Modern Guitars Launches New Column by Ronny North

by Rick Landers.

Modern Guitars magazine is pleased to announce the arrival of Los Angeles area guitarist, Ronny North, to the pages of our magazine. Ronny's PSYKO Guitar column will focus on his insights about guitars, performance, and the business challenges of building a career in music.

I first saw Ronny a couple of years ago in Anaheim, California, while he was the featured player at a guitar demo during 2006 Winter NAMM. His enthusiasm was infectious and his love of the guitar obvious. His talent has earned him accolades from guitar aficianados, including Guitar Player magazine's Michael Molenda who noted, "Ronny can lay down a dumb rock rhythm and shred like a mother."

While at 2008 Summer NAMM, Nashville, Tennessee, I bumped into North while we were watching a young boy pummel a drum kit with an equal amount of awkwardness and enthusiasm. We tallked about pulling together a Modern Guitars column when our schedules loosened up after NAMM.

North regularly teaches guitar clinics around the country for such firms as the Guitar Center; Tregan Guitars; Buzz Feiten; Laney amps, as well as demos at both Winter and Summer NAMM trade shows. He also couples his love of guitar with a high sense of altruism and can can often be seen performing for childrens' charities and at military bases where he wows the men and women of the Armed Forces with his guitar licks.

To kick off Ronny's PSYKO Guitar column, we decided to introduce him in some depth with the following interview.

Listen to "Life Inhibited" by Ronny North

Rick Landers: Let's start out by hearing about the good, the bad and the ugly of how you began your musical journey.

Ronny North: I was raised in Southern California in the OC [Orange County]. I took piano lessons at the Yamaha Music School when I was in first grade. I really wasn’t feeling it and eventually got kicked out! [Laughs]

I really do wish I would have stuck with it. I still play piano and own a few keyboards that I use when I record. Like everyone, I was into sports when I was a kid. My dad got us into baseball and football and it was fun. But, then I started skateboarding and surfing.

At first I wanted to be a pro skater like Tony Alva. My parents were always very supportive of everything. My dad used to take us everywhere, including trips to the skate park, the driving range and to concerts.

Both my parents play instruments, so it was only a matter of time before I started playing. My dad tried to get me and my brother to play guitar early on by getting us lessons with a guy a cross the street. But, the guy didn’t know what he was doing and we really weren’t into it.

When I was 13 I got a KISS record for Christmas. From then on I knew what I wanted to do. That spring dad took us to our first concert. It was KISS on the 1977 Love Gun tour at the L.A. Forum. This was at the peak of their fame. After that, Ace Frehley became my first guitar hero.

I got my first real guitar for my 14th birthday. It was a cool black copy of a Les Paul. Wish I still had it. I traded it later for a Pignose battery powered amp that I still own. After I started playing a bit, I got into Eddie Van Halen, Michael Schenker, Joe Perry, Randy Rhoads, George Lynch and Warren DeMartini. Eddie is still my main guy.

I quickly got pretty good and soon after I got an Ibanez Iceman and a Risson half stack. I was set! Me and my brother used to jam in the garage. He got a cool set of Slingerland drums. We went through various people, or victims, to jam with. We played tons of backyard parties and local clubs in the OC and had a blast. We'd open for Slayer, Great White and others at some of the local clubs.

My dad always made it to our gigs. Yeah, my dad was very cool. I eventually started jamming with some older people. By the time I was 15 I started playing the Sunset Strip in Hollywood. That's when I noticed that I was better than most people I played with, even though they were much older than me.

Once I started playing in Hollywood, I started getting more attention and had a couple high profile offers and some record company interest, none of which turned into anything significant.

When I really started playing in bands on the Strip it was the early '80s and there were tons of great bands going. We were playing alongside Guns 'n Roses, RATT, Motley Crue, Quiet Riot and Sound Barrier. Sound Barrier had Spacey T, a great guitarist who had amazing chops. They were an all black metal band that had the attitude of early Van Halen. I would see them play anytime I could. Seeing Spacey play was like seeing Eddie. But, Spacey definitely had his own style and sound.

There was also Steeler with Yngwie playing guitar. I even saw Randy Rhoads play at the Starwood. It was a great time for music in L.A. As expected, there were some not so honest business people around and we got ripped off a few times, like most bands back then. I definitely learned a lot about the business, in all ways.

