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Well, better late than never, folks! These are trying times and our newsletter release was a bit delayed while we've dealt with almost daily adjustments to our operations (please check below for updates to our policies!). That said, spring is springing! In honor of Spring, we have a very special Guitar of the Month; The 1940 Pre-War Martin "Blue Sky" D-28. It has not only lived through nine decades, it has also been a part of country music and Georgia history and has a great story! Lindsay gives you the overview. In honor of Jazz Appreciation Month, we are featuring a recently acquired 1983 Gibson Johnny Smith Master Model. Our Pedal Guru, Chris Capitanio demonstrates the new Fender Pinwheel Leslie speaker simulator. Having read Lindsay's article about songwriting last month, Chris was inspired to give us his thoughts on the process as well. Meanwhile, in honor of Earth Day, Lindsay's article highlights the benefits of doing good things for the environment and how Maple Street Guitars works to make a difference. Both of these articles are very insightful and worth a read. In the meantime, be safe out there y'all and do your best to make time for a little music!
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COVID-19 UPDATE
Like everyone around the world, we have been anxiously monitoring the developments with regard to the Coronavirus while trying to maintain a modicum of sanity. We have been continually making adjustments to our operations to ensure that both customers and staff are as safe and comfortable as possible. The appreciation that we have for your support, patience, and cooperation during these trying times cannot be overstated—we are truly fortunate to have such customers and friends! That said, following the spread of the virus here in Georgia, and considering the fact that many members of our staff are above the age of 60, we have become particularly concerned with risks of exposure in the store. We are therefore making the following changes to our retail operations effective immediately. Please don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions. In the meantime, we maintain hope that everyone remains healthy and that this crisis will soon abate! - George, Claire, Lindsay, and the staff at Maple Street Guitars.
· We will continue to maintain business hours of 11AM – 4PM EST. However, due to the recent “shelter at home” mandate from the governor, we can no longer open our showroom to the public. Subsequently, the door will be locked, and customers must now ring the doorbell to pick up purchases/repairs or to drop off repairs. Alternatively, you can call us from the parking lot for curbside service.
· As our showroom will now effectively be closed, we ask that customers pay for purchases and repair work over the phone.
· We are actively shipping all items in our inventory, including strings and accessories! So, if we can ship an item to you, please don’t hesitate to give us a call!
· While we cannot allow casual browsing and/or handling of guitars at this time, we encourage and customers with interest in a guitar that we have in stock to give us a call, or drop us a line via e-mail! We have a lot of experience assisting folks with instrument purchases remotely, and we are happy to help you hone in on a good option!
· We are still offering repair services; however, we are no longer able to evaluate incoming or completed repairs in person. We asked that you give us a call in advance and to discuss your repair and provide your contact information for a repair ticket that we will prepare and have waiting. All repairs will be checked in at the door and will then be quarantined for a minimum of 48 hours before they are handled and evaluated. We will subsequently call you with an evaluation and quote. We also encourage customers with specific repair concerns/requests to e-mail us with details such that we can attach these notes to the repair ticket when the instrument is dropped off.
· We ask that you bring your repairs in a case, if possible, and do your best to sanitize the instrument and case prior to coming to the store.
· For everyone’s safety, we are maintaining social distancing and all staff members have been asked to strictly abide by “shelter at home” protocols outside of work. We are also increasing the frequency of our sanitation efforts in the store. Phones, credit card terminals, scanners, staplers, etc. are being actively wiped down with alcohol and Lysol multiple times a day.
· We are designating specific work stations for our employees.
· All products in outgoing shipments are being sanitized prior to being packed.
