How And Why Players Need To be Better Musicians And Use Top Notch Rigs and Gear

Blues Great Eddie Taylor


By Mark Grove

This is a repost of an important topic for players. Basically how to become better players, use better equipment suited to your band, and for your band to make more money period.



I came across a website called Artists House with a post that asked, Should you use better road gear or make a better album.Okay, I'll get right to the point. If any working musicians say making a better album is more important, stop reading this, sell all your gear and go back to that day job you hate.


This is dead simple guys

A player who's been in the game one month could figure it out. If they can you can.

Before doing anything else learn how to play better with the gear you currently use, before you do anything else. Learn from other musicians better than you and attend jam sessions with other blues and rock players.

This is not hard guys.

Okay, what to do next?

Make a better album.Noooooo!

Better Gear? Yes!

Anyone can make a better album with today's technology. You don't have to be a musician to make a good album with computer technology. If you're a working player it's vital your band uses road worthy gear. Amps like Mesa-Boogie, Ampeg, SWR or Randall for heavy music players.

Use top quality cables, cords, mic's and mixing equipment for your live gear. Even top quality cases that protect your gear. It will take time to start being able to afford this top quality gear. Just be patient.

If you don't make investments in top quality gear your playing will suffer and your gear will not last 3 months on the road.

Bottom-Feeder Recording To Be Creative:
Forget making a better album, do it ghetto style lads when you're first starting out.You'll waste your money and time.Wait until you have a band together for a year or so and you're making a good living before considering using a top quality studio. And don't use computer technology to record your first album.

Do it with Analog equipment at first. That will help your band be more creative than doing it with digital equipment. I've mentioned in other articles to go buy an old Tascam 4 track cassette with a built in mixer on it. Record it directly on the floor like a live gig. Use high quality mic's like Shure 57's or 58's. Make sure its mixed well and keep the analog state of the live recording in tact.

At this point if you're playing regularly, you'll know local studio recording engineers. Get them to listen to it. Ask for any tips on recording and mixing it better. Interview them and offer to put the interview on your band site. Offer to interview him on a regular basis. This may get him to do a free mastering and final mixing of your CD.


Still keep the analog sound in tact.

You can grab cheap Tascam 4 track decks off E-Bay and Craigslist.

Simple marketing of your Analog CD:

Make only 200 to 300 CD's and split the cost between the band members. This will probably not make any money. But if your band is smart you'll start a business. I'm off on a tangent here, but it's all inter-related guys.

Give out 50 to 100 at your gigs. Give out at least 50 to local media, clubs, agents and blues music societies. Even include a couple to your local musicians union who are huge resources of help to musicians.

Marketing damn important!!!

Interview other bands
Write articles for other bands
Hold Q and A sessions for your fans and fans of other bands


Help other bands, buy better equipment, market your band properly and learn all you can from doing what you love,song writing and recording. Forget the better album right now.

Becoming Better Players:

Like I said, seek out better players than yourselves to learn from them. Jam with them to learn how to pick your spots to fill in with phrasing, or short solos at most. Learn to play harder material in your genre or ones closely related. If you're a hard rock band, learn Jazz and how to fuse the two together. You'll learn not just how to play better, but you'll learn how to compose and write music more effectively as well.

After you learn how to become better players, that's when you start using better equipment. And please don't use a well known players equipment because they use a certain type of amp, guitar or pedals.
That's a bad move. It won't help you play better or create your own way of playing or developing your own sweet natural tone.

Just do what I say and you and your band will get better as players and make more cash period.

Mark---South East of Constitution Park) " It's Much easier On Your Constitution"



Mark Grove