Thank you for this video. When I met Tommy in 2011 at SFO airport, he told me about his uncle and that very guitar. What a treasure! It sounds so sweet. Thank you for playing it, Tommy!💕🙏💕
Tommy Shaw is a national treasure. Still sings, plays and writes like the old days. He hasn't lost a thing. The Mission and Crash of the Crown are OUTSTANDING albums. Among the best they've ever done.
Really a national treasure! I don't think so! Tommy Shaw has a dirty little secret! Tommy Shaw slandered his first wife Cuppy Smith by slandering and writing a song about her called "The Queen of Spades" off the Pieces of Eight album because she found out about his affair with Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie the three snorted coke from each others butts and Cuppy divorced Tommy. He got mad and told Dennis DeYoung and James Young who are accessories to this slander and are just as guilty who knew what happened and decided to slander Cuppy in that song. She later married Mike Corby who got fired from his band The Babys and they have been married ever since. Ricky Phillips joined The Babys after Mike Corby got fired and was behind it and also Jonathan Cain who joined the Babys after Corby got fired and Cain who later joined Journey was also behind it. The lineup of Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, The Eagles, and Fleetwood Mac in 1978 were also behind it or were involved with it. The song "World In A Bottle" by The Babys tells the whole story about this incident.
@@nomo9344 Really a national treasure! I don't think so! Tommy Shaw has a dirty little secret! Tommy Shaw slandered his first wife Cuppy Smith by slandering and writing a song about her called "The Queen of Spades" off the Pieces of Eight album because she found out about his affair with Stevie Nicks and Christine McVie the three snorted coke from each others butts and Cuppy divorced Tommy. He got mad and told Dennis DeYoung and James Young who are accessories to this slander and are just as guilty who knew what happened and decided to slander Cuppy in that song. She later married Mike Corby who got fired from his band The Babys and they have been married ever since. Ricky Phillips joined The Babys after Mike Corby got fired and was behind it and also Jonathan Cain who joined the Babys after Corby got fired and Cain who later joined Journey was also behind it. The lineup of Tom Petty And The Heartbreakers, The Eagles, and Fleetwood Mac in 1978 were also behind it or were involved with it. The song "World In A Bottle" by The Babys tells the whole story about this incident.
@@nomo9344 Not a national treasure! Tommy Shaw has a dirty little secret! Look up Cuppy Smith and Mike Corby! Tommy slandered Cuppy Smith in the Styx song "The Queen of Spades" off the Pieces of Eight album! She later married Mike Corby who got fired from The Babys! And Ricky Phillips and Jonathan Cain who joined The Babys after Corby's firing were behind and involved in having Corby fired from his band The Babys.
Gibson what? You won't build Tommy Shaw a custom Firebird? WTF one of my favorite things about Leo fender was that he used to get so excited about giving his guitars to famous people.
Well, he spent a long time fixing fancy watches, which sure fine, but doesn’t sell guitars. He doesn’t have much of a silocial media profile which is where the smart marketing money goes these days.
@@MrScrofulous I think that was his point. You're smart marketing is the reason Gibson doesn't have the reputation that it used to among musicians. I hear quite a bit of Gibson bashing.
@@MrScrofulous by-the-way name me a rock star who is 68 years old who looks better, sings better, or plays the guitar better than Tommy Shaw. And my realm of the music world he is one of our heroes.
@@thealeons3179 I've got no problem with Tommy Shaw or his talent. His achievements in the Swiss watch world alone are apparently unrivalled, but social media is where it is at when it comes to marketing these days, and he is not really a presence there. His achievements with Styx are decades past, and that does not sell guitars today. Like it or not, Rhett Schull has a Custom Shop Firebird on indefinite loan from Gibson because he puts it in front of enough eyeballs on a regular basis to make a good ROI for them. Being a hot 68 clearly isn't one of their criteria.
@@thealeons3179 Yes, people have been bashing the design of the LP since it's inception, which is why they tried to fix it, but then, everyone hated that they changed it, sooooooooooo, no luck there. Gibson has exactly the reputation it's always had. People love to hate them, but they still carry the greatest untouchable cache in the guitar world and everyone wants one. Even when some people move onto other brands, they still use Gibson as the gold standard that everything else gets compared to.
What cool Person... Listened for years, know his name.. This might be the first time hearing him talk.. Could be one of my friends the way he presents himself.
"Another year has passed me by..." and credit Tommy Shaw for his amazing songwriting, vocal, and guitar playing talents. wow, great riffs on the tele, too. And hail to the Gibson Custom Shops LP's! Thanks, Tommy!