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1940 Pre-War "Blue Sky" D-28
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Lindsay and the "Blue Sky" D-28
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For Jazz Appreciation Month
Gibson Johnny Smith Master Model
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Demonstration: Fender Pinwheel Leslie Speaker Simulator
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Routine Keeps Me In Line
Songwriting Tips from Chris
There’s a quote that has stuck with me for a long time and it’s one that I’m sure many of you will recognize. “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.” This quote is often attributed to famous philosopher Aristotle. It actually originated from Will Durant’s book, The Story of Philosophy, as Durant’s means of clarifying Aristotle’s actual quote, “As it is not one swallow or a fine day that makes a spring, so it is not one day or a short time that makes a man blessed and happy.” Regardless, it’s a quote that has widespread appeal and one that I find particularly motivating. It’s applicable to a great many things and one that I feel fits right at home with guitar-playing and song-writing.
Like many of you, I read Lindsay’s article last month entitled, Chasing Inspiration in the Wee Hours, and it resonated with me. Just like Lindsay, I’ve found myself in the role of songwriter, perhaps more so than guitarist, with my band, In The Presence Of Wolves. It’s a role that came to me partly out of self-expression but mostly out of necessity. My style has become one of the core tenants of my band’s sound so it’s a job that I’ve had to take on whether I want to or not. Luckily, songwriting is something that I’ve greatly enjoyed and it has come relatively easily to me after only a few early missteps. This month I’d like to discuss my most recent approach to songwriting, which I feel acts as a good supplement to what Lindsay presented last month. This approach seems even more doable now since we all have a LOT more free time in the midst of COVID-19.
James Gunn is one of my favorite film directors at the moment and he spoke a bit about his screenwriting process a few years ago. He’d said something along the lines of, “I’m a screenwriter. It’s my job and it’s what I do. So, I write everyday whether the ideas come or not,” to paraphrase. I found that approach inspiring. I’m a songwriter, I thought to myself (long before assuming the unexpected role of Assistant Manager of a guitar store), that’s what I do! But man, it must be nice to have the time to be able to write every day…
Fast forward to the fall of 2019. By this point, I’d fully acclimated to my role here at Maple Street Guitars. This was the first full time job that I’d ever had (after several years of freelance work) and I was struggling with my productivity outside of work. Somehow, I stumbled upon a YouTube channel all about self-improvement and productivity and I found a video on the subject of “Mini Goals.” The idea was simple: set very small goals for yourself to accomplish DAILY that are near impossible to fail, thus hopefully creating a positive habit. I was quite excited by the concept so I quickly set several Mini Goals for myself: Clean for 2 minutes, exercise for 2 minutes, read a page in whatever book I’m currently reading, play a song on guitar, and, perhaps most importantly, write 4 measures of music. I chose 4 measures because that seemed like the appropriate space for one complete musical idea. I figured that it was worth a shot, being so far away from my bandmates meant that, in a way, I was on my own to write some new music. Perhaps this could work for me.
What followed was the most productive period of my life when it comes to writing music. I’d sit with my guitar and create, stumbling my way to something I liked, and then finding 4 measures out of it. Part of the beauty of the Mini Goal is that there’s no rule that says you can’t do MORE than what the goal requires and, in a way, that’s really the point. So many of us have trouble simply getting started. Sometimes writing a song or accomplishing any other notable task can seem like a large mountain to climb. I can’t tell you how many books I’ve wanted to read only to see how long they are and give up the prospect entirely. But if someone was to say, “Here,read a page of this book,” I wouldn’t think twice, maybe I’d even read two pages! By breaking down the process into smaller, simpler steps, you not only remove the daunting nature of completing the entire task but you also gain momentum as you make your way along.
On and on I went, day after day. I’d sit with the guitar, write some music, and record a short video on my phone. Sometimes, it would be a throwaway riff and I would recognize it right away. But I’d write those 4 measures and then move on to another idea the next day as I wiped the slate clean. Occasionally, the ideas would really stick. I’d find myself tuning up a guitar at the store and I’d start playing that riff or chord progression. Then I’d go home and play it and, to my surprise, I’d write the next part. And the next day, I’d write the next part. In at least two instances, I wrote full songs in the span of a week or two, which is unheard of for me or my band. Our songs tend to be quite drawn out, featuring lengthy instrumental sections as well as frequent tempo, meter, and/or key changes. As one would expect, these songs traditionally took us FOREVER to finish. Yet here I was, knocking them out in record time and with minimal effort. One of these songs has become a favorite of mine to play and if you ever see me in the store with an acoustic guitar, there’s a good chance I’m playing it!
