|
|
Joined:
March 2007
Posts: 843
Location: CA | Well, not exactly, but it kinda felt like it. I work in SF Bay area, and though I generally avoid the City like the plague, I was passing through yesterday so stopped to see what was new at Guitar Center. Aside from noting several new places people can get their bodies pierced and tattoo'ed, there wasn't much Ovation-wise. The usual Celeb suspects was about it. The acoustic room was too noisy and crowded to have much fun, and of course the main room sounded like an endless Led Zep sound check.
But get this: they had Claptons ACTUAL 'Blackie' Strat there, along with one of his 335s and SRV's ACTUAL 'Lennie' Strat. GC paid mungo bucks to get these ($950K for Blackie) and is touring them around various stores. They are all in thick lexan cases with a 'man in black' hovering nearby all the time.
It was pretty neat I have to admit. All the places those two gits have been played and all the songs that came out of them. Blackie in particular is really road worn in all the perfect ways — neck played through to bare wood, cigarette burns, etc. Lenny is also pretty cool, especially when you know the 'back story', which I later found here: http://gc.guitarcenter.com/guitars/legends-collection/legends-lenny...
Anyway, serendipity was good to me yesterday. There is a schedule of 'appearances' for these guitars on the GC website so catch them if you can. |
|
| |
|
Joined:
May 2009
Posts: 1433
Location: Right now? | Ahh, sad to think about Stevie Ray. Hung out with him at Antone's in Austin, Texas many, many moons ago ...
:( |
|
| |
|
Joined:
September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | I wonder how long before the reliced, limited editions come out. |
|
| |
|
Joined:
February 2005
Posts: 11840
Location: closely held secret | The lice died??? |
|
| |
|
Joined:
June 2007
Posts: 3084
Location: Brisbane Australia | Originally posted by The Wabbit Formerly Known As Waskel:
The lice died??? :D :D
AJ |
|
| |
|
Joined:
September 2003
Posts: 9301
Location: south east Michigan | *sigh* |
|
| |
|
Joined:
June 2003
Posts: 1792
Location: Rego Park, NY, |  |
|
| |
|
Joined:
March 2007
Posts: 843
Location: CA | Repops of both these guitars were already made and sold out, according to Fender site. According to GC site, 185 faithfully-distressed Blackies were made and sold out quickly at $20K each ($24K MSRP). According to my calculator, GC made $3.7 million on that deal, which more than paid for the original (which Fender borrowed to make the copies 'authentic'). The 'Lenny' copies go/went for $17K. Not sure if they're still available or not.
Interesting anecdote to comments about getting guitars signed by famous people — Apparently SRV was asked to play Star Spangled Banner at a Houston Astros game. (Bizarrly, he had never played it before and his wife had to hum it for him on the way to the game.) His wife was talking with a guy during the performance who turned out to be Mickey Mantle. MM didn't know SRV, but she introduced them when Stevie was done playing. She asked if he would sign an autograph, but none of them had any paper, so SRV said "Sign this!" And Mickey Mantle's signature is on the back of Lenny to this day. |
|
| |
I went down to the crossroads . . .