Rick: Your music was selected to be used with MTVs “Real World” series.

Ronny: I was approached by MTV’s production company about using my music for their reality shows. I guess I was lucky. It really has given me a lot more exposure. The funny thing is that I have had lots of people come up to me that have heard my music on the shows. But, I've never seen one of the shows with my music.

Rick: When presenting guitar clinics around the country, what’s your approach given that there are guitarists at various ability levels in the audience?

Ronny: I really do enjoy doing clinics and feel very privileged that I get the chance to share a few of my tricks with fellow players. When I do clinics I try to make it so there’s something for everybody at all skill levels. I keep it pretty straight forward. I play a few songs throughout the clinic and then talk about my philosophies about how I approach playing the guitar. I demonstrate some exercises I’ve developed to help myself become a better player. They’re really simple things that help your chops very quickly.

I also answer all questions and then after the event I hang out and chat with everyone. It really is a very cool thing being able to help up and coming players get going. Basically, what I stress more than anything at my clinics is that you have to be focused on what you want to accomplish and practice is very important.

When I do my private shred clinics I keep the class down to 20 people or under, so I can spend time personally with someone that is having issues getting something we’re going over.

I’ve had great success teaching my licks and exercises at these events. I also go over other things like gear selection and I touch on business stuff, as well. If anyone is interested in my next seminar we’re calling the latest one the Psyko Shred Clinic with Ronny North. Just go to my website for all the information.

Another interesting thing I have been seeing at my clinics lately is that more girls are starting to play guitar. I think that's great! We really need to have the first girl Eddie Van Halen some day. I hope I'm around to see that. It’d be great to have a girl that was right up there with the guys!

There have been some great women players in the past. But, I would like to see a girl that has it all and gets out there and blows the doors open. That being said, both Roxy Petrucci and Jennifer Batten do shred.

Rick: How would you describe the full spectrum of your guitar playing, compared to what you like to play?

Ronny: I always get pegged as a metal guy and I really do enjoy playing rock stuff. But, I also enjoy playing acoustic quite a bit. I making an acoustic CD called Acoustify that I plan to put out before the end of the year.

I really do enjoy all types of music. But, doing my rock instrumental stuff is the most fun, because I can really tear it up. That being said, guitarists should really know more than one style and should be open to other types of music. When I’m in my car I have XM Radio, so I listen to everything.

Rick: Were you formally schooled in the theory of music or are you more intuitive?

Ronny: I’m totally self taught. I did try lessons. But, they really didn’t help at all and I only started to improve after I started figuring stuff out on my own .When I was young all I did was practice. I was totally obsessed with playing guitar. Dad always took us camping and I would take my electric guitar with us, with my battery powered Pignose amp. I’m sure I drove everybody nuts! But, that’s all I wanted to do.

I don’t know any music theory and play completely by ear. I can pick out stuff pretty quickly, which has definitely helped me when I do high profile recording sessions. An interesting thing I do, which drives people crazy, is I always play my guitar unplugged when I watch TV. I always watch TV! A lot of times, when there’s music on a show or commercial, I see if I can learn it before it’s off. I’m getting pretty good at it these days. You usually have under 30 seconds to figure out the music. It’s great ear training.

I couldn’t tell you what was going on in theory. But, I could play it for you. That being said, I’m definitely a believer on doing what’s best for each player. If you think lessons will help your playing, then by all means do what’s best for you. It’s important to find a good teacher. There’s also a ton of cool DVD instructional videos out there. The Paul Gilbert ones are so cool!

I will be coming out with one myself soon, hopefully by Christmas. Knowledge is power and you can always learn something new.

Rick: I see that you’re a positive force in the community with respect to contributing your time and talents to various compassionate causes, including Support to the Troops, Tsunami Relief, Toys for Tots, Musicians in Need, and the Special Olympics Summer Games. How about telling us about your interests in helping others through your music and some special moments that you’ve experienced along this road?

Ronny: I really do believe that music is a great healer in all ways. It’s so great that I can play these events to help others in need and they enjoy it so much. All it requires is my time. It really is a great thing to be able to help these causes and to make a difference. It’s all about the Karma. I’ve done the Special Olympics for the last eight years in a row. I have a sister who is one of the athletes and before I started playing the event I saw how it turned her life around in a great way.

