1 00:00:02,000 --> 00:00:07,000 Downloaded from YTS.MX 2 00:00:08,000 --> 00:00:13,000 Official YIFY movies site: YTS.MX 3 00:00:21,646 --> 00:00:25,108 [Jeff] I first heard about Norm's store, 4 00:00:25,191 --> 00:00:29,571 it was like this famous place that you have to go to, 5 00:00:29,654 --> 00:00:33,783 but it was in Tarzana, California. Is that how you say it? 6 00:00:34,909 --> 00:00:37,537 Which I always thought was east of LA, you know, 7 00:00:37,620 --> 00:00:39,706 like towards halfway to Phoenix. 8 00:00:39,789 --> 00:00:41,916 And so I'm going, "Well, I'll never go out to where--" 9 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:43,585 And then you find, oh, no, it's right... 10 00:00:43,668 --> 00:00:47,046 It's just over on the 405, just over. Oh. 11 00:00:50,467 --> 00:00:53,553 Then the problem becomes that you're gonna go to Norm's 12 00:00:53,636 --> 00:00:56,806 and he's gonna have these incredible guitars, 13 00:00:56,890 --> 00:00:59,559 and oh, maybe you'll see Tom Petty, 14 00:00:59,642 --> 00:01:02,979 you know that myth and true, 15 00:01:03,063 --> 00:01:05,607 but this like Shangri-La, this oasis 16 00:01:05,690 --> 00:01:06,900 for guitar players. 17 00:01:06,983 --> 00:01:11,654 ♪ As I felt would never end ♪ 18 00:01:11,738 --> 00:01:18,411 ♪ I see shadows Cast over my eyes ♪ 19 00:01:18,495 --> 00:01:21,247 ♪ Not much longer... ♪ 20 00:01:22,165 --> 00:01:25,668 And it's like making a pilgrimage to a place you should go 21 00:01:25,752 --> 00:01:28,046 if you are serious about the guitar. 22 00:01:28,129 --> 00:01:30,298 You should all go to Norm's Rare Guitars 23 00:01:30,381 --> 00:01:33,218 if you're at all serious about playing the guitar. 24 00:01:35,470 --> 00:01:36,888 It's one of those places. 25 00:01:38,056 --> 00:01:44,604 ♪ The creator Built a home inside ♪ 26 00:01:44,687 --> 00:01:49,943 ♪ Won't be trouble when I rest my head tonight ♪ 27 00:01:51,069 --> 00:01:57,909 ♪ 'Cause the only loser Is the one that begs to hide ♪ 28 00:02:11,214 --> 00:02:14,050 ♪ I've seen hard times ♪ 29 00:02:14,134 --> 00:02:16,970 ♪ I've seen days ♪ 30 00:02:17,053 --> 00:02:23,017 ♪ Days I've felt would Never end ♪ 31 00:02:23,101 --> 00:02:29,607 ♪ I've seen shadows Cast over my eyes ♪ 32 00:02:29,691 --> 00:02:36,489 ♪ But not much longer will The shadows haunt my mind ♪ 33 00:02:36,573 --> 00:02:39,200 ♪ Mm-hmm ♪ 34 00:02:45,498 --> 00:02:47,625 [rock music playing] 35 00:02:51,254 --> 00:02:52,505 Throughout the store's history, 36 00:02:52,589 --> 00:02:55,466 we've had some of the most iconic guitar players 37 00:02:55,550 --> 00:02:56,551 in the world come through. 38 00:02:56,634 --> 00:02:58,553 Welcome to Norm's Guitars. 39 00:02:58,636 --> 00:03:02,515 [Norman] From George Harrison to Bob Dylan to Tom Petty. 40 00:03:02,599 --> 00:03:04,976 [announcer] Eddie Van Halen bought his first guitars from Norm 41 00:03:05,059 --> 00:03:06,644 when both of them had more hair. 42 00:03:07,228 --> 00:03:09,689 I bought a bunch of guitars from Norm's. 43 00:03:11,024 --> 00:03:13,943 [announcer] See, the instruments at Norman's are, well, unique. 44 00:03:14,027 --> 00:03:17,071 This guitar here is probably a $35,000 guitar. 45 00:03:17,155 --> 00:03:20,825 [announcer] Norm Harris has been collecting and selling vintage guitars, lots of them. 46 00:03:20,909 --> 00:03:25,622 This is Norm. This guy has sold guitars to every single person 47 00:03:25,705 --> 00:03:28,333 that's ever walked into Hollywood for the last 25 years. 48 00:03:28,416 --> 00:03:29,959 So you're gonna have a million stories. 49 00:03:31,419 --> 00:03:33,254 [Norman] There's some stories, there's some good ones, 50 00:03:33,338 --> 00:03:35,340 -there's a couple involving you too, my man. -Oh, no. 51 00:03:35,423 --> 00:03:36,925 I just stumbled into Norm's, 52 00:03:37,008 --> 00:03:39,969 and it's been a revolving door in my life for 35 years. 53 00:03:40,053 --> 00:03:41,763 [Norman] A lot of the international acclaim 54 00:03:41,846 --> 00:03:45,016 basically came from the Japanese I would say. 55 00:03:45,808 --> 00:03:48,019 I mean, there are those of us who are just waiting 56 00:03:48,102 --> 00:03:50,146 for the right piece to show up. 57 00:03:50,230 --> 00:03:51,314 Pretty much a place of legend. 58 00:03:51,940 --> 00:03:56,486 For a small ma and pa shop, Norman's Rare Guitars is world famous. 59 00:03:56,569 --> 00:03:58,613 [announcer] The real celebrities, though, are the guitars. 60 00:03:58,696 --> 00:04:00,448 Musicians claim the ones made in the '50s 61 00:04:00,531 --> 00:04:01,866 just sound better. 62 00:04:01,950 --> 00:04:04,327 The pickups, the design, 63 00:04:04,410 --> 00:04:06,496 the woods that they chose, the finish they put on, 64 00:04:06,579 --> 00:04:07,997 it's really cool stuff. 65 00:04:08,081 --> 00:04:12,126 The independent store will always be the place 66 00:04:12,210 --> 00:04:13,711 that you go for connection. 67 00:04:14,379 --> 00:04:15,338 [Taylor] 'Cause, I mean, half the people 68 00:04:15,421 --> 00:04:18,007 that you see here when you walk into Norm's, 69 00:04:19,092 --> 00:04:20,301 they're just fucking hanging out. 70 00:04:20,385 --> 00:04:21,719 I'm not talking about the people working here, 71 00:04:21,803 --> 00:04:23,137 I'm talking about the people that just, 72 00:04:23,221 --> 00:04:25,431 half the time, they're coming in just to shoot the shit, 73 00:04:25,515 --> 00:04:28,893 and, like, maybe think about buying that guitar eventually. 74 00:04:28,977 --> 00:04:32,105 I've spent too much money there, but I want to spend more. 75 00:04:32,188 --> 00:04:34,357 There's nothing like this store. Nothing. 76 00:04:34,440 --> 00:04:35,858 Got into town, like, three days ago. 77 00:04:35,942 --> 00:04:37,151 I'm like, "I gotta go to Norm's." 78 00:04:37,235 --> 00:04:38,820 Everybody knows about Norman's Rare Guitars. 79 00:04:38,903 --> 00:04:40,947 It's just like, you go to LA, you go there. 80 00:04:41,030 --> 00:04:44,867 This is an experience being in Norman's. Norman's has a warmth to its walls. 81 00:04:44,951 --> 00:04:46,536 I'm sure it's got a lot of stories too. 82 00:04:46,619 --> 00:04:49,831 [rock music playing] 83 00:04:49,914 --> 00:04:52,333 [Frank] I actually always learn something when I come to Norm's 84 00:04:52,417 --> 00:04:53,418 or smaller places, 85 00:04:53,501 --> 00:04:55,044 'cause you have people... 86 00:04:55,128 --> 00:04:57,922 I mean some of the greatest guitar players in the world played here. 87 00:04:58,006 --> 00:05:00,133 Don McLean. I mean, you know, Colin Hay. 88 00:05:00,216 --> 00:05:02,510 I mean, a lot of heavy people come here. 89 00:05:02,593 --> 00:05:04,095 [Slash] When you go into a music store, 90 00:05:04,178 --> 00:05:07,765 it's probably the optimum place you want to go into, 91 00:05:07,849 --> 00:05:09,350 because it's just filled with instruments, 92 00:05:09,434 --> 00:05:11,811 and it's sort of orgasmic in that sense. 93 00:05:12,353 --> 00:05:15,606 Norman's is probably at the very, very top 94 00:05:15,690 --> 00:05:18,026 of the orgasmic, one to ten. 95 00:05:18,109 --> 00:05:19,402 [laughs] 96 00:05:19,485 --> 00:05:21,696 Are you an average collector? [laughs] 97 00:05:21,779 --> 00:05:23,323 I'd like to think a little better than average. 98 00:05:25,241 --> 00:05:26,659 I learned about the shop from a shirt. 99 00:05:26,743 --> 00:05:28,578 Like, even the shirt was interesting. 100 00:05:28,661 --> 00:05:30,538 [Melissa] Every guitar, every amp, 101 00:05:30,621 --> 00:05:32,457 everything that's in this store, 102 00:05:32,540 --> 00:05:34,584 is understood, taken care of, 103 00:05:34,667 --> 00:05:37,003 is the finest you're going to get. 104 00:05:37,086 --> 00:05:40,423 [Kiefer] This is as organic a place as I have ever been 105 00:05:40,923 --> 00:05:43,718 with respect to someone trying to put 106 00:05:43,801 --> 00:05:45,845 the right guitar in the right person's hand 107 00:05:45,928 --> 00:05:47,388 to create something great. 108 00:05:49,724 --> 00:05:51,601 [Jeff] I think one of the things that makes Norm's special 109 00:05:51,684 --> 00:05:54,979 is that the people that have been there before you. 110 00:05:55,063 --> 00:05:57,523 I got thrown out of here last time 111 00:05:57,607 --> 00:05:59,609 for taking down a Stratocaster, 112 00:05:59,692 --> 00:06:02,195 but I thought it was okay. I'm sorry. 113 00:06:02,278 --> 00:06:05,156 If Joe Bonamassa thinks Norm knows 114 00:06:05,239 --> 00:06:07,867 what a good guitar is versus a bad one, 115 00:06:07,950 --> 00:06:09,702 or the difference between a great guitar 116 00:06:09,786 --> 00:06:11,162 and an excellent guitar... 