My Lineage....

Ok... (how I start off all these posts)... here is my pedigreed guitar lineage...got a '51 Les Paul Gold Top (from Vintage Center, in Hollywood)... traded that for a '58 Stratocaster, traded that for a '59 Esquire in like-new shape, traded that for a '58 Blonde Stratocaster, traded that for a metal-top Zemaitis (now owned by non other than Mark Knopfler... now I want it back!). Traded the Mark Knopfler owned-guitar for another Zemaitis, and so the trading stops.... for now. (To mention here that this all took place over a very long period of time, let's you know I am not a bored moron... also, like most musicians, I saved and saved to do all this, at a time when vintage guitars were a fraction of their prices today). What have I learned? Any regrets...well, YES...I want the '58 Strat Back... (the guy at Guitar Center Vintage room said Eric Clapton's tech said it sounded better than the one Eric has). What 4 guitars do I want in heaven? I am a player... so this is not going to be based on price at all...I want the Linhof Special, my Masterbuilt Esquire, my Monroe 'T' Style, and the John Cruz '56 Copy. Almost ALL these guitars come in under 3K apiece... and the average price of them all added up and divided by four is $4750 (the Esquire brings the average up)... what does this mean? To me it means that $4250 will get you whatever you want, if you put time into a little looking... it will get you a great sounding, professional instrument that you can take to your grave. The '58 Strat would be unreliable to play on stage, with all the electrical interference and old wiring. The Zemaitis is wonderful to look at, and with 3 humbuckers, it kicks a*s. It also is hand made, and Ronnie Wood and Rich Robinson have one..so can't be anything but an amazing player... but until I raise the super-low action, and string it with .12's, I have no idea whether it would be moved into the little group I chose. As we all know, without a set up, the way you want it, it can be hard to judge how a guitar plays (admit it). I feel one guitar, costing UNDER $4750, should get most people a great player ($189.95 was the cost of a Tele in 1951, plus $39.95 for a case.. total..$229.90... that's $1725 in today's money, just for reference here)... How about all those players in 1960's England, who went on to fame and fortune (Hank Marvin of the Shadows bought what is thought to be the first Stratocaster in England around that time, I am sure it cost him a 'mint'). I am pretty sure that the price those guys paid... in today's dollars... was about the same as what it takes today... things don't change. You need quality to sound great... but you don't need to buy something that's in the Robb Report either.