Once I saw what effect it had on the athletes and everyone involved, I had to be a part of it. I talked with the organizers and I have been a part of the event ever since. When we play I give away a ton of promo CD’s. then I sign stuff and have pictures taken with everyone and hang out. It’s a great thing that I probably enjoy more than they do. I will do it as long as they will have me. It’s a great thing how much they appreciate the music and just having us being there. As for the troops, it’s a real honor to be invited to play for the people insuring our way of life.

Rick: You are endorsed by nearly 40 music related companies. How does the endorsement arena work with respect to how you and the companies mutually support one another and how does this type of deal get initiated?

Ronny: I feel very fortunate that I’m in the position to get such great support from those companies. The endorsement thing is a very tricky game for an up and coming player. It’s obviously much easier for the famous guy that’s on MTV everyday.

But, for us regular guys it’s a little tougher. It’s a great thing to have all my endorsements. But, it’s a lot of work and responsibility. I’m very lucky that I get a lot of press in magazines and from doing clinics and trade shows. So, it’s easier to approach a company if I’m interested in their products. More often than not they’ll know who I am. I also get approached by companies all the time.

Rick: One of your most recent endorsements is with Tregan guitars. Tell us about the development of the Ronny North Signature Tregan guitar.

Ronny: I met with Tregan guitars at the Winter NAMM show in January of this year. I was introduced to them through my friend, Skunk Wright [Quartershackle], who is a Tregan endorser. He kept telling me throughout NAMM weekend that he was playing these cool new guitars and that I had to check them out.

Finally, on Sunday afternoon when I was on my way to my last demo at the Laney booth, I just happened to walk by the Tregan booth by chance and I saw Skunk. He waved me over to the booth and I tried one of the guitars. I was really surprised how good it played. After I played it for a few minutes through an amp they had at the booth. Tony Guarriello, the owner of Tregan, came over and introduced himself to me. We talked a bit and he said that it would be great to have me playing their guitars. I told him that I was looking to do a signature guitar. We talked some more and he offered to send me a guitar to try out.

Once the guitar arrived, I really dug it. So we we started working together. I designed the entire guitar from the ground up. It’s a design that I already had created, I was looking for a company to work with, but the guitar companies I was working with at the time didn’t see my vision. I was talking with a few big guitar companies at NAMM and they were interested. But, they didn't get it at all. They just wanted me to put my name on an existing model.

Tregan got it right away and I went with them. The prototype was built by Greg Back for Tregan Guitars. Greg has built or worked on guitars for Satch, Vai, Eddie Van Halen and many other big guys. He also helped create the Feiten Tuning System with Buzzy Feiten.

My Ronny North Signature Tregan guitar has a smaller three quarter size mahogany light weight single cutaway body, with a flamed maple top, in Psyko Green! It has a curly maple neck with a flatter radius and 22 jumbo frets, 24 ¾” scale ,an original Floyd Rose trem, Seymour Duncan pickups and the Feiten Tuning system for perfect intonation.The electronics are a single volume knob, a three-way Gibson style pickup selector switch. It has a kill switch that only kills the front pickup, so you can do the cool Ace Frehley style stuttering effects.

I took all the elements of my favorite guitars and combined them for my ultimate playing weapon. I worked very closely with Greg Back on the prototype and every detail of this guitar, including the neck dimension and the size and thickness of the body. My guitar has a traditional look with modern playability. I know what I need in an instrument and I put all these features into my signature guitar. I really know my gear and I know how to work on guitars when I need to, so I know what size frets I need and about scale lengths, as well as everything else. I designed it.

We just premiered the guitar at Summer NAMM in Nashville in June and it was a big hit. I played the production version of the guitar at the show and it rocked! The guitar will start shipping in the fall of 2008. It really is a dream come true, to have my own signature guitar.

Rick: Have you been heavily involved in the development of other guitar products?

Ronny: It's great to be in a position to be involved in the development of new guitar products. As you know, I’m very opinionated when it comes to guitar gear. My main concern when developing new gear is that it plays and sounds great and is versatile, durable and affordable.These are major things. I’m always pushing the envelope and checking out the latest gear, so it’s a great thing to be able to consult with companies and create gear that will help all players.

Rick: I understand that there may be some more Ronny North signature products coming on line soon. Can you tell us about any of them?

