April 29, 2004
Report from the 27th Annual Dallas Guitar Show
by MATT TAPP
The 27th Annual Dallas Guitar Show and Music Fest took place April 17-18 at its new location, the cavernous Market Hall complex. This year’s show, bolstered by news media coverage and a musical guest lineup that seemed more in line with a national outdoor festival than a mere guitar show, broke all records for attendance and numbers of exhibitors. “We’ve waited nineteen years for this facility,” said Mark Pollock the event’s co-promoter. With over 216,000 square feet of exhibition floor and a huge adjacent room providing ample space and isolation for the music stage and seating, Market Hall proved to be a wonderful setting for the 27th Dallas guitar event.
On stage in the 1,500-seat adjacent concert hall, Eric Johnson, Joe Satriani, Johnny A, Ronnie Montrose, Rick Derringer, Andy Timmons, Phil Keaggy and Rhett Butler were some of the artists that performed entire shows supported by their own bands. The stage, lighting and sound system were full-bore. Most shows filled to beyond capacity.
Other performance highlights were the guest guitarists who performed with the Stratoblasters and during the Stratoblaster-hosted jam. The special guests included: Greg Martin (Kentucky Headhunters), extraordinary blues-man Michael Burks, Andy Timmons, Rick Vito (Bob Seager/ Fleetwood Mac), Johnny A, Ronnie Montrose and many others.
Also notable was Rhett Butler playing two guitars at once. This is no joke folks! The music was complex (both hands were very busy) and he nailed every bit of it.
This was the first year in a long time that weather wasn’t a major factor in the enjoyment potential of the musical performances. Saying Texas weather is unpredictable is like saying that Lake Michigan is a pretty good-sized pond. The ability to have the Main Stage shows indoors, and out of the elements, was a significant improvement.
There was also a smaller indoor stage in the Main Exhibition Hall and an unusual outdoor stage. The outdoor stage was provided by the Ernie Ball self-contained stage on wheels. It’s a truck that folds open to reveal a nice little stage built on the back. Or is it a nice little stage with a truck built on the front? I’m not sure, but it sounded good and national recording artists such as The Vanished and The Feds performed sets along with many other bands.
As if all of this wasn’t enough, the Icons of 20th Century Music Auction was held on Saturday the 17th in yet another adjoining pavilion. Instruments previously owned by George Harrison, Roger McGuinn, Eric Johnson, The Allman Brothers, James Jamerson, Scotty Moore, Gram Parsons and Kurt Cobain were successfully auctioned for significant sums. Cobain’s Mosrite Gospel guitar sold for $100,000, with several others near or above that amount. The auction was officially a memorabilia event and many highly collectable music-related items were offered and sold.
Despite the fact that year after year the number of available vintage Stratocasters becomes a little smaller, it is still a source of amazement at how many truly fine vintage instruments are pulled from the woodwork (no pun intended) and haphazardly adorned with hand-scribbled, little signs - which while identifying the better wishes of the seller, seem to also say: If you really must, read me - you certainly can’t afford the neck to which I am attached. I actually saw one that read: It’s $15,000. Now Go Away! This, of course, was intended to be humorous and not mean spirited. (What is it they say about good intentions?) Now don’t get me wrong, practically every dealer uses these tactics. But, while this may be an accepted practice without inherent shame, there can be no denying that a distinct element of irony exists when the tacky little signs are plastered on such vintage musical works of art.
Gary Dick of Gary’s Classic Guitars, Cincinnati, Ohio, is an established dealer and collector who brought a load of fine instruments to be viewed and purchased. Gary is a “familiar face” of the guitar-show scene, having attended every single Dallas event since 1980. In his years as a collector and dealer he has owned “hundreds of pre CBS Stratocasters”. He can be seen on his website in a sixties era photograph sporting a 1964 Strat he bought new - along with a new, black-face Super Reverb (a whopping $539 was paid for both!).“This year's show was a tremendous improvement - the facility, the accommodations, just a feel-good situation,” Gary stated.
Practically every imaginable guitar-related product was represented in one form or fashion or another. Guitar-neck and -body kits, strings, cables, picks, cases, guitar and music apparel, memorabilia, new and vintage guitar parts, new and vintage amp parts, guitar effects, reading material of every kind, and even a guitar college and recording college were all aptly displayed in booths dedicated to their specific niche.
