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The Cigar Box Guitar Manifesto

As posted on www.CigarBoxGuitar.com...

We are makers of music. We build cigar box guitars and other unique hand-made instruments.

We are the members of the cigar box guitar revolution. We build playable musical instruments out of things that were never meant to make music. We build cigar box guitars, cigar box ukuleles, canjos, cookie tin banjos, stick dulcimers and much more.

The instruments we build are real. We find joy in building them, and we are proud of what we make.

The cigar box guitar holds a primary place in our craft, but it is just one of many instruments we create. Our creations range from the simplest one-string diddleybows to the most complex and convoluted contraptions imaginable. We respect and draw upon centuries of musical instrument traditions, but we are not limited by them. We are not afraid of making it up as we go. We know that sometimes not knowing how things are supposed to be done allows you to things that have never been done before.

We come from all walks of life, and from all over the world.

Our backgrounds, cultures and countries are wide and varied, but we are united in the joy of building musical instruments and making music. We are a part of the larger Maker community, and we share many of the same goals - but we are a distinct movement unto ourselves.

We build our instruments for many different reasons and in many different ways.

We believe music comes up from the roots, not down from an ivory tower. We know you don’t need years of training before you can make a fun, playable musical instrument. You don’t need a fully-equipped workshop, or the best tools. We never forget that the first ancestor of the guitar was a vine stretched over a hollow log.

We are a blend of builders and musicians, artisans and artists.

Some of us only play cigar box guitars and instruments built by others; some of us only build instruments for others to play; some of us both build and play. Whether or not we play them ourselves, we are proud of the instruments we create and the music made with them.

We believe that anyone can build their own cigar box guitar or other hand-made instrument.

Anyone who wants to can do what we do. We welcome all who come with an open mind, a willingness to learn and experiment. We value each new perspective and creative viewpoint. Together as a community and as a movement, we are bringing the making of music and musical instruments back to the people, and back to their roots.

We are part of the cigar box guitar revolution, and we are here to stay.

We are the alternative to the shiny, soulless factory-made guitar. We are the answer for the musician looking for a new sound, a new look, a way to get back to the basics, back to the roots of music. We are the new pastime for the creative woman or man looking for a meaningful and rewarding way to put their skills to use. We are diverse, we are creative, we are proud, and we are here to stay.

Ben "C. B. Gitty" Baker

June, 2014

www.cbgitty.com

23 members like this

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Replies to This Discussion

Permalink Reply by Neil Edwards on June 14, 2014 at 10:03pm

Wonderful. I will frame it and place it in a place of honour in my home.

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Permalink Reply by Ben "C. B. Gitty" Baker on June 15, 2014 at 3:32am

Thanks guys for all of the feedback and kind words. I am very glad that it resonates with you. My goal in writing this was two-fold: I wanted to try to sum up what this movement is, and what it means to those of us who are a part of it; and I wanted to try to get new people interested in it as well.

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on June 15, 2014 at 3:37am

It would be really sucky if it did not "resonate."

Of course, then you'd simply have to move on to Manifesto 2.0. >:-E

But at least you didn't write Mission and Objective statements.

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Permalink Reply by Ben "C. B. Gitty" Baker on June 15, 2014 at 3:55am

Yeah I guess if it hadn't resonated, I could have slapped a mag pup into it.

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Permalink Reply by Ron "Oily" Sprague on June 15, 2014 at 4:00am

Bwahahaha... Badum-shizzle

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Permalink Reply by Cigar Box Nation on June 15, 2014 at 6:23am

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Permalink Reply by Ben "C. B. Gitty" Baker on June 15, 2014 at 7:37am

Oh dear. Poor ole slowhand...

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Permalink Reply by Ben "C. B. Gitty" Baker on June 15, 2014 at 1:34pm

Shane, I don't think I've ever heard the full story of why you zeroed in on Eric Clapton as the bane of all that is good and holy. Years ago I remember seeing some of the video footage of the Huntsville fest where the Songs Inside the Box was filmed, and noticing your big "KILL ERIC CLAPTON" sign on stage. I remember being amused later at how Max Shores managed to not include that in a single frame of the final documentary.

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Permalink Reply by Blue Collar Devil on June 15, 2014 at 3:33pm

That's a little harsh. What's wrong with Clapton?

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Permalink Reply by Cigar Box Nation on June 20, 2014 at 12:43am

The "Kill Eric Clapton" thing was a drastic over-statement intended to shock people and forcibly get their attention about the state of modern blues. I had felt that blues became sanitized...tame adult-contemporary music performed by guys with fedoras and skinny ties. They all looked up to Clapton as the king of the blues. To me, he's the Celine Dion of the blues...safe, mellow and geriatric.

To me., the blues should be dangerous. It should have the elements of bad whiskey, prison shanks and evil women. The sounds should follow suit. Instead of a smooth Stratocaster thru some boutique amp, I was playing a shitty cigar box guitar thru yard sale solid-state amps. It buzzed, crackled and screamed like a motherfucker.

"Kill Eric Clapton" was a battle cry to bring the blues back. It's an absurd statement, yes, but those who got it...got it.

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Permalink Reply by Blue Collar Devil on June 20, 2014 at 1:17am

I completely agree. I was never a fan of "Contemporary Blues", Way too polished for my taste. I have and will always love the raw, gritty blues that came from the deep south and has burrowed it's way into my heart and built a nice little home for itself. You speak for all us Shane who refuse to buy into the "Shiny Blues" mentality and for that I salute you.

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Permalink Reply by Lenny Henderson on June 15, 2014 at 8:43pm

As a long time Jeff Beck fan I may have thought bad things about Eric Clapton at times, but never for long or seriously. Jeff is great and so is Clapton. I also love Jack Bruce and thought his contributions to Cream and Jazz Rock were great. I have known guitarists who were as great but not near as famous in bars and schools around Phoenix Arizona. I can say that I admire the good done for music by Clapton with his Crossroads Festivals every 3 years for the last 13 years. Even better is the good done for recovery from addictive behavior his autobiography and concerts do. I play some music and am a recovering addict of way too many things. I try to be gentle in criticism of others even if their blues sucks.