Yes, that’s right. I know this blog is supposed to be about vintage electric guitars, but I’m going to take a moment to write about acoustic guitars (also referred to as “flat top” guitars). Why, you ask? Simple, the number one reason is respect. I think they rightly deserve some respect by all, guitar players and non-players alike. And I’ll be glad to tell you why.

While electric guitars have only been around for about a century, acoustic guitars in some form or fashion of a stringed instrument have been around for thousands of years. Yes I said thousands. The oldest picture ever found of someone playing a stringed instrument similar to a guitar is a stone carving around 3,300 years old. Wow! I think that deserves some respect. The more modern style hollow body acoustic guitars have been around for about a thousand years.

Now, if we fast forward to more modern times we find companies like C.F. Martin & Co. that was founded in 1833, making the types of acoustic guitars that we all recognize. They are still making some fine guitars to this very day. Martin guitars have always been known for the quality and craftsmanship. From an investment standpoint, consider this; Martin’s vintage acoustic guitars sell for thousands at auction, some of which have even sold in the six figure range. Very respectful indeed!

While acoustic guitars are more suited to certain genres of music over others, another good reason to talk about them is that when writing songs or composing guitar based music, most singer-song writers and guitar composers use an acoustic guitar to figure out the basic melodies and rhythm structures. Mostly because it’s convenient. Think about it; they are portable, they don’t need amplification, they can be used for almost any genre music, and if you’re hungry and have no moolah you can just stand on a street corner and play for dough.

Acoustic guitars are great instruments to learn to play guitar with as well. You can pick a up a decent acoustic guitar for a hundred bucks or so. They require no amplification so you can learn to play without having to invest in a guitar amplifier, although you can buy pickups for acoustic guitars that allow them to be amplified. Most are easily mounted and removable. And then there are flat top guitars that come from the manufacturer with built in pickups that can be played acoustically or be plugged into an amp. They are called acoustic-electric guitars. But that is another blog post.

There is a couple of advantages to learning to play on an acoustic guitar as well. For one they require a little more effort when pressing down on the strings and this builds up finger strength and helps in forming callouses (tough, thickened pads) on the tips of your fingers, unless it’s a nylon string classical guitar, the strings on those are pretty easy to press down. You’d be amazed at just how much of a difference this makes when you pick up an electric guitar and play after you’ve been playing an acoustic for a while. Another noticeable advantage would be the clarity of the sound you get when you are practicing or composing. You can really tell if you are playing the notes correctly, pressing the strings down with an appropriate amount of pressure as not to cause a muted or buzzing sound.

Once you learn how to play then you can invest in a better quality guitar. Most of the major guitar manufacturers such as Fender, Gibson, C.F. Martin, Taylor, Alvarez and Takamine make great acoustic guitars. Most of those companies offer lesser expensive beginner models all the way up to high quality professional models, many of which have ornate adornments and inlays. There are even custom acoustic guitar manufacturers like BlueBerry Guitars that will create a carved work of art for you. Those guitars are highly collectible heirlooms to be cherished and appreciated for generations.

Acoustic guitar music spans the genres from blues to jazz, country to rock, and even heavy metal. They are widely used instruments that deserve respect and every guitarist needs at least one of them in their arsenal.

I’m sorry! I couldn’t resist posting this video.