Ronny: Yes! I am working on a couple new signature products with a couple companies, as we speak. One of them is a signature Distortion-Overdrive box that I’m working on with AMT Electronics. It’s going to be very versatile. The products will be very cool. My main concern at this point is the launch of my new Ronny North Signature Tregan guitar this fall.

Rick: How about telling us about your love of Laney amps and what’s going on, if anything, with you and their products? Atomic amps?

Ronny: I really do love Laney amplifiers and it’s a great honor to be endorsed by such a great company. I bought my white Laney stack back in 1983 from Norwalk Music. I still have it. I first saw Laney’s when Tony Iommi used to use them in Black Sabbath. Then, in the early '80s RATT, George Lynch and Richie Kotzen used to use them. I tried one and was hooked by their British raw tone and how loud they were. I later had the head tweaked a bit by my great friend, Mark Cameron, who now has his own amp company called Cameron Amplification. Mark has done amps for lots of big guys like Lynch, Doug Aldrich, John Norum and tons of others. He actually took some of the gain out of mine and just dialed it in. I still use the amp to this day when I record. It still sounds amazing!

A couple years ago, I approached the Laney guys about a possible endorsement and they were very cool and hooked me up. I am very honored to be sponsored by such a legendary company. I am currently using their VH-100R tube heads, my favorite amp ,the GH-100 tube head and the TT-100 2x12 combo. I also use Laney 4x12 cabs with Celestion G-65 speakers. You really can’t beat that British tone with the EL 34 tubes. It’s a legendary tone that I grew up listening to.

As for Atomic Amplifiers, I’ve been with them forever. The company was created by legendary amp builder Harry Kolbe. It’s a great small combo that you put your Line 6 POD or any other similar device into and it plugs in and will now control the combo. It’s a very revolutionary product and very versatile. I’ve used it on tons of smaller sessions and gigs over the years. It has a tube power section in the amp that really warms up the sound of the POD. I even used it on some of the sessions I did for Snoop Dog. Great stuff! Once again, I met them at NAMM many years ago through a friend who took me by their booth.

Rick: Tell us about your 2008 Summer NAMM experiences and how well you were received during the trade show?

Ronny: Nashville was a blast and I hope to get back and see the local sites sometime. We had a great show and my new Tregan Signature guitar was a big hit at the show. I played every day of the show for Tregan Guitars and for AMT America. I played so many demos that I really didn’t even walk around the show and see anything. It is always great seeing friends from the industry at the show and I always enjoy meeting everyone. The summer show was really an adventure. I did a lot of press at the show and that's always a great thing!

Rick: I see you’ll be headlining the San Diego Music Fest in September for the Sailors and Marines stationed there. How do the troops connect with a long haired wild guitarist pumping out massive shredded riffs?

Ronny: I’m actually really big with the troops! It’s such a great honor to be invited to take part in such great events. I’m all about supporting our troops in anyway I can. They really like to rock and that’s my thing. The guys in the Services really like to have a good time when they’re off the clock so it’s always fun hanging with them. If it wasn’t for them I couldn’t do what I do.

Rick: A lot of musicians get so caught in their music that they either don’t have time or the inclination to take care of business.

Ronny: Don’t even get me going on the biz thing! These days it seems like it’s 90% biz and 10% music. You really have to stay on top of it. It’s a 24/7 thing. I handle my business stuff myself, with help from a couple people. I’m very lucky to have a great team around me.

I have been burned in the past and I've learned from it. Unfortunately, musicians these days have to really know the business end of things, if they're going to make it. If I could go back and change anything from the past, I would have really learned the business end of things, so I would be on top of things. When you first get started you’re out there playing and you’re just happy that people dig what you’re doing. Unfortunately, there are people out there that just want to take advantage of you and make money off of you. I definitely have made some people a lot of money and where I got nothing.

When I do my guitar clinics, I touch on the biz end of thing a bit. It’s a necessary evil in our industry. I do know what’s up these days. Sometimes, when new companies approach me, they’re surprised that I know my business and that I’m not a dumb musician [Laughs]

Rick: What’s happening with your new label, Eonian Records?

Ronny: Eonian Records is a new label that I’m very excited to be with them. The owner, Steve Craig, is a real fan of music and he has a great plan for the label.

