Megadeth’s Chris Broderick and David Ellefson have been crossing the country as the lead men for a six-stop tour of the Jackson Clinics, and their latest outpost was Bizarre Guitars in Reno, Nev.
Ellefson sent JacksonGuitars.com a behind-the-scenes blog posting about his stay in “The Biggest Little City in the World.”
Here’s what the legendary bassist had to say:
~ Woke up [Wednesday] morning to about 10 inches of wet fluffy snow on the ground in Denver. It was the first big snow of the year but fortunately they’re used to this sort of stuff here. After a few delays at the airport we were off to sunny Reno, Nev., for our clinic at Bizarre Guitar.
Upon landing Chris hit the gym for his daily 2 ½ hour workout while me and Jackson rep John Dreyer headed straight to Starbucks to get our heads right from the travel. Nothing soothes the soul like the nectar from the green-eyed lady herself!!
Now, Bizarre Guitar has a unique feature in that it is also part of the Bizarre Guns store right next door. Yep, guns and guitars!! Owners Greg and Shanda Golden were very hospitable, as they took us into their underground vault to see one of the most amazing guitar and amp collections ever, all pristinely displayed for the select few who get to experience it. We were one of the lucky ones to see a myriad of rare guitars, amps and autographed albums. Greg has quite a history in the music business, having played in a band with Floyd Rose and at one point even taking ownership of Charvel.
The clinic was relaxed and was mostly comprised of rock musicians, which in some ways focuses the clinic because we know we are playing to… some of our own! By now, Chris and I have developed a really cool rapport between us on the clinics. So between the two of us, it’s really been a fun outing to go represent our Jackson axes this month.
We returned to the infamous Peppermill Hotel and ate some sushi with Jackson rep Mike Todd and our traveling liaison, John Dreyer. Good laughs and a recap of the day sent us all to bed with a satisfied feeling of a job well done here in Reno. Check the blogs for videos and photos of our travels.
– David Ellefson