117 00:06:11,245 --> 00:06:14,874 If Joe thinks Norm knows that, that's good enough for me. 118 00:06:14,957 --> 00:06:17,043 The collector in me loves the stuff like you 119 00:06:17,126 --> 00:06:18,586 that's really well-preserved and mint, 120 00:06:18,669 --> 00:06:19,962 because they don't make this anymore. 121 00:06:20,046 --> 00:06:22,840 So that gives Norm some real street cred, 122 00:06:22,924 --> 00:06:24,801 if guys like that are, 123 00:06:24,884 --> 00:06:26,844 you know, going to Norm, going, "What do you think?" 124 00:06:26,928 --> 00:06:28,429 He's completely knowledgeable, 125 00:06:28,971 --> 00:06:32,767 like has the biggest mind about guitars, 126 00:06:32,850 --> 00:06:34,977 and he's got the biggest heart. 127 00:06:35,770 --> 00:06:37,814 And he loves music. 128 00:06:37,897 --> 00:06:40,024 [Kiefer] And he loves playing and he likes people, 129 00:06:40,108 --> 00:06:43,111 and he's so encouraging to musicians, 130 00:06:43,194 --> 00:06:44,904 and wanting them to do well. 131 00:06:45,655 --> 00:06:47,990 I know that sounds really simple, but it's not. 132 00:06:48,074 --> 00:06:49,075 He cares. 133 00:06:49,158 --> 00:06:50,326 And he couldn't be nicer. 134 00:06:50,409 --> 00:06:53,204 He's this big personality, friendly. 135 00:06:53,287 --> 00:06:56,582 He's out there, and he makes you feel welcome. 136 00:06:56,666 --> 00:06:58,918 He is applying for a job over here. 137 00:06:59,001 --> 00:07:01,337 He's not working enough as an actor. 138 00:07:01,420 --> 00:07:03,214 [Jeff] And I thought, well, maybe that's just 'cause, 139 00:07:03,297 --> 00:07:05,800 you know, I'm famous or I'm an actor or something. 140 00:07:05,883 --> 00:07:08,845 And then I saw him do it to somebody else that wasn't. 141 00:07:08,928 --> 00:07:10,888 And then somebody else who wasn't. 142 00:07:10,972 --> 00:07:12,557 Treats everybody the same. 143 00:07:13,141 --> 00:07:15,309 Except, he did immediately, 144 00:07:15,393 --> 00:07:18,646 immediately take me back into the back room 145 00:07:18,729 --> 00:07:21,607 and showed me a Martin from the '40s or something. 146 00:07:22,316 --> 00:07:24,444 "Isn't that beautiful? Isn't Jeff, isn't that, 147 00:07:24,527 --> 00:07:26,070 "and it's only $50,000. 148 00:07:26,154 --> 00:07:28,239 I mean, wow, is this you or is this you?" 149 00:07:28,322 --> 00:07:30,158 I mean, he-- And you just realize, 150 00:07:30,241 --> 00:07:31,325 you're going, 151 00:07:31,409 --> 00:07:34,662 "You know, I got some per diem from the movie I'm shooting, 152 00:07:35,872 --> 00:07:36,956 but it ain't that much." 153 00:07:41,002 --> 00:07:42,295 -What's up? -Maroon 5... 154 00:07:42,378 --> 00:07:43,713 [Kiefer] You know, you can't do all of this 155 00:07:43,796 --> 00:07:45,131 without being little eccentric. 156 00:07:45,214 --> 00:07:46,674 And he is. 157 00:07:46,757 --> 00:07:49,093 I, personally, have always loved eccentric people. 158 00:07:49,177 --> 00:07:53,347 But when someone's eccentricities are all absolutely focused 159 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:57,560 into one thing, and that is guitars. 160 00:07:57,643 --> 00:07:59,770 -Can you tell us about this? -[Norman] Yeah, this is 64... 161 00:07:59,854 --> 00:08:01,898 [Kiefer] And understanding 162 00:08:02,607 --> 00:08:05,610 where the Maplewood was taken from this guitar in this era, 163 00:08:05,693 --> 00:08:10,198 or you know, I think Norm was the one who explained to me what a banner guitar was 164 00:08:10,281 --> 00:08:13,284 during World War II when they had no steel to make truss rods, 165 00:08:13,367 --> 00:08:17,038 Gibson with all the L guitars would just glue the neck 166 00:08:17,121 --> 00:08:18,498 straight onto the body, 167 00:08:18,581 --> 00:08:20,500 which is why the necks were always fatter 168 00:08:20,583 --> 00:08:23,294 and that the banner meant that it was made by a woman. 169 00:08:23,377 --> 00:08:24,545 How cool is that? 170 00:08:24,629 --> 00:08:27,840 It's not just the actual stories 171 00:08:27,924 --> 00:08:29,884 of acquiring instruments, 172 00:08:29,967 --> 00:08:31,802 it's who they've been sold to. 173 00:08:31,886 --> 00:08:34,972 You're talking everyone from Bob Dylan to George Harrison, 174 00:08:35,056 --> 00:08:37,725 Tom Petty, Robbie Robertson... 175 00:08:37,808 --> 00:08:40,728 The list goes on and on and on. 176 00:08:40,811 --> 00:08:44,023 And I love the fact that a rockstar, 177 00:08:44,106 --> 00:08:46,776 or someone that plays music goes, 178 00:08:46,859 --> 00:08:49,779 "Hey listen, I need a D'Angelico." 179 00:08:49,862 --> 00:08:51,739 They call him first, because they know. 180 00:08:51,822 --> 00:08:54,909 Quality, his reputation precedes him. 181 00:08:54,992 --> 00:08:59,330 The instruments that he's sold to these A-list type of people 182 00:08:59,872 --> 00:09:01,207 have been... used to make music 183 00:09:01,290 --> 00:09:03,417 that's changed the landscape of rock and roll. 184 00:09:03,501 --> 00:09:06,796 Selling guitars to Slash, selling guitars to Tom Petty. 185 00:09:06,879 --> 00:09:09,298 And, you know, these songs that they come up with 186 00:09:09,382 --> 00:09:11,509 on these instruments live forever. 187 00:09:11,592 --> 00:09:14,345 And he's absolutely linked to that. 188 00:09:30,861 --> 00:09:35,408 For over 50 years, Norman Harris has been in the 189 00:09:35,491 --> 00:09:40,246 business of selling rare guitars. 190 00:09:40,746 --> 00:09:45,209 -[woman] Ready one, two, and... -Hey guys, Norm over here. 191 00:09:45,293 --> 00:09:48,754 And uh, you know, I know you guys are like family to us, 192 00:09:48,838 --> 00:09:52,466 and sometimes I got to tell you the good with the bad. 193 00:09:52,550 --> 00:09:55,511 I was ill, I was kind of feeling like 194 00:09:55,595 --> 00:09:58,222 a little something over by my side here, 195 00:09:58,306 --> 00:10:01,267 but my doctor said, "Go get a CAT scan." 196 00:10:01,350 --> 00:10:03,686 And what we found out was 197 00:10:03,769 --> 00:10:08,024 that I have a very rare cancer of the appendix. 198 00:10:08,107 --> 00:10:10,484 It's called appendiceal carcinoma. 199 00:10:30,671 --> 00:10:32,465 [Norman] So I just want to say, I just want to be truthful. 200 00:10:32,548 --> 00:10:35,134 If anybody goes, "Well, where's Norm and what's going on?" 201 00:10:35,217 --> 00:10:37,261 I just want you guys to know that I love you all, 202 00:10:37,345 --> 00:10:39,513 love all the guys that work for me, love the family, 203 00:10:39,597 --> 00:10:40,931 love vintage guitars. 204 00:10:41,015 --> 00:10:42,099 So thank you guys. 205 00:10:42,183 --> 00:10:47,897 I love you, and I hope that I'm still around to be doing this years from now. 206 00:10:47,980 --> 00:10:50,149 But if not, sayonara. 207 00:10:50,775 --> 00:10:54,570 See Norm and I have had this conversation a lot, 208 00:10:55,196 --> 00:10:58,324 about, you know... about his legacy, about his transition. 209 00:10:59,450 --> 00:11:01,702 You know, he goes, "I can't do this forever." 210 00:11:02,620 --> 00:11:03,996 And, you know, when he turned 70, 211 00:11:04,080 --> 00:11:06,123 I think it really hit him in a way. 212 00:11:07,291 --> 00:11:10,378 Problem is, if Norm's not there to run it, 213 00:11:11,420 --> 00:11:13,381 then it's just... it's a namesake. 214 00:11:14,173 --> 00:11:15,716 It's just, it's just a brand. 215 00:11:16,634 --> 00:11:20,137 And when you take the heart and soul of the brand away, 216 00:11:21,514 --> 00:11:23,849 it doesn't... it's not the same. 217 00:11:23,933 --> 00:11:25,810 I'm sorry, it just isn't the same. 218 00:11:25,893 --> 00:11:27,395 There's only one Norm Harris. 219 00:11:49,250 --> 00:11:51,627 [Norman] I was born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 220 00:11:51,710 --> 00:11:53,754 but my dad had a company, 221 00:11:53,838 --> 00:11:56,507 and we would move from town to town, 222 00:11:56,590 --> 00:11:59,760 'cause they would set up a manufacturing plant 223 00:11:59,844 --> 00:12:01,095 in different cities. 224 00:12:01,178 --> 00:12:06,225 So, we lived in Philadelphia, then we moved to Miami 225 00:12:06,308 --> 00:12:10,855 and then, eventually, my dad sold his company and retired. 226 00:12:10,938 --> 00:12:12,273 And that's where we ended up 227 00:12:12,356 --> 00:12:14,191 and that's where I grew up, was in Miami, Florida. 228 00:12:19,155 --> 00:12:23,784 Unfortunately, when I was 16 years old, my dad had passed away. 229 00:12:24,702 --> 00:12:26,787 It was a very traumatic time for me. 230 00:12:34,753 --> 00:12:36,213 When I was a teenager in Miami, 231 00:12:36,297 --> 00:12:38,466 of course this was during the '60s, 232 00:12:38,549 --> 00:12:40,259 and The Beatles had exploded, 233 00:12:40,342 --> 00:12:43,971 and music was becoming so popular. 234 00:12:44,054 --> 00:12:46,348 It was just an amazing time to grow up. 235 00:12:49,268 --> 00:12:51,770 I met Marlene in junior high school. 