Cordova Neighborhood Church -- A Bible-centered church in sunny Rancho Cordova, California, affiliated with the Christian and Missionary Alliance.

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Mermer Guitars -- Rich Mermer makes wonderful acoustic guitars. You have to get one, that's all there is to it.

Hey Kids Comics -- Fun stuff by a good friend.

Folk Alley -- A wonderful folk and acoustic web radio station!

The Chet Atkins Appreciation Society (CAAS) -- The annual CAAS convention in Nashville has become one of the premier fingerstyle guitar festivals in the world.

Ohio Fingerstyle Guitar Club

Kentucky Thumbpickers Club

Georgia Fingerstyle Guitar Association

Chet Atkins (official site)

Bruce Emery (I highly recommend Bruce's Skeptical Guitarist books -- music theory in plain English!)

Bruce Mathiske

Craig Dobbins

Dean Magraw

D.R. Auten

Ed Gerhard

Mark Knopfler (one of my all-time favorite players)

Martin Simpson

Martin Taylor

Michael Hedges

Muriel Anderson

Pat Donohue (you've heard him on A Prairie Home Companion)

Pat Kirtley

Phil Keaggy

Richard Kiser

Stephen Bennett

Todd Hallawell

Tommy Emmanuel

Tuck Andress (of Tuck and Patti)

(and there are so many more great players out there....)

For hard-to-find recordings of many of the players listed above: Funky Junk

People often ask me about my guitar tone. Most of the sound comes from the player, of course, but I have carefully selected and refined my instruments and performance rig over the years. Please note that I do not have endorsement deals with any of these companies. Everything I have, I paid for. -RT

Guitars:

Mermer Guitars -- My Morning Star acoustic is an amazing instrument; it has a small body and a HUGE sound. Featured on Blind Willie and Wayfaring Stranger on the Music page.

G & L Guitars -- My mid-90s USA-model Legacy is more Strat-like than a Fender Strat.

Godin Guitars -- My Godin Multiac Nylon String SA Electric Guitar is a rich-sounding and verastile instrument for performance and recording. Featured on Come, Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing on the Music page.

Parker Guitars -- My mid-90s Fly Concert solid-body acoustic (now called the Parker Bronze Fly) is an amazing instrument for legato fingerstyle pieces. It has a complex sound and sustain for days. You can hear it on Give Me Jesus on the Music page.

Martin Guitars -- I use my OM-15CE for acoustic playing on stage. Tight rhythm sound and expressive fingerstyle tone in a sweet solid-wood guitar, that was also amazingly affordable.

Gibson -- My new favorite electric guitar is a 1972-ish Les Paul Recording model. It has more controls than a 747 cockpit, but it is an incredible guitar. My Chet Atkins Country Gentleman is one sweet-sounding electric guitar. Gibson is no longer producing this model. No, you can't have mine.

Fender -- My original 1965 Fender Jazzmaster has that funky '60s vibe. Played fingerstyle with the pickup switch in the middle position, it sounds almost like a Fender Rhodes electric piano.

Pickups, Amps, Electronics and Software:

L.R. Baggs -- The LR Baggs Para Acoustic DI is a wonderful problem-solving tool for recording and performance.

Genz-Benz -- I use a Shenandoah 60 for small venues, and as a personal monitor onstage when going through a PA. Nice amp.

B-Band -- I have an older version of their A1 Active Acoustic Guitar Pickup and Preamp in my Mermer. It really captures the sound of the instrument.

Roni Music -- developer of Amazing SlowDowner, remarkable software for studying and learning from recorded music.

BOSS -- Like most guitarists, I have lots of BOSS stuff. I use one of their older multi-FX processors, the GT-3, and a TU-2 Chromatic Tuner for almost all of my performances.

Fender -- I know, Fender doesn't need another link, but I really like their amps. I'm a clean-tone player, and in my opinion the Fender 65 Twin Reverb Amp is the standard for clean tone, bar none. I just wish it weren't so @#$% heavy. For acoustic performances and as a portable PA, I use a (now discontinued) Acoustasonic Pro; the new Acoustasonic SFX II Acoustic Guitar Combo Amp is similar.