Fingerboard Stories
Probably one of the most famous songs to make use of a capo, Don Felder originally wrote the song in E minor. While the original version had some weight because of where the chords sat in the guitar’s range, it was out of range for Don Henley’s voice. So, out comes the capo and seven (!) frets later, “Hotel California” took its final shape in the key of B minor.
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The majority of our wooden picks have been made of rosewood, though we have also offered picks in other woods such as bubinga, tigerwood and purpleheart. On the Janka Hardness Scale, rosewood is the softest of these offerings, coming in at a rating of 1,960 lbf (pounds-force). This rating allows us to make picks that still have a flex and thickness that compare to a Fender Medium on the thinner side, and a Fender Heavy on the thicker side.
The United States national anthem is a mash-up of two different sources. The lyrics themselves came from the poem Defense of Fort M’Henry, written and published in 1814 by Francis Scott Key. The poem itself contains four stanzas, the first one being the commonly-sung lyrics to The Star-Spangled Banner. Key’s words reflected what he saw during the bombardment of Fort McHenry, including a large flag flying above the Fort following the U.S. victory. That flag, as well as much of the action he saw, inspired the imagery found in the lyrics.
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Born in Greenwich Village in 1968, Hunter grew up in Berkley, California with his mother. It was through her that he got his first taste of music, starting with her collection of old blues records, as well as her work as a repairwoman at Subway Guitar. He started playing guitar at age 13, and at 14 he was taking lessons with Joe Satriani (who was teaching at Subway Guitar at the time). Through all of this, he was listening to a very eclectic mix of music, from the Dead Kennedys to John Coltrane, to Lightning Hopkins.
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It is arguable that the subject of our article, the 1977 album Rumours was peak-Fleetwood Mac, earning the band their most tremendous commercial success. Behind the album, a plethora of problems within the ranks, from members breaking up, to exercises in excess. It’s probably a miracle the album came out!
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