28th Annual Dallas Guitar Show and MusicFest

by Scott Baxendale

The 28th Annual Dallas Guitar Show and MusicFest were held at the Dallas Market Hall in Dallas, Texas, over the weekend of April 9, 2005.

Back then...

Back in the late 1980s, I owned Mossman Guitars (1985 -- 1990) and my company would lease booth space and exhibit at the show. At that time, the show was dominated by vintage instrument dealers and collectors and we were one of the first guitar makers to display new instruments.

You could see dozens of high quality, original Stratocasters, Telecasters, Les Pauls, Gibson L-5s, pre-war Martins and Gibson acoustics. A good 1964 Stratocaster would set you back about $2,500 and you generally had several to choose from.

And now...

The recent show was much different. With 500 booths overall, there are still a good number of vintage dealers showing their wares, but most of what they were selling as "vintage" was just considered "used" in 1990. And the prices - if you could find a decent original '54 Strat at the 28th version of the Dallas Guitar Show and MusicFest, the price tag would be pushing $30,000.

This dramatic escalation in prices over the past fifteen years has created a distinct trend in the vintage scene.

After-market parts

The presence and focus of parts dealers is a definite trend in the vintage guitar scene. I saw several tables at this year's show with nothing but old parts -- tuning machines, pots, tailpieces, "bumble bee" capacitors, Fender neck plates and other parts to help bring a vintage piece back to its original look. The demand for these parts is so high that the dealers now rely on destroying perfectly good guitars for the sole purpose of selling off parts for greater profit than what they would get for the complete guitar. This usually happens when a particular vintage model hasn't skyrocketed in price as much as another model that may have used the same parts.

It wasn't unusual to see old rusty and worn Kluson tuners go for $750. How about $2,000 for an ratty old brown Fender guitar case?

New instruments

Another big difference in this show was the diversity and number of manufacturers of guitars and related products compared to when I first showed up more than a decade ago with my selection of Mossman guitars.

Gibson had its act together when it pulled up with two trailers that opened up into a couple of self-contained showrooms. One display presented Gibson electrics and the other had a nice selection of acoustics and both seemed to get a lot of traffic.

Several smaller manufacturers showed up, like Warrior and Zemaitis, that reflect the new trend of small shops that are building their guitars with CNC machinery.

Other gear

The show offered up a vast array of new equipment, guitars, effects boxes and a new section that focused on drums. One of the coolest things I checked out was a two-wheel dolly that converts into an amp stand that included a box underneath that can hold a group of pedals, cords, and other gear. Looked like a "must have" for a club gigs.

Great entertainment

Based on my long view of the Dallas Guitar Show, it is evident that it has evolved over the years from its original focus as a vintage guitar event into a trade show of vintage, collectible, and new instruments.

Probably the coolest thing at the Dallas Guitar Show was the MusicFest that had four stages with live performances running full tilt for the two days. Both local groups and nationally known acts showed up for the weekend event.

One of the highlights was the All Star Jam featuring the great James Burton, his son Jeff, Lee Perkins and Johnny A. Sitting on the grass watching these guys roll out music in an impromptu jam session was, by itself, well worth the price of admission.

Link

Colfax Guitar Shop