When Eric Clapton recorded the now-re-revered John Mayall "Beano" album (which incidentally didn't sell doodles) he was playing a 1960 Les Paul, a 5-year-old guitar. When he actually got famous in Cream, he was playing a 1961 or 1963 "SG" Les Paul, and a 1964 ES-335, guitars that were 4 to 7 years old. Jimi Hendrix played only new Strats, 1967, '68 or '69, by which time he had so many stashed around he couldn't keep them straight. Mike Bloomfield, 1959 Les Paul, 1965 to 1968. Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac Blues Band, 1968-'69, 1959 (modified) Les Paul. Santana played a new SG at Woodstock, and recorded his first three definitive albums with a 1968 Les Paul, the 1st year re-issue. Has he ever gotten, or sounded better since?
Jerry Garcia, Live/Dead - '68 SG. He actually was one of the earliest users of an old guitar, a 1957 Stratocaster given him by Graham Nash, but - the future founders of Alembic practiced some wide-open surgery on that piece. Likewise, when Jimmy Page began the real "Les Paul" story, the 1959 he started with was already rewired, neck shaved - and he did the same things to it's backup! Duane Allman was really one of the few great ones who played them stock, except - he quietly kept the pickups from his goldtop, which he sold for $200 with the pickups changed out from his "new" 11-year-old tobacco Les Paul. Beck recorded "Blow by Blow" with a 1955 Les Paul - 17 years old, a record! - except it had also been totally stripped and refinished, humbuckers (of some sort) to replace the P-90's etc. And he soon tossed it over in favor on the new "TelePaul" that Seymour Duncan used to weasel his Yardbird Tele out of him, which had been 11 years old when he was with them. And he then passed that over in favor of the 1964 Stratocaster given him by John McLaughlin, used to record "Wired" - when it was 12 years old.
Honestly - I don't know of a single solo or "required" song in the bar-band pantheon intentionally recorded with a guitar over 20 years old because the guitar was so great
then. Clapton played "Blackie" for 20 years, but it was itself made out of 3 different guitars, as was Stevie Ray Vaughan's Wife. And they were both undoubtedly so buzzed - for such a large part of their "best" work - it'd be hard to fathom an instrument's "help".
(I've often thought that most people's "problem" with cocaine was largely that it can assist you in staying blitzed on liquor for DAYS without dropping.) Page's Les Pauls were 18 years old on the 1977 tour, which was aborted because he was so drunk he was playing solos from one song stuck into another and "improvised" in keys which have never since been rediscovered. Fortunately the heroin straightened him out enough to endure the 1980 tour.
As vintage is technically means to be 25 years to 100 years old, at which point "antiques" take over, the people who's livelihood (and dope supplies :laughing3
depended on their ability to sound good, have only rarely played vintage instruments. And, not intentionally, it was just all they had
left. :laughing3: :laughing3: :laughing3:
OH PLEASE....
