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The GuitarAttack crew traveled to Nashville,
Tennessee for the gala National Association of Music Merchants (NAMM) Show. The NAMM
Show is the annual meeting of manufacturers and retailers. Everything musical could
be found in the Nashville Convention Center and Arena (except for Gibson...more on that
later). Much like the Musik Messe we attended in Frankfurt, this was complete
sensory overload!
Once again, we attended the show with Mr. Ken Huddleston of KK's Music in Tennessee. Unlike some other sites, we are posting information on products that we liked, rather than a comprehensive look at everything. We also believe that the products we liked will be in the interest of our Guitarattack visitors. So, check the photos out, and keep checking back! Note: These photos are presented in chronological order to preserve the order of the trip through Nashville! |
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Doors open, 10 a.m. First
stop...Paul Reed Smith. The PRS booth featured two complete lines like this one, and
more flamed maple than you can shake a stick at. The rest of the booth was way dark,
but the guitars were very bright. There was a somber mood in this room...not exactly sure...the guitars looked great! |
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Straight from the 80's was this killer
Explorer in the Dean booth. Remember these? We got a kick out of the
"New" badge attached to this axe. Founder Dean Z. was walking around with
a very cool cowboy hat. Boy, there was a lot of stuff jammed into their room. Next, on to the Gibson booth! |
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To our surprise, Gibson did not have a
booth in the Nashville Arena complex. Rather, they chose to bus everyone out to
their Opry Mills facility. It was hotter than hot outside in Nashville, but Gibson
had a trailer chock full of guitars sitting in front of their former cafe on South
Broadway just beyond Gruhn Guitars. Not really very comfortable for browsing, I must
say. Mr. KK is seen here chilling by the Gibson trailer. Inside the former cafe there was a bizarre "Voodoo" theme happening to promote the new line of Gibson guitars. Familiar designs executed in ash with black hardware and a funky finish. Here is a shot of an Explorer, Les Paul, SG, and Flying V in voodoo finishes. Once we got a load of these four guitars, it was time to head out to Opry Mills.
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After an unremarkable 25 minute ride, here
we are...Opry Mills Mall and the Gibson Bluegrass Showcase. To the left of the
headstock is a very unremarkable mall, for which the awesome Opryland theme park was
sacrificed. Gibson had their display setup inside this handsome storefront. |
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Once inside, it
was total electric domination. Here are three shot of some of the better groupings
in the booth. Les Pauls, Firebirds, and non-reverse Firebirds, new for
this year. Click on one of the photos for a full sized shot.
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If you've got a whole bunch of
cash burning a hole in your pocket, this Gary Rossington Les Paul may be up your alley.
Mr. Rossington was one of the great pickers in Lynyrd Skynyrd, and was
well known for playing the dickens out of his old '59 Les Paul. This reissue looked amazing, and comes with the handsome display box. |
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Two more killer reissues. Not much needs to be said here, but the top on the '59 reissue was stunning. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Mr. KK picking it out on a Mandoguitar.
Yes folks...it looks like a mandolin, but it has six strings and plays like a
guitar. A spontaneous jam session broke out when Mr. Williams started a killer
mandoversion of "Enter Sandman". Mr. KK thought that it "dischorded" a little bit, but liked the projection and the finish. "Aaah...pick it out, Leon." |
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| Click here for other Summer NAMM 02 pages: 2, 3, 4 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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