Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Top Review - How Close to Gibson Is It?

By R. S. Rasnick

Like the Fender Stratocaster, the Gibson Les Paul has become a guitar icon, favored by players in such diverse styles as rock, metal, blues, jazz, and country. From Slash to Jimmy Page, the lovers of the Les Paul are common.

There's one downside, though, to owning one of these prized pieces of rock and roll history. These are not bargain-priced instruments.

The general street cost of a new Les Paul is well over $2,000, which is hardly pocket change. What's a Les Paul lover to do?

How about the Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus?

Even though it reads "Epiphone" on the headstock, the guitar sounds, feels, plays, and looks like a "real" Gibson Les Paul, just several hundred dollars cheaper. This made-in-Korea Les Paul model even sports Les Paul's signature on the headstock. But how does it liken to an American-made Gibson Les Paul?

We surveyed a transparent Blue Les Paul Standard Plus Top, and I have to say the guitar has one of the most pretty tops I've discovered in this price range. The figuring is utterly exquisite, and is marvellously complimented by its creme-colored binding and chrome hardware.

Suffice it to say, that that the Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Top is one extremely attractive instrument.

When I first played the Epiphone, I couldn't help but compare it to my own Gibson Les Paul Standard. I have to say that I was real impressed with the Epiphone. The neck was fast easy to play, reminding me somewhat of a 1960 Gibson Les Paul Standard. It was quicker in many ways than my own Les Paul, which was a nice surprise.

The fretwork overall is quite well done, though possibly not as nice as my Gibson. The rosewood fretboard had a real nice feel to it, and the frets were smooth and well-polished overall.

The alnico classic pickups have the classic Les Paul bite out of the bridge pickup and a smooth, round tone from the neck pickup. Still, I ordinarily swap pickups out of most stock instruments and would probably do the same here.

Let me stress that it emphatically wouldn't be a "must," but I would in all likelihood put Duncan JB and Jazz pickups in the guitar, since I'm partial to that set of pickups.

These pickups sound terrific and might be what you're looking for without the need for replacements. They did tend to squeal somewhat at high volumes, but not annoyingly so.

It's not clear to the naked eye just where Epiphone has determined to cut corners with this fine guitar. Like all instruments in this price range, the Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus Top uses veneer instead of solid woods for the top, body, and neck. Nevertheless, the guitar is still a looker and has a fine tone suitable for a mixture of styles.

The veneer body, though, in reality allows these Korean-made Epiphones to weigh less than the made-in-USA Gibson guitars, a welcome change. The bottom line is that the Epiphone Les Paul Standard Plus is a fantastic guitar for the money and far less expensive than its Gibson sibling. - 18423

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How To Choose From Knowing Your Style Types Of Electric Guitars

By Jake Zertosky

There are several different types of electric guitars. In about all styles of music, the electric guitar is the most recognized instruments played. In the 1930's, one of the earliest performances recorded with the electric guitar was by Gage Brewer. From this point forward, this instrument began influencing Hawaiian and Western music styles. These styles of music could not monopolize this instrument for long.

The next genre of music to start using the electric guitar was Jazz. What Gage Brewer did for the music industry, later on George Barnes did for Jazz music. George Barnes played jazz with a hallow guitar. Jazz evolved to Fusion Jazz by the nineteen seventies which was a turning point as guitarist started to use solid body instead.

The creation of distortion with the electric guitar became widely used in what is known as the era of rock. In the mid sixties, bands such as the Yardbirds & Led Zeppelin made some of these sounds by the use of bows for violins and guitar pedals. Eddie Van Halen had even made unique sounds with the use of an electric drill. Over the years and technology updates, these sounds have been created digitally.

If you are interested in purchasing an electric guitar, then you will want to know what kind of guitar it is you are looking for. There are several styles in which to choose from depending on what it is you want to play and how you want it to sound.

