Bill M.'s definitions

The Pitts

Slang term for the town of Pittsfield, in the Berkshires of western Massachusetts. The term is traditionally used by young locals in complaint of the town being in the sticks, with seemingly not much to do.

"I wish I could drive to Boston more often, because I live in The Pitts."

by Bill M. December 17, 2004

Wabash

The only county in Indiana that keeps it real. It's the home of straight up killers and child molesters. The best weed, girls, and underage drinkers. Possibly the only county in the world with six to six probation hours. From Salamonie to Maple Street to Crown Hill all the way to new 24 they stay buck 24/7.

I was in Wabash and had the time of my life.

by bill m. December 23, 2004

rtfm

Literally "Read The F**king Manual"; a term showing the frustration of being bothered with questions so trivial that the asker could have quickly figured out the answer on their own with minimal effort, usually by reading readily-available documents. People who say "RTFM!" might be considered rude, but the true rude ones are the annoying people who take absolutely no self-responibility and expect to have all the answers handed to them personally.

"Damn, that's the twelveth time that somebody posted this question to the messageboard today! RTFM, already!"

by Bill M. July 27, 2004

12 string

A guitar with 12 strings grouped in pairs, instead of the normal 6 strings spaced apart from each other. Strings in each given pair are either tuned an octave apart or to the same pitch, and played simultaneously. There are also 12 string bass guitars, where the same principle is applied to a standard 4-string bass guitar, yielding an instrument with four groups of 3 strings each.

The guitar player thought that the next song called for a fuller, richer guitar sound, so he put down his regular guitar and picked up his 12 string.

by Bill M. July 27, 2004

marijuana

It's a green plant that you can use for...uh...um....what were we talking about again?

Marijuana is all-natural. Then again, so is arsenic and monkey dung.

by Bill M. July 27, 2004

machine head

1. One of several flattened pegs found at the top end of a stringed instrument, which when manually turned with the hand, adjusts the pitch of the corresponding string :: TUNING PEG

2. (Warner Bros, 1972) Title of an album by heavy metal pioneering band Deep Purple, featuring the band's all-time biggest hit "Smoke On The Water"

3. (1992 - ) Heavy metal band from San Francisco, very influential on harsher, more aggressive-sounding metal bands that would arise later in the decade. See www.machinehead1.com for more information

One day, Robert Flynn of Machine Head was jamming along with Deep Purple's "Machine Head" album, but the low "E" string on his guitar was out of tune, so he had to turn the string's machine head.

by Bill M. July 27, 2004

slap

(music) A bass guitar technique of hitting a string hard with the side of the thumb knuckle, producing a loud but brief snapping sound. Slapping is usually combined with popping, the act of pulling a string outward with the finger tip and letting it snap back. Invented by Larry Graham (Sly and the Family Stone, Graham Central Station).

Slap & pop bass sounds are very characteristic of disco and funk music, though around 1990 it got very popular again when bands like Red Hot Chilli Peppers, Primus, Infectious Grooves, and Faith No More hit the hard rock radio stations and Mtv.

Jazz players on upright bass (aka double bass) have a technique called "slapping", but it's a completely different technique that involves literally slapping the strings.

by Bill M. August 27, 2004