Equipment for the Cruise Ship Guitarist, Part 1
Congratulations! Welcome to the satisfying/un-nerving/enjoyable and hopefully profitable world of cruise ship entertainment. If you’re reading this you’re probably wondering which guitar and equipment you’re expected to bring with you in order to meet all the tonal options that you may be required to fill. These articles have been written with the showband guitarist in mind.
Part 1: Your Guitar
Looking at the job description supplied to you by an agent and knowing exactly what to bring is quite difficult for guitarist compared to other instruments. As a guitarist, you have to be sure you know what type of job you are showing up for. And then be prepared for every-other possible option.
The basic showband gig requires the guitar player to be able to perform and have the appropriate tones to back up guest entertainer acts as well as play occasional cocktail (aka: jazz/fakebook) sets. Some lines also require the guitarist to perform solo guitar sets (ala Joe Pass or with appropriate backing tracks if you have them) for private parties, cocktail hours and tea times.
The cruise line that I have been employed by for the majority of my contracts has, over the last few years, had the showband playing Top 40 dance sets at various venues through out the ship when not backing up guest entertainers.
In general, the job of showband guitarist requires you to cover the tones of:
- 20’s, 30’s and 40’s swing era
- 50’s rock and country
- 60’s pop, rock and “Motown”
- 70’s funk, soul and disco
- 80’s pop, rock and power ballads
- Occasional acoustic guitar, nylon string guitar, banjo and mandolin sounds
Sounds easy enough, right?
Which Guitar Should I Bring?
When choosing your equipment, please take into consideration what you are most comfortable with guitar-wise. 99% of your audience will not have a clue if you are playing a Squier or a Suhr, so know what you like and need, both playing wise and financially. You’ll want to have an instrument that is set up well and allows you to easily execute the material that is placed in front of you. Having the skills to set up and maintain an instrument is extremely valuable as well, as your local guitar tech is usually about 250 nautical miles away at any given time.
I have worked on ships for over 6 years and have come up with my opinions after many years of trying different things. The guitar and gear that you bring to the ship allows you to perform the job to the best of your abilities but also helps have fun with the job.
Your main guitar will be an electric and should be able to coax a:
- Single coil sound most associated with a Stratocaster and Telecaster
- Humbucker sound that could be used for rock as well as jazzier type sounds.
With so many guitar options and pick up configurations available it is easy to be a little overwhelmed when trying to decide which guitar to bring. While it is possible to do the gig with nothing but an archtop, you’ll come across a lot of situations where you’ll be wishing you had something more versatile. I have found that a “superstrat” type guitar gives the most options for your tonal palette.
For those not familiar with the term “superstrat”, usually this is in reference to Stratocaster style guitars with the the HSH pickup configuration (humbucker in neck position, single coil in middle position, humbucker in bridge position) originally played by 80’s shredders Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and a multitude of ‘Hair’ metal bands. The HSH or SSH pickup configutarion has always given me the greatest tonal palette to work with. If the strat body style isn’t your cup of tea, there are many body options available with a similar pickup configuration.
Some examples of how I use these various pickup configurations:
- Neck pickup with the tone control rolled down for a nice mellow “Freddy Green” jazz tone, tone control almost or all the way open for a standard “rock” guitar clean
- Neck + Middle pickup gives you that Hendrix-y sound as well as a pretty standard clean pop type sound perfect for disco and funk.
- Until recently, I was underutilizing my middle pickup. On its own it fits into a neat sonic frequency that sits just nicely when playing a rock/pop Top 40 tune. It also can help emulate an acoustic guitar with some help from your tone controls and your amps EQ.
- Bridge + Middle pickup for a country twang. Palm muting on this setting is great for rock rhythm and some nice Buddy Holly and Chuck Berry type tones can be pulled out of this setting.
- Neck pickup for a slightly more aggressive rhythm guitar tone and with some overdrive/distortion for a head cutting lead tones.
When choosing which instrument to bring, make sure you consider the weight/balance of the guitar. Some cruise lines are moving towards having the showband stand for shows and sets. While this can be a more engaging for the audience, if you are standing anywhere from 3-5 hours with an extremely heavy or imbalanced instrument hanging around your neck, your next trip in port may be to the chiropractor or massage therapist rather than the beach. Make sure you have a guitar that plays comfortably seated or standing and, if possible, bring a strap that is well padded.
