“They’re now making some of the best guitars they’ve made in 50 or 60 years”: Norman’s Rare Guitars owner thinks modern guitars are almost as good as vintage ones
In the guitar world, few debates become as fiery as when people discuss new vs. vintage guitars.
Generally, vintage guitar aficionados believe factors like aging and manufacturing techniques at the time of building play a huge role in the tone and playability of their instruments.
But Norman Harris, owner of Norman’s Rare Guitars, believes that modern guitars have started to increase in quality. Speaking in the latest issue of Guitar World, Harris argues that manufacturers are now “making some of the best guitars they’ve made in 50 or 60 years”.
READ MORE: “That guitar is 73 years old and just as relevant today as it was 73 years ago”: Joe Bonamassa on why Leo Fender nailed the early Tele design
“[Companies] made some special guitars,” Harris explains. “It’s one of the things we did in America that is super iconic and outstanding. I mean… a lot of the cars they built in the late ’60s and ’70s have become trash heaps, but their guitars have stood the test of time.”
“There’s a continuous demand, and they’re very durable and pretty low maintenance if they’re kept well,” he adds.
As a result, Harris says people are leaning towards older models instead of the newer ones. That could mean companies will earn less revenue if their current output can’t compete with older guitars up for resale.
“Companies realised they were selling guitars for $2,000 and that people were paying more than $5,000 for the old ones,” Harris explains. “A light bulb went off. The companies realised they must have been doing something good and thought, ‘What can we do to kind of compete with ourselves?’”
If you ask Harris, the reason for all the recent re-issued models is because “they really nailed it the first time out!”
Elsewhere in the interview, Harris opens up about his retirement plans. Though he wont be retiring any time soon, he has already considered who could take the reins and continue running Norman’s Rare Guitars in his stead. “I would love for somebody to take it over who loves it as much as I do, keep my employees and try to run it in the same fashion that I tried to,” he says.
He believes that Joe Bonamassa – a known guitar collector, and owner of the Nerdville guitar museum – could be a perfect fit. Harris recalls a younger 12-year-old Bonamassa, calling him a “wunderkind” who was destined for greatness. “He loves guitars, can play great and demo them great,” he explains. “He lives to promote young talent like I do.”
Though, again, Harris knows that wont be possible just yet. “Joe has such a big career going right now that there’s nothing that should interrupt his career,” he notes.
The post “They’re now making some of the best guitars they’ve made in 50 or 60 years”: Norman’s Rare Guitars owner thinks modern guitars are almost as good as vintage ones appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.
Source: www.guitar-bass.net