236 00:12:51,854 --> 00:12:54,523 Hi, I am Marlene Harris, Norman's wife, 237 00:12:54,607 --> 00:12:57,568 and we've been married for 51 years. 238 00:12:57,651 --> 00:12:58,903 Quite an accomplishment. 239 00:12:59,695 --> 00:13:02,448 We met in junior high school, sort of. 240 00:13:02,531 --> 00:13:06,202 And I walked around the whole school, trying to avoid him. 241 00:13:06,285 --> 00:13:07,578 [Norman chuckles] When we first met, 242 00:13:07,661 --> 00:13:09,663 I think Marlene couldn't stand me. 243 00:13:09,747 --> 00:13:10,873 I was kind of a punk, 244 00:13:10,956 --> 00:13:14,043 and I don't know, maybe that's why she ended up liking me. 245 00:13:14,126 --> 00:13:15,002 [laughs] 246 00:13:15,085 --> 00:13:18,923 But, anyway, I ended up being friendly with him. 247 00:13:19,006 --> 00:13:21,509 [Norman] And we started dating in high school. 248 00:13:21,592 --> 00:13:23,969 Actually, our first date, I had a car. 249 00:13:24,053 --> 00:13:26,388 I would drive some people home from school. 250 00:13:26,472 --> 00:13:29,308 [Marlene] And, one day, I needed a ride home from school, 251 00:13:29,391 --> 00:13:33,145 and he was looking for a drummer for one of his bands 252 00:13:33,229 --> 00:13:35,481 at the Florida State Mental Hospital. 253 00:13:36,315 --> 00:13:37,316 And, um... 254 00:13:38,234 --> 00:13:40,027 -[man] For real? -Yeah. 255 00:13:40,110 --> 00:13:42,196 A friend of mine recommended this guy, 256 00:13:42,279 --> 00:13:47,243 and it was at this mental institution in South Florida. 257 00:13:47,326 --> 00:13:49,453 And I said, I'm gonna take you guys home, 258 00:13:49,537 --> 00:13:52,039 but we've got to stop at this place first. 259 00:13:52,122 --> 00:13:56,335 And Marlene and I, our first date was probably in a mental institution, 260 00:13:56,418 --> 00:13:57,461 which says a lot. 261 00:13:57,545 --> 00:13:58,963 We saw a lot of crazy people, 262 00:13:59,046 --> 00:14:02,299 but he never found the guy who was supposed to be a good drummer. 263 00:14:02,383 --> 00:14:06,845 After that, we started dating, and we've been together ever since. 264 00:14:07,596 --> 00:14:12,184 We got married in 1969. I was 18, he was 20. 265 00:14:12,268 --> 00:14:14,144 I woke up the next day saying, 266 00:14:14,228 --> 00:14:15,771 "What the fuck did I do?" [chuckles] 267 00:14:16,355 --> 00:14:17,314 But here I am. 268 00:14:17,398 --> 00:14:19,942 People said that I looked like I was in shock 269 00:14:20,025 --> 00:14:21,277 at the wedding the whole time, 270 00:14:21,360 --> 00:14:23,070 because I think it was, uh... 271 00:14:23,153 --> 00:14:25,781 Uh, well, I'm sure I was probably... 272 00:14:25,865 --> 00:14:27,950 I used to smoke a lot of pot, you know, 273 00:14:28,033 --> 00:14:29,743 so I was probably a little bit out there, 274 00:14:29,827 --> 00:14:32,955 but I looked like I was dazed the entire time. 275 00:14:33,038 --> 00:14:36,500 And I probably was, but I didn't know what I was getting into. 276 00:14:36,584 --> 00:14:38,961 But it was probably the best thing that ever happened to me. 277 00:14:46,969 --> 00:14:50,347 [Norman] One, two, three, four. 278 00:14:50,431 --> 00:14:53,434 [playing blues music] 279 00:14:58,731 --> 00:15:00,691 [Joe] You know, what a lot of people don't know about Norm 280 00:15:00,774 --> 00:15:03,235 is he is a world-class musician, 281 00:15:03,319 --> 00:15:06,155 and he chose a different path in life. 282 00:15:06,238 --> 00:15:09,366 He chose to be on the retail side of musicianship 283 00:15:09,450 --> 00:15:13,120 versus getting out there and touring, and stuff like that. 284 00:15:13,203 --> 00:15:15,664 He always downplays his musicianship a lot, 285 00:15:15,748 --> 00:15:18,000 but, you know, the legacy started there in Miami. 286 00:15:20,461 --> 00:15:22,171 [Norman] So, back in the old days, 287 00:15:22,254 --> 00:15:23,380 the first band that I had 288 00:15:23,464 --> 00:15:25,966 was a band called The Amazing Aztecs. 289 00:15:26,050 --> 00:15:28,552 We were kids and we were pretty pathetic. 290 00:15:30,137 --> 00:15:32,973 The band that I played in after the Amazing Aztecs 291 00:15:33,057 --> 00:15:34,892 was the Glass Menagerie. 292 00:15:34,975 --> 00:15:38,854 After that, I played in a band called The Bangles, 293 00:15:38,938 --> 00:15:43,108 which was two seminal Indian brothers, Steve and Lee Tiger. 294 00:15:43,192 --> 00:15:44,693 And we played at a place called Thee Image. 295 00:15:44,777 --> 00:15:47,613 And we were one of the house bands that played there. 296 00:15:47,696 --> 00:15:50,741 And every week, they would bring in a major act 297 00:15:50,824 --> 00:15:53,035 that was either international or national. 298 00:15:53,118 --> 00:15:57,873 And we opened for Jimi Hendrix, we opened for Cream, 299 00:15:57,957 --> 00:15:59,375 we opened for The Amboy Dukes, 300 00:15:59,458 --> 00:16:01,543 which was Ted Nugent's first band. 301 00:16:01,627 --> 00:16:03,212 We opened for The Chambers Brothers. 302 00:16:03,295 --> 00:16:04,672 We opened for The Mothers. 303 00:16:04,755 --> 00:16:07,091 And, you know, there was one dressing room in the place. 304 00:16:07,174 --> 00:16:09,301 So all the bands kind of got together, 305 00:16:09,385 --> 00:16:10,678 and I did meet Hendrix, 306 00:16:10,761 --> 00:16:14,014 and you know, everybody was pretty, pretty high at the time. 307 00:16:14,974 --> 00:16:18,394 The band after The Bangles was a band called Katmandu. 308 00:16:18,477 --> 00:16:20,729 And we were doing a lot of original material, 309 00:16:20,813 --> 00:16:23,649 and we were recording at Criteria Studios. 310 00:16:23,732 --> 00:16:26,360 We got a a record deal with Mainstream Records... 311 00:16:26,902 --> 00:16:30,072 [rock music playing] 312 00:16:30,155 --> 00:16:31,573 ...which was the same record company 313 00:16:31,657 --> 00:16:33,617 that Big Brother & the Holding Company were on. 314 00:16:33,701 --> 00:16:36,745 Unfortunately, we found out about three days after we signed 315 00:16:36,829 --> 00:16:38,080 and did our record 316 00:16:38,163 --> 00:16:41,959 that they were being sued by Big Brother & the Holding Company 317 00:16:42,042 --> 00:16:43,794 for not giving them any of their royalties. 318 00:16:43,877 --> 00:16:45,587 So that didn't work out all that well. 319 00:16:47,423 --> 00:16:49,842 One of the first instruments that I ever bought 320 00:16:49,925 --> 00:16:52,761 that I realized I may be... I was onto something is 321 00:16:52,845 --> 00:16:54,179 in Katmandu, 322 00:16:54,263 --> 00:16:57,725 there were two guys, a guy named Bobby Caldwell and Bobby Jabo. 323 00:16:57,808 --> 00:17:00,185 They both played guitar and bass, 324 00:17:00,269 --> 00:17:02,146 but neither one of them had a bass. 325 00:17:02,229 --> 00:17:04,023 So, I volunteered to get a bass. 326 00:17:04,106 --> 00:17:07,526 So he happened to find a bass in the newspaper. 327 00:17:07,609 --> 00:17:10,988 [Norman] I saw an ad for a jazz bass in the Miami Herald, 328 00:17:11,071 --> 00:17:13,824 and I went out and bought this older jazz bass. 329 00:17:13,907 --> 00:17:18,245 It was, like, a 1961. It was a very early 3-knob bass. 330 00:17:18,328 --> 00:17:20,414 I bought it for $125. 331 00:17:20,497 --> 00:17:22,082 When I brought the bass back 332 00:17:22,166 --> 00:17:24,043 and the guys started playing it, 333 00:17:24,126 --> 00:17:28,297 people around town, including Jaco Pastorius and a number of other people 334 00:17:28,380 --> 00:17:31,300 saw this bass, and everybody wanted it. 335 00:17:31,383 --> 00:17:33,135 And I went, "Wow, you know, maybe I could actually 336 00:17:33,218 --> 00:17:35,012 make a buck buying and selling 337 00:17:35,095 --> 00:17:37,097 some of these used instruments around town. 338 00:17:37,181 --> 00:17:39,808 And that was kind of the thing that kind of... 339 00:17:39,892 --> 00:17:42,686 The light bulb flashed, and I realized this could be something 340 00:17:42,770 --> 00:17:44,855 where I could pick up some extra money. 341 00:17:44,938 --> 00:17:46,899 Being a musician, I wasn't making a whole lot. 342 00:17:48,108 --> 00:17:50,944 Once I realized I could make money off that jazz bass, 343 00:17:51,028 --> 00:17:54,865 I saw an ad in the newspaper, and I called and I said, 344 00:17:54,948 --> 00:17:57,159 "What kind of guitar is it that you have?" 345 00:17:57,242 --> 00:17:59,078 She goes, "Well, it's a Gibson." 346 00:17:59,161 --> 00:18:03,123 And I said, "How much do you want for it?" She says, "$25." 347 00:18:03,791 --> 00:18:06,085 I said, "I'll tell you what, I have $20 on me. 348 00:18:06,168 --> 00:18:08,504 I'll give you $20 for it, sight unseen." 