Imagine no brand names....

[colins]

Originally Posted by zmf

I really recommend my blue, medium-sized car. Lots of power, great handling and good gas mileage.

Hey, I have a blue medium-sized car too! What brand and gauge of tyres are you using? How often do you change them?

Back to the OP - brand can matter as much or more than size and woods to tell us what a guitar will sound like. If some people think brand is a status symbol, that's their problem.

[Jim Comeaux]

I like brand names. When doing my daily digital “window shopping”, I can easily bypass anything listed as “vintage unbranded” or anything with a brand name like “Esteban”, “Disney” or “First Act”. It’s simply separating the wheat from the chaff.

[musicman1951]

Originally Posted by zmf

I really recommend my blue, medium-sized car. Lots of power, great handling and good gas mileage.

People scoff at "paying for the name," but you're really paying for a history of quality products. If you don't appreciate that, by all means purchase the blue car.

I audition guitars and purchase the one with the tone/feel I prefer. But I don't buy unknown commodities. It's true there could be a diamond in the rough, but I'm just not a gambler. I know that Collings, Lowden, Froggy, Bourgeois and CS make good instruments because they enjoy that history. Could I get a cheaper model with the same woods from your cousin Pete? Sure. But I'm not a gambler. I do realize that I paid part of the price for the reputation Mr. Lowden built over the years.

So I'm not buying the blue car.

[Tnfiddler]

I think if there were no brand names, we'd all finally realize and accept that our wooden boxes with strings aren't that different from each other. Yes, there are differences in tones, volumes, boxiness, etc., but if we all had to go into a room and pick our guitars via a blind test, we'd all probably be surprised at what we purchased. Yes, a Bourgeois FANATIC said that!!

[KevWind]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

Not to be a Debbie downer, but in his later years, John totally eschewed the content of "Imagine" as naive romanticism. What if there were no brand names? Would there be pride of workmanship and excellence?

I doubt it.

Bob

I think "Totally eschew" may not be "totally" accurate (ha see what I did there ) yes he later commented about the unlikely aspects or even the desirability of it reaching complete fruition.
After all the title is "IMAGINE" not "MAKE HAPPEN"


I think what did not change in Lennons view (and should not be dismissed) was/is that it did and still does, serve to highlight the notion that we should indeed continue to question the norms, history, and traditions of our society.
For example racism, sexism, bigotry, exploitation and unbridled military expansion have all been (and in some circumstances still are) "the history" "the tradition" and "the norm" in our world.
I always thought the value of the song was more as a question than an answer, and that those most willing to simply dismiss it, are likely those most in need of embracing the question...

And let's not forget without "imagination" there would be little advance in "workmanship and excellence " to be "proud" of brand names or no .... juss sayin'

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by Bob Womack

Not to be a Debbie downer, but in his later years, John totally eschewed the content of "Imagine" as naive romanticism. What if there were no brand names? Would there be pride of workmanship and excellence?

I doubt it.

Bob

He may have dismissed his own creation post-popularity, but it made him a ton of money as well as propelling a large number of people to aspire to a higher ideal, so it ended up being much more than what he dismissed it as.

Brand names allow us to associate a level of quality which contributes to a more informed purchase. For most folks it ends up being a process of matching up personal experience as well as what we peripherally learn from others to hone that association.

Just add a Manufacturer and model number to: "Acoustic 6 string guitar, approximately 3 years old. $3000."

I don't know anyone who would purchase based on the ad without make and model.

The OP's topic certainly generates some emotion, even if it wasn't intended to o so.

[Tony Burns]

I would say I look at a guitar quality and sound
and then its brand name - thou sometimes the name drives it up in price.
Which is one reason in general why I dont buy Gibsons !

[zmf]

Originally Posted by colins

Hey, I have a blue medium-sized car too! What brand and gauge of tyres are you using? How often do you change them?

We don't have any tyres around here, but I like the 12-53, brownish narrow tread tires in the winter, and splurge on 13-56 wide tread, double-wrapped in the summer.

I change them when they get dull.

[gmel555]

Say whatever you will about the song, but here we are 50 years later still talking about it and its meaning.

[CollingsPicker]

Unfortunately, or fortunately, a name gives it part of its value. Not only giving you a basis of what you should expect from it, but also purchase and sell value. If you’re going to spend your money on something, you want to know you’re not overpaying. Unless you don’t care about what you’re buying… in which case I’ve got a couple of Z-brand guitars I want to offload…. For $8000 each……

[Steve DeRosa]

In essence, it forces players to choose strictly on the basis of tone, playability, construction, quality of materials, and fit/finish: as I've discovered (to my pleasant surprise) over the last 60 years not always the exclusive domain of the high-dollar boxes, and I wonder how many folks around here would still own their present choices - or how the boutique builders and long-established "big names" would fare in general - in a more-objective, less status-driven milieu...

[Stonehauler]

Name also can be associated with poor quality, just as much as good quality.

For all of you older than 40..think of the connotations of the following names/brands and respond with a 1-3 word reaction:
Yugo
Pinto
Mustang
Camaro
Challenger
BMW
Lexus

Now for a different set of association
Taylor
Guild
Takamine
Laurel Canyon
Rogue
Collings

Another set for those over 21
Budweiser
Sam Adams
Old Style
Bass (ale)
Dogfish Head
Homebrew

Let's go to manufacturing origin of a generic thing, so XYZ (guitar, watch, sweater, car, etc.) is Made in...
China
USA
Germany
Switzerland
Italy
Australia
India
Taiwan
Japan
South Korea

last one
Folk
Country
Pop
Rock
Rap
R&B
Soul
Blues
Swing
Jazz

We put labels on things for a reason, and even though not everything fits in the generalized label, that bias we have, there are often times that opinion (bias) we have fits, and fits for a reason. For instance, I would never want to own a Pinto just because of the reputation it has. If we were to have no names, only brands, that not owning a Pinto would also translate to not owning a Ford, even though I love by F350 truck (12+ years old, purchased new).

[TTiimm]

Originally Posted by Stonehauler

For instance, I would never want to own a Pinto just because of the reputation it has. If we were to have no names, only brands, that not owning a Pinto would also translate to not owning a Ford, even though I love by F350 truck (12+ years old, purchased new).

F350 pft.

My father carried a pallet of bricks in the back of a Pinto.

Fun ride that day. I think I was seven or eight. They guy didn't want to load them but my father insisted.

[Stonehauler]

Originally Posted by TTiimm

F350 pft.

My father carried a pallet of bricks in the back of a Pinto.

Fun ride that day. I think I was seven or eight. They guy didn't want to load them but my father insisted.

yeah, we can all be stupid. Some of us just get lucky when we area.

[TTiimm]

Originally Posted by Stonehauler

yeah, we can all be stupid. Some of us just get lucky when we area.

Well, it was just a silly story. You don't have to be a jerk about it.