The Fretboard Journal’s Other Gift Guide

No surprise to anyone, the holidays are coming.

As a journalist, I suppose I should do my part and commemorate this season with the annual ritual of crafting a clever new gift giving guide for guitarists around the world, filled with latest-and-greatest gear suggestions. (Don’t worry, it’s coming.)

But, if I’m being honest, it’s a bit of a challenge this year. That Walter Becker gear auction last month? It kind of bummed me out. Did he (or anyone) truly need all that stuff? Personally, I have all the gear I need. Heck, I have more than enough gear. I have a surplus. There are so many good guitars out there, so many great amps and pedals and DI boxes and pickups… it’s an embarrassment of riches. Even in my tiny home studio (read: garage), I have guitars that don’t get played (you can only play one at a time, right?), pedals that haven’t been plugged in, and an unfinished DIY Stew-Mac Champ amp project…

Have I run out of G.A.S.? Maybe. 

Last week, singer-songwriter Christopher Paul Stelling stopped by the Journal. He was here for one of our weekly musician sessions – an interview for our podcast and a song or two for our video cameras. He’s a fine musician – able to pull-off Fahey-inspired fingerpicking instrumentals and craft a great song. He even has a new Ben Harper-produced album on the way that is wonderful. He's the perfect FJ subject: In his early days, he dabbled in the world of lutherie and he currently plays a beat-up, Trigger-esque vintage Martin (he also has an even worse-for-wear Gibson nylon-string that he had to retire from the road).

Our chat could have gone in any number of directions. So what was the first piece of gear we geeked out on?  

Gaffer’s tape.

You see, Christopher had a roll fastened to the strap of his backpack for all to see. I wanted to know why he brought it. And, as he started extolling its many uses on the road, it made perfect sense. A roll of that tape can solve all sorts of problems, from loose cables on the floor about to be tripped on to making sure boxes of unsold merchandise are sealed for the next show.

All of this got me to thinking about the non-music tools I love: The cheap, weird and unlikely but essential things I use every day. This was a list I can craft without hesitation. So, just for Insiders, here goes:

• Opinel No. 8 Folding Knife (Amazon link). I grew up wondering why old guys carry a pocket knife. It seemed so unnecessary. I don’t fish. I’ll never whittle. Then I became a dad and had to figure out how to open all that insane plastic packaging that comes with every toy, battery pack and SD card that every parent has to buy. When my son was around three, I saw an Opinel knife on display at a little natural market on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington and bought one... mainly because I liked the look of the simple wooden handle. Now I own at least four… scattered amongst the car, the house and the garage. They’re cheap, tough enough to open that kids won’t get hurt, and they cut through anything from cheese to the tape on a guitar box.
• J5 Tactical V1-PRO Flashlight (Amazon link). Ever since that New Yorker story about the big quake that will one day destroy Seattle, I’ve been thinking about what to pack in my emergency kit. Slowly, I'm buying water purifiers, food rations, etc. and all those essentials. While that stuff gathers dust, this little, cheap tactical flashlight I bought gets used all of the time. I have one in nearly every room.  

• Hot sauce. The Truth About Vintage Amps podcast I co-host may as well be called the Truth About Condiments. Hot sauce gets discussed a ton – TAVA amp guru Skip Simmons loves the products from the Pepper Plant company. I’m open to anything as long as it’s red and not from Tabasco.
• Reading glasses. I’m finally turning into an old man. Again, several pairs throughout the house. Good for proofing the magazine and for catching up on a good book (or just seeing dimly lit menus). 
• Cast iron. I’m not a big enough foodie to know the variables between old and new cast iron pans… the cheap, pre-seasoned Lodge pan that I bought at Big 5 Sporting Goods seems to work just fine. I use it every day. 

So, what are your favorite non-music essentials? I'd love to hear about them... drop me a line.