349 00:18:08,587 --> 00:18:10,839 And I walk into the house, 350 00:18:10,923 --> 00:18:14,259 and I see this beautiful brown case sitting in the back. 351 00:18:18,889 --> 00:18:21,266 I went to myself, "Well, that couldn't possibly be it 352 00:18:21,350 --> 00:18:22,726 'cause the case was so beautiful. 353 00:18:22,810 --> 00:18:24,144 She said, "No, that's it over there." 354 00:18:24,228 --> 00:18:25,562 And I open up the case, 355 00:18:25,646 --> 00:18:30,567 and it's this beautiful late-'30s L-5 blonde cutaway. 356 00:18:30,651 --> 00:18:32,653 I know nothing about guitars at this time, 357 00:18:32,736 --> 00:18:36,532 but you don't have to be a genius to look at this thing 358 00:18:36,615 --> 00:18:39,201 and realize this is a valuable guitar. 359 00:18:39,284 --> 00:18:41,912 So I gave her the $20, bought it, got out of there, 360 00:18:41,995 --> 00:18:43,997 and I went and showed it to this friend of mine, Ed Oleck, 361 00:18:44,081 --> 00:18:45,666 who, kind of, was dealing with old guitars, 362 00:18:45,749 --> 00:18:49,002 and everybody was kind of, you know, "ooh-ahh," over this guitar. 363 00:18:51,755 --> 00:18:54,591 The next day, I actually took Marlene's car 364 00:18:54,675 --> 00:18:57,845 and I had the L-5 in the car, 365 00:18:57,928 --> 00:18:59,513 and we're driving back, 366 00:18:59,596 --> 00:19:01,140 and all of a sudden, I hear a car going... 367 00:19:01,223 --> 00:19:03,433 [mimics tires squealing, crashing] 368 00:19:03,517 --> 00:19:05,602 ...and just smashes into the back of the car 369 00:19:05,686 --> 00:19:07,354 and it cracked this L-5 up. 370 00:19:08,188 --> 00:19:11,775 Just so happened that I took it to my friend, Ed Oleck, the day before 371 00:19:11,859 --> 00:19:13,527 and showed him the guitar. 372 00:19:13,610 --> 00:19:16,071 And when I tried to claim it on insurance, 373 00:19:16,155 --> 00:19:18,198 they actually contacted Ed Oleck to ask him 374 00:19:18,282 --> 00:19:19,825 what the guitar is worth. 375 00:19:19,908 --> 00:19:22,703 And Ed said, "Oh, that guitar is worth a fortune. 376 00:19:22,786 --> 00:19:25,622 "You better give 'em, like, 1,200 bucks, and get 'em outta your hair 377 00:19:25,706 --> 00:19:27,332 'cause you'll never be able to replace it." 378 00:19:27,416 --> 00:19:29,751 That 1,200 bucks gave me a lot of money to go out 379 00:19:29,835 --> 00:19:32,838 and buy guitars, which were very inexpensive at that time. 380 00:19:32,921 --> 00:19:34,631 That really got me started. 381 00:19:38,552 --> 00:19:42,389 Little Richard and his brother managed our band Katmandu. 382 00:19:46,977 --> 00:19:49,938 Little Richard was very instrumental in our move, 383 00:19:50,022 --> 00:19:51,940 because, I mean, he wanted us to go to LA, 384 00:19:52,024 --> 00:19:55,068 and meet Mo Ostin from Warner Bros. Records. 385 00:19:55,152 --> 00:19:59,114 It was just kind of really stated to me very intensely, 386 00:19:59,198 --> 00:20:02,910 if you really wanna make it in the music business, you have to go to California. 387 00:20:02,993 --> 00:20:04,411 That's where it's all happening. 388 00:20:08,123 --> 00:20:10,292 [people chattering] 389 00:20:12,169 --> 00:20:15,380 [Norman] For whatever reason, as bands do, our band broke up. 390 00:20:16,006 --> 00:20:19,760 I went with a band called the Angel City Rhythm Band. 391 00:20:20,844 --> 00:20:23,096 [man] All right, the Angel City Rhythm Band. 392 00:20:23,180 --> 00:20:25,265 [Marlene] While the band was sleeping, 393 00:20:25,349 --> 00:20:27,476 we were out up early in the morning, 394 00:20:27,559 --> 00:20:30,520 and then buying and wholesaling guitars 395 00:20:30,604 --> 00:20:32,856 to the music stores. 396 00:20:32,940 --> 00:20:37,611 So, we were busy all the time, and we used to go to the Musicians' Union. 397 00:20:37,694 --> 00:20:41,198 We saw that they had had a musician's handbook. 398 00:20:41,865 --> 00:20:43,742 So, I said, "Well this is great 399 00:20:43,825 --> 00:20:46,745 because you can call all the people in the handbook 400 00:20:46,828 --> 00:20:48,205 and find things. 401 00:20:48,288 --> 00:20:49,873 And he did that. 402 00:20:49,957 --> 00:20:53,752 And then I said, "Let's call people that have horses for sale, 403 00:20:53,835 --> 00:20:55,337 'cause cowboys play guitar." 404 00:20:55,921 --> 00:20:59,800 I mean, I came up with a lot of ideas, but he ran with it. 405 00:21:00,342 --> 00:21:02,719 [motorbike engine revs] 406 00:21:02,803 --> 00:21:05,264 [rock music plays] 407 00:21:05,347 --> 00:21:07,599 [Norman] When I came to Los Angeles, 408 00:21:08,100 --> 00:21:09,434 it was a mecca, 409 00:21:09,518 --> 00:21:13,313 and I had the opportunity to buy things that I never would see in Miami. 410 00:21:13,397 --> 00:21:16,650 And I had also the opportunity to sell a lot of things, 411 00:21:16,733 --> 00:21:18,652 because all these big bands were out there. 412 00:21:18,735 --> 00:21:22,406 I was kind of getting known amongst other bands just by word of mouth. 413 00:21:23,740 --> 00:21:26,159 I would kind of buy and sell guitars in LA, 414 00:21:26,243 --> 00:21:27,995 and I would buy them privately, 415 00:21:28,078 --> 00:21:30,622 and then I would sell 'em through some stores on consignment, 416 00:21:30,706 --> 00:21:32,582 and sometimes to these stores. 417 00:21:32,666 --> 00:21:35,043 And there was a store that I used to do a lot of business with 418 00:21:35,127 --> 00:21:37,587 in West LA, called University Music. 419 00:21:37,671 --> 00:21:39,798 And there was a friend of mine, Dale Rossman, 420 00:21:39,881 --> 00:21:40,966 who used to run the place. 421 00:21:41,049 --> 00:21:42,884 One day, he gives me a call, 422 00:21:42,968 --> 00:21:46,888 about maybe 9:00, 9:30 in the morning, and he goes... 423 00:21:46,972 --> 00:21:49,099 [Dale over phone] Norm, I need you to come over here right away. 424 00:21:49,182 --> 00:21:51,560 I've got a very important customer who wants a guitar. 425 00:21:52,853 --> 00:21:54,396 [static buzzes] 426 00:21:54,479 --> 00:21:56,481 [funky music plays] 427 00:21:58,108 --> 00:22:00,444 I get to his store and I walk in, 428 00:22:00,527 --> 00:22:02,154 and it's just my friend, Dale, sitting there, 429 00:22:02,237 --> 00:22:04,281 and I go, "Dale, what's the deal? 430 00:22:04,364 --> 00:22:06,533 "Dale, I just drove all the way over here. 431 00:22:06,616 --> 00:22:08,076 You told me it was somebody real important." 432 00:22:08,160 --> 00:22:11,163 He said, "All right, I'm gonna tell you. It's George Harrison." 433 00:22:11,747 --> 00:22:14,041 And I just kind of was looking at him like... 434 00:22:14,124 --> 00:22:16,251 You know? I mean, I was kind of in shock. 435 00:22:18,003 --> 00:22:20,047 And all of a sudden, George walks through the door 436 00:22:20,130 --> 00:22:23,175 with Mal Evans, who was The Beatles' road manager. 437 00:22:23,258 --> 00:22:25,135 He said he had a guitar stolen from him. 438 00:22:25,218 --> 00:22:27,804 It was a Les Paul that Eric Clapton gave him, 439 00:22:27,888 --> 00:22:29,181 and he needs to replace it. 440 00:22:29,264 --> 00:22:31,641 They found the store where the guitar was sold to, 441 00:22:31,725 --> 00:22:34,603 the guy who bought it at that store, bought it in good faith. 442 00:22:34,686 --> 00:22:37,981 And the guy said he'd be willing to give George back his guitar 443 00:22:38,607 --> 00:22:39,983 if he could get a similar guitar, 444 00:22:40,067 --> 00:22:43,820 a late-'50s Les Paul Standard in exchange. 445 00:22:43,904 --> 00:22:46,281 So I told him, "Well, I happen to have three of 'em. 446 00:22:46,364 --> 00:22:49,242 He jumped in my car and we drove back to Sherman Oaks. 447 00:22:49,910 --> 00:22:51,703 I had a three-bedroom apartment at the time, 448 00:22:51,787 --> 00:22:53,246 but I had two bedrooms 449 00:22:53,330 --> 00:22:55,499 that were just filled with guitars, everywhere. 450 00:22:55,999 --> 00:22:58,502 I opened the door, and Marlene is still in her bathrobe, 451 00:22:58,585 --> 00:23:02,130 and I go, "Marlene, uh, I'm bringing in George Harrison." 452 00:23:02,214 --> 00:23:05,092 I said, "Yeah, right." And I stayed in my bathrobe... 453 00:23:05,175 --> 00:23:06,468 [chuckles] ...and I didn't even change. 454 00:23:07,010 --> 00:23:10,639 And then, two seconds later, George and Mal walked through the door, 455 00:23:10,722 --> 00:23:13,809 and Marlene was, like, looking at me, like, "Why didn't you tell me?" 456 00:23:13,892 --> 00:23:16,103 [chuckling] You know? You know, and she's in shock. 457 00:23:16,186 --> 00:23:18,647 And anyhow, we sat there for a couple hours, 458 00:23:18,730 --> 00:23:19,856 played some guitars, 459 00:23:19,940 --> 00:23:21,399 and George ended up buying 460 00:23:21,483 --> 00:23:24,986 two late-'50s Les Paul Standard sunbursts, 461 00:23:25,070 --> 00:23:28,573 one to send to replace the guitar and get his guitar back, 462 00:23:28,657 --> 00:23:31,368 and another one that he fell in love with, which was a 60, 463 00:23:31,451 --> 00:23:34,621 that was very clean, that he wanted for himself. 