Gigging with a single Telecaster/Esquire.

[TG]

I've done over a thousand gigs by now and the majority of them were on a single telecaster. Maybe I'm lucky, but I've never even broken a string.

But now I have a 'collection' of electric guitars I tend to bring 2 along.

[blacklove]

I believe in backup guitars. Because I care about my audience, and I care about my band. I don't want anybody to have to "stand by" while I deal with something that I could have prevented by simply grabbing my backup guitar that's sitting tuned up on the stand right behind me. And gear has an awful way of failing just about the time the band is cookin' and has never sounded better!

I for one am not in the "troubleshooting" mode when I get up in front of people to perform music!

[Tele295]

I brought only one guitar, my white Esquire, to local gigs for years when we were a 4-piece. If I broke a string, I finished the set with 5 strings or just replaced it - took about 1/2 a song. However, when we pared down to a trio, the aforementioned "buzz-kill" set in when I would break a string, as I was having to cover a lot more bases. So I started bringing a spare, and needed it once or twice.

Now that were back to a 5-piece (Hammond organ, yay!), I want to go back to just bringing a single guitar. I kinda liked the challenge of trying to accoomplish it on 5 strings on occasion - it pushed me into fun areas.

One execpetion to the rule - if I play a gig more than 10 miles away from my house, I bring a spare. Never underestimate stumbling drunks, spilled beer, thieves, acts of Divine Intervention, etc., and if I'm not close enough to run home on the break, I want to be prepared. Thinking of taking my sparkly Danelectro U3 as a spare this weekend (outdoor gig 55 miles away in Santa Clarita CA), maybe tune it up for slide just to justify bringing it.

I do always bring a POD as a backup to my Vibrolux Reverb amp, although it doesn't leave the car.

[redcurtis]

if you have a spare axe with you, it's an insurance policy that nothing will go wrong...if something does, you cash in.

SPARE: Always.

[zooropamofo]

Originally Posted by Tele-writer

Being hung to the knee is not an optimal situation!

I have to disagree with you there, buddy

[LGOberean]

I for one am not in the "troubleshooting" mode when I get up in front of people to perform music!
blacklove

+ 1…well said. My sentiments exactly. I don't want to try to do repairs during a gig, or even change a string during a set. As has already been said, such a break in the musical flow is a definite "buzz kill."

I always have a backup…in the form of my acoustic. My playlist includes songs that I do on an acoustic, so I always have my Breedlove tuned up on its stand behind me, ready go for acoustic numbers…or just in case.

I've had good luck overall with instruments and equipment at gigs. I don't remember the last time I broke a string at a gig. Like others responding here, I too change strings before a gig (ideally the day before), so string breakage is rarely a problem. However…

I once had my guitar tuner go out on me, and I couldn't hear well enough to tune my Tele by ear on stage. I tried tweaking it through a couple of more songs, but never felt completely comfortable with it, so after a couple of tries I just switched to acoustic for the rest of the set.

And then there was the time that the 9-volt battery in my acoustic/electric went out on me during a gig. Boy, was I glad I had another guitar to turn to.

Of course, switching from electric to acoustic (or vice versa) can mean changes to what you play when, or how you play it. But that improvisation (albeit forced) adds a bit of spontaneity to your performance. The words of Marine Gunnery Sergeant Tom Highway (a.k.a. Clint Eastwood in Heartbreak Ridge) to his charges might well be taken to heart by musicians: "You adapt. You overcome. You improvise."

[ProToneThinline]

Originally Posted by Kingsnakes

Live life on the edge!. I play 100 dates a year, and rarely do I bring out a second guitar (Tele). If you break a string it's time for a bass solo or a joke while you replace your string

That sounds like my schedule. I only bring a backup if it's a festival type show, where you play 60-90 minutes, then move on. For "normal" club gigs, it's just me and my Tele. I'm very particular about maintenance on my guitars, so I don't worry too much about electro-mechanical failures. A broken string can be replaced really quickly on a Tele, so a bass solo usually does the trick.

[Teleman]

I usually bring two guitars toa gig, Usually two teles. But lately, I've been bringing a tele and a Gibson ES339. About two gigs ago I broke a string. The first time i broke a string on a gig in years. It was also the first gig in years that i only brought one guitar, my tele. Just my luck I guess.

[Rob DiStefano]

If I ever was insane enuf to go back to gigging, I'd be further insane for putting my faith in just one guitar - too much can go wrong (Murphy's Law).

[Big John]

Originally Posted by Rob DiStefano

If I ever was insane enuf to go back to gigging, I'd be further insane for putting my faith in just one guitar - too much can go wrong (Murphy's Law).

Ah but Rob, if you were insane enuf to go back to gigging maybe you would just take the one !

