Guitar

In my retirement I’ve decided to pick up my guitar and play it again on some regular basis, daily if possible, only for me. It’s a part of keeping my mind and body active – walking, fishing, reading, writing – and the guitar is both, in a small way, both physical and mental.

My guitar is a 1968 or 1969 Gibson Blue Ridge that I bought in late 1969. I paid $200 for it, and from what I can tell online, I could get $1000-$1300 for it today on eBay. But I’d never consider selling it. It’s basically a stripped-down version of the Gibson Hummingbird – take away the oversized tuning pegs, pearl inlays, and etched pick guard from the Hummingbird (all style) and you have the Blue Ridge – same design, wood, construction, and sound: “simple looking, has an overall good sound, rich bass and thinny bright highs. Great guitar for blues, slide and bluegrass.”

But I can no longer make it sound as good as I once could, 30 or so years ago. My hands have become arthritic and I suffer from Dupuytren’s Contracture. I can’t use my pinky on my right hand to finger pick at all, as it’s curled into a hook, and my left hand can’t stretch more than three or four frets, as opposed to four or five in earlier days, the stretch constrained by thickened tissue. And I can’t move my fingers as quickly up and down and across the strings as I once was able.

So I play slower, jazzier, not as hard. Within my means. And for myself.