Men who played guitar seriously, but no longer do: Did you get rid of your guitars?

14 comments

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2. Totally.. so uh.. whattya got? Where are you? Where you going?

3. I was in a semi-big band when I was younger, this was 15 years or more ago. I never played after we broke up but I keep the guitar by my bed. It’s totally out of tune and missing a string, but I’m always going to keep the guitar. Reminds me of those times.

4. I kept my favorite acoustic, an Alvarez Yairi from 1981. Sold the rest. But I kept the banjo for some reason even though I have zero interest in learning that. Why do I have this banjo?

5. I don’t know how “serious” I was, but played in some bands in college and for a while after I graduated.

   I got rid of most but kept two acoustics. A 1950’s arch top and a solid top dreadnought. They sat in their cases for years (maybe took them out two or three times in 10 years) while my kids were growing up.

   Now in my late 40’s, I took them out a year or so ago and now play fairly regularly again. Really glad I have them.

6. I will have my collection until I die. I have some good shit

7. Keep one. If there are any with a sentimental aspect, keep that one.

   In another 6-7 years you may feel the tug again and it would be verrrrry hard to convince yourself to buy a guitar. That makes ever playing again become a “thing”. Keeping one takes minimal effort, storage, etc and keeps you free to decide.

8. I played seriously for about 7 years throughout high school and college. I started traveling and lugging the guitar around became a bit of a burden so I left it at home. When I settled down, I had it shipped out to me, but I never played it, so I sold it. A couple of years later I bought a new one and I still have that one. I figure it’s just nice to have around if I ever want to revisit some old vibes.

9. I played guitar or bass in metal and rock bands in my late teens through my mid twenties. I wrote some kick ass music with some kick ass people.

   I haven’t played my guitar in a while. I keep telling myself that I’m going to drop it off at the guitar shop to get it tuned up. I really need to.

   Even if I never played again, I wouldn’t get rid of my guitars. I love them.

10. Honestly, I got rid of most of it and the stuff I still have I should really get rid of too. There’s nothing good, and I don’t do much with it. The only one I regret losing was my first, a Yamaha Pacifica tele.

11. I’ve been playing guitar for 30 years. Might be an outlier, but I don’t “treasure” my guitars. I never got into having “a collection”.

    Just wanted to share that. You don’t have to feel like you are selling something that can’t be replaced in the future if you want.

12. I used to play religiously from teens up until about 30, but idk, something happened and I lost heart, and haven’t played since, that was 12 years ago.

    I can’t or won’t ever get rid of my guitars though, a couple were my dads, so thats out of the question, I may pass them down to my little sister since she still plays, and it would keep them in the family.

    To be honest, they don’t take up that much space, especially if you have stackable hard cases for them, but mine are hung up on display in my spare bedroom.

    I wouldn’t get rid of them, if anything, a good guitar is an investment, worst case scenerio, you can always sell them fast if you need emergency money. But I wouldn’t voluntarily get rid of them if I was you, you would regret it.

13. Man I’d say keep it. Here’s why.

    You don’t have to religiously play it, for me, it was all about having it accessible.

    If it is in a storage somewhere in the attic, the thought of going up, lugging it down, unpacking it, connecting it, sorting out cables and restringing makes it too troublesome.

    I have my acoustic visible on a stand at all times. From serenading, to randomly recalling a few songs for a few minutes is honestly enough.

    When I feel my chops are waning, I feel the need to spend thirty minutes getting back to my expectations to where I was.

    Waking up on a day off, playing a smooth sounding track and just doodling a scale or two over the top for a few minutes is honestly enough.

    Even I can’t see myself doing half the effort I put in during college and high school, but keeping up with skills and talent us keep us connected to who we are.

    I went through a stage where I worked non stop for cash and got burnt out. Felt like I forgot who I was. The guitar was a way for me to reconnect with my personality, my hobbies and my interests.

    So for that reason, I’d say keep them around, but visible so you can lift one up, doodle and out it down. It doesn’t have to be for any serious sitting down session. A basic strum, a few scales, hitting a few power chords are enough.

14. I’m was in the same boat. I played really seriously for years, and then life got busy, and I didn’t play at all for 7 years.

    But then one day, I wanted to play again. I got a guitar hanger for my wall and hung it up. And lo and behold, I started playing it occasionally. It still go months without playing, but I got back a little skill, and I can play some of my favorite songs occasionally.