5 Feb 2015

February 2015 – CRAVE Guitars Web Site Launch

by craveguitars | posted in: Introduction | 0

Hip-Hip-Hooray! After nearly 8 long years of gestation, the CRAVE Guitars web site is finally up and running.

It has been a very difficult journey but that’s not what is important right now. It is all about celebrating the moment and contemplating the future. Maybe, just maybe, this is the start of something. I have no great ambition (I’ll never be a millionaire, although I admit that I wouldn’t mind if I was!) and I have no idea what would represent success for CRAVE Guitars. Just being here is a positive step in the right direction. The new site is modest and the focus is where it should be, on showcasing Cool & Rare American Vintage Electric Guitars from Fender and Gibson. I haven’t seen many other sites like it but I’m sure they exist.

Why do it? I am doing it partly because I want to share the joy of Cool and Rare Vintage Electric Guitars and partly because it is something that I need to do for myself. I hope someone out there appreciates what CRAVE Guitars is trying to do. Who’s it for? It is for anyone else who understands or is curious about what the addiction to the beauty of vintage instruments is all about. Ever the optimist, I hope the site will grow in both scope and content and the next stage of development is already under way.

I value cool ideas about what could make it a great web site, so contact me if there is something relevant that you’d like to see added and I’ll consider it. I aim to post debate‑provoking narrative on the site monthly. Why not also check out the CRAVE Guitars pages on social media. On Twitter and Facebook, I try to post something lighter in tone that may be of interest to aficionados, daily if I can. Just connect via the social media links at the bottom of every page. Thanks for looking in. Until next time, love great players, love great music. Thanks for reading.

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31 Jan 2015

January 2015 – Old Versus New Guitars

by craveguitars | posted in: Opinion | 0

The question – are vintage guitars better than new ones? Simply… nope. They are just different. There is no doubt that many modern guitars are better designed, constructed, more reliable and consistent. New instruments are generally in great condition and far less risky to use on the road. You can certainly get aged new guitars that have all the look and feel of a well-used old axe, so that removes much of the visual question. New ones are (often much) cheaper to buy, eminently practical and often manufactured to exacting and very high standards. So, it’s not necessarily an issue of material quality. They are all tools for playing music, however much they cost.

Why then, the passionate attraction to and fascination with vintage instruments? Do they really sound that different? Some say it’s the way that the wood ages; others say it’s the way pickups are put together. Boutique pickups emulate the old ones pretty well these days. Looks? Well, the basic designs haven’t changed in 60 years! Maybe it’s the patina that can only come about through natural age and use. How they feel in use is not easily measurable in a purely physical way, so playability is subjective and value-laden. Additionally, at what point does a guitar become vintage? Some (usually with a vested interest) say the moniker applies only to pre-1965-ish instruments; others set the bar at 25 years old (i.e. before 1990, well into the modern era).

Who likes vintage guitars? Well, there are musicians, enthusiasts, dealers, collectors, historians, investors, speculators, to name a few. Some are worthy, some not. Which label applies to you (hint: they aren’t mutually exclusive)? Why is the value of an early Stratocaster multiple times that of a Jaguar of the same age? Is it simply economics allied with a collective (deluded) perception of value? It isn’t necessarily rarity or historical significance, brand identity, where they were made or what they were made of. Whatever the hell it is, it is ultimately down to personal choice and a whole bunch of irrational desire for something that is uniquely and fascinatingly indefinable. Just remember, all vintage guitars were shiny and new once! Discuss…

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30 Nov 2014

November 2014 – Welcome to CRAVE Guitars

by craveguitars | posted in: Introduction | 0

Hello and welcome everyone. Even though CRAVE Guitars has been around since 2007, this is my first ever Internet post, so it may be timely to say where I’m coming from. Factoid – vintage guitars are great. Like every person on the planet, I know what I like and what I don’t – that works for vintage guitars too! Mythology can tend to prevail, with some ‘holy grails’, ‘sacred cows’ and ‘pontifications’ dictating what people buy and the prices people pay. It isn’t just the economics of supply and demand (although it doesn’t help), it is an inherent class system that drives vintage guitar values.

Over time, I hope to question and challenge the status quo (no, not the band!) and, hopefully provoke some thought and suggest an alternative perspective to the usual assumptions. I guarantee you will disagree and that’s fine; the good thing about opinion is that it is just that, opinion. I could have gone for ‘blog’, ‘news’ or ‘what’s on’ but everyone else does that, so welcome and I hope you enjoy my ‘observations, opinions, musings and happenings’ as our collective unknown future unravels.

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