Shaw is 100% right. Major guitar corporations unfortunately have gone the way of corporate America where they are focused on sales and revenue, not quality of product or customer/employee satisfaction. Gibson is far more guilty of this than Fender, but Fender has certainly made some big mistakes as of late. The guitar market was, is, and always will be limited. Gibson/Fender/Ibanez will never be Microsoft or Chase Bank. These companies can and have been profitable but they keep on making the same mistakes over and over. They make something of quality, corporate interests take over and try to exploit the product and ramp up production, quality suffers, demand goes down, profits go down, they rebuild. They key for any business is to understand WHAT WORKS and WHY and then try to do that business at a high level of CONSISTENT quality that yields customer/employee satisfaction while KNOWING YOUR LIMITATIONS. Key word is consistency. I won't buy a Gibson not just because of the price tag....but because the quality control has been a roller coaster for decades! Gibson has lost a ton of market share to Fender, and gone bankrupt because of this reason. There aren't any new bands who play a Gibson. It's Fender or Ibanez almost exclusively for young working guitarists. Meanwhile greats like Tommy Shaw here are trying to throw them a bone and promote their product and they turn their backs on a life long fan and customer. Again, I'm, not saying other guitar brands are innocent but I agree with Shaw here that I really hoped Gibson was going to turn a corner after the 2018 bankruptcy. But with the "Play authentic" disaster and their death grip on making the same mistakes and promoting the same artists (Slash is pushing 60 Gibson, time to move on) It's hard to see Gibson as anything other than a too proud and blind dying brand.
Such a killer Telecaster! Isn’t it amazing how little wear it has, after nearly 70 years, yet it has just enough to add to its character. Now compare that to the ridiculous “heavy relic” stuff Fender keeps cranking out and charging $5k for.
I'm just not a fan of the relic stuff. I think it is ridiculous too. I take great pride in the fact that all of my guitars look brand new. These are precision instruments and deserve to be treated as such and not a Hollywood prop.
@@fullclipaudio Me either. At least when it comes to all the heavy relic stuff Fender Custom Shop keeps cranking out. Those hack jobs do not look authentic. I’ve built and sold some reliced vintage telecaster hardware (Klusson tuners, three saddle Fender ashtray bridges, etc). I’ve also done a few complete necks, ready to bolt on to a finished body. When it comes to the wooden relicng, I attempt to visualize what may have caused each dings or dent and how the back of the neck and fingerboard may have worn thru years of playing. Less is more and again, authenticity is the most important goal.
I sold my old tele to pay for my ex wifes cancer treatment i miss her and the guitar. I paid $200 for it in the seventies when i was a kid and got a quick $1500 for it in 2010.
I've been a fan of Tommy Shaw since I was a kid, since before I even started playing guitar myself. He's a HUGE influence on my songwriting, singing, and playing. It's so wonderful to hear him talking about what's amazing and magical about guitars. Right on, Tommy. I doubt I'll ever get to meet you face to face, though I've seen you live several times. But if you ever check the comments on this video, here's a lifelong THANK YOU for everything!
His speaking voice is raspy, but his singing voice, somehow, remains solid. Listen to a live recording of Sound The Alarm. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-rwMfcltxwsA.html
It was Kind of Blue from Miles Davis. It considered one of his greatest album. To say it wasn’t trendy at the time, leads me to believe TS is just name dropping to be cool…. At that Time MD was on top of the world…..
Maybe it has something to do with Tommy being only 6 years old when the album was released and didn't really know anything about trends at that age. Actually Tommy said: "It's not a trendy album (present tense), maybe it was at the time (past tense)."
That is the problem today...these younger people who are now at the top of industies of all kinds...they think that they know better than anyone else in the world today or in the past. They don't know jack shit really. AS a drummer the quality of drums has really went to crap...all brands too.
Cool to hear Tommy’s stories. As a guitar player and singer I think One thing he’s very underrated for, that’s being a great singer. He has a great voice, always has. You don’t hear his name mentioned with other well known singers, but listen to his material. It’s awesome!
I met Tommy about ten years ago and got my pic with him. I noticed his shoes had a bit of a heel on them, and he was barely my height which is 5'7. My guess is he is 5'5 or 5'6. Whatever he is, he is super cute! :)
Great episode - loved hearing the maestro's thoughts on guitars, music, and influences. Kinda Blue is on my desert island list as well. Love Wes Montgomery too.
Nice TeleTommy. I have a butterscotch Tele that I had made the way I wanted by the Custom Shop back in 98’, man I love that thing. It is my favorite treasure and I hope in its journey down the line after I’m gone that it becomes other people’s treasure adding to its story as the years go by. Thanks for all that you have contributed to rock n roll, cheers.
He didn't say he wanted it for free. Tommy just wanted Gibson to make one specially for him. I don't believe that's a difficult request. At 6:51, Tommy even says: "I would buy"...
Amen to that Tommy, know exactly what your talking about friend! Got a couple of guitars I received as a teen and they sound better today than they did back then.
Tommy Shaw is definitely a premier musician and singer! Unfortunately seems to feel entitled to a product of a private company. Why should a business G IVE anything away? How does that pay the bills? 1
Never heard him say for free. He just wanted one custom made. I assume he was willing to pay for it, and i guess you assume he wasn't willing to pay for it.
First concert for me was Styx 1978 My wife's first concert Styx 1978 same venue. We met 20 yrs later, still together, took our mom's to see Styx at the luxor in 2006, just live Tommy shaw...