464 00:23:34,704 --> 00:23:37,749 And he also bought a 1956 Stratocaster, 465 00:23:38,500 --> 00:23:40,460 which I charged him 750 bucks. 466 00:23:40,544 --> 00:23:43,421 Nowadays, this would probably be a $50,000 or 60,000 guitar. 467 00:23:43,505 --> 00:23:44,631 It was super clean. 468 00:23:44,714 --> 00:23:45,674 But I liked him very much, 469 00:23:45,757 --> 00:23:48,593 and I was so stoked that I was actually even dealing with George Harrison 470 00:23:48,677 --> 00:23:49,553 that I didn't really care. 471 00:23:49,636 --> 00:23:51,388 I would've given him the guitar probably, 472 00:23:51,471 --> 00:23:53,014 just to be able to say that. 473 00:23:53,098 --> 00:23:55,600 Although, I didn't think anybody would believe me. 474 00:23:57,894 --> 00:24:00,355 I would run these ads in the L.A. Times 475 00:24:00,438 --> 00:24:02,065 for instruments for sale. 476 00:24:02,149 --> 00:24:03,066 And I get a call, 477 00:24:03,150 --> 00:24:05,277 and the guy says, "You know, I'd like to come see these." 478 00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:06,486 And I said, "Yeah, come on over." 479 00:24:06,570 --> 00:24:08,530 And I said, "What's your name?" And he goes, "Robbie." 480 00:24:08,613 --> 00:24:11,783 And Robbie comes in, and I didn't recognize him, 481 00:24:11,867 --> 00:24:14,077 but it was Robbie Robertson from The Band. 482 00:24:14,161 --> 00:24:17,581 So he came in and he buys several instruments from me. 483 00:24:18,123 --> 00:24:21,084 And then, I got a call, like, the next maybe Wednesday or Thursday, 484 00:24:21,168 --> 00:24:22,294 and he said, "You know, 485 00:24:22,377 --> 00:24:25,714 this Saturday, I'd like to bring a friend of mine in, if you wouldn't mind." 486 00:24:25,797 --> 00:24:27,174 I said, "No, no." 487 00:24:27,257 --> 00:24:28,508 He brings in Bob Dylan. 488 00:24:28,592 --> 00:24:30,886 And that was the first time that I ever dealt with Bob Dylan. 489 00:24:30,969 --> 00:24:33,805 And Bob ended up buying some instruments from me. 490 00:24:33,889 --> 00:24:37,601 And then Robbie also brought Joni Mitchell and Robben Ford. 491 00:24:37,684 --> 00:24:40,729 And it seemed like, you know, word of mouth around town 492 00:24:40,812 --> 00:24:41,897 amongst the musicians, 493 00:24:41,980 --> 00:24:43,440 'cause there were no vintage stores, 494 00:24:43,523 --> 00:24:45,066 nobody had any vintage stuff. 495 00:24:45,150 --> 00:24:48,528 And I had a three-bedroom apartment with guitars everywhere. 496 00:24:48,612 --> 00:24:50,155 And so, I had kind of monopoly 497 00:24:50,238 --> 00:24:53,366 on the vintage market at the time in LA, 498 00:24:53,450 --> 00:24:54,743 and it really... 499 00:24:54,826 --> 00:24:58,496 Robbie was very instrumental in building my business up. 500 00:24:58,580 --> 00:25:00,207 And it was really a plan B. 501 00:25:00,290 --> 00:25:04,169 I mean, I really started out, coming out to California to be a musician. 502 00:25:04,252 --> 00:25:07,505 You know, my intention was to just be able to provide a living for my family. 503 00:25:13,053 --> 00:25:15,555 [Sarah] So if I put this for instance, right up here. 504 00:25:15,639 --> 00:25:17,515 [Norman] Yeah, just so that you can read 505 00:25:17,599 --> 00:25:19,684 what the thing is on the bottom. 506 00:25:19,768 --> 00:25:20,977 Make sure that there's something-- 507 00:25:21,061 --> 00:25:22,103 -So, yeah. -I see that. 508 00:25:22,187 --> 00:25:24,856 Yeah. And just all this stuff is just kind of... 509 00:25:24,940 --> 00:25:26,942 [Sarah] You know how they say you grow into your parents, 510 00:25:27,025 --> 00:25:28,360 like you don't even realize it? 511 00:25:28,443 --> 00:25:31,947 But I'm starting to see, like, I can't shut off. 512 00:25:32,030 --> 00:25:34,824 Like, I couldn't sleep last night, because I was thinking about clients 513 00:25:34,908 --> 00:25:36,701 and emails and all this crap. 514 00:25:36,785 --> 00:25:39,287 And that's the same shit that I come down on him for. 515 00:25:41,623 --> 00:25:42,707 [Norman] I mean, if it wasn't for my family, 516 00:25:42,791 --> 00:25:45,126 I probably wouldn't go to the doctor to be honest with you. 517 00:25:45,210 --> 00:25:47,754 -I'm like, you know, I'm... -I know. 518 00:25:47,837 --> 00:25:49,589 I figure I'm here till I'm not, you know? 519 00:25:49,673 --> 00:25:51,758 But, you know, I did and I checked it out 520 00:25:51,841 --> 00:25:54,678 and unfortunately or fortunately, 521 00:25:54,761 --> 00:25:55,804 that's the news I got. 522 00:25:56,388 --> 00:25:58,974 I mean, nobody's taking it great. My daughter is... 523 00:25:59,057 --> 00:26:01,476 you know, and it's tough for her. So... 524 00:26:02,102 --> 00:26:06,648 I think my dad taught me, like, an insane work ethic. 525 00:26:06,731 --> 00:26:09,192 I grew up, and he wasn't around that much. 526 00:26:09,276 --> 00:26:12,195 And sometimes, it does bother me. 527 00:26:14,155 --> 00:26:16,366 I tell my dad, like, "I want you to retire. 528 00:26:16,449 --> 00:26:20,620 You're getting older, you need to just relax and chill." 529 00:26:20,704 --> 00:26:23,248 But he's not him without that store. 530 00:26:23,331 --> 00:26:26,167 Like, he doesn't have an identity without that store. 531 00:26:26,251 --> 00:26:29,045 It's like his life, day and night. 532 00:26:33,216 --> 00:26:35,218 [blues music playing] 533 00:26:39,055 --> 00:26:43,101 When we had our firstborn, Jordan, I was, you know... 534 00:26:43,184 --> 00:26:46,187 And I'm still kind of a reluctant father. 535 00:26:46,813 --> 00:26:50,650 [Marlene] Norman, you know, was more of a big kid than, 536 00:26:50,734 --> 00:26:52,569 you know, a hands-on parent. 537 00:26:52,652 --> 00:26:55,196 I mean, he was off playing softball 538 00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:57,532 or playing in the band at night. 539 00:26:57,615 --> 00:27:01,745 And I would have to say, I was the responsible parent. 540 00:27:01,828 --> 00:27:04,622 He was a good father, but he wasn't there a lot. 541 00:27:04,706 --> 00:27:06,666 Jordan was my first, 542 00:27:06,750 --> 00:27:10,045 and Sarah wasn't born until six years later. 543 00:27:10,128 --> 00:27:12,297 And, of course, I was crazy about her 544 00:27:12,380 --> 00:27:13,840 just like I was with Jordan. 545 00:27:13,923 --> 00:27:16,301 [Marlene] I had my hands full with both of them. 546 00:27:16,384 --> 00:27:19,220 And, you know, when he was there, we had a good time. 547 00:27:19,304 --> 00:27:22,474 [Norman] I always felt kind of, you know, out there as a father. 548 00:27:22,557 --> 00:27:25,393 I would see these television shows like Father Knows Best 549 00:27:25,477 --> 00:27:26,728 and Leave It to Beaver. 550 00:27:26,811 --> 00:27:29,105 And these families seemed so normal, 551 00:27:29,189 --> 00:27:30,899 and I felt so abnormal 552 00:27:30,982 --> 00:27:35,195 that I just couldn't really see myself as being a father. 553 00:27:35,779 --> 00:27:37,238 But I did the best that I could. 554 00:27:37,322 --> 00:27:39,657 But there were a lot of long-haired musicians hanging around, 555 00:27:39,741 --> 00:27:42,535 and, you know, that was just the way it was back then. 556 00:27:42,619 --> 00:27:44,412 And I always kind of felt like The Munsters 557 00:27:44,496 --> 00:27:46,289 or The Addams Family or something, 558 00:27:46,373 --> 00:27:49,959 I was just felt totally off to the, uh, to the left. 559 00:27:50,502 --> 00:27:55,048 Norman worked really hard, and he was always stoned. 560 00:27:55,131 --> 00:28:00,512 So... [laughing] ...it was amazing that he could do what he did, 561 00:28:00,595 --> 00:28:02,931 and smoke as much as he did. 562 00:28:05,683 --> 00:28:08,812 I never really thought about opening a store in my life. 563 00:28:09,312 --> 00:28:11,731 But at the end of 1974, 564 00:28:11,815 --> 00:28:14,692 we were paid a visit by the State Board of Equalization. 565 00:28:14,776 --> 00:28:16,653 Somebody had said, I guess, 566 00:28:16,736 --> 00:28:18,780 that we were doing business out of the house. 567 00:28:18,863 --> 00:28:23,201 So, we ended up having to look for a location, 568 00:28:23,284 --> 00:28:25,995 and my mom and I went out, found the first store, 569 00:28:26,079 --> 00:28:28,373 which was about 500 square feet. 570 00:28:28,456 --> 00:28:30,417 It was on Vanowen and Tampa. 571 00:28:30,500 --> 00:28:32,877 Norman's Rare Guitars, Vanowen and Tampa. 572 00:28:32,961 --> 00:28:35,672 [Norman] I didn't know if I was gonna have a business or not, you know? 573 00:28:35,755 --> 00:28:39,175 So, we wanted a really small store with very low rent, 574 00:28:39,259 --> 00:28:41,678 and I didn't know if I'd be in business for five years 575 00:28:41,761 --> 00:28:43,638 or two years or six months. 576 00:28:43,722 --> 00:28:45,598 Hi, I'm Scott Borden. 577 00:28:45,682 --> 00:28:47,851 I was Norman's original partner. 578 00:28:47,934 --> 00:28:53,565 We opened the store, I believe on Valentine's Day in 1975. 579 00:28:53,648 --> 00:28:57,444 And I was there virtually every day for the next ten years. 580 00:28:57,527 --> 00:29:00,697 I didn't even get vacations. He wouldn't let me go. 581 00:29:00,780 --> 00:29:02,657 Back in those days, 582 00:29:02,741 --> 00:29:07,036 I was one of the few people that had never smoked a joint. 583 00:29:07,620 --> 00:29:09,956 I didn't get high and I didn't drink. 584 00:29:10,707 --> 00:29:14,252 And he had already seen that I was pretty good at selling guitars. 585 00:29:15,003 --> 00:29:18,131 And he felt like, well, since he smoked a lot 586 00:29:18,757 --> 00:29:23,428 and I didn't smoke any, I would be a good person to be in that store. 587 00:29:23,511 --> 00:29:25,597 I mean, he woke up in the morning 588 00:29:25,680 --> 00:29:28,850 and he reached over on his nightstand, and grabbed a joint. 589 00:29:29,434 --> 00:29:31,811 And to this day, I've still never smoked pot. 590 00:29:32,437 --> 00:29:34,731 I sold a lot of it, but I never smoked it. 591 00:29:34,814 --> 00:29:37,317 We just developed a mutual trust for each other. 592 00:29:37,400 --> 00:29:40,612 And when we opened the store, he could leave. 593 00:29:40,695 --> 00:29:41,696 He trusted me. 594 00:29:41,780 --> 00:29:44,199 To this day, he's one of my favorite people. 595 00:29:44,282 --> 00:29:47,827 And I've been out of the store since say, 1985, 596 00:29:47,911 --> 00:29:49,037 which is how long? 597 00:29:54,167 --> 00:29:58,880 The first store on Tampa, it was 6753 Tampa Avenue. 598 00:29:58,963 --> 00:30:03,384 And it had this big funky put-together wooden sign up in front 599 00:30:03,468 --> 00:30:06,054 that was built by Dan, 600 00:30:06,137 --> 00:30:08,765 and the logo designed by John Juke Logan. 601 00:30:08,848 --> 00:30:10,809 They were your typical music store 602 00:30:10,892 --> 00:30:12,477 I was used to back East. 603 00:30:12,560 --> 00:30:14,062 Uh, very cramped 604 00:30:14,145 --> 00:30:17,148 and you'll see amps piled on each other just to make room. 605 00:30:17,232 --> 00:30:20,068 Yeah, it was a piece of shit. It was basically a closet. 606 00:30:21,069 --> 00:30:24,155 [Scott] We just had guitars all over the place. 607 00:30:24,989 --> 00:30:27,283 [Tucci] He had things that nobody else had. 608 00:30:27,367 --> 00:30:29,285 When you went there, it was like, "Oh, 609 00:30:29,369 --> 00:30:32,497 this was different. This was special." 610 00:30:32,580 --> 00:30:36,125 [Rob] So, you walked in, and it was emerald green carpeting, 611 00:30:36,709 --> 00:30:41,381 and, like, baby poo tan walls. 612 00:30:41,464 --> 00:30:45,552 But it was packed with museum piece guitars. 613 00:30:46,052 --> 00:30:48,137 I mean, it was like you'd see '50's Teles 614 00:30:48,221 --> 00:30:52,100 and '60's Strats and '50's Less Paul's. 615 00:30:52,183 --> 00:30:54,894 I mean, they would just be there like it was just regular stock. 616 00:30:54,978 --> 00:30:58,898 And in the back, there was a pinball machine and there was a couch, 617 00:30:59,440 --> 00:31:02,777 and on the wall was... They didn't have a phone book. 618 00:31:02,861 --> 00:31:04,445 They wrote everybody's number on the wall. 619 00:31:04,529 --> 00:31:06,739 And there was another part of the wall that they used 620 00:31:06,823 --> 00:31:09,200 to tally up what people owed them. 621 00:31:09,868 --> 00:31:12,620 And a piece of furniture named Scott, 622 00:31:12,704 --> 00:31:16,082 who was always there eating watermelon and watching TV. 623 00:31:16,165 --> 00:31:18,209 And I still remember the smell to this day. 624 00:31:18,293 --> 00:31:19,335 When we first started, 625 00:31:19,419 --> 00:31:22,046 the rent on the store was $600 a month. 626 00:31:22,839 --> 00:31:26,801 We used to say, you know, if we can gross a couple hundred bucks a day, 627 00:31:26,885 --> 00:31:27,886 we'd be doing okay. 628 00:31:27,969 --> 00:31:31,347 There was no such thing as these $10,000 guitars 629 00:31:31,431 --> 00:31:33,683 or even $5,000 guitars back then. 630 00:31:33,766 --> 00:31:37,437 It was just amazing, because it was this little store, 631 00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:39,772 but people were already kind of talking about us. 632 00:31:39,856 --> 00:31:42,650 It just started growing on its own. 633 00:31:42,734 --> 00:31:46,696 The first little store was kind of like a "hidden gem" type vibe 634 00:31:46,779 --> 00:31:48,656 'cause it wasn't that well known, 635 00:31:48,740 --> 00:31:50,533 because there was no internet and stuff like that. 636 00:31:50,617 --> 00:31:52,994 So it was kind of like the "in guys" went in there. 637 00:31:53,077 --> 00:31:54,579 You'd never know who you're gonna see in there. 638 00:31:54,662 --> 00:31:56,873 [Nick] The biggest names in rock and roll would just come in 639 00:31:56,956 --> 00:31:58,666 and hang out for a couple hours. 640 00:31:58,750 --> 00:32:01,377 First time I went to Norman's old store, 641 00:32:01,461 --> 00:32:04,213 I see these two hairy-looking creatures, 642 00:32:04,297 --> 00:32:08,801 like, through a drawer of pickups, I think it was. 643 00:32:08,885 --> 00:32:11,512 And as my eyes got accustomed to light, 644 00:32:11,596 --> 00:32:14,057 I realized it was Tom Petty and Bob Dylan 645 00:32:14,140 --> 00:32:17,143 looking for Rickenbacker pickups or something. 646 00:32:17,226 --> 00:32:20,688 I grew up in an environment of hanging in coffee shops, 647 00:32:20,772 --> 00:32:22,607 hanging in guitar shops. 648 00:32:22,690 --> 00:32:24,943 To me, it was always like a gathering place of... 649 00:32:25,026 --> 00:32:28,321 of kind of like-minded people, you know, that like guitars. 650 00:32:28,404 --> 00:32:29,697 I've always liked guitars. 651 00:32:29,781 --> 00:32:32,617 I mean, I had vintage guitars in the '60's. 652 00:32:32,700 --> 00:32:35,578 I didn't really know they'd be worth $300,000 now. 653 00:32:35,662 --> 00:32:38,539 I thought $150 was a pretty good stretch in those days. 654 00:32:38,623 --> 00:32:41,918 Being the guitar nerd that I was, I went to all the shops. 655 00:32:42,502 --> 00:32:45,296 I never could afford any back then when I was 19. 656 00:32:45,380 --> 00:32:47,131 But as the years rolled along, 657 00:32:47,215 --> 00:32:48,841 I'd pick 'em up from time to time. 658 00:32:48,925 --> 00:32:52,053 But, that was always a fun shop to go to 659 00:32:52,136 --> 00:32:55,348 'cause Norm always had just loads and loads and loads of great stuff. 660 00:32:55,431 --> 00:32:59,060 I have several instruments in my collection that I bought from Norman. 661 00:32:59,143 --> 00:33:01,688 And been a friend for, gosh, 43 years. 662 00:33:01,771 --> 00:33:04,607 When I'd get back in from working with John Mayall on the road, 663 00:33:04,691 --> 00:33:08,152 I'd go and hang, and we'd play cards there all day long, 664 00:33:08,236 --> 00:33:11,781 and listen to music and play music in the store. 665 00:33:12,281 --> 00:33:15,243 Just goof off, you know. We got close that way. 666 00:33:15,326 --> 00:33:17,829 It was like coming to somebody's living room 667 00:33:17,912 --> 00:33:20,581 and being able to play the best guitars in the world. 668 00:33:20,665 --> 00:33:22,709 So, why wouldn't you go hang out there? 669 00:33:24,085 --> 00:33:28,589 I was starting to write articles for music periodicals, 670 00:33:28,673 --> 00:33:31,467 and I thought, "Well, you know, it would be great to try 671 00:33:31,551 --> 00:33:32,719 "and write an article on Norm. 672 00:33:32,802 --> 00:33:34,262 "I think this is interesting stuff 673 00:33:34,345 --> 00:33:36,681 and I'll submit it to Guitar Player," 674 00:33:36,764 --> 00:33:39,892 'cause I knew the editor at the time, and submitted it. 675 00:33:39,976 --> 00:33:44,480 And sure enough, it got in the December, 1976 issue 676 00:33:44,564 --> 00:33:45,565 with Robbie Robertson. 677 00:33:45,648 --> 00:33:47,150 That article, 678 00:33:47,233 --> 00:33:49,235 it brought him worldwide recognition 679 00:33:49,318 --> 00:33:51,904 and people started coming in from Japan, from Europe. 680 00:33:51,988 --> 00:33:54,323 We really have to credit the Guitar Player article. 681 00:33:54,407 --> 00:33:58,703 And it was the first article written about the business 682 00:33:58,786 --> 00:34:01,831 of rare guitar investing and collecting. 683 00:34:01,914 --> 00:34:03,666 After that article came out, 684 00:34:03,750 --> 00:34:07,295 everybody started talking about vintage guitars. 