Guitar Aficionado Magazine - A cork-sniffer's wet dream!

 

So I was killing a few minutes at the magazine rack at the neighborhood Safeway today when I came across the latest issue of Guitar Aficionado.  Funny that I've never noticed this magazine before, and also funny that I found it at Safeway.  I imagine that the regular readers probably shop at the tonier Metropolitan Market across the street.

 

 

Tucked in between ads for resorts, boutique shop guitars and amps, watches (did you know that you can buy a Girard-Perregaux Vintage 1945 XXL watch for only $40,800?  It's true!), Aston Martin sports cars, and really, really fine booze from teensy weensy small-batch distilleries, there are some articles about famous (and/or wealthy people) that play, er...I mean own stringed instruments.  And lots of guitar porn.

 

My favorite article is about the super successful plastic surgeon from Pittsburgh that owns over 60 guitars, most of them "signature" reissue models of guitars that were played by famous rock stars.  He keeps them in a wood-paneled, humidity-controlled room in his basement display area.

 

Then there's the article about the writer (and guitar collector!) that attends a five-day Rock 'N' Roll Fantasy Camp in Las Vegas.  Special guests at the camp included Roger Daltry (the Who), Dave Navarro (Jane's Addiction), Howard Leese (Heart), and Richie Furay (Buffalo Springfield and Poco), plus some Vegas celebrity impersonators.  So this is the sort of thing that rock stars do in their spare time.  Who knew?!

 

Now, I'll bet you didn't know this - Fender, Gibson, and Martin have all collaborated to create the Eric Clapton Crossroads Guitar Collection.  These will be replicas of five guitars that Clapton auctioned off a while ago to benefit the Crossroads Centre addiction recovery facility.  Here's the good news; the copies of Clapton's '56 Fender "Brownie" Stratocaster and '57 "Lucy" Les Paul can be had for only $14,999 each!  But wait, that's not all - the Martin 000-45EC acoustic copy in Brazilian Rosewood is only...wait for it...$49,999!

 

I don't smoke, but I sure felt like having a cigarette after reading Guitar Aficionado.  I think I'll take a nap now...

 

You can check out the Boneyard Preachers (featuring people that actually play their instruments) here.  See you at the nightclub!