Paul Brett – Collecting Vintage Acoustic Guitars

The guitar is probably the worlds best known musical instrument. Or maybe the simple drum is really the most well known musical instrument. There can’t be many people who have never seen a guitar and don’t know what a guitar is.

One thing that makes guitars so appealing is their accessibility. Unlike a Piano, or a drum kit, a guitar is portable and almost anyone can pick one up. But learning to play a recognisable tune on guitar can be a lot of hard work.

I’ve met people who, within a few months of picking up a guitar, were good enough to form a band and start gigging. But there are plenty of guitarists like myself, who’ve been playing for many years but still learning.

But these are the reasons why people get so enthusiastic about guitars. There is always something new to learn, new instruments to try and new gizmos to play with. Playing guitar is an engrossing and immersive pass time that can take over your life.

In recent years I’ve become something of a guitar collector. I am a great lover of vintage resonator guitars. These are a form of acoustic guitar that uses a resonator cone made of spun allumnium to give the guitar extra volume. The resonator mechanical amplifier comes from the early 20th century, before electronic amplifiers were in common use. The resonator guitar sound is synonymous with the blues and this is the style of music that I love.

If you’re a guitar player or if you are lucky enough to know any guitarists you will already understand how obsessive they can become. Guitar enthusiasts will often find that playing guitar, collecting guitars, reading guitar magazines and going to guitarist gigs can take over their lives. And if you are unfortunate enough to have a guitar playing wife, husband, boyfriend or girlfriend you may find yourself feeling that you are less important than their obsession with guitars.