685 00:34:07,378 --> 00:34:10,214 His business was solid at that point. 686 00:34:10,298 --> 00:34:11,632 It put us on the map 687 00:34:11,716 --> 00:34:15,053 and legitimized what Norman's Rare Guitars was. 688 00:34:15,887 --> 00:34:18,681 Eventually, we needed some more space, 689 00:34:18,765 --> 00:34:23,144 and the store on the corner, which was 1,800 square feet became available, 690 00:34:23,227 --> 00:34:25,354 and we signed onto that store. 691 00:34:25,438 --> 00:34:27,732 I figured I'll never be able to fill this store up. 692 00:34:27,815 --> 00:34:30,151 You know, within a few months, we had more guitars in there. 693 00:34:30,234 --> 00:34:31,360 You could hardly walk in there. 694 00:34:31,444 --> 00:34:33,571 Hi, I'm Doug Fieger, The Knack and I don't do commercials, 695 00:34:33,654 --> 00:34:35,198 but I've been shopping at Norm's Rare Guitars 696 00:34:35,281 --> 00:34:36,407 for almost 20 years, 697 00:34:36,491 --> 00:34:38,576 and some of my favorite guitars come from here. 698 00:34:38,659 --> 00:34:40,453 So do yourself a favor and check it out. 699 00:34:42,371 --> 00:34:44,582 I was 13, 14, 15 years old at the time. 700 00:34:45,083 --> 00:34:47,668 My excitement walking from the parking lot 701 00:34:47,752 --> 00:34:50,088 up the street, up Tampa just to the corner, 702 00:34:50,171 --> 00:34:52,131 was like, it was just awesome. 703 00:34:52,215 --> 00:34:55,134 -And it's all original '63? -Yep. 704 00:34:55,218 --> 00:34:58,346 [John 5] I was very young when I first started going to Norm's. 705 00:34:58,429 --> 00:35:02,350 I probably had to be, you know, 18 or something like that. 706 00:35:02,433 --> 00:35:07,021 There was no internet, there was no social media, there was nothing. 707 00:35:07,105 --> 00:35:08,648 So, it was just word of mouth. 708 00:35:08,731 --> 00:35:10,733 If you wanted a great guitar, 709 00:35:10,817 --> 00:35:12,819 you would go to Norman's Rare Guitars. 710 00:35:12,902 --> 00:35:15,488 There was tons of just old guitars and dudes. 711 00:35:15,571 --> 00:35:18,324 You would see, like, a group of guys, all talking laughing, 712 00:35:18,407 --> 00:35:19,742 shooting the shit, whatever they do. 713 00:35:20,660 --> 00:35:23,538 But in the middle of 'em was always Norman, you know, 714 00:35:23,621 --> 00:35:25,581 just kinda like the Godfather just sitting there almost. 715 00:35:25,665 --> 00:35:27,834 I mean, and he wasn't-- Maybe it wasn't like that, 716 00:35:27,917 --> 00:35:31,212 but he was always super-cool, like, super-friendly to us. 717 00:35:31,295 --> 00:35:33,214 And for whatever reason, I don't know, 718 00:35:33,297 --> 00:35:35,466 I mean it was just because he's compassionate. I don't know. 719 00:35:35,550 --> 00:35:39,011 When I would go into the store, I would have this feeling 720 00:35:39,095 --> 00:35:40,596 of, you know, euphoria. 721 00:35:40,680 --> 00:35:43,057 Because you saw all these... Not just guitars, 722 00:35:43,141 --> 00:35:45,226 but they were amazing guitars. 723 00:35:45,309 --> 00:35:47,812 They were like just the cream of the crop, 724 00:35:47,895 --> 00:35:50,231 and the best of the best. 725 00:35:50,314 --> 00:35:53,109 Everybody was super-nice, really cool. 726 00:35:53,693 --> 00:35:55,736 And they were like, play whatever you want to play. 727 00:35:55,820 --> 00:35:58,197 And you could touch 'em and you could play 'em, 728 00:35:58,281 --> 00:36:00,867 and you could strum 'em. It was a magic time for me. 729 00:36:00,950 --> 00:36:03,619 And, you know, you kind of felt special. 730 00:36:03,703 --> 00:36:06,247 You kind of felt like a part of this family. 731 00:36:09,917 --> 00:36:11,836 [Norman] But, you know, this place is kind of like a hotel. 732 00:36:11,919 --> 00:36:13,462 They come and they stay for a short time, 733 00:36:13,546 --> 00:36:15,923 and then they leave and go all over the world. 734 00:36:16,007 --> 00:36:18,426 [announcer] One of Bruce Springsteen's guitars checked in recently 735 00:36:18,509 --> 00:36:19,886 for readjustment. 736 00:36:19,969 --> 00:36:21,304 Kurt Cobain had come in, 737 00:36:21,929 --> 00:36:24,599 and this is right at the height. 738 00:36:25,349 --> 00:36:29,270 He was very, very low key and really nice. 739 00:36:29,353 --> 00:36:31,439 Norman didn't know him from Adam 740 00:36:31,522 --> 00:36:32,982 because they had just broken big-- 741 00:36:33,065 --> 00:36:35,193 And that was the good thing about having me there, 742 00:36:35,276 --> 00:36:37,403 because I watched MTV. 743 00:36:37,486 --> 00:36:38,988 I knew... you know, I'd go, 744 00:36:39,071 --> 00:36:41,949 "Norm, that's that guy from this. We gotta talk to him. 745 00:36:42,033 --> 00:36:44,327 He's, you know, he's a good guy to talk to." 746 00:36:44,410 --> 00:36:48,247 I sold him that Epiphone guitar that was on the stand 747 00:36:48,331 --> 00:36:50,249 in the back of the Unplugged sessions 748 00:36:50,333 --> 00:36:52,251 that has the "Nixon for President." 749 00:36:52,335 --> 00:36:54,295 The great thing about artists like him 750 00:36:54,378 --> 00:36:56,797 and other... the big name guys is, 751 00:36:56,881 --> 00:36:58,424 we weren't trying to sell 'em anything. 752 00:36:58,507 --> 00:36:59,675 I mean we were obviously, 753 00:36:59,759 --> 00:37:01,552 but we weren't... it wasn't a hard-pressed sale. 754 00:37:01,636 --> 00:37:02,803 It was like, "Look, 755 00:37:02,887 --> 00:37:05,514 "I could show you this super-duper expensive guitar. 756 00:37:05,598 --> 00:37:06,724 "'Oh, it's an investment' 757 00:37:06,807 --> 00:37:09,101 "But, no, you know what? I think you'd really dig this. 758 00:37:09,185 --> 00:37:10,895 "This has got a great vibe. 759 00:37:10,978 --> 00:37:12,939 "I know what your playing style is. 760 00:37:13,439 --> 00:37:15,691 I think this is really cool. I love it." 761 00:37:15,775 --> 00:37:17,693 And he played it, and he goes, "Yeah, this is really good. 762 00:37:17,777 --> 00:37:19,278 And he goes, "I wound up buying it." 763 00:37:19,362 --> 00:37:20,738 And then he goes in his whiny voice, 764 00:37:20,821 --> 00:37:24,492 he goes... [imitates Cobain] "...Yeah, I went to this one guitar store in Hollywood 765 00:37:24,575 --> 00:37:26,661 "and I asked if I could play the guitar. 766 00:37:26,744 --> 00:37:29,997 "And the guy goes, 'Well, that guitar's really expensive.' 767 00:37:30,081 --> 00:37:32,166 "And I left, and I just wanted to look back 768 00:37:32,250 --> 00:37:34,752 and go, 'I could buy this whole guitar store if I wanted to.' 769 00:37:34,835 --> 00:37:35,753 So I came here." 770 00:37:35,836 --> 00:37:37,838 [rock music playing] 771 00:37:43,594 --> 00:37:47,139 [Kiefer] I remember just the amount of playing in that store, 772 00:37:47,223 --> 00:37:50,059 and it was so unlike any other guitar store I'd been in, 773 00:37:50,643 --> 00:37:52,561 because on any given day, 774 00:37:52,645 --> 00:37:54,272 Jackson Browne could be in there, 775 00:37:54,355 --> 00:37:55,690 this person could be in there. 776 00:37:55,773 --> 00:37:59,068 And so, the playing that was going on was pretty extraordinary. 777 00:37:59,151 --> 00:38:02,154 And every once in a while, especially with the professional musicians, 778 00:38:02,238 --> 00:38:04,240 you could tell if someone was working up a new song, 779 00:38:04,824 --> 00:38:07,535 'cause that's what they would immediately start to play on the guitar. 780 00:38:07,618 --> 00:38:09,704 And so, it was just a fascinating thing to watch. 781 00:38:09,787 --> 00:38:12,248 It very quickly just became my favorite store. 782 00:38:14,166 --> 00:38:17,086 There's an instrument that I think will be coming up here 783 00:38:17,169 --> 00:38:19,630 that was in Streets of Fire, 784 00:38:19,714 --> 00:38:22,091 and we're now negotiating, I think, right now 785 00:38:22,174 --> 00:38:24,844 on doing a new Steve Spielberg movie 786 00:38:24,927 --> 00:38:26,220 called Back To The Future. 787 00:38:26,304 --> 00:38:28,306 [playing rock 'n' roll riff] 788 00:38:35,104 --> 00:38:38,024 The legacy that he's had in TV and film, 789 00:38:38,566 --> 00:38:40,776 everything from The Last Waltz 790 00:38:40,860 --> 00:38:43,112 to Spinal Tap and Back To The Future. 791 00:38:44,488 --> 00:38:47,825 He even told them, "You're in 1955. 792 00:38:47,908 --> 00:38:51,495 "This gear that I'm renting to you wasn't made until 1958. 793 00:38:51,579 --> 00:38:53,205 You truly must have a time machine." 794 00:38:54,832 --> 00:38:57,293 A lot of the times when they needed instruments 795 00:38:57,376 --> 00:38:58,878 from either a certain time period, 796 00:38:58,961 --> 00:39:01,422 and they wanted things to be authentic, 797 00:39:01,505 --> 00:39:02,465 they called on us. 798 00:39:03,924 --> 00:39:06,385 I supplied the instruments to The Last Waltz. 