This story may be a long but it has a happy ending
I feel like I've known of PRS virtually most of my life, I'm a huge fan of the band HEART and used to go and see them whenever they toured the UK. I have vivid memories of Howard and Nancy tearing up the stage and thinking that the Golden Eagle was possible even more beautiful than Nancy. After high school I got a job working for a british guitar company Gordon Smith through my step father who knew one of the owners, I been there about 6 months when I encounted my first PRS catalog the 1989 catalog (which I still have) I loved the models and colours but they were out of my price range and I had a sort of endorsement with Gordon Smith, I used their models almost exclusively during my band career (except for a custom SId Poole LP that my step parents got me for my 21st).
1994 I had a major bike accident that put me in hospital for nearly a year (I was told I'd never walk again and would probably never playing guitar again either, in the next few months I got out I got so frustated that I sold all my guitar related gear except a 1977 Marshall SS 30watt lead and my 1982 Gibson Spirit which I just couldn't part with (Wish I'd kept the Poole LP - there worth serious money now
, then again so are the original Gordon Smiths) over the next 6 years I proved the doctors wrong and learned now to walk again but guitar playing seemed gone forever though I would still go and drool at the latest models in the local guitar stores.
2002 I walked into a guitar shop in manchester and hanging there on the wall above the sales desk was the most beautiful guitar I'd seen a 2001 McCarty in Violin Amber - I would go and drool at this guitar daily but I still could get my hands to cooperate in playing, eventually the guitar sold and I got on with my life until In 2006 I managed to hammer out some cords on the old Spirit 1 since I have amassed a silly guitar collection totalling as high as 163 guitars and 31 amps at one point, I also put a new band together and we have a healthy gigging circuit but for the best bit I want to take a little step back.
I always loved Bernie Marsden era Whitesnake and in 2012 I got my first PRS SE - the BM Signature model, I had 2 Gibson Les Pauls, a 50's Tribute & a Classic Custom this SE blew them blow out the water and started my renewed fixation with PRS. Since then I have owned 9 SE's (of which I still own 4), a S2 Vela (sold) and and four core models. In 2017 my partner and I had a really rough year when she was diagnosed with incurable cancer - 7 moths of radio therapy and Chemo followed which took a tole on both of us (I'm terrified of hospitals - see history) but was by her side every day. the treatments ended in October, 1 month before my birthday and for being so supportive she wanted to buy me a guitar as a combined birthday / christmas present, we looked online I'd decided on a 2008 Gibson explorer, during the looking process we'd spotted a 2015 McCarty and she remember the story of the McCarty "unicorn" so heres me expecting a really nice 2008 explorer when suddenly this beautiful 2015 McCarty black gold arrives. This guitar is out of this world and along with a "you can't take it with you mentality would prompt me to by a 2006 CE24 Mahogany and a 2001 Core Standard 22 in the next 4 months, she'd also bought the explorer for Christmas.
Which brings me to the end of my history so far with PRS. In July 2018 I was in PMT in manchester to pick put a new SE Santana and the world cup was on, one of my friends works there (when you've amassed a collection like I did you make friends with sales assistants pretty quick) comes over and says that the manager has a 30% off all second hand gear while england are still in the tournament, jokinly I say I'm not interested unless theres a McCarty for silly money and he beckons me to follow him hanging there is a really nice McCarty that with the 30% discount works out cheaper than the SE Santana - the Santana stays and I now own a 2nd McCarty.
The following day another friend who works at PMT phones me about the McCarty, he'd been on his dinner when I was in and had just got chance to contact me. He tells me that the McCarty I'd just bought is the same one I used to drool over back in 2002. The store that he used to work for was Academy of Sound and one of the guys that was in his band also worked there & originally bought it, In time AoS were bought out by Sound Control who in turn were sold to PMT with most of the staff moving there as well. His band mate had just got a Private stock and decided to let the 2001 McCarty go.
I may not be quite at the level of playing I used to be but most people are too busy drooling over my PRSi to actually hear any mistakes.
A story is nothing witout pictures.
And the one that got away for 15 years