Quote:
Originally Posted by Misty44
The bluesmen of old played out their feelings on all kinds of guitars, and usually the only common factor was "cheap," a condition of their disposable income.
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Not so sure about the impoverished, itinerant musician thing.
According to Son House, they could make at least $40 a session - a guy like Charley Patton could get $40 a side. This would buy you a pretty good guitar in the 1920s or 1930s. H.C. Spier who ran a music store and recording studio in Jackson MS in the 1920s and 1930s recalled Memphis Minnie and Kansas Joe blowing into town after a recording session in a new convertible car and carrying the first National Tricone anybody in MS had ever seen. Spruce top, birch body Stellas were popular because while they were cheap, they were very well built and would hold up to life on the road, loud, and they sounded good. There is a reason those big box Stella 12 strings like Blind Willie McTell and Barbecue Bob played are fetching $20K these days.