Spare Fare

So you’ve tweaked your axe, wired in some super-duper new pickups and set off for your gig, only to find your guitar doesn’t work. Dave Burrluck hopes you’ve brought a spare...

- Dave Burrluck

For the touring pro, or at least their techs, having spares for every conceivable situation is a given: all part of the job. But what about us weekend warriors? Of course, we’re professional so we always carry spares, don’t we?

Over a recent three-gig weekend I was frankly fed up with loading up, unloading, setting-up, breaking down, unloading, etc. Two gigs down, just under four hours of gig time, and all my gear was working just fine. But by the time of the third one, aside from being a tad fatigued, I had to load up not only my gear but also the PA, too. Normally I’d take my main guitar, another one for slide, or one that I’m Long Term Testing or just writing about, but for this third gig, a different band, I only use my Strat: my trusty well-gigged, never-let-me-down original-year Fender Road Worn, which I wedged onto the overcrowded back seat. With barely room to swing a budgerigar in my car I was about to head off when something made me think: “Hmmm, best I take a spare, just in case…”