R.S. Guitar Works of Winchester, Kentucky, providers of quality guitar-restoration services, consulted with the public from their booth. Tom Murphy, master restoration specialist associated with “Gibson Guitars”, and Jay Black, one of the original members of the “Fender Custom Shop” team, were also on the scene.
The expanse of the exhibition-hall floor found mega-chain store booths mixed unceremoniously with the smallest of shops. Hill Country Guitars, located in Wimberley, Texas, is a relatively small, but very high quality shop. Proprietor Kevin Davis does a good business with esoteric acoustics and niche electrics. He is the exclusive dealer for Tony Nobles acoustics - heirloom quality, handcrafted instruments.
There were some truly unusual Stratocasters displayed, many collectible by virtue of their distinguishing characteristics rather than age. Gleaming samples of the “Tree of Life” and “La Taranta” Stratocasters were found in the Guitar Center booth. These limited run products, straight from the Fender Custom Shop, were very new and are very collectible, I would think.
It may have been my cognitive overload - or maybe not - but it certainly seemed like there was a distinct shortage of early sixties Stratocasters. Considering the continuous escalation of their value, it’s hard to go very wrong with such a purchase (you might have to pay too much for a quality piece - but just wait a couple of years). It may be that they were simply snatched up early. They were present, but in lesser numbers.
The prize for the largest booth undoubtedly goes to Dave’s Guitars of La Crosse, Wisconsin. Dave’s booth (if you could call it that) covered what seemed like an acre of exhibition turf. It was an enormous square. Guitars were arranged in rows that were accessible via wide walkways. It was spacious and classy. "There was great traffic and attendance. We had record breaking sales," Dave reported. His booth actually contained about 300 guitars (at any given moment). Especially cool was his “Ten Vintage Teles in a Row Table”. Starting with the “NoCaster” - almost every year was represented all the way through to 1962.
There was an absolute multitude of vintage Gibson guitars. ES 335s, Les Pauls and many, many fine large-body Jazz-type guitars were evenly distributed throughout the hall. Killer Vintage of St Louis, Missouri, offered a vintage Gibson 335-style, six-string baritone guitar. Very rare.
Renowned luthier, Michael Stevens was well represented in Jimmy Wallace's booth with three of his wonderful LJ-series guitars. Jimmy is a co-promoter of the Dallas show, founding member of the Stratoblasters, and consistently displays a respectable collection of fine instruments.
In an uncharacteristically calm moment after the event, I was able to get the overall impressions of the promoters first hand; "We are very pleased. It was the biggest show in twenty-seven years. We’ve received steady positive response from the public and dealers alike," said Jimmy Wallace. Mark Pollock added, “We pushed this thing to the limit, and it just worked.”
It was formally announced during the event that the “Dallas Guitar Show” will provide an encore performance in conjunction with Eric Clapton’s “The Crossroads Guitar Festival”. The show will be called “The Vintage Showcase” and will be held June 4, 5, and 6 at the Fair Park in Dallas. It will be a one-time event and will consist of exhibitor booths and other functions typical of the annual show. Visit the Vintage Showcase website for further information.
All in all, I must say that this was not just the best Dallas show in years - it was the best ever. The Market Hall facilities gave the event the logistical boost that it needed to grow into the vision that the promoters have been nurturing for so long. It was a master collection of vintage instruments, guitar products and musical history - standing toe-to-toe with world-class performances from some of the best and most influential guitar players on the planet. Attended by the professional elite as well as moms, pops and kids from all over, it was a great event for all.
About Matt Tapp and SabreCable
Matt Tapp is the owner of SabreCable, a manufacturer of low-noise, high-fidelity instrument cables based in Texas. He is a guitar player, a vintage-instrument consultant, and has extensive experience in guitar repair. He has designed and built recording studios and has an in-depth background in professional audio.
SabreCable hand assembles high-quality instrument cables using low noise, high-fidelity cable stock and precision-machined connectors. Offered with Gold or Nickel contacts, there are currently 37 models of cables in the line, including Standard Guitar Cables, Stereo Cables, Patch Cables and Speaker Cables. SabreCable products are covered by a Lifetime No-Fault Warranty.
Contact Information
Contact: Matt Tapp
Company: SabreCable
Telephone: +1 (972) 226-7706
Address: 4220 Crestover Drive, Mesquite, TX 75150
Website: www.sabrecable.com
Email: sabrecable@aol.com
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