When I was inspired to write this article, a song came to mind from one of my favorite musicians/songwriters, Steven Wilson. “Routine” tells the story of a woman who works as a housekeeper and relies on her daily cleaning routine to get through the grief that she’s dealing with in her life (the song also has a stunningly animated and emotional music video that has been known to make grown men cry). The protagonist of the story sings in the chorus, “Routine keeps me in line/Helps me pass the time/Concentrate my mind/Helps me to sleep.” In context, it’s a deeply depressing notion. But in the context of songwriting, I found it to be quite the opposite. Getting into a routine of writing music helped me to focus my creativity and ended up becoming the highlight of my day! Often, I think that a lot of us try to sit down and write music and end up engaging in self-sabotage. We make excuses if we’re not at our best and chalk it up as a lack of inspiration. I found that this exercise completely neutralized that attitude. I was more relaxed and at ease when writing. I never felt stressed out or pressured to come up with something great. Instead, I trusted in myself. If I wrote something that didn’t live up to my lofty expectations, I’d surely come up with something better on one of the following days. Now, of course, what worked for me may not work well for you. But who knows, maybe you’ll try it out and write your next song in a week. Given our newfound need for social distancing and self-quarantining, that could turn out to be a lot of songs!
Chris Capitanio, March 2020
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Doing Well by Doing Good – A Guitar Store Guy’s Case for Conservation
In honor of Earth Day 2020, I am departing from my normal music/guitar-related topics to touch on a topic that we at Maple Street Guitars, I, myself, and many in the guitar industry take quite seriously: mitigating our impact on the environment. Realizing that this can be a sensitive subject for some, I will preface this by saying that my intent here is not to lay blame or preach! Rather, I hope to offer some perspective and perhaps some motivation, while also giving folks a little insight as to how we, your friendly neighborhood guitar purveyors, try to lessen our impact as a business.
Having grown up during the ‘80s and ‘90s, I feel fortunate to have been exposed to what was then an emerging culture of mainstream environmentalism. Where environmental issues are concerned, I have come to regard myself as a conservative in the truest sense: I believe that the safest, most economically viable, and most ethical approach to living is to always conserve and preserve our planet and natural resources. Of course, the concept of ecological and environmental conservation was hardly new, as evidenced by the writings of Thoreau, Emerson, and Catlin, in addition to the activism of folks like Audubon, Muir, and so many countless others. To this day, however, much of the world’s population remains either ignorant or resistant to the fact that our planet is indeed a dynamic system with finite resources, such that our actions have very real long-term repercussions. Moreover, it is an inescapable reality that a growing population presents an ever-growing demand on the planet’s resources that is inextricably tied to a problem with waste. As our government and others worldwide struggle to implement effective widespread reforms while combating the multinational interests and political clout of big money, it is increasingly evident that real progress will be made by changes on a grassroots, individual level. Simply put, it’s up to us to make a change; and, in order to do so, we have to alter our attitudes and daily practices. Reduce. Re-use. Recycle. This is true bumper sticker wisdom, folks, and this is all one has to do to make a meaningful difference, for our collective efforts could amount to a change in the tide.
I’ve long maintained that if you want to encourage the average person to change their ways, the most effective means of doing so is to demonstrate how they might profit from doing so. Apart from the ethical boost from doing the right thing for the environment, there can be tremendous financial benefits in working towards sustainability, both on an individual level and in business. To paraphrase Ray Anderson in his most inspiring book, Mid-Course Correction, “you can do well by doing good.” For those unfamiliar, Ray Anderson is one of Atlanta’s great unsung heroes, and the founder of the billion dollar carpet tile business, Interface. Upon realizing the true environmental cost of his business operations, he began reimagining the entire production cycle in an effort to creating net-zero impact or better. In the first year of implementing his environmentally conscious strategies he saved his company nearly $67 million dollars! Meanwhile, lowered production costs/overhead theoretically translate to reduced prices for a consumer. But, even if the prices do not fall, the impact on the planet is reduced, which ultimately translates to reduced costs in addressing the inevitable environmental issues stemming from our consumption—in the end, we all profit from such conservation.
