Epiphone SG

I can't help myself, I always like looking at guitars. If there's nothing else to read at lunch, I'll grab the Musician's Friend catalog that I already know by heart. I sometimes browse eBay auctions just to see what various instruments are going for - and while I know I *need* nothing, I'm always on the lookout for what seems like a good bargain.

Two weeks ago, I was looking at SG's, and noted that there were some Epiphones going pretty cheaply on eBay. The SG is a classic guitar, and I'd often thought that I'd like to play one, just to fool around with. I saw one up for auction for $150 (plus shipping), put in a bid at that price, and won - my bid was the only one.

It arrived a few days later, and is a gorgeous instrument. It needed a little cleaning and a new set of strings, but that was easily done.  Now I have a sweet looking and playing guitar, and I couldn't be more pleased.

Others in the house *could* be more pleased.  Elder Daughter, on hearing that I'd won an eBay auction, said, "Just as long as it's not another guitar." Well, sorry about that, sweetie.... Younger Daughter couldn't see why guitars are being purchased when there are still daughters without iPhones. There's general female agreement that I should be banned from eBay.

I'm comfortable that no one in the house is going without any necessities. And I think I could have worse vices. Until I find one, I'll be happy with my SG (and its friends. :-))

"Here Comes the Sun"

I heard the Beatles' "Here Comes the Sun" recently, and it struck me as such a classic song that I should know how to play it. I did a quick YouTube search, and Marty Schwartz from guitarjamz.com came to the rescue yet again.

I can't recommend Marty highly enough. He has one YouTube channel for lessons and theory, and another channel for song tutorials. He's a great teacher, and I've learned a ton from him.

"Here Comes the Sun" turns out not to be that complicated. It's played with a capo at the 7th fret (though that's only necessary to play in the same key as the recorded version.) The chords are simple: D, G, A7, E7. The strumming is the trickiest part - at least if you want to do it as George Harrison did.

Marty explains it clearly and in detail, and I have the basics pretty much down cold. It's a fun song to play, and I'm not completely smooth with it yet - but that's just a matter of repetition.

Here's Marty's lesson: