About The Music-G/Greg Waters
News about G, and more, for the complete guitarist
Hi and Welcome... This site is about the music of Greg Waters-G.G has performed or appeared with such artist as The Temptations,Barry White,Delbert McClinton,O.C.Smith and many others.In addition,this site also offers the latest music news from around the world,along with some great music tips,links and blogs.And also be sure to check out the live video footage,it's an inspiration to any player.
So Welcome,and hope you find something on the following pages that will help you,in your muscical journeys...Greg Waters-G.
The Story
Greg had a health problem so his Dad brought home a guitar to fill his boredom,and well,you know the rest!His first song learned on guitar was "House Of The Rising Sun".He would sit on his front porch and play that song over and over.He soon joined a band and began playing other songs,"Hang On Sloopy","Wipe-Out" and other popular songs of the times.Before he knew it he and the band were being taken,by G's Dad, to the local VFW to play every Friday night for the whopping pay of $13.00 each.From there the group would be taken out to the local ice cream shop for treats.Of course each member payed their own way with the money they had just made.After those years of (invaluable!) experience,G started a group in High School,named,The Montegos and Shaft,you remember the song...right"Shaft"...Shut Your Mouth!The group was an all white band backing up 5 black singers,who did steps to each song,performing Motown and Rock!Again G's Dad assisted whenever needed.The band did quite well actually,performed with Betty Wright,"Clean Up Woman",a r&b singer and a solo singer,Lobo..."Me You And A Dog Named Boo".From there G attended college locally at Mount Olive College,for classical music and then Berklee School Of Music for jazz.While attending Mount Olive College he took private lessons from the in-residence guitarist Rick Madriguera(took master classes under Andres Segovia).While at school locally,he was instructing guitar at a local military base or night classes at the local community college.After music studies,G went"on the road",traveling up and down the East Coast and through the Mid West,playing mainly cover songs.He later started opening shows for or appearing with,The Temptations,Barry White,Delbert McClinton,OC Smith and many others.G was performing with The Breeze Band for those shows and appearances.To date he has performned in the US,Europe and Saudi Arabia(with the StaircaseBand).He has also written and produced jingles for radio stations and commercials for tv.
G's cd's are a musical experience in many styles of music,playing Jazz,Funk,Blues and New Age and Acoustic.These various styles can be found on both,"The Journey" and the "Slo-Vib" cd's.Both cd's maintain the melodic feel and playing,other musicians call"tasteful". Individual songs may be purchased below,in the Nimbit widget...the checkout is secure,simple and very fast.
For the latest music news,like the NAMM show,new music gear,pictures of classic music gear or just news about cool music stuff,then,you will enjoy the "G News" page..http://www.freewebs.com/gguitar/gnews.htm
For some great music links,go to the "Favorite Links" page..http://www.freewebs.com/gguitar/favoritelinks.htm ,it has links leading to more guitar set-ups,scales amd technique and reading on new gear and old classic gear.
Check out the "Slideshow" page at... http://www.freewebs.com/gguitar/slideshow.htm
Or for some great vintage video,check out the "Videos" page..http://www.freewebs.com/gguitar/videos.htm Any guitarist or musician would be inspired by these "live"videos.
And Thanks For The Visit...Greg Waters/G
Peace ...this site is dedicated to my Mom and Dad who,without them,none of this could have happened.......Greg Waters-G
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Comments
....... Nat says:(song "Keep The Faith")
GREAT!Ok, are you sure this song didn't come from one of those instrumental mood music CD's?
This is great! Nicely recorded, I'm impressed! This song is happy, romantic and makes me sad all at the same time, that's a good thing. It can appeal to many that way.
The guitar has a little spanish flare coming out of it.
Absolutely fantastic!!!
I'm going to check out what else you have.
-NAT
........ Barbara says:
"Beautiful and relaxing song Greg. Love all your songs.
Your music sounds fantastic. Take care and God bless you". ~Cheers, Barbara~
All Over You " Gee Greg this is a hot song. It really talks, if you know what I mean. Fantastic. Smiles", Barbara
5 stars as averaged .....Barbara
........Flawless there are various feelings i get, italian, japanese, american, and french. and english too, oh and an arabian feel. its all so welcome though. i thoroughly enjoyed listening to this song, it is very impressively done, the perfomances are flawless!
Norwich, Norfolk, United Kingdom it
The Store
More from Greg Waters-G at Myxer
Guitar Set-Up And Adjustments
1.Changing Strings ...The main thing to remember is this(Strat style guitars),if the bridge is not locked down,but floats,only change one string at a time!And,if the bridge is locked(will not move when you use a wammy bar),then you can take off all strings and then replace all the strings.And on a "Floyd Rose"type system,be sure and,block the bridge off before changing strings.That is,place something under the bridge that will prevent it from moving.If you do not do this,you will run into major problems when starting to tune up,even if you changed one string at a time!And on a Gibson Les Paul style guitar,no problems in changing strings.And don't forget the wrap of the string on the tuning peg is...bottom to top! 
2.Tuning...Make it simple and go out and buy an electric guitar tuner!They are inexpensive and easy to use.
3.Truss Rod...This should be the first adjustment in a basic set up.And you can easily snap the truss rod if you do not know what you are doing!Most of the time it only takes a quarter to half a turn,at most a full turn.Look down the edge(outside) of the neck,looking from the peg head end of the guitar.If the neck is bowed upward,loosen the truss rod,if the the neck is dipped,then slightly tighten the rod.In general,the neck should have a very slight dip around the 5th to 7th frets,but never have an upward bow.And note...the weather or seasons will affect the truss rod.So,i generally have to tweak mine seasonally!***With a left hand finger,hold down the 6th string on the first fret.Now,with a right hand finger,hold down the 6th string at the 12th fret.now,you should see a tiny gap between the frets and the 6th string,around the 5th to 7th frets!
4.Action(string height)...This is really a personal preference.Obviously there should be no string buzzes.And,the lighter,the gauge string,the higher the action needs to be.And also,if you play with distortion most of the time,well,you can get by with lower action.You should not have to "press"hard to sound a note out.
5.Intonation...Play the harmonic at the 12th fret,now play the same note by fretting the note at the 12th fret. The two notes should match exactly if the intonation is correct.If the fretted note sounds sharp, then adjust the bridge saddle so that it moves back awaytowards the fretboard.***One problem I've seen a number of times is where a guitars intonation is set properly, but notes fretted between the 1st and 5th fret sound sharp regardless. This is almost always due to the fact that the nut slots are cut too high. The additional distance required to push the string to the fret is causing the note to be sharp.***Intonation setting is the last adjustment to be done in a set up,after truss rod adjustment and string height adjustment,and of course,do this with new strings.***Again,use a tuner to do this!And remember,if the note is registering sharp,move the saddle back,and if registering flat,move the saddle forward (towards the neck).
***The above steps should be done in the order listed***
Cleaning Dirty Strings...I use regular rubbing alcohol to clean my strings.I simply wet a cloth with the alcohol and go "underneath" the string,and go from one end to the other.
*Moisterizing the Fretboard...After cleaning the strings you may want to moisterize the fretboard.To do this,i use Lemon Oil(without wax added),Formbys is a good brand.Only do this to a rosewood or porous wood fretboard.A maple wood fretboard does not need this.
Equipment/Accessories
1.Amps...Like guitars,there are many,many amps to choose from.But,for me,i prefer a 'tube"amp.The tube amp is more "guitar friendly"than a "solid state" amp.The "combo"amp is the main choice,it is the amp and speaker,all in one unit.And then again, some prefer a "rack"set-up.This is where you have a pre-amp,then a seperate power amp,which is then connected to a seperate speaker(s).This is my preferred set up,with two single twelve inch speakers.Again the choice is yours,depending upon your situation and style of music.With the combo set up,you can use a pedal effects board for effects,or individual effects pedals,and a rack set up you can use a rack mount effects unit with a MIDI pedal connected,for swithcing to different effects or patches.My preference for power tubes in an amp are EL 84's or EL 34's,they have a warmer,less edgy tone to them.So again the choice is yours!
2.Compressor...if i had access to only one effct device,my choice would be a compressor.You have to develop your ear to even hear the sound difference,but what it really offers is a great "feel" when you play and also evens out the notes on a chord and smooths out your sound.You can basically "set it and leave it".
3.Chorus....is a nice "choir"type sound.Especially nice on slower tunes.It is good for fattening up your chords.
4.Delay...Delay can be tricky with just a pedal.For solos a"slap back"delay is a good general setting to use.Delay does not work well for rythem guitar though.And for slower songs,a nice long delay sounds good,And when playing rythem(slow tempo a touch of delay is nice.The biggest fault i see with players using delay is,not having the delay time in sync with the tempo!This is a no,no.Something new and cool is a "loop"pedal,check one out.You play a phrase,it records it,then just loops or repeats that phrase and you then play someting on top of the loop...cool.Sorta like a slow delay that you can loop/old Echoplex!
5.Wah-Wah...I love a wah-wah.I grew up playing the song "Shaft",and also The Temptations and Curtis Mayfield!So,you gotta get a wah-wah!
6.Reverb....if it aint "spring" i don't want it.Digital reverb,i try and use very sparingly.The ol'spring verb is the best for guitar...a classic sound!
7.Picks...Picks are of a variety,the choice is a personal one.There are thin picks,thick ones and large ones and small ones.Most use the same standard shape pick in a medium thickness.The thickness of the pick can actually change the tone(sound)of the guitar.A thin pick gives an acoustic guitar a brighter sound,while a thicker pick makes the sound darker.Also different picks are made of different materials,this changes the sound also.The choice of a pick is really a simple one,i am just trying to give some insight into the choices!If you play acoustic and strum a lot,then you may like the sound and feel of a thin pick/standard shape.If you play electric guitar and like to speed pick a lot,then you may like a thicker and smaller pick.They actually make what they call a "speed pick".There are "tear drop"shape picks,i like them.They are smaller than standard and a good all around size and shape.And i also like the "speed"picks and thick.The thicker ones make a Fender Strat sound warmer and fatter.And a smaller pick helps if you play faster type runs.Some picks are made of alluminum,so there are all types,sizes and shapes!
8.Strings...Like picks,there are different type strings also. They make particular strings for electric and acoustic guitars.The string "sets"are of different "gauges".Normally the gauges are smaller or "thinner"for electric guitars than acoustics.And the materials used are usually different.And the materials used for both guitars can also change the 'tone"or sound of the guitar.For the electric guitar most use a "light"gauge string and for the acoustic guitar they choose a medium or heavier gauge set of strings.If you play electric and do a lot of "bends",you may prefer a lighter gauge.But if you play jazz and do not bend the notes a lot,you would use a heavier gauge string.The heavier the gauge,the more solid or rounded and clearer the notes or chords sound.A thinner string gauge has a thinner tone to them.The choice again is strictly a personal choice though!For electric guitars the string material is usually nickel,and on acoustic,it may be bronze or phospher.Again the choice is a personal one.
Technique
1.Picking Notes...There are many theories and syles of picking.For basics,to increase speed,i would develop "alternate"picking.It is where you alternate between an Up pick,on one note,then use a Down pick on the next note.Otherwords...down,up,down,up,etc.I mostly start with a down pick on the down beat and an up pick,if i am starting on the up beat.Then there is sweeping.It is like playing a melody in more of an arpeggio way.The formulaes for these are different than a strictly down,up,alternating style.You may do the first three notes all down before you do an up pick or stroke.
2.Don't Drop The Pick...When playing finger picking style,i pick with the pick and my other three fingers(M,R and pinkie).This way you don't have to stop and drop or pick up the pick and you can also have the pick available for fills and runs.Another thing is to "tuck"the pick into the palm of your hand and to "pull"the string being played,or to like "pop"it.This is a twangy sound or country style.You can also combine the pick and your middle finger and do quick runs,alternating between your pick and your middle finger.This is a really cool sound,funky and country!
3.Muting Strings...To mute the strings,i normally rest the back side of my palm over the string saddles of the bridge.This gives a muffled sound,or a dampning effect,like on a piano.Nice effect for single note or notes.Normally used in funk style/R&B and speed picking styles and arpeggios.
4.Chucking...Chucking is a form of strumming that funk players use.What you do is,with your left hand,lay it across ALL the strings,and strum them all,while only sounding out the note(s) you want to hear.This gives you a fatter sound than say,picking the one string for that one note.
Books
Two books come to mind,and they are..."Mickey Baker"/jazz books 1 and 2,and "Chords And Scales In The Beginning".Also the "Berklee" guitar books are great and "Ted Green's","Chord Chemistry.And without mentioning,listening and reading are two of the most important things you can do in your music venture!
