New McCook resident guitar tech to the greats

Rick Vito, from left, Mick Fleetwood and Dale Quinty at the Uncorked Tour in Snowmass Village June 14. Quinty, of McCook, worked as a guitar tech at the concert. Vito joined Fleetwood Mac after Lindsay Buckingham left, and also played with greats like Bob Seger, Bonnie Raitt and many others. (Courtesy photo)

If it has strings and you can strum it, chances are Dale Quinty of SqyntAxe Guitar Repair in McCook can repair it. In fact, his way around guitars led him recently to a gig as a guitar tech for Mick Fleetwood's new band.

Quinty made the last-minute trip in June to the mountain resort town of Snowmass Village, Colo., right outside of Aspen, when the regular guitar tech became unavailable.

Originally from Rifle, Colo., Quinty moved here in October with his wife, Jeri, who is from McCook. Around June 13, a call came from his friend in Rifle who owns a music store that a guitar tech was needed for the Mick Fleetwood Blues Band concert at Snowmass.

Dale Quinty with a few of the guitars that he tuned as the guitar technician for the Mick Fleetwood Blues Band concert in Snowmass Village. Quinty said Rick Vito, vocalist/guitarist, used five guitars - two Fernandez Reverends, one Fender Duo Sonic, a National electrified dobro and a boutique one-of-a-kind that he called a Deco -- and that Vito liked the action high on all his guitars as it really added to the tone he could get. Songs played at the concert included new ones the band has written since its inception as well as some old favorites like "Oh Well," a Fleetwood Mac classic from 1970 and "Shake Your Money Maker," an original PeterGreens/Fleetwood Mac tune from 1965-1970. (Courtesy photo)

"I really wanted to do it to be able to meet one of my early life musical heroes -- would have been better if I could've met Lindsay Buckingham! -- and to just be around the calibre of musicians that these guys are," Quinty said.

Fleetwood, the co-founder and drummer of Fleetwood Mac, the hugely successful rock band in the 1970s, who exhibited his wine at the Aspen Food and Wine Classic and the following day in Snowmass, was scheduled to perform with his new group, the Mick Fleetwood Blues Group as part of his Uncorked Tour. That's where Quinty stepped in.

As guitar tech, Qunity had to set up the equipment for the concert along with precisely tuning, per detailed instructions, the five guitars for guitarist/vocalist Rick Vito. In addition to all the setup work, Quinty had to make sure the backup guitars were ready to go, which required him to hold the guitar strap open so Vito could easily stick his head through it while handing off the other guitar.

The concert went off without a hitch, except for a broken string on a stand-by guitar and a minor problem with an amplifier.

"The only stressful part of the night was when I had to adjust the guitar amp in the middle of a song because of the way the signal was bouncing back loudly off the drums -- I could tell that it wasn't appreciated much by Rick but I had to adjust it because it was messing with Mick's ear monitor," Quinty said. "It was fixed pretty quickly."

Mick, by the way, uses steel drum sticks because of the powerful way he plays the drums, Quinty said.

"My impression of the whole band was that they were very professional in what they were doing and that after all the years, Mick and Rick in particular, they were still having a lot of fun," Quinty said. "That's why musicians do what they do -- because they love it! They were very much professionals but they were very relaxed in their element and very casual.

"It was an awesome experience," Quinty continued. "I just happened to be at the right place at the right time."

Quinty started playing the guitar when he was about 12 when his girlfriend let him borrow hers that she never played. He took it home and practiced on it until "she got mad at me and took it back," he recalled. His dad bought him his first electric guitar when he was 13, and he's never looked back.

Since then, he's been in the guitar business one way or another, whether repairing guitars, helping out at concerts or playing his own guitar in contemporary worship bands.

Quinty said his specialty is doing guitar set-ups, where he fine tunes the guitar so that the player can play it easily.

"In my shop, I want to take the time to know the player, see how they handle their instrument so that I can do more of what will make it sing for them -- not the way I think it should be," he said.

"Different people have different ways of doing what they do on an instrument and you have to find the feel in order to do it right. You can look at specs and set it to them but there's quite a bit more to it if you want the guitar to feel friendly."

Although he is the first to admit that he's obsessive about guitars, Quinty wouldn't have it any other way.

"It takes you into hole sometimes," Quinty said -- his work can keep him secluded downstairs with his guitars, memorabilia and other musical instruments. "But it's more than a hobby, I just really like doing it."

For questions or to schedule repair work, contact Quinty at (308) 737-7918.