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It's Time to Talk Tariffs. (This one's a little long - TL;DR: at bottom). The last thing I want to do is take political sides, so I won't. But there is a stark reality in world trade right now: the current US government administration's on-again/off-again tariffs have created massive instability in world trade, and will, it seems, have resounding effects on the US economy. On a more micro-economic level, it means things are already starting to get more expensive for us, which means (unfortunatel …

When Bob started Gollihur Music (then called "Wordsmith Associates Music," as it was an offshoot of his freelance writing gig) it sort of got off the ground due to a series of happy accidents (for the full story, check out "The Story of Gollihur Music" on this page). But make no mistake, he always took everything about the shop very seriously. Making a stellar impression, every time, was always paramount, even when it was just him working alone out of the spare bedroom of his house. He was busti …

The ToneDexter is one of my favorite sonic "toys" for upright bass (and acoustic guitar, if I'm honest). It's a very clever device that can bring a very realistic tone to your amplified sound. However, I think there are some misconceptions about what it does, and what it doesn't do, and I want to provide a little more clarity without bogging down our product description.So, I've seen a lot of talk about the ToneDexter on message boards, and people ask me on the phone and in email - can you basic …

Upright basses are peculiar things; they're seemingly simple instruments, but there are deceptive complexities in making yours sound and play its very best. Often, seemingly minor changes can pay off with surprising improvements to its tone. Something as simple and inexpensive as a new tailpiece cable may energize the sound of your bass. And there are countless threads on "no cost" changes you can make -- quite a few folks advocate swapping the E and A string on the tuning machines, for ins …

For over a quarter century, we at Gollihur Music have been very proud to provide product descriptions and help documents that have been carefully conceived, curated, and written in the voice of the "lay person." Plenty of websites are full of the "marketing talk." But what does it mean to YOU, the individual, unique player? Features are cool, but what are the BENEFITS? Now, Artificial Intelligence is rearing its sizable head into e-commerce. Our website provider/host now even offers an AI …

(Please note that this uses a specific pricing example, and that prices may have changed between when it was originally written and now.) I'd like to take a moment for a quick lesson in comparison shopping. I had a customer reach out for a price match on a set of Pirastro Perpetual strings last year. She wanted me to match the price of a competitor who has a (self-stated) reputation for having the best prices on strings, anywhere - even going so far to overtly state that other stores are artific …

Every once in a while, we like to share little random tips we've come up with over the years. Some can help you keep track of your stuff, others can save your bacon on a gig. For your enjoyment, and hopefully edification, here is a classic collection, originally written by Bob (with some updates/additions by Mark.)Easily Document Battery and String Changes, Settings, and More.I love the little Avery 05422 (1/2" x 1 3/4") removable self-adhesive labels (or the Staples generic equivalent). I jot d …

The Upright Bass world has lost another one of the good ones. We are deeply saddened to report that Dr. Richard (Rick) Jones, the founder of Acoustic Image, passed away suddenly on April 17. Our own Bob Gollihur first connected with Rick over 20 years ago. After much cajoling, he finally twisted Rick's arm enough to get him to sign up Gollihur Music (at that time, Wordsmith Associates Music) as a dealer for the amazing Acoustic Image lineup. Rick later admitted that he almost didn't r …

[updated - this position has been filled!]“Day Job” Available for Qualified Upright Bass PlayerUS:You know who we are, you're here on the page! So you know that we’re a well-known, leading upright bass online retailer who has been in business for over a quarter century. We specialize in the needs of the upright bassist – from strings, to bows, to pickups and electronics, to amps, sheet music, and the instruments themselves. We ship worldwide.YOU:You’re a legitimate upright bassist in the Sout …

This is a "reprint" of a blog entry that Bob wrote several years ago that I recently came across. It was posted on a previous version of our site, and I thought it would be nice to put it back in rotation in memory of Bob. Miss you, Dad! - Mark You probably recall the moment when you first got an upright bass... You'll distinctly remember when you were administered the Official Upright Bass Owner Pledge: Raise your right hand and repeat after me:  "I (state your name), heretofore …

Enjoy this lovely conversation between Mark and Jason Heath of the Contrabass Conversations Podcast. Click this link to visit his page and listen to the interview! …

We are deeply saddened to announce that Bob Gollihur, the founder of Gollihur Music (formerly Wordsmith Associates Music) has passed away at the age of 71 on July 20, 2022.Bob has been quite well-known within the bass-playing community for decades. He majored in double bass in college, and played his first paying gig as a union card-carrying 13-year-old in 1963, as seen in the photo to the left (and he continued playing regularly over the years, into his 70s). But he was most widely recogni …

The Eminence Electric Upright Bass has been a favorite product at Gollihur Music for decades; since Bob first discovered the bass we've been very strong supporters of it (and the wonderful Gary and Karen Bartig of G. Edward Lutherie). As one of the few acoustically "true" electric upright basses (EUBs), we've been proud to be the top US dealer for Eminence Basses for many years. The worldwide supply chain issues that have plagued most manufacturing and retail opera …

Time has really flown by. Here's a brief history of how we got here...Back when Bob Gollihur first started selling bass-related items on his website back in 1997, he really didn't know where it was going to go. He had been hosting an upright bass page at his personal Gollihur.com domain for a while. It was mostly just a helpful compendium of interesting upright bass links that he'd discovered in the early, lawless days of the internet (before Google and other high-tech search engines made it so …

This post doesn't really apply to the majority of my customers, who are too far away, geographically, for them to realistically attend a show in Southern New Jersey - but I'm proud to be performing in a theater production of Jason Robert Brown's "Songs for a New World." The show is a theatrical song cycle musical that has truly fabulous music, and I'm wearing a lot of hats during the show. Various numbers have me singing solos, duets, and group numbers, playing upright or electric bass, gu …