Once again, no one in the audience really knows what you’re playing, so pick something that suits the gig, you and your budget.
Bringing a couple of guitars for the contract can be a wise decision. Your second guitar is your back up (always back up and have a back up plan for your back up plan) and can give you more tonal freedom. A strat/tele and a Les Paul will give you the ability to try different things. On some contracts, it would be nice to have a strat and an archtop with humbuckers. Hollow body electrics also offer you a great amount of tonal variation. Your main guitar, and second guitar if you choose to bring one, should reflect you as a guitarist as well as having the sounds to cover a lot of ground.
If you are on a ship that is not porting in North America it can be difficult (ie: possible but expensive) to find strings, picks and patch cords. This difficulty can be exacerbated if you are trying to find an instrument to purchase in case yours needs repairs or is completely out of commission. On such itineraries, I would highly recommend bringing a second guitar with you. The last thing you need to worry about is trying to get your instrument fixed or purchasing a new one when in an unfamiliar European or Asian port.
You want me to play where?
In addition to having more tonal freedom, in many ship situations over the last few years I have been required to go from a rehearsal in an air-conditioned theater directly to an outdoor deck set in the hot Caribbean sun then immediately back inside to play at another venue.
I’ve also played on the bow of a ship as it was docking in Shanghai, China.
In February.
While it was “gently” raining from an overcast sky.
With all that being said, extreme temperature variations as well as humidity changes can affect the guitar in negative ways.
Besides affecting the action and intonation of your guitar, strings will get dirtier and corrode much quicker. Having a spare guitar to use specifically outside and as back up for your main guitar may save you money and time in the long run if you don’t have to change your strings more than necessary or if your main guitar were damaged due to weather.
As part of your essential guitar items, bring a second strap. Not just in case your original breaks or is lost, but also if you need to replace your first once it has become sweat soaked from playing in the sun for two hours a day and smells quite bad.
Unplugged
An acoustic guitar is a nice addition to your shipboard arsenal, but every extra guitar that you bring is another piece of luggage that you have to pay for when you fly. Some companies are giving musicians baggage stipends, but before you haul your effects rack and 3 guitars to the ship, you’ll want to confirm if you’ll be reimbursed for your expenses.
If you’re on a ship that docks regularly in a major North American port and want to have an acoustic, I would recommend looking into purchasing a well made, good sounding, CHEAP acoustic guitar from a local shop. Bring a sound-hole pickup and you’ll be flying. You’ll find opportunities to sell your acoustic when you leave the ship. You could also donate the guitar to the crew welfare committee or even “pay it forward” by leaving it for the next guitar player. Buying a second electric as a back up once you reach the ship can also be a more cost effective solution.
As with any job as a musician, you’ll have to be prepared for the unexpected and especially on a ship, you’ll have to make it work. Keep a smile on your face and remind yourself that this is (hopefully) better than flipping burgers. I hope this article has given you an idea of what to expect on the ship and what guitar you may consider brining for the job. Part 2 will be deal with guitar effects and amplifiers.
See you next time!
About the author
Great Article. I will be heading off on a cruise in 2 weeks as a guitarist. I look forward to seeing your thoughts on effects/amps.
5/10/2009
Glad you liked the article. Is this your first contract? The next article is going to cover the gambit when it comes to info on amps you’ll come across on ships and what effects I found to be essential. Or at least helped make the gig fun. Thanks for commenting.
Nathan
5/10/2009
Yep, it will be my first contract. Do you think you’ll have your next article up before then?
5/11/2009
Hey Patrick,
Next article might not be out till your already at sea. Check your inbox for some info though.
5/11/2009
Great Posts Nathan!
I’m joining a ship in a couple of weeks and I’m going to take my 335, at the moment I’m using flatwound strings because I mostly play jazz but I’m thinking I should probably switch to normal light gauge strings for the show band. Would you argue with this?!
Cheers!
Mike
10/1/2009
Hey Mike,
I would go with round wound. More tonal options, easier to bend and you can still jazz it out. Make sure you or your tech give your guitar a good set up before you leave and take the tools you’ll need to do some tweaking once you get there. Travel and temperature differences can reak havoc on your guitar.
10/2/2009
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