Who came up with the awful title to this video? I didn’t even see Tommy talk about what the title says. Also, is Tommy doing OK lately? He seems a bit slower than usual.
Yeah! That surprised me too but then it starts to make sense. Every once in a while Tommy throws in a little jazzy lick. I’ve always liked the short little solo he did about two minutes into Castle Walls. It has a very jazzy feel to it and now I get where his influence came from. It totally sounds like Wes Montgomery. So cool to find this out!
The Eric Johnson thinline is a good guitar. But for the most part I agree, let a classic be a classic. Tommy Shaw is one of those guys with such a golden voice you forget he's a great guitar player.
Self tuning guitars... yeah. The first thing a player should learn is how to tune his/her instrument. Who wants to hear or play any instrument that is out of tune. Real musicians tune their own instruments. My 2 cents. FWIW.
Tommy Shaw can't get Gibson to make him a guitar? I recently watched a livestream of the RU-vidr Marty Schwartz and he had at least 5 guitars that Gibson GAVE him. A youtuber!
The butterscotch is my personal favorite also. As a retired luthier, my take on commercial instruments is poor to horrible. Fenders "Custom Shop" is a good example of big words,chrome,and sexy ads but a lack of sincerity . The one CS guitar brought to me was so poorly soldered that the tone was LEAD not pretty.You wrap the wire around the connection,and SOLDER just holds it,dammit !
Vintage is fine but $3000 and up for a new lp standard is ludicrous. Out of the big U.S. company’s, Gibson is the absolute worst imo. Especially now that smaller companies are offering such good quality at affordable prices. Gibson is getting left behind, WAY behind
When I see you man I can FEEL Jimmy Johnson over my shoulder, he loved working for you. Miss JJ he always made the sunshine just like you made STYX shine :) Thanks for the ear candy Tommy Cool Cool
Tommy, Check out Trogly and see what he can do. He has a regular you tube channel with real hard to find Stuff. Might just be surprised,,,happy hunting!
Will anybody ever get it right?..Its not a "desert" island..It's "deserted"..a "desert island" is the biggest oxymoron in the guitar player interview basic question. 😂
Tommy is one of my favorite rockers from the 70's and 80's... the end of STYX was such a drag... but he kept rockin'... and I've seen him several times in recent years! Dude is one of the coolest... ever! 😎🎸🤘
Tommy Shaw I have been around since the early 50s cruising around in my convertibles in the ladder sixties and all through the 70s listening to you guys as music I feel as though it's time for all of used to make amends with Dennis please please please for all of our hearts and souls it's getting later in life it's like Jerry Lewis and Dean Martin when they finally made amends to with each other Dennis DeYoung needs to be with you everyone needs to see you guys hugging on each other and forgiving whatever it is that you guys broke away from I don't still understand it Life's too short to hold grudges you guys are all talented equally I love you all please please please make amends with each other and blast the rock and roll scene all across the country and around the world do it for all the rest of us I don't have much money I'm a retired old man lost my son dead lost my mom and dad all my grandpa's and grandmas and everybody but watching your music fills me with joy every time I see you guys I don't never get to go to concerts I think I've seen two concerts in my life and they were both Cheap Trick when they were at the Rialto Theater in Joliet Illinois I've never got to see you guys live but I have always loved your music I don't like people that cold grudges it's nonsense it's a loss of life when that happens
Maybe someone should tell him Gibson doesn't make telecasters or stratocasters. Whomever cut this film job did a shit job. Made him sound like he doesn't know anything about guitars
The bottom line is you only need one decent guitar and maybe a couple amps to run stereo. thats it. everything else is just obsessive and accumulation of shit. Not being judgemental i have an entire loft full of gear i have not used in years. Conspicuous consumption.
That's why I would never sell my rd Ive literally worn off the gold pickup cover and bridge finish. Can't be healthy but I love the idea of my guitar being a part of my physical being. Haha I have a junior that used to have one of those tuners it was promptly removed and tuners replaced with Grovers.
Gibson needs to get Tommy Shaw custom shop Firebird ASAP!!!! That is BS that hes been asking and they're not hooking him up. I've always seen Tommy supporting a Gibson Les Pauls as far back as early Styx. He even used one when he was on Daryl's House, which was not that long ago. Great episode, check it out if you get a chance. Common Gibson get with the program. Keep rockin' Tommy, you're the man.
I had front row center seats for the first time in my life and it was for a Styx concert, this was WAY back when in Portland Oregon, and days before the show Styx canceled because Tommy got viral laryngitis and they just skipped that show on the tour, I was devastated...
Did he say he wanted it for free? Tommy has a long history with Gibson and they Custom Shop exists for people like him. Much of the time these people are paying for their guitars. Tommy can certainly afford it. These days he's mostly playing Collings.
I had a chance to meet Tommy during the Kilroy tour, and was supremely disappointed at his attitude. Years later, I had occasion to run into him, again, and he was one of the coolest rock stars I'd ever met. Watching the Styx Brhind the Music explained the switch