There's no telling what archives were lost at the Grand Old Opry and various Nashville labels and recording studios, but if the loss of guitars is any indicator, it's going to be mind-numbing.

Keith Urban lost his entire inventory, which was stored at a warehouse that also stores gear for 600 other artists.

Kenny Chesney lost almost everything at his house, as did countless other musicians. Darius Rucker said either he or Brad Paisley (it was unclear) lost every guitar but two. Man, if Paisley lost all his guitars, that's some serious axes lost to the flood.

The price of high-quality and vintage guitars is going to go through the roof, if it hasn't already.

This will, of course, spawn a LOT of songs dealing with the losses suffered. But man, I can't imagine what it would feel like to lose all that gear, all that history.

I dunno. While I agree it is a terrible loss to music history, it doesn't even register on my radar compared to the "real" stuff that has been lost by people in these floods. The real human misery and suffering because people don't have homes, livelihoods, etc.

It's devastating when property gets lost to disaster, no question about that.

I have a different opinion about lost guitars, however (I do hope they were insured!) Think about what a guitar is - it's a tool. And in the last 25 years these tools have gotten so overvalued that nobody makes great music with them anymore, they gaze at them in awe and think about the good old days when people were inspired to make great art. I'm not feeling that today, at all.

But you did say this flood could result in some great writing, so be it! Fuck those old shitty guitars, time to hit the Gibson factory and have some new ones made. That's exactly what I would do.

errant said:

Agree, insurance will cover the bulk of this stuff and while it's sad, it pales in comparison to the historical losses following the the taking down of Saddam. Damn, that was some serious historical losses.

errant said:

Oh, I agree 100%. This is a small, ancillary event compared to the overall impact.

That's one reason why I started a separate thread on it, in a different forum. I didn't want to marginalize the devastation to the people of Nashville.

I have to agree with errant on this. Life is more important than a guitar.

Timmy84 said:

This is a music forum

SupaFunkyOrgangrinderSexy said:

I know.

Anyway, may take a good minute for Nashville to get back its footing.

I totally agree with RodeoSchro's take on the "tools" aspect of the Nashville situation.
As Supa said, "This is a music forum". (well, most of the time anyway )

Maybe it's the fact that those who don't play won't get the significance an instrument can become to someone who depends on it as their form of expression or livelihood. (I'm referring to musicians and not music celebrities.)

It can be a most trusted friend.



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Timmy84 said:

Hey, again that's why I didn't post this on the Nashville thread in GD. You're absolutely right, and talking about ruined guitars on that thread would have been out of place.

So it's here.

theAudience said:

I knew you'd get what I was trying to say.

RodeoSchro said:

I can respect it.

RodeoSchro said:

From that aspect, it can be a serious issue.

The "Nashville" music scene (historically), is only partially about the vocal artists.
It's mainly about the faceless musicians playing on the tracks that give the music its character.

Relatively recently, i've had a few discussions with fabled Nashville guitarist Reggie Young.
Even though you may not have heard about him, you've heard him.

(Some background: http://www.rockabilly.nl/..._young.htm
"...he played on 155 chart records between 1967 and 1972, R&B charts included.")

Super humble nice guy. When I got him on the phone he was stunned that I even knew who he was.

For musicians like this, where music is truly a daily career (fame & notoriety don't enter the equation), their instruments define their sound (the reason why they get hired).



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People gotta chip in after the flood clears, fix the city and give them the instruments they need. Like New Orleans, Nashville refuses to fade away. I don't wanna read about a tragedy.

Timmy84 said:

Something I just received from The Recording Academy...



Dear Friends,

By now we have all seen the devastating and profoundly life-altering effects of the recent and unexpected floods that hit Nashville and its surrounding areas. Many in this music community have experienced significant losses, and many of the city's iconic music landmarks have suffered irreparable damage. It's times like these when we must come together and help those who need it most. In light of these circumstances, The Recording Academy® and its MusiCares® Foundation which provides a safety net of critical services for music people in crisis have established the MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief Fund


Emergency assistance already has begun, and 100 percent of every dollar raised will be immediately distributed to help those in the Nashville music community that are victims of the floods. Donations to MusiCares Nashville Flood Relief may be made at www.musicares.com/NashvilleFloodRelief. MusiCares' initial assistance will provide funds for food and clothing, gasoline and transportation, clean-up efforts, relocation costs, medicine, and other critical supplies. To apply for assistance, please contact the South Regional office at 615.327.0050 or toll free at 877.626.2748. A list of resources for flood victims is also available at the above link.

I encourage you to help in any way you can, and let's all keep our friends who have been affected by this tragic event in our thoughts.

Warm regards,

Neil Portnow President/CEO The Recording Academy and MusiCares
=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=


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Stickyfied

theAudience said:

Timmy84 said:

Mother Nature will have her way...guitars be damned

theAudience said:

I completely understand that, and eventually it may be something that we need to fret about and mourn. But the loss of one person's home this soon after the fact is more important to me than 50 classic guitars that created historic music. As of right now, guitars are a footnote to the real losses.

theAudience said:

errant said:

I remembered when Katrina hit New Orleans and everyone kept talking about the music being apparently lost. Slowly but surely New Orleans' musical scene has picked back up, so I think the music of Nashville won't be entirely lost. But I can understand the sadness with the music but it's secondary when it comes to life. Then again I do understand what some others here are saying so it's not entirely lost on my mind either.

Timmy84 said:

The New Orleans musicians got a huge boost from the Nashville musicians after Katrina. Trust when I say our NO brethren are here for us right now. Music makes the world go 'round.

Adisa said:

Ah! I gotcha. Makes things come together now.