I had a very ugly situation with a label last year that definitely made me weary of record companies. With Eonian Records, it’s all good. It’s been a blast working with them. My first release for the label is a greatest hits CD called Then & Now. The CD features my music from 1985 with singers, until my present day instrumental thing. There are even a few special guests on the CD and a couple brand new tracks. We have done a special package for the release, with photos and histories on all my former musical projects, up to my current instrumental project.

I keep everything, so we have tons of cool stuff from my past that nobody has seen before. My assistant, Karen Barrezueta, has done all the art work and layout for the project and she's done a great job!

It’s been very interesting going through all the music and pictures of my past. The CD will be out this summer and the label has got some great major distribution going. I’m told that it will be in a lot of the music chains, including Best Buy stores.

Rick: What other hobbies or interests do you have beyond the guitar thing?

Ronny: I’m an avid golfer, for sure. I used to ditch school with my friends when I was a kid to play golf. If I wasn’t playing guitar I’d be trying to make it on the PGA Tour. [Laughs] I try to golf as much as possible. But, lately I haven’t had the time. I do have a small golf group of friends in the industry. We try to get together when we can and hit a quick nine at a local course.

I can play and have some great Taylor made clubs, that the company hooked me up with, as well as my very cool Oakley golf shoes, golf bags and glasses.Thanks Oakley! Sometimes I take my clubs with me when we do out of town stuff. And I'll have the promoter get me a golf time, as part of my deal for the show. I really wanted to play in Nashville, but I had no time.

Unfortunately, to be great in golf you have to practice constantly. A pro golfer hits at least a thousand balls a day on the driving range! Like guitar, I’m not a naturally talented golfer, so I would have to practice constantly to be great. That being said, I still win a lot on the golf course. And no matter how my game is going, when I’m playing golf it’s very relaxing to me.

I also surf when I can. I'm going this weekend. I skateboard anytime possible. As you can imagine, everybody in my camp isn’t too hip on me skating pools.The funny thing is, I originally grew my hair long to be like Tony Alva, who was my hero when I was a kid. I used to skate and surf all the time and was actually planning on becoming a pro skater back in the day. When it came down to it I figured out pretty quickly that I was a much better guitarist than I was a skater. I do skate whenever I get the chance and I hit up the local skate park now and again.

It’s a great feeling riding a pool and I will always do it as long as I am able. These are all fun things. But, these days playing guitar takes up most of my time and I need to stay focused.

A good friend of mine plays guitar for Alice Cooper, who is an avid golfer. Now that would be the perfect gig for me! I would get to play great classic songs in stadiums at night and play golf with the boss by day. Paradise!

Rick: So, no recreational pharmacueticals that might side track you?

Ronny: The way I look at it, I’m very fortunate to be able to do what I do and I never take it for granted for a second. It is my life, for better or worse, and to make it work I have to be focused on it, and that's no small feat. That being said, I rarely drink and I never touch drugs. These are major factors in side tracking all your efforts to make it and I’ve seen that happen to friends so many times

Rick: With the Internet pushing out music from all over the world, do you find yourself exploring music from different parts of the globe?

Ronny: The Internet is a great thing! I have XM Radio and I listen to Internet radio all the time. I listen to lots of music from other countries. The pop music of France and Russia is very cool. I also listen to lots of Spanish pop music. You have to love XM Radio! It’s all great stuff and it gives me a fresh outlook on my own music. Just MySpace alone has been a great help. I met a ton of my MySpace friends in Nashville. Bands and musicians always send me their music to hear on MySpace. Some of it is really good. The key is using the Internet to your advantage. We have a few MySpace pages, with one dedicated to my gear. I'm a gear fiend! We have tons of my guitars and other gear on the site.

Rick: Each time we’ve met, you’ve been contagiously enthusiastic about music and unlike a lot of folks, you have this abundance mentality where you enthusiastically support other players, where other guitarists would consider them competitors for the spotlight.

Ronny: I’m confident enough in my playing abilities where I’m all about supporting new players. We’re all in it together and it’s not a competition. If you’re insecure, you start being all weird and you become a player hater for a lack of a better term. That’s all wasted energy to me. If you’re so worried about these other players overtaking your limelight, then maybe you should practice more yourself! I definitely have no time for those games.

Related Links
Ronny North's Column on Modern Guitars: PSYKO Guitar
Ronny North
Tregan Guitars
Laney Amplification

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