker in the neck position, and an Alnico II Pro Humbucker in the bridge position. He was like a surgeon with the precision that he utilized in working on this beautiful instrument.  He then set the action and tweaked this and that to get the exact sound that I was looking, and listening for.  I will say again, Ric is an asset to have as part of the family here, and a great guy as well.  It’s interesting to me that guitar players tend to name their instruments more than other musicians do. I never had a name for my trombone, and if I would have I think that would have made me a bigger dork than I already was.  From early on my Strat has been called Champagne and I have been thinking about what to call the new LP.  This morning as I was walking out the door with her tucked snuggly in her case, my beautiful wife said “aww, you’re taking Gibby to work with you.”  How perfect is that!!  So that is now her name and I am glad this guitar has made me more open-minded.  So HippyKritterz, if you’re at the store, give Gibby a test drive if you like.  Instruments, just like the music they produce, should be shared by all.  Remember to be safe, have fun and name your guitars, and play music!!!   Kenny