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The Grand Ole Opry is a regular live country-music radio broadcast originating from Nashville, Tennessee, on WSM, held between two and five nights per week, depending on the time of year. It was founded on November 28, 1925, by George D. Hay as the WSM Barn Dance, taking its current name in 1927. Currently owned and operated by Opry Entertainment, it is the longest-running radio broadcast in U.S. history. Dedicated to honoring country music and its history, the Opry showcases a mix of famous singers and contemporary chart-toppers performing country, bluegrass, Americana, folk, and gospel music as well as comedic performances and skits. It attracts hundreds of thousands of visitors from around the world and millions of radio and internet listeners.
Epiphone is an American musical instrument brand that traces its roots to a musical instrument manufacturing business founded in 1873 by Anastasios Stathopoulos in İzmir, Ottoman Empire, and moved to New York City in 1908. After taking over his father's business, Epaminondas Stathopoulos named the company "Epiphone" as a combination of his own nickname "Epi" and the suffix "-phone" in 1928, the same year it began making guitars. From the 1930s through to the early 1950s, Epiphone produced a range of both acoustic and (later) electrified archtop guitars that rivalled those produced by Gibson and were the instruments of choice of many professionals; a smaller range of flat-top guitars were also produced, some designations of which were later continued during the Gibson-owned era for the company.
Ryman Auditorium is a historic 2,362-seat live-performance venue and museum located at 116 Rep. John Lewis Way North, in the downtown core of Nashville, Tennessee, United States. It is best known as the home of the Grand Ole Opry from 1943 to 1974. It is owned and operated by Ryman Hospitality Properties, Inc. Ryman Auditorium was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1971 and was later designated as a National Historic Landmark on June 25, 2001, for its pivotal role in the popularization of country music. A storied stage for Rock & Roll artists for decades, the Ryman was named a Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Landmark in 2022.
Orville H. Gibson was an American luthier who founded the Gibson Guitar Company in Kalamazoo, Michigan in 1902, makers of guitars, mandolins and other instruments.
Joseph Leonard Bonamassa is an American blues rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. He started his career at age twelve, when he opened for B.B. King. Since 2000, Bonamassa has released fifteen solo albums through his independent record label J&R Adventures, of which eleven have reached No. 1 on the Billboard Blues chart.
The Gibson J-45 is a guitar manufactured by the Gibson Guitar Corporation. Generally regarded as Gibson's most famous and widely used acoustic guitar model, it is considered the workhorse of guitars. The Jumbo guitar is signified by the "J" and not to be confused with C.F. Martin & Company's Dreadnought body style. In 1934 the jumbo was Gibson's competing response to Martin's "D" line body shape of 1930s. The jumbo is distinctive from Martin's dreadnoughts: The Gibson J-45 body depth remains over 4″ deep from endpin to neck heel, it also features a slightly larger body than a Martin D-28 as well as the shape of the two competing body styles being quite different; Squarish upper bouts on the Martins opposed to a rounded or “sloped shoulder” on The Gibson. While Martin did produce the first sloped shoulder guitar the specs of the J-45 are dissimilar.
Mandolin Brothers was a musical instrument shop in New York City. It was founded in 1971 and was located in Staten Island, New York. It closed the doors of its physical shop in 2017 and was sold to a California buyer who continues the brand online.
Broadway is a major thoroughfare in the downtown area in Nashville, Tennessee. It includes Lower Broadway, an entertainment district renowned for honky tonks and live country music.
Robert Benedetto is an American luthier of archtop jazz guitars. In 1968, he made his first archtop guitar in New Jersey and has handcrafted nearly 850 musical instruments. His guitars appear on many recordings, videos, and TV and film soundtracks, and have been featured in books, magazines and museums.
Vintage Guitar is an American magazine that focuses on vintage and classic guitars, amplifiers, effects, and related equipment, as well as notable guitarists from all genres and eras. The publication's feature stories and monthly columns cover a diverse range of topics by contributors, including some of the biggest names in the industry and renowned authorities like Dan Erlewine, George Gruhn, Wolf Marshall, Richard Smith, and Seymour W. Duncan, as well as some of the best-known writers in the field, including Pete Prown, Walter Carter, Dan Forte, Dave Hunter, Rich Kienzle, Michael Dregni, John Peden, Greg Prato, and others.
