Happy Independence Month from Maple Street!  Summer is in full swing and there are lots of grills being fired up. We hope there are a few guitars, ukuleles and banjos around for everyone to join in and play as the burgers, chicken wings and portobellos are cooking away. 
This month we are featuring our newest arrivals. Our Guitars of the Month are two very similar, but very different Eastman models; the SB59-SB (with Seymour Duncan Classic 59 Humbuckers) and the SB59/V-Amber(with Seymour Duncan Antiquity Humbuckers). Nick DiSebastian demonstrates and compares these two great new additions to the Eastman line in a video. 
Speaking of Vintage, we have two great new arrivals, a 1968 Martin D-18 and a brand new 2018 Martin D-18. Harris Kendrick takes us back to the future and compares these two great guitars built 50 years apart! We are also featuring two of our favorite National Resophonic Guitars this month, the Collegian Ivory and the NRP Tri-Cone. In his corner of the world, Lindsay Petsch waxes philosophic about a common issue when looking for a guitar: instead of focusing on the negative, look for the positives!
And finally, come out to support our friends, The Atlanta Mandolin Orchestra, July 7th at 8:00 pm at the Jennie T. Anderson Theatre in Marietta, Ga. Details below.

Every now and then a customer will ask me, “Which is your favorite guitar?”  Having a predilection for cheekiness, I often reply, “Whichever one happens to be in my hands!”   Though this response is intentionally playful, it is also tinged with the truth.  Granted, if presented a variety of options (such as a store full of guitars, or perhaps a room housing one’s personal collection) I would certainly hone in on a guitar or two that I preferred over others.  Yet, as I frequently remark to customers, there is no such thing as the perfect guitar that does it all—having literally handled thousands and thousands of guitars at this point, I can assure you that this is true!  With that in mind, it is entirely reasonable that your preferences might change one day to the next, or as your needs change (it is for this reason that many guitar players have a stable of options).  However, my cute response above is primarily rooted in my genuine attitude that having access to any functional musical instrument is a privilege in this life.  Subsequently, one should be grateful for what they have at hand and strive to make the most of it in the moment!

 Now, dear readers, I know what you’re probably thinking after reading that last bit: “Yes, Lindsay, it is pretty obvious that a guitar is better than no guitar, and we should all be grateful for our instruments, blah, blah, blah—tell us something we don’t know!”   Well, while I’d argue that it is always important to remind yourself to be grateful, there is perhaps a more profound lesson to be gleaned by adopting this mindset.  In order to be grateful for what a given instrument has to offer, one has to learn to focus on its positive attributes.  It has been my experience that most every guitar, no matter how humble, has something good to offer if you take the time to look for it.  Yet, I have observed that folks often have a tendency to immediately isolate what they don’t like in a given guitar and quickly set it aside, rather than take some time to explore its inherent strengths.  On some level, I suspect that those who continually focus on what they perceive as negative qualities are effectively training themselves to never be satisfied with the instruments they encounter or purchase.  Whereas, those who recognize or seek out the attractive characteristics of a guitar (and then learn how to exploit them) are often very content with that instrument over the long run.  Granted, some instruments are fundamentally defective or uninspiring to play (this is particularly true of the super-cheap entry level guitars), and it would be wholly unrealistic to expect to be excited by every guitar you encounter.  Also, when actively shopping for a guitar, I’ve found that it is best to trust initial instincts/emotions and efficiently eliminate non-contenders while honing in on “the one.”   Yet, I always caution folks against casually dismissing guitars!  You never know when you might cross paths with something that unexpectedly and completely surprises you—as a player I’ve experienced this many times, and I’ve seen it happen countless times as a salesman. 

 In training yourself to identify positive qualities in a guitar, it is helpful to concede that the instrument’s value as a tool is not necessarily reflected by the price (though, I would generally contend that you get what you pay for!).   For instance, I discovered that my salvaged $300 Martin LXM travel guitar made a much more impressive Nashville-tuned guitar than travel guitar, and thus it gets used regularly!  Also, while it might seem to be a simple concept, it is also important to distinguish between objective and subjective observations—objectivity takes precedence when evaluating guitars, subjectivity takes precedence when purchasing guitars.  Assuming structural and cosmetic qualities are up to snuff, we evaluate guitars based on certain objective tonal qualities that include: balance, note clarity, string separation, power and projection, responsiveness, sustain, and tone color.  It is true that we all hear things differently (thanks to our unique physiology), but these are things that we can readily gauge and, in some cases, measure.  The extent to which these objective factors are meaningful to you as a player is the subjective part.  Ultimately, there is a reciprocity that results from objective listening and the practice of seeking out the attractive qualities in a guitar. By looking for the good or useful elements of a guitar, one becomes more attentive to objective distinctions; and, by training to listen more objectively, one is more likely to discover the more nuanced strengths in any given instrument. 

 So, if you are not in the habit of doing so at this point, I encourage you to challenge yourself at the next opportunity by sampling some guitars that might not otherwise interest you. Try to pinpoint at least one thing that you like about each one, and then spend a little extra time exploring that quality in the guitar.  This exercise will not only help you become more attuned to the qualities that you seek in guitars (such awareness is very helpful when you are seriously shopping), but it will also serve to broaden your palette and better define your tastes in the guitar.  And, in the end, your enhanced appreciation for the attractive qualities that exist in each guitar will enable you to derive even more joy from the experience of playing the instrument in those precious moments that life occasionally affords.  – L. Petsch July, 2018