-
I think this is a real shame
Just a moment...
I don't even know how much money that is? but it looks like a lot. Seller says that the guitar comes with provenance but I can only see pics of T bone with a Gibson es 5 and no paperwork.
Now im no expert on that era of Gibson arch tops so it could be legit but it's sad to think that the guitar he played is being sold at such a high price. I mean if the money goes to his estate then ok .
Maybe it's the same as Kirk Hammet buying Peter Greens Les Paul. Maybe Clapton will buy it but I doubt anyone will ever hear it again. ( unless Clapton buys it and does a special show at the Albert hall showcasing T bones es5 for £600 a ticket)
Im getting cynical I know so chime in with your thoughts please
I had a 90s custom shop blond es5 with p90s and loved it but the middle pickup got in the way of my pick and I let it go. It was a beauty though. Anyone know how T bone would have got to be able to play it so loud without feedback issues?
-
02-20-2026 05:01 PM
-
It's his guitar, the grain line near the control knobs and a few other marks and the figure of the woods bear that out.
I think that guitar was stolen at one point and he started using a Barney Kessel.
As for the price, whatever, nothing new under the celebrity owned item world.
-
Seller can ask any price they want. Very unlikely they will get that two million dollar price. I'd say somewhere between 250-750k is a more realistic expectation. T-Bone is arguably the biggest name in blues for those in the know. Basically he's the guy who developed all the cliche licks. But most people won't recognize that since he basically goes back nearly a hundred years now.
He is more closely associated with a single instrument than almost all other blues guys but he's still blues, which has less market share than rock music. The instrument itself is less useful, and holds less actual value, than a 59 burst. Seller has to find the right buyer to get anywhere near what he's asking for it and I don't see that happening. It's along the same lines as asking 2 million for Tampa Red's gold plated tricone. Not enough buyers with 2 million are gonna be in the know to make it worth the money to them.
-
With concentrated efforts of palm muting and stage location the feedback thing isn’t an issue.
Originally Posted by Heybopper
But most guitarists just complain and buy a new pedal instead of adjusting any of their horrid technique.
-
Reverb is a very funny website.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-
I'd be skeptical too, is there evidence of bullet holes? (in the right places, wherever that may be) - "The incredible condition of the guitar, following its extensive usage over a period of 77 years and notable events - such as surviving a gunshot incident at the Charlotte Armory Auditorium, add unique provenance beyond compare." Originally Posted by Heybopper
Didn't see any details on that, but the seller's name matches this article:
T-Bone Walker’s 1949 Gibson spearheads the reopening of iconic Denmark Street guitar store Regent Sounds
-
It is to be sold at auction according to the small print
1.5m sterling seems like quite a lot.
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
-
Collectors are funny creatures. If Keith Richards and Eric Clapton both decide they want it, who knows?
£1.5 million is just the "invited" opening bid. The seller is obviously expecting a lot more. Well, they may know their target market better than me.
-
Maybe Seagal will buy it, he owns some famous blues player owned guitars.
I'm sure he's aware of the sale, who knows.
-
Yes, but that's recorded with T-Bone's ES-250 (even though the picture on the clip is T-Bone's Barney Kessel model guitar). He first used the ES-5N on his Imperial recordings, 1950-1954. Originally Posted by Sam Sherry
For a taste, here's a superb version of Call It Stormy Monday from his mid '50s recording, T-Bone Blues:
-
I'm not sure how they can legally sell a guitar that was stolen from him. Wouldn't his heirs/estate be able to make a claim for rightful ownership? I mean, it's not like they're trying to hide the fact that it was his.
-
Yes, does his daughter know about this? Originally Posted by andrew
"In 1968, on tour in France, T-Bone lost his treasured ES-5N. The circumstances are wrapped in mystery – some reports hinted at rumors of a theft, perhaps, or the settling of gambling debts, or the meddling of hangers-on. I asked T-Bone’s daughter, Bernita Ruth Walker, if she recalled him talking about the loss of that precious guitar. “All I can tell you is what my father said to me: ‘Someone stole my guitar off the stage.’ Those were his exact words,” Bernita said. “He was very upset – especially the fact that he couldn’t find another guitar just like it.”
From: T-Bone Walker and the guitar that birthed electric blues | Guitar World
-
I had to smile that the Reverb ad says 'two people have this in their basket'.........
-
Beautiful guitar
-
Interesting, I picked one area to match up and it doesn’t, but that might be due to the angle of camera flash (which would have been used in all pics) not reflecting with the grain in the same way. Originally Posted by wintermoon
Alternatively (and unlikely) Gibson could have used consecutive leafs for two tops on the production of two consecutive ES5’s; both would have similar grain patterns but be slightly different to each other.
I need to look on a bigger screen.
-
Keith lives about 30 mins from me. Originally Posted by Cunamara
Or I live 30 mins from Keith.
-
Since nobody actually knows, no police report, no official documentation of any kind that it was stolen, it simply is what it is, and is as good as any other unknown history to run with. Like mentioned, it is certainly the guitar. From what I heard, T-Bones family is connected to the auction and are beneficiaries of the process in some way. That's a good thing. Originally Posted by andrew
-
Saw someone made an offer. I think the lowest amount you can offer on the reverb ad is $1,000,000. Man that’s crazy coin. There’s a lot of starving children in the world.
-
A net worth of a million bucks nowadays is just basically a slightly upper-middle class person who owns a decent home in a nice neighborhood. To be a millionaire in the 80's was a big thing. To be a millionaire today is just someone getting by without too much struggle...yet. LOL. Originally Posted by Jim Soloway
-
-
The funny thing is that there is this reverse psychology that happens. The more money and wealth people accumulate, the more they seem to feel themselves at risk of losing everything. Money does not buy security. Originally Posted by DawgBone
-
Pretty sure you got the wrong party up there. The current guys are just spending and taxing like there is no tomorrow. Originally Posted by mvp019aa
The way I would rather be talking about T Bone Walker instead of this dumb shit....
-
Pretty sure (positive) they both serve the same donor class. It wasn't a partisan thing - this is just the reality of our monetary system; playing off the comment about a millionaire not being what it used to be. That never changes.
Hating them all is a viable position...
-
Yes, since I was old enough to start paying attention to politics, I've only felt disappointment and frustration.
-
Working harder/smarter is a much better way to go than hating those who have done better in life than you have. Originally Posted by mvp019aa
Inflation is a fact of life. Money is for spending or investing. Sitting on a pile of cash is a sure way to lose over time. A million bucks today is pretty much the same as a hundred thousand bucks in 1978. But if you invested wisely in 1978, your hundred thousand bucks would have become way more than a million bucks.
They say money won't buy happiness, but hatred is not a path to happiness either.
Reply With Quote
A very special NGD: a custom build that brought my ideas to life.
Today, 06:11 PM in Guitar, Amps & Gizmos