A solid body guitar are typically made from a hard wood that is dried up to six months in a heated storage room, cut into the shape of the designer, lacquer coated, and has six steel strings. A string through body is a lot like a solid body only differing by the way it is strung. This style has the strings strung through the holes put into the bottom of the guitar. These guitars create the sound you hear by the pickups on the guitar converting the vibrations into electrical sounds.

A more traditional guitar would be a hallow body guitar. These are different than its solid body counterparts as the music play not only comes from the strings of the guitar, but it also uses the vibrations of the body of the guitar. Hallowed guitars have the high recognized hole in it up to having three strategically placed holes. Escaping from the traditional wood, semi-acoustic guitars are also have fiberglass or metal bodies. Where as an acoustic relies on the transfer of sound from vibrations through the strings, body, and top of the guitar.

Some guitars throughout time have been made for specific sounds or ranges, In order to achieve this, strings were added to the six string up to twelve strings. Other additions included the use of three bridges and guitars that had two necks. Not used very often, the double neck guitar offers the guitarist the ability to play guitar or base.

Guitar prices can be all across the board. You will find that what kind of guitar you are looking at will weigh heavily on how much you pay for it as well as its history. You can purchase an inexpensive guitar, but will possibly not sound anywhere near what you want it to. Electric guitars can also be in the high thousands, You will want to shop around, play on one to try it out, and find one that fits your style. - 18423

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There are numerous styles of electric guitars. An electric guitar is a unbelievably well recognized instrument in about any music genres across the world.

Oddly Remarkable Movies For Your Entertainment Delight

By Dan B Robb

Movies can actually be a tremendous benefit for our lives. When we sit down and loosen up to enjoy a wonderful motion picture it permits us to escape from our daily concerns, problems and fears. We tend to get caught up in the lives that are happening in the film and it permits us to stop thinking about our own difficulties for a while.

Below are some of the best motion pictures of all time. Choose a good film to view tonight.

Frequency was about John Sullivan who lost his father thirty years back. He is still affected by the loss. Somehow with the use of his dad's old ham radio, he can exchange a few words with his father, when his father was still living. He tells his father of the fire that would kill him. This saves his dad but sets off new events that now must be resolved, or John's mom will now pass on.

Internal Affairs is about a youthful policeman Raymond Avila works in the Internal Affairs Department of the LAPD. He and his colleague observe something fishy with Dennis Peck. His financial situation is much stronger than expected on a cop's income. As soon as Peck is aware of the investigation, he turns his attention away from his shady dealings to center on Avila.

In 1999 Light It Up hit the big screen. Well-intentioned although preachy diatribe in reference to a group of New York City. scholars who include their high school after their top choice professor is unreasonably delayed and a patrol officer is unintentionally shot. He tries to handle a number of daunting issues but results are strained and melodramatic. Cast includes Usher Raymond, Forest Whitaker, Marcello Robinson, Rosario Dawson, Robert Richard, Judd Nelson, Fredro Starr, Sara Gilbert, Glynn Turman, and Vanessa L. Williams.

The movie "Juno" is a great film. Juno is a smart young girl facing a huge predicament. She is pregnant. Wishing the best for the child she strives to find a fitting set of parents for her child. With the support of devoted parents, Juno tries to deal with coming of age before her time.

The Bourne Ultimatum hit theaters with a bang. In the third motion picture of the succession, Jason Bourne is still being hunted by those who had trained him into the extreme assassin that he is. Having lost his memory when almost being killed, Bourne is retracing his past to try to understand who he was, and why everybody wants him dead. All his skills are put to the test, as the C.I.A. is relentless in its effort to have him eliminated. Starring Matt Damon and Julia Stiles.

Prince of Darkness came out in 1987. The anti-Christ entombs the evil child of Satan in a cannister of a neglected Los Angeles temple. It's up to pastor Pleasence and the grad students of Prof Wong to clean up the mess. They must stop the religious sect trying to free this child named the "Brotherhood of Rest." Cast includes Donald Pleasence, Lisa Blount, Jameson Parker, Victor Wong, Dennis Dun, Susan Blanchard, Anne Howard and Alice Cooper Panavision.

