Do you name your guitars???

[DjFuzzyMcPickle]

Quoting The Dman on PAGE3: "These threads don't usually last long until someone comes along all serious and condescending hinting at but not really saying that your an idiot for naming your guitars. Those guys crack me up....Grabs popcorn"

Quoting myself on PAGE4:

Originally Posted by DjFuzzyMcPickle

Yup..The Blond top 614CE - Marilyn (as in Monroe). The Sultry 914CE Tobacco sunburst - Selma (as in Hayek) Call it wishful thinking!

Quoting Bohemian on PAGE4 "No, I am an adult and don't have imaginary friends or girlfriends. I do not have personal relationships with inanimate objects".

WOW!!! Now that's funny on so many levels I don't know where to begin, but a famous quote from the movie stripes comes to mind!

Dman: You couldn't have nailed that one any better if you tried or changed your name to kreskin the great! Seriously LM*O

[Long Jon]

Originally Posted by Long Jon

I find naming them helps, when instructing the servants on which one you want fetched...

I said this for fun, then I remembered that in the "Keef's" world this is actually true !!

His lackeys had better know "Micawber" from "Malcom" if they wanna keep their job.


To paraphrase Art Garfunkel. "Are guitars out tonight? I don't know if it's Sunny or Dwight..."

Originally Posted by HHP

I've got one worse, people who name their pets after their preferred brand of instrument.

Good point. My dog always seems confused when I call him "Hummingbird".

These threads, about naming guitars, appear from time to time. I even started one this past summer. This one, however, is by far the most entertaining to read. Not intended to be a positive or negative comment, but whether people name guitars or not, and the reasons they do or not, gives insight into a lot of our personalities. It's interesting to see through this little window, so to speak.

[WordMan]

Originally Posted by bohemian

No, I am an adult and don't have imaginary friends or girlfriends. I do not have personal relationships with inanimate objects.

Hey, thanks for that. I wasn't sure if I was a grown up.

To the OP: In my travels, I have realized a few things:

- 99.9% of players will assert that do NOT name their guitars, and many, like our grown up friend here, will assert that anyone who does name their guitars is silly

- 99.9% of players have nicknames for their guitars based on Make, Model, Year and/or Color. Have they "named" their guitar? Not in the strictest sense, no - but there is clearly a respect for the quality of the tool. There is a relationship with the tool that a gruff dude can deny, but is there.

There's a truly wonderful song by Guy Clark called Stuff That Works, that pretty much sums up how a man relates to his tools:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lgCyXw2EWuA

- For electrics, if your guitar is black, you are 17.3% more likely to give it a color-related nickname: Blackie, Old Black, The Black Strat, The Black One

As for me, as a rule, no - I don't name my guitars past a standard nickname. Having said that, I have a couple that have gotten named in my 35 years of playing - just kinda worked out that way and I really don't give it much thought. I think of my 1948 Martin D-18 as "the D-18" 99.9% of the time - but occasionally, I think about the fact that I traded a First Edition of To Kill a Mockingbird to get the guitar - so it's unofficial nickname is Atticus. I think that's pretty cool. You are welcome to think otherwise.

[Woodstock School Of Music]

Originally Posted by Mark Stone

Not intended to be a positive or negative comment, but whether people name guitars or not, and the reasons they do or not, gives insight into a lot of our personalities. It's interesting to see through this little window, so to speak.

My thoughts exactly

[Joie2800]

Yes, I name my guitars.

[seannx]

My son and I are very creative with names for our guitars. Some examples...
The Taylor
The PRS
The Voyage-Air
The Pearlcaster
The Ibanez
etc...
Maybe if we had more than one of each brand, that could change.

[teleamp]

Originally Posted by Long Jon

I must say I'm surprised at this Rich. Especially as I know yours are all the same brand.

I find naming them helps, when instructing the servants on which one you want fetched...

lol, Riches servants are schooled in all things Martin and are world class guitar techs as well...

[picassov7]

No....I don't think my wife would take too kindly to me saying "I am going to play with Taylor" or "I am going to play with the Gymnast" (Voyage-Air...She's flexible) every night. My wife is the jealous type you know

[Bluside]

I don't name my guitars except for their model names.

However, the other day when I was playing my OM-42 and the SO asked which one that was, I said it was the "Mac Daddy." She wouldn't know the model names if i told her, but she understood this.

So, maybe I have named it.

[flaggerphil]

"Do you name your guitars???"

Nope. Never have.

[JLed79]

I call the 814 the big one, the 412 the little one, the Gibson the black one, the babies, well babies and the new one is the new one.

[riverrummed]

When I play guitar and a song begins to develop I give it a name as a reminder so that it has an identity that I can come back to and work on later (I totally get why Sir Paul started with "scrambled eggs" and ended up with Yesterday). Most of my guitars have names that just drop in out of the blue and stick...Janie, Ginger, Arkay, Addie and Simza. My Telecaster doesn't have a name and I've had it for four years now. My mandolin also doesn't have a name, nor does my four month old Eastman E10SS. If a name arises I use it but I don't reach for one. I still kind of resent that the hospital wouldn't let me take my son home without naming him first as I think a name finds the person/thing (or not) and should be organic, not something to be forced. My 1986 Nissan 4WD pickup truck has a name too. I don't name rifles or pistols but it was a common occurance amongst people that carried them a lot back when.

[Long Jon]

Originally Posted by riverrummed

,,,,,,, I still kind of resent that the hospital wouldn't let me take my son home without naming him first as I think a name finds the person/thing (or not) and should be organic, not something to be forced,,,,,,,,,,,

This happened to me before I could obtain insurance for my boat, to put her in the River Thames . Given time, I'd have picked a different name.

(I wont tell you the name, because it is actually part of my home address, which I prefer to keep confidential.)