Per usual policy, a quick note on a music store. No time to get to Mandolin Brothers on this trip, more’s the pity, but while we were leaving the SOLOMON museum, Dad was kind enough to ask the front desk to google-map some music stores for us. They came up with Music Row, which, if we were in the right place, has been reduced to a couple redundant Sam Ash stores and the original Rudy’s.
Rudy is of course Rudy Pensa, the Argentinian immigrant most famed for designing the Pensa-Suhr guitar/headband combos built by famed luthier John Suhr and played by famed player Mark Knopfler. (Incidentally, look how wrong things go in 1987 when he stops using headband. It was obviously an integral part of the tone and hair-retention system.)
These days, the store feels frankly small and under-stocked – a few vintage electrics, but lots of newer, cheaper guitars that are unexciting to look at. However the atmosphere is really nice, the staff is very friendly and helpful, and they are more than willing to give you a brand new Santa Cruz D model (like the Tony Rice but cheaper) and then leave you alone for as long as it takes for you to get tired and your parents to get bored. And then they’ll suggest that you try another one. So really, it was kinda fun, but the store (and the street) aren’t much deserving of a special trip.
Something many people think is deserving of a special trip is Times Square, and I don’t get that either. I may be tainted by Tokyo.