Hello From NJ

[DrumBob]

Hello Everyone...My first post here. I'm Bob Cianci, guitarist/drummer, author and music journalist. My main gig is with Premier Guitar magazine, and some of my recent pieces have included interviews with Pete Townshend, Brad Paisley, Buddy Guy, Robby Krieger, Nils Lofgren, Rick Nielsen, Roger McGuinn, Leslie West and Bob Wooten, plus articles on cheap, funky electric guitars, Chinese counterfeit guitars, and the search for the Holy Grail of electrics, the Gibson Moderne. PG is a great magazine, they give me lots of room for creativity, and they treat me very, very well. I'll have an article in the June issue entitled, "The Guitar Shops of New York City." Check it out.

I have been playing both drums and guitar for decades; I play drums in a very busy Jersey cover band called The Kootz, and guitar in my band, The Burgundy Watch. It's fun doing a drum gig one night and a guitar gig the next, but it's a lot of work unpacking and repacking. The BW has just set up a Facebook page. We gig about 3 times a month in the local bars, and our format is mostly '60's rock, plus some '50's roots R'n R, and a few '70's things; Beatles, Stones, Byrds, Who, Yardbirds, Kinks, Buddy Holly, Bo Diddley, and much more, including some American garage rock from that time.

As far as guitars, I have a collection that changes occasionally; a Gibson Les Paul Junior, Tokai Love Rock Flametop LP, Gibson Flying V, Epiphone Explorer, Epiphone Moderne, Gretsch two-tone green Anniversary, Gretsch Silver Jet, MIJ Strat, MIJ Jazzmaster (both in candy apple red), Squier Classic Vibe Tele, a few Danelectros, a Rickenbacker 330-12, a new PRS SE One Korina, an old Supro Belmont, Supro Dual-Tone, several cheesy '60's Japanese Teiscos and Kingstons (great for slide), an old Guild F-30, an Epiphone acoustic/electric, an ancient all-mahogany Harmony flattop, a nice Silvertone lap steel that belonged to my uncle, and a few homemade cigar box guitars. Oh, and my father's old Vega tenor banjo that I cannot play. I usually play through an American Fender Hot Rod Deluxe. My pedalboard includes a Boss tuner, Boss Trem, Boss Super Overdrive, Durham Crazy Horse, Cat's Eye Mutha Fuzz, Danelectro Back Talk, and a homemade "Toggle Box."

I look foward to getting involved here and maybe helping younger players with questions they may have about playing and equipment.

[sunvalleylaw]

Hi DrumBob! Welcome and thanks for joining us. I am not all that young (one of the many 40somethings here) but am young in guitar years still. I look forward to your input and hope you have fun!

[otaypanky]

:wave: Howdy Bob
I recognize you from TGP. I'm an ex 'jersey boy' myself ~
I met a bunch of the guys from Premier Guitar at the NY Amp Show, good people
The Fret is a great place, nice and friendly ~ see you around

[mrmudcat]

Very warm welcome brother!!!!:dude

[Tig]

Welcome to The Fret, Bob! Incredible gear collection you have.

Wow, I just got my first issue of PG in the mail last week after being a online regular reader the last year. Your Pete Townshend interview (http://digital.premierguitar.com/premierguitar/201004_1/#pg134) was easily the best one with him I've read. No kidding!

Your input will be quite welcome here. This is a somewhat rare internet forum, where we actually respect each other instead of the usual flame wars. Not something too common in the anonymous world of the interwebz!

Last thing... My wife is from South Jersey, so be sure to send some of those Jersey tomatoes down our way, OK? (she gets homesick for them!)

[bigG]

Welcome aboard, Bob! :beer:

That there Premier Guitar online mag is a great site! I think better and much more involved/info than GP or GW.

(Tell Joe Coffey that maybe he shoulda re-thunk cuttin' his hair! :thwap - from a former longhair who's old enough to have an excuse! :poke )

[FrankenFretter]

Welcome aboard!

[Robert]

Welcome Bob! Sounds like you are a guy with some great experiences. Looking forward to your posts!

[Blaze]

Welcome & Bienvennue Bob , nice to add you and your knowledges to this cool place..

[marnold]

Welcome, Bob! I'm a subscriber to the print version of PG and have really enjoyed your interviews. I thought the one with Pete Townshend was particularly enlightening.

[Brian Krashpad]

Welcome Bob!

That monicker sounds familiar, have I seen it on other forums?

Cool that you can write for a big mag. I've written for a lot of local/regional mags, basically the "you get the CD for free or into the show on the list if you review it" compensation scheme, haha. Currently doing a local music column in a local quarterly and actually getting paid, which is nice but just a little spending dosh.

Did you fall into it or did you major in Journalism or English in school?

[DrumBob]

Thank you, gentlemen. I'm glad to be here. I frequent Drumforum.org, and that is a very civil forum also, a real brotherhood. We support each other in many ways, both professionally and personally. I sense the same vibe here, and that's why I joined. :applause

I also go to Gearpage.com, and find that forum to be populated by some good people. I enjoy helping younger musicians as much as I can with common sense advice. I also frequent the Gretschpages and Rickresource forums as well. Both good places with good people for the most part.

I fell into music journalism quite by accident in college. The lady who ran the campus bookstore knew I was a music junky. She pulled me aside one day and gave me a promo copy of an album by a British band called If, that had been given to her by the Capitiol records salesman. He told her to give it to someone who would review it in the college paper. I took the LP, went to the paper office, and talked them into letting me review it. They liked what I wrote and offered me a weekly music column, which was mine for the next three years. After college, I went to work for The Aquarian newspaper here in north Jersey, the training ground for young music hacks. It all snowballed from there, and now I'm pursuing journalism much more than I ever have, and having the most fun writing for PG. I also have my sights set on getting
with a few other magazines as well.

I have a lot of "rock star" stories I have amassed over the years that I can share here. Some funny, so not. Seeing Steve Stills in his underwear sitting on the floor locked out of his hotel room while smoking a cigar was memorable.

Later.

[guitarhack]

Welcome, DrumBob! I enjoyed you Townshend piece a lot. I'm an online subscriber to PG. Please ask the editors about putting some more Country-oriented guitarists and guitars in your mag. Thanks and welcome once more the forum.

[DrumBob]

Welcome, DrumBob! I enjoyed you Townshend piece a lot. I'm an online subscriber to PG. Please ask the editors about putting some more Country-oriented guitarists and guitars in your mag. Thanks and welcome once more the forum.

Sure...I can do that. Who would you like to see covered?

I enjoyed talking with and meeting Brad Paisley. Nice guy, and a real gear hound.

[Robert]

You should get PG to check out the Canadian Mack amps - www.mackamps.com

I mentioned this to them a few months ago but they might have forgotten about it.

[bcdon]

Welcome, Bob!

[Katastrophe]

Welcome! I really do enjoy the varied backgrounds of the membership here, all united in the common cause of guitar playing!

Stick around and post often.:AOK

[marnold]

Say Bob,

Any chance you could talk to one of the PG web gurus and ask them to put up the clips for the Floyd Rose big block upgrade article? It's said "Before & After comparison coming soon!" since February of 2009 :) I sent an email about it but never heard anything back.

http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/Issue/2009/Feb/Big_Block_Floyd_Rose_Tremolo_Review.aspx