Well, another successful Dallas International Guitar Festival has come to a close.  What a blast it was!  Over the course of the three days of the festival, I saw great guitarist such as Rick Derringer, Bruce Kulick, Andy Timmons and Ted Nugent.

Wondering the hall, I saw some very “unique” guitars.  There’s my favorite that I see every  year and that the guitar made out of a toilet seat.  I always feel that that particular guitar symbolizes my six-string abilities.

Then, there was the clear guitars, the guitars shaped like the state of Texas and of the continental U.S., (Does that last one mean that it’s intended for country music?  I’m just askin’) and many other weird and wonderful creations.

After the amusement of the novelty guitars, I always spend the most time looking the “serious” guitars.  One of my more lingering stops is at the Warrior Guitars booth.  These aren’t just guitars.  They are, quite literally, works of art.  Strike that. These are masterpieces!  If I was a rich man, I’d own one of everything Warrior crafts because they are truly very appealing to the eye.

I also like stopping by the various vintage guitar dealers and, of course the two traveling displays that Gibson Guitar brings every year and the PRS booth that is staffed by none other than founder and CEO, Paul Reed Smith.

I also run into old friends that, for one reason or another, I only see at the show.  One man, in particular, I see every Saturday morning of the show.  We use to work together in the telecom industry and now only see each other at the guitar show.  How weird is that?

One of my three closest friends, Jerry, also made it down to the show from Arkansas, bringing his son along for the experience.  How refreshing it was to meet up with a good friend! What is it about music – any music – that brings people together, creating soundtracks to all sorts of relationships?  Isn’t it amazing?

We spent a lot of time roaming the hall, listening to some of the acts, watching up on what’s been happening in our lives.  We also visited a lot of the vendor booths together, oo-ing and ah-ing at all of the incredible stringed specimens.

At a stop at a multi-brand dealer’s booth, I was admiring the incredible selection of guitars.  I found myself in the Gretsch section of the massive display and a guitar caught my eye.  It was a Chet Atkins Signature Edition by Gretsch.  Why was it captivating my attention, I wondered? 

Then it hit me:  This was a newer version of the guitar that I wrote about last week (This Old Guitar #2) that my childhood friend, Jim Hughes “borrowed” from his brother.  I had forgotten that it was a Chet!

I just stood there  . . . with a smile on my face.