Elderly Instruments is a musical instrument retailer in Lansing, Michigan, United States, with a reputation as a "megastore", a repair shop and a locus for folk music including bluegrass and "twang". Specializing in fretted instruments, including acoustic and electric guitars, banjos, mandolins, and ukuleles, Elderly maintains a selection of odd or rare instruments. Elderly is known as a premier repair shop for fretted instruments, as one of the larger vintage instrument dealers in the United States, and as a major dealer of Martin guitars in particular.
The dreadnought is a type of acoustic guitar body developed by American guitar manufacturer C.F. Martin & Company. The style, since copied by other guitar manufacturers, has become the most common for acoustic guitars.
George Gruhn is an American writer, businessman and ophiophilist. He is one of the foremost experts on vintage American guitars and fretted instruments, and the author of several books on the subject. He is the founder of Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, and has sold guitars to musicians such as Hank Williams, Jr., Eric Clapton, Brad Paisley, Lyle Lovett, Emmylou Harris, Billy Gibbons, Rick Nielsen, Vince Gill, and John Hiatt.
A vintage guitar is an older guitar usually sought after and maintained by avid collectors or musicians. The term may indicate either that an instrument is merely old, or that is sought after for its tonal quality, cosmetic appearance, or historical significance.
Collings Guitars is an Austin, Texas–based stringed instrument manufacturer. The company was founded in 1973 by BillCollings. In addition to acoustic guitars, Collings Guitars manufactures electric guitars, archtop guitars, mandolins and ukuleles.
Vintage musical equipment is older music gear, including instruments, amplifiers and speakers, sound recording equipment and effects pedals, sought after, maintained and used by record producers, audio engineers and musicians who are interested in historical music genres. While any piece of equipment of sufficient age can be considered vintage, in the 2010s the term is typically applied to instruments and gear from the 1970s and earlier. Guitars, amps, pedals, electric keyboards, sound recording equipment from the 1950s to 1970s are particularly sought. Musical equipment from the 1940s and prior eras is often expensive, and sought out mainly by museums or collectors.
Gruhn is a surname of notable people, including:
Jeffrey Joseph Taylor is a Nashville-based bandleader and multi-instrumentalist, primarily known for keyboards and accordion. He is a long-time member of the Grammy-winning Western swing band, The Time Jumpers. As a bandleader, he conducted hundreds of shows at Nashville's Opryland USA and the General Jackson riverboat. and backed up many artists performing on the Grand Ole Opry. As a session musician, he has recorded with Paul Simon, Harry Connick Jr., Elvis Costello, George Strait, and Vince Gill. He was a featured artist on Ricky Skaggs' album, Instrumentals, winning a Grammy in 2007 for Best Bluegrass Album. He was musical director for the live stage production Always, Patsy Cline in its two-year run at Nashville's Ryman Auditorium.
Henry Arnold Weymann(Wegman / Wegmann) was a German-American inventor, businessman and musical instrument manufacturer who founded Weymann guitars of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania in 1864.
References
- ↑ Alan di Perna, "George Gruhn: Nashville's Vintage Guru," Guitar Aficionado, Winter 2011.
- ↑ Makos, Jeff (August 1996). "Would You Buy A Used Guitar From This Man?". The University of Chicago Magazine. The University of Chicago. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
- 1 2 Silverman, Jack (11 July 2013). "George Gruhn discusses his early days on Lower Broadway and his new Eighth Avenue location". nashvillescene.com. Nashville Scene. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
- ↑ Vinnicombe, Chris (14 April 2016). "Interview: George Gruhn - Guitar George". guitar.com. NME Networks Media Limited. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
- ↑ Beckett, Paul (12 April 1999). "Businesses Drop Green Card, Appear In Visa Ad, Return After Free Boost". wsj.com. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 15 July 2022.
- ↑ "Gruhn Guitars Reopens at New Location". premierguitar.com. Retrieved 17 April 2019.