Casino Guitars

Another Casino Guitars video, another comment from me.

This time, Baxter and Jonathan discuss ways that musicians can meet other musicians to jam with or form bands. They recommend the usual options, such as guitar stores having a bulleting board, open mics at bars, and searching the internet. They also suggest hitting community colleges that have music programs and talking your friends into learning an instrument.

My one and only gripe about these guys is that they are too electric-centric. They never really look at the acoustic side of guitar music. Within the video, they talk about finding the local blues music society for seeking musicians. Now Casino Guitars is a store located in North Carolina, which is in a region big on bluegrass music. There are loads of festivals in the area, and there is a rich bluegrass history from North Carolina (Earl Scruggs and Doc Watson for starters).

As for bluegrassers, we are a well-informed community regarding musicians. Even up here in Michigan, which is definitely not a hotbed for bluegrass business, there is still enough communication going around to know what is out there. There are three viable bluegrass associations in the southern part of the Lower Peninsula that spread news as well as make available to their memberships scheduled jam sessions.

Best of all, bluegrass festivals are a fantastic resource for musicians looking to play with others, whether it be to just jam or perhaps start a band. This has been going on for decades, and will surely continue now that restrictions from the pandemic are slowly being lifted. Bluegrass festivals are unique regarding these amateur parking lot jam sessions. You never see anything like this at rock, country, or jazz festivals. People go there to listen to the music, period. Bluegrass audiences have a high percentage of people that also play musical instruments. Many show up at the festivals with the only intention of jamming, not really caring if they see a band on stage.

I have mentioned it before, that the professional bluegrass musicians performing on stage also like to walk in the parking lots and jam along with the amateurs. There is a great bond with professional bluegrass artists and their audience members. They all get to know each other personally, and part of that is jamming with one another after shows. That is something you do not see at other music festivals.

A few weeks back, I posted a video of a jam session at the SPBGMA conference that happened in January. This is a great example of what makes bluegrass people unique. Music is in the blood, heart and soul of bluegrassers. At SPBGMA and IBMA conferences, jam sessions happen in every corner of the sponsoring hotel. Rooms are set up just for late-night jamming. Old friends reunite, and new friendships are created continually. I miss the early days of the Americana Music Association’s conferences. There would be a number of jam sessions going on, but that seemed to disappear as the organization grew. Fortunately, jamming is still encouraged at SPBGMA and IBMA.

Jamming has become so much a part of bluegrass that Pete Wernick, whom we all know as Dr. Banjo, created three jamming videos and has established a classroom setting program to instruct people on the principles and etiquette of bluegrass jamming.

So if you are beginning to learn guitar, banjo, mandolin, or violin/fiddle, and want to learn what it is like to be in a ensemble situation, consider bluegrass music. We bluegrassers are a welcoming community. I leave you with a great example of this community feeling. Alan Bibey (mandolinist with Grasstowne) is having a great jam session with some very young pickers.

Chew on it and comment.

Although I’m not the guitar nut that I was, say, 20 years ago, I still like to pick up different guitars, be they acoustic or electric, and strum away! Some things only a guitar enthusiast would understand goes on during this ritual, like the feel of the neck, the tone coming off of the body, and a few dozen other actions. Whether it is cars, motorcycles, beer cans, baseball memorabilia, or guitars, enthusiasts have a passion about something that the people around him do not quite understand.

That’s why I like these guys. Casino Guitars is a music store in North Carolina that is not just another Guitar Center. They treat the buying and selling of guitars like an adoption agency, which means that they REALLY love and care about guitars. The store has a YouTube page that is absolute entertainment. Two of the employees/owners(?) of the store (Baxter Clement and Jonathan Robinson) post a video about once a week to discuss guitars or rock/pop music in general.

When I first watched one of their videos, I thought that it looked like someone from Duck Dynasty talking guitar smack with Robert Smith from The Cure. They both look like guitar geeks somewhat, but also look like they would NEVER be in the same room together. However, as I got to listening to them, they were a lot like me. Not in looks or in presentation, but in passion for the guitar.

What is more likeable about Baxter and Jonathan is that they totally respect their fan base viewers. I’ve commented a number of times on their vlogs, whether it be praise, disagreement, or just to swipe a humorous insult. Sure enough, within a day or two, one of them will reply with a comeback or even a simple thanks for the suggestion. In short, they actually READ the comments, which 99% of YouTube vloggers do not. They make you feel like you are part of the conversation, and know that the people watching them are just like them – guitar enthusiasts.

Watching Baxter and Jonathan is like sitting in with them and talking guitars as well. Think of sitting around a music store that is welcoming, not a big-box place, and being able to BS about stuff we all love. The only thing missing is the bottle of bourbon to pass around (although I do have a rocks glass of Makers Mark close by).

Enough of the talk! I recommend that if you are into talking about guitars and guitar-oriented music, then check the Casino Guitars YT page and enjoy.

Chew on it and comment.

PS: Rest in Peace Alex Trebek and Sean Connery.