I'm thinking right now i ought to put a couple of spare strings in the case


Anyone else remember the YouTube vid (Sleepy La Beef i think) where he breaks a string and just carries on singing and restrings the guitar at the same time and even plays a solo at the end ?

[Ron C]

Originally Posted by Tele295

...when we pared down to a trio, the aforementioned "buzz-kill" set in when I would break a string, as I was having to cover a lot more bases. So I started bringing a spare, and needed it once or twice.

Yep, it's been years since I've broken a string or had an amp go down on a gig, but as the guitarist in a bass/drums/guitar trio I feel I owe it to the other guys (let alone the audience) to make sure my equipment issues don't get in the way of their fun.

And by using a Gator double gig bag, it's still a single trip to/from the car with both guitars and an amp (or two).

[mad dog]

I always take two, but only because half my stuff is open tuning. I've never had a tele fail on me in any way, not even a broken string.

[xjazzy]

I played a lot of gigs without spare. Once I broke a string, left the stage to get another and got back in time for the next song.
Now I have always a spare and beside a broken string, I've had a dead PU too...
Sometimes I think about the day where my Boss GT-6 would die. (I plug it straight without amp) That would be a HUGE problem! Specially because I play far away from home most of the times.

[psykobilly]

To me that is the beauty of playing a Tele. Not much to go wrong. I play 11's, so string braekage isn't really a concern, I also find myself becoming lazier As I get older, so I just take my "meat and taters" Tele with me. I can park and take my entire rig in with one trip.

[jjlinus]

one of my three teles and my strato ....always

[stephent2]

The OP mentioned Esquires, I can do a four hour gig with one guitar but I need two pickups to entertain me.

[dual_tone]

a soldering iron?!

extra pups?!!!!!

wha?

and unless you break a lot of strings (which is something you should know based on whether or not you break them during rehersal/practice), there's no need to take a second Tele...and if you do happen to break a string, it only takes a minute to change it, especially on a Tele...just have a set of strings within reach (not in your case, off stage) and a string winder (put them in the back of the amp).

i'd be more inclinde to take extra tubes, fuses, or batteries, before thinking about taking a second Tele...

[dogletnoir]

whenever i'm driving to a gig, i bring a spare guitar, extra strings, cables,
& fresh batteries for the tuner & whatever effects i'll be using (usually vibrato & delay pedals)...
it's not worth taking a chance on the gremlins that have popped up sometimes when i didn't bring a spare guitar.
i'm working in a jazz duo with a soprano sax player, & when the guitar cuts out, the sound gets a little sparse, LOL !
serious problems don't happen often, but when they do i don't think the audience is gonna be very entertained watching me change a string,
much less breaking out a soldering iron !

[Maddog53]

Originally Posted by Lerb21

I've played Hank Williams, Flat & Scruggs, Lynyrd Skynyrd, KISS, Ted Nugent, and everything in between on an Esquire.

In my humble opinion, a good guitar player only needs one pick, and the one's placed in the bridges of standard Teles/Esquires are the best for anything. He amount of ballz and country twang. Greatest thing clean. I crank up the distortion and mine sounds better than my Gibson. Zero buzz. IMO humbuckers were an unnecessary invention and I will never buy another humbucker guitar and if I do you can bet your butt that it'll come out. The greatest, most versatile Pups ever are the ones that go in the bridges of Esquires.

Proof read before hitting "submit reply."

[Maddog53]

Originally Posted by telechucker

For me, if I knew I didn't have a spare guitar I'd probably be too scared to play with my usual abandon. Just knowing I've got a spare guitar nearby is mighty comforting. I always bring a spare guitar to a gig. Regards.

Amen telechucker!!!!! If it's a half way important gig, I always have a tuned and ready backup. Then I can wail away with no fear and reckless abandon.......even tho I have never needed it it, I always subconsciously know # 2 is there.... Pound away!!!!!

[bradpdx]

I have been gigging for 30 years, and never once "needed" my second guitar. Ever. I have broken exactly one string on stage, and had one tube failure that was fixed by substitution of another tube. Even when I did over 200 nights a year for a decade, this remained true.

I have done many, many shows with just one guitar (always a Tele or Strat for electric shows). I generally feel that my guitars are sufficiently robust to withstand 4 o4 5 hours of life's randomness, and they do.

If the gig is really not critical - and most are not - I am perfectly content to use one guitar. If it is far from home I will toss another in the car, but have never needed it. I always bring spare strings, and I've never needed any of those either.

As to variety - both classic Fender models offer a huge range of useful tones and I never tire of either one. If I can't sound great and interesting all the way through a show with a Tele or Strat, it's me that sucks and not the gear.

I understand the reason for bringing backup, but my own real-life experience tells me that it is overvalued.