A Few Good Men is about two marines that are being held responsible for the death of a fellow marine. They claim they were ordered to discipline private Santiago, and his death was not intended. Lt. Daniel Kaffee will try to save the marines and get to the bottom of the case. - 18423

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Online Bass Lessons Learn Bass

By Demetrius Williams

You may prefer a particular style of music over many others and when you begin learning a new instrument but perhaps over time, you will develop a fondness for other styles or genres. This means that in the future you may feel the benefits from experiencing some different styles of playing bass guitar in your development period.

This means that bass lessons can be invaluable at any stage of your playing career as there is always time to learn new skills and styles. People should always try to evolve and develop new skills and even their musical preferences can change over time.

This is where learning styles like bass scales can open up a whole new style of playing. A person should always try to keep an open mind when it comes to learning different skills and styles.

Some people are put off learning a musical instrument due to lessons they received as a young child that were really boring. This is unfortunate but learning an instrument doesn't have to be dull and the bass guitar can prove this.

There is a great number of different skills involved with playing the bass guitar that it would be nigh on impossible to master everyone but having fun is surely the most important issue. Another great thing about the bass guitar is that is suitable for males and females with some of the greatest bass players in rock history being women.

These are both good reasons for wanting to play an instrument and by taking bass guitar lessons; you could be playing along to songs in the style of the bands you really love. One of the great ways to learn the bass guitar is to look for lessons online.

If you go see a tutor you are limited with times and you have to work at the pace they set but if you use an online bass training program you can develop as quickly or as sedately as you would like. More and more people are coming around to the idea that the bass guitar is one seriously cool instrument.

There was a spell there that all the guitar hero computer players were starting to think that their hobby was the best but there are now genuine reasons to learn to play bass. There are new computer games where you can play the bass as part of the game but the technological advances don't stop there. - 18423

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Learn To Play Guitar DVD: Don't Get Stuck While You're Paying For Lessons

By Leon Geathers

Do you need natural talent to be a great (or even a good) musician? Don't believe this. It is true that some people possess more natural abilities in one or skill or another. For example, some athletes are naturally fast sprinters.

Others are great marathon runners. Others can swim faster or longer. Others can jump higher. Others are stronger. Others are smarter. Others have faster reflexes. Others can through a football better. Others can shoot a basketball better, etc.

The point is athletes with great abilities have them usually in one area. For example, Michael Jorden (arguably the world's greatest basketball player of all time) was not very successful when he tried to play baseball (or golf for that matter). Think about athletes in the olympics, they are specialists. They have found their natural ability and developed it to its greatest potential, but that natural ability is usually limited to one skill.

Doing that alone won't work well and even if it does eventually work, it will take 10 times aslong! Besides, how will you know if what you are trying to do is original if you don't learn about what has already been done?

If you are wondering why I haven't given you a detailed explanation of the strategies I used in the past, it would be pointless for me to tell you what my strategy was, because it was specific only to my goals. Chances are, your goals may differ greatly from mine in many different ways.

People ask, "should I stop playing everything I am used to playing, until I get rid of all my bad habits"? Well, if you have a lot more discipline than I have, go ahead and do that! If you can stand not making music for months, go ahead, but I don't recommend it.

Take up one of your usual pieces of music where that habit has been showing itself by producing unwanted results, and we begin to practice it in the same careful way that you did the exercises you were using to change the essence of the bad habit.

Begin to do all the Foundation Exercises, because they will start to undo the foundation of all your bad habits. Do them every day for perhaps ten minutes. If you are not using my book, get all you can from my essays, and apply those approaches, experiment with them, and elaborate upon them, and adapt them to new situations. - 18423

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