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The Emergence of the “Relic” Guitar
The Polarizing Practice of Making a Two-Year-Old Guitar Look 70
In the last 35 years or so, “relic-ing” (using relic as a verb) a guitar has become a commonplace and lucrative practice. Skyrocketing prices on collectible and rare instruments from the ’50s and ’60s and a growing base of (mostly) Boomers coming into their peak income earning years has made for a perfect storm of collector-guitar frenzy as tech bros and other well-heeled types snap up items such as $75K Gibson Les Paul Goldtops and $40K 1952 Telecasters as soon as they hit the market.
The overriding concept that drives the collectors’ guitar market is mojo. Guitars are one of the few things (baseball gloves might be another) that get better, and thus more valuable, with use. Well-made guitars using quality wood develop their tone over time… the wood changes molecularly as it vibrates to create the sound. Similarly, fingers moving over the fretboard tend to gradually smooth it in such a way that it feels familiar to someone playing it for the first time.
Les Pauls, Telecasters, Strats, Rickenbackers and other iconic guitars all start with tons of mojo. Examples that are mechanically sound but have been played a LOT will usually have mojo to burn, and will command the highest prices. Unfortunately from a musician’s perspective…