Over the years, we have unwittingly implemented some Ray Anderson’s suggestions through our reuse of packaging materials. Indeed, perhaps the most caustic environmental development in human history is our increasing reliance on single-use plastics and the convenience pre-prepared food, which involves a mind boggling amount of packaging and concomitant industry (and therefore cost) to generate the packaging. For this reason, we make a concerted effort here in store to avoid products that are excessively packaged—I have indeed returned entire shipments of such accessories or ceased stocking a line for this reason alone! Even so, we still deal with an incredible amount of packaging for such a small business. Each year we receive hundreds of shipments of guitars, amplifiers, and accessories, all of which come in cardboard boxes stuffed with polystyrene, Styrofoam, paper, bubble wrap, injected foam, you name it. Though it is occasionally irritatingly cluttered around here, we store and reuse as much of this as possible for our own shipments. Subsequently, we rarely purchase shipping supplies, which saves us thousands of dollars a year. We also make a point of shipping items in good quality boxes with reusable packaging, such that the recipient might also be able to re-use whatever we send. And, on a very small level, we do generate some revenue by selling shipping boxes with any packaging we can spare, as well as offering our packaging services. So, while it can be a bit of a nuisance to horde the boxes you receive as a consumer, there can be real dollar value in trying to reuse anything you can.
The practice of reducing use is self-explanatory, and likewise has incredible potential to save you money--for instance, I’ve literally saved thousands of dollars over my adult life by using rags and handkerchiefs in lieu of paper products! But, if you can’t avoid consuming a product to begin with, and you can’t find a way to re-use it, then please do your best to recycle it! Like many businesses and households, we recycle common items (cans, water bottles, paper, etc.) as well as cheap cardboard shipping boxes. However, as this article implies (and as anyone who knows me well will tell you), I have real difficulty with seeing things go in the trash can that could possibly be recycled but are usually not, due to municipal restrictions or the general apathy of your average consumer. Fortunately for us here in Atlanta, there is CHARM, the Center for Hard to Recycle Materials, which has two locations: Grant Park (Hill Street) and Buckhead (Roswell Road); https://livethrive.org/. CHARM accepts everything from Styrofoam and polystyrene (like the foam guitar bags and amp corners we see) to paint, mattresses, toilets, electronics, fluorescent light bulbs, bulk metal, and much more (they also accept donations for the Kidney Fund). Believe it or not, we even take all the old guitar strings we collect to them! For our local readers, I can’t say enough good things about this place, as they truly are good people fighting the good fight. So, before you toss the Styrofoam from last night’s take out or that packaging from your new TV in the garbage (or the old TV, itself), think about setting it aside for a trip to CHARM! For our readers afar, I recommend an online search for any similar facility that may be nearby, as you might be surprised by what you find!
In seeking balance, we must ultimately concede that, as living creatures, our consumption of resources is unavoidable. Yet, we do have the power to monitor our use of these resources and to decide how they are best put to use. Do we opt to use 400-year-old Sitka spruce trees for the soundboards of guitars (which can last for 100 years or more, if properly maintained), or do we choose to utilize this precious resource for paper products, much of which we literally flush down the toilet?! True, these decisions often boil down to quality versus quantity, effort versus convenience, and values over quick profits, and thus they are not necessarily easy decisions to make. Even so, I maintain hope that when most folks take a hard look at the evidence of our impact and the resultant threats we face, they will likewise have concern for our collective future and a desire to be good stewards of our planet. After all, don’t we want the future generations to have the resources to live comfortably and to continue making music?! So, in keeping with of our mission to make the world a better place, one guitar at a time, we at Maple Street Guitars are continually trying to improve when it comes to reducing, reusing, and recycling, and we encourage everyone to do the same. Remember, every little effort on your part makes a difference! – Lindsay Petsch April, 2020
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