A custom guitar shop that rocks

2023-08-19湖南何高伦

疯狂英语·新悦读 2023年7期

湖南何高伦

一家吉他定制店铺，一段非凡的人生。

主题语境：音乐篇幅：331词建议用时：6分钟

1“I remember having records when I was four or five years old,”says Brent Ferguson.“I loved sitting in front of the stereo (立体声音响) and listening to music.”Ferguson is the co-owner and operations manager of Guitar Riot, a custom guitar store in Cleveland,Ohio.

2Ferguson started Guitar Riot 12 years ago,after noting a lack of custom guitar stores in the area.A custom guitar is made by a person who makes guitars, violins, and other stringed instruments to a player's exact specifications.One specification is the way the neck of a guitar connects to its body.

3Ferguson has spent his life on music.He has played in bands and worked at other local guitar stores.He also was operations manager for Dr.Z Amplification, a store in nearby Maple Heights that sells amplifiers (扩音器).He eventually decided to run his own business,focusing on custom guitar sales.

4Although Guitar Riot now sells mostly high-end custom guitars, that was not always the case.It had to achieve certain criteria to become a high-end quality retailer (零售店).“The guitar companies have requirements,”Ferguson said.“One is that we bring in a certain dollar amount.Another is the number of years a retailer has been in business.”Guitar Riot is now a retailer for respected guitar makers such as Gibson, Fender, Nash, and Martin.The majority of the store's business comes from online orders.

5Over the years,many well-known musicians have bought their instruments from Guitar Riot.Jack White of the White Stripes, jazz musician Julian Lage, Tommy Henriksen of Alice Cooper,and Noel Gallagher of Oasis have all bought custom guitars from the store.

6Guitar Riot started out meeting the needs of famous guitarists, but Ferguson would like to reach new musicians, too.“When kids come here who are interested in playing, we try to make it a positive experience for them.There definitely needs to be a younger generation interested in rock music,”Ferguson said.