Editing Jonathan Richman (section)

== Artistry and instruments ==
Richman's minimalist songwriting style has been described as whimsical and childlike.<ref>{{Cite magazine|first=Ben|last=Greenman|date=November 17, 2013|title = World on a String|url = http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2013/11/25/world-on-a-string|magazine = [[The New Yorker]]|access-date = October 6, 2015}}</ref> He himself has stated, "I don't write, really. I just make up songs."<ref>{{Cite web|title = Interview With Jonathan Richman|magazine=Synthesis Weekly|url = http://synthesisweekly.com/interview-with-jonathan-richman/|date=August 23, 2015|access-date = October 6, 2015|archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20151007012937/http://synthesisweekly.com/interview-with-jonathan-richman/|archive-date = October 7, 2015|url-status = dead}}</ref>

Richman has played a variety of electric and acoustic guitars throughout his career. In promotional and concert photos from the early 1970s (such as those reproduced in the album ''Precise Modern Lovers Order''), Richman is frequently seen using a white Fender Stratocaster. He later wrote a song ("Fender Stratocaster") expressing his affection for the Stratocaster design.

In the late 1970s, working with his group The Modern Lovers, Richman often played a Fender Jazzmaster. He can be seen playing this guitar in the Dutch TV program ''TopPop'' filmed on September 16, 1978.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm4bd7gYCRI/ | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/Rm4bd7gYCRI| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=Jonathan Richman & The Modern Lovers - TopPop Special |website=Youtube.com | date=November 15, 2018|access-date=2019-05-05}}{{cbignore}}</ref> A contemporaneous stage photo used on the cover of the "Egyptian Reggae" [[single (music)|single]] shows Richman playing a sunburst Stratocaster.

Late-1970s studio recordings, such as the ''Rock and Roll with the Modern Lovers'' album, also featured Richman playing nylon-stringed acoustic guitar. On a 1979 performance on French television, and in the cover photo of ''The Best of Jonathan Richman and The Modern Lovers'', Richman plays a late-1970s Ibanez model 2453CW hollow-body electric guitar, a guitar similar in style to the Epiphone he would use extensively a decade later.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wdYjSq1-W5o | archive-url=https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211211/wdYjSq1-W5o| archive-date=2021-12-11 | url-status=live|title=Jonathan Richman 1979 live french TV |website=Youtube.com | date=October 20, 2016|access-date=2019-05-05}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

In the early- and mid-1980s, working with The Modern Lovers, Richman was frequently photographed playing a Harmony Hollywood hollow-body electric guitar. This guitar is seen on the back cover of Richman's ''It's Time For'' album. By the late 1980s, Richman was frequently performing solo concerts using a blonde 1980s Epiphone Regent hollow-body electric guitar. He can be seen holding this guitar on the back cover of the ''Having a Party with Jonathan Richman'' CD.

Richman was still using his Epiphone Regent on stage when he began performing as a duo with drummer Tommy Larkins in 1992. After a short stint playing other electric guitars on stage including a Gibson SG, Richman switched to exclusively playing nylon-stringed acoustic guitars (of the classical and flamenco styles) in concert. Richman has played a number of different nylon-stringed guitars since the mid-1990s.

After switching to nylon-stringed acoustic guitars, Richman initially used a [[plectrum|pick]] and played in a style close to that of his electric guitar playing. Eventually, he stopped using both a guitar pick and a guitar strap in concert, preferring to play only with his fingers and to move frequently between playing guitar, dancing, and playing percussion instruments.<ref>{{Cite web |first=Jim|last=Testa|url=https://www.njarts.net/pop-rock/jonathan-richman-truly-one-of-a-kind-entrances-crowd-at-white-eagle-hall/ |title=Jonathan Richman, truly one of a kind, entrances crowd at White Eagle Hall |website=njarts.net |date=October 21, 2018 |language=en-US |access-date=May 5, 2019}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.thepitchkc.com/arts-entertainment/music/article/20584919/concert-review-jonathan-richman |title=Concert Review: Jonathan Richman |website=thepitchkc.com |date=June 30, 2009 |language=en-US |access-date=May 5, 2019}}</ref>

Richman has also been photographed playing a Fender Telecaster and other electric and acoustic guitars, and he does not consider any specific instrument to be essential to his sound. In a 2006 interview with musician [[Chuck Prophet]], Richman said "It's not the guitar, it's the player. In fact, my most recent Flamenco guitar isn't even a real Flamenco guitar. It's not made out of the right woods. Made out of walnut. It's twangy. I bought it and I like it."<ref>{{Cite web |first=Chuck|last=Prophet|authorlink=Chuck Prophet|url=http://www.chuckprophet.com/blog/talking_fender_trash_with_jonathan_richman |title=Talking Fender Trash with Jonathan Richman |website=chuckprophet.com |language=en-US |date=May 30, 2006|access-date=May 5, 2019}}</ref>

During the early- and mid-1980s, Richman frequently played tenor saxophone during his concerts with The Modern Lovers. He can be heard playing the instrument on "California Desert Party", a song on his ''[[Modern Lovers 88]]'' album. The album also shows him holding the instrument in the cover photograph.