799 00:39:06,469 --> 00:39:08,929 That was one of the things I'm the most proud of. 800 00:39:09,013 --> 00:39:12,641 I think it's the greatest rock documentary of all time. 801 00:39:12,725 --> 00:39:15,644 ♪ When I get off of This mountain ♪ 802 00:39:16,354 --> 00:39:18,814 ♪ You know where I want to go... ♪ 803 00:39:18,898 --> 00:39:22,526 This is little piece of history. 804 00:39:22,610 --> 00:39:27,907 So on that tour with The Band and Bob Dylan in 1974, 805 00:39:28,491 --> 00:39:32,745 I got from Norm a red Stratocaster, 806 00:39:32,828 --> 00:39:34,580 and it felt so good. 807 00:39:34,663 --> 00:39:37,875 It felt like the nicest Telecaster, 808 00:39:37,958 --> 00:39:40,252 'cause some of them, the early ones 809 00:39:40,336 --> 00:39:42,254 can be a little bulky in the neck, 810 00:39:42,338 --> 00:39:44,507 or a little thin, whatever. 811 00:39:44,590 --> 00:39:46,634 This one felt beautiful. 812 00:39:46,717 --> 00:39:48,844 So I used it the whole tour. 813 00:39:49,345 --> 00:39:54,433 In 1976, when we decided to do The Last Waltz, 814 00:39:54,975 --> 00:39:56,602 concert and movie, 815 00:39:56,685 --> 00:39:58,813 this guitar, I thought, "Well, 816 00:39:58,896 --> 00:40:02,149 "we're bringing things to a conclusion here. 817 00:40:02,233 --> 00:40:05,027 "I'm gonna have this guitar bronzed. 818 00:40:05,111 --> 00:40:09,949 "I'm gonna have it dipped, like they do baby shoes, and bronze them." 819 00:40:10,032 --> 00:40:13,953 So they did. And it changed the sound of it 820 00:40:14,578 --> 00:40:15,788 in a good way. 821 00:40:15,871 --> 00:40:17,289 It was great. 822 00:40:17,373 --> 00:40:18,958 But what I didn't realize, 823 00:40:19,041 --> 00:40:22,878 'cause The Last Waltz concert went on for five hours, 824 00:40:22,962 --> 00:40:25,214 and it also made it twice as heavy. 825 00:40:28,426 --> 00:40:32,263 I had another Stratocaster 826 00:40:32,346 --> 00:40:34,974 that I got from Norm. Beauty. 827 00:40:35,850 --> 00:40:39,145 And so with the bronze one, when it would wear me out, 828 00:40:39,228 --> 00:40:42,565 I would switch to the other Strat. 829 00:40:42,648 --> 00:40:46,235 And when Eric Clapton plays in The Last Waltz 830 00:40:46,318 --> 00:40:50,030 and its strap breaks, I was playing that guitar. 831 00:40:52,867 --> 00:40:55,661 And Martin Scorsese had said to me, 832 00:40:55,744 --> 00:40:57,955 "My God, that's such a beautiful guitar," 833 00:40:58,038 --> 00:41:00,249 when they were editing the movie. 834 00:41:00,332 --> 00:41:04,128 And, but he kept saying, "God, that's a beautiful-looking guitar." 835 00:41:04,211 --> 00:41:08,215 And then, in the fall of 1977, 836 00:41:08,299 --> 00:41:12,553 I gave him the sunburst one 837 00:41:12,636 --> 00:41:13,679 for his birthday. 838 00:41:15,181 --> 00:41:16,015 [inhales deeply] 839 00:41:16,140 --> 00:41:18,100 [sighs] I don't know if I should have done that. 840 00:41:18,934 --> 00:41:21,437 [rock music playing] 841 00:41:27,735 --> 00:41:29,320 [Norman] I also supplied Spinal Tap 842 00:41:29,403 --> 00:41:30,988 with a whole bunch of guitars 843 00:41:31,071 --> 00:41:34,158 that were, like, Les Pauls and Stratocasters 844 00:41:34,241 --> 00:41:35,826 and Fender Bass VIs. 845 00:41:35,910 --> 00:41:37,536 It's quite unbelievable. 846 00:41:37,620 --> 00:41:39,914 And I supplied them with a Marshall Amp. 847 00:41:39,997 --> 00:41:41,332 They said, "Well, 848 00:41:41,415 --> 00:41:45,419 "one of our gags is we're gonna say 'amps go from one to ten, 849 00:41:45,503 --> 00:41:47,296 but this amp goes to 11.'" 850 00:41:47,379 --> 00:41:50,424 [man] Eleven. Look, right across the board. 851 00:41:50,508 --> 00:41:51,717 -Eleven, eleven, eleven... -[man 2] Oh, I see. 852 00:41:51,800 --> 00:41:54,803 -And most of these amps go up to ten. -Exactly. 853 00:41:54,887 --> 00:41:57,431 Does that mean it's louder? Is it any louder? 854 00:41:57,515 --> 00:41:59,266 Well, it's one louder, isn't it? 855 00:41:59,350 --> 00:42:01,185 [Norman] And that was kind of one of their gags, 856 00:42:01,268 --> 00:42:04,563 and it's part of the vernacular of musical instrument culture 857 00:42:04,647 --> 00:42:06,524 where people go, "Yeah, it goes to 11, 858 00:42:06,607 --> 00:42:08,651 and people know what that means. 859 00:42:08,734 --> 00:42:10,486 It's a Spinal Tap reference. 860 00:42:11,111 --> 00:42:13,656 [rock music playing] 861 00:42:21,705 --> 00:42:23,165 [Norman] When I see these things in videos, 862 00:42:23,249 --> 00:42:24,542 and I see 'em in movies 863 00:42:24,625 --> 00:42:27,044 and I see them on TV and all that, 864 00:42:27,127 --> 00:42:29,755 and I know that I actually supplied that instrument, 865 00:42:29,838 --> 00:42:34,051 I mean, you know, it's like supplying them with a... a weapon. 866 00:42:34,134 --> 00:42:36,637 I feel like I have a history with the artist 867 00:42:36,720 --> 00:42:38,097 and with the item. 868 00:42:38,180 --> 00:42:41,475 I have a memory a lot of times with the guitar itself, 869 00:42:41,559 --> 00:42:43,185 and it's just real satisfying. 870 00:42:43,269 --> 00:42:46,188 It's just something that's a good feeling to know that I was a part of it. 871 00:42:55,406 --> 00:42:58,325 [Marlene] The store on Tampa and Vanowen 872 00:42:58,409 --> 00:43:00,828 felt like the walls were coming in, 873 00:43:00,911 --> 00:43:03,706 and he needed to get a bigger store. 874 00:43:03,789 --> 00:43:05,165 The store that I'm presently in, 875 00:43:05,249 --> 00:43:08,085 that we moved in the year 2000, 876 00:43:08,168 --> 00:43:09,920 is 6,000 square feet. 877 00:43:10,004 --> 00:43:12,381 Same thing. I figured we'd never be able to fill it up. 878 00:43:12,464 --> 00:43:15,009 But we've filled it up, and more. 879 00:43:15,092 --> 00:43:20,139 ♪ It's so good to be ♪ 880 00:43:20,222 --> 00:43:22,266 ♪ Home ♪ 881 00:43:22,349 --> 00:43:28,772 ♪ Home, yeah It's so good to be home ♪ 882 00:43:31,025 --> 00:43:33,193 ♪ Yes, it is ♪ 883 00:43:34,111 --> 00:43:35,738 ♪ Oh, baby ♪ 884 00:43:37,740 --> 00:43:41,035 -[upbeat rock music playing over speakers] -[Norman speaking indistinctly] 885 00:43:42,411 --> 00:43:44,079 You guys have put up with a lot, 886 00:43:44,163 --> 00:43:45,623 and I want to thank my kids, 887 00:43:45,706 --> 00:43:48,959 and I want to thank the person who I love the most in the world 888 00:43:49,043 --> 00:43:52,504 and who has put up with me for 25 some-odd years. 889 00:43:52,588 --> 00:43:54,882 And I hope it goes for a lot longer. My wife Marlene. 890 00:43:54,965 --> 00:43:57,885 -Thank you very much. -[crowd cheering] 891 00:43:57,968 --> 00:43:59,470 [man] So, Marlene, do you have anything special you want 892 00:43:59,553 --> 00:44:01,889 to say to Norman on your 25th anniversary? 893 00:44:01,972 --> 00:44:03,349 Yeah, that I really love him a lot, 894 00:44:03,432 --> 00:44:07,102 and I'm really glad that we had everybody come tonight 895 00:44:07,186 --> 00:44:08,646 and I'm having a really good time. 896 00:44:12,441 --> 00:44:14,777 Twenty-five years is quite an accomplishment. 897 00:44:14,860 --> 00:44:17,446 Congratulations, and hopefully another 25 years to come. 898 00:44:18,572 --> 00:44:20,032 [Rick] I've known Norm for a long time, 899 00:44:20,115 --> 00:44:23,911 and I really cherish the relationship with him. 900 00:44:23,994 --> 00:44:27,414 Good friend, and kind of like a brother in a way. 901 00:44:27,498 --> 00:44:29,958 You know, everybody's got to have a brother like that. 902 00:44:30,501 --> 00:44:31,460 I love this man. 903 00:44:31,543 --> 00:44:34,171 I've been coming into the store actually for 28 years. 904 00:44:34,254 --> 00:44:37,508 I usually come in Friday afternoons. 905 00:44:37,591 --> 00:44:40,636 There's a certain kind of Epiphone guitars that I like, 906 00:44:41,929 --> 00:44:44,556 acoustic flat tops, early '60's, short headstock. 907 00:44:44,640 --> 00:44:46,141 So I come in, and he had just got one in 908 00:44:46,225 --> 00:44:48,602 and he goes. "Hey, you know, I know you got a lot of these. 909 00:44:49,353 --> 00:44:50,437 Here's one, take a look at it." 910 00:44:50,521 --> 00:44:53,065 Now, it hadn't been set up yet, it didn't have fresh strings. 911 00:44:53,148 --> 00:44:55,526 So I said, "All right, Norm, let's do this. 912 00:44:55,609 --> 00:44:57,778 "Set it up in the morning. You open at 11:00, 913 00:44:57,861 --> 00:45:00,072 "set it up, I'll come down at 12. 914 00:45:00,155 --> 00:45:01,115 "I just gotta play it, 915 00:45:01,198 --> 00:45:03,450 "and as long as it plays right and it sounds the way I want it, 916 00:45:03,534 --> 00:45:05,285 then we'll work out a deal." Great. 917 00:45:05,369 --> 00:45:07,621 So, the next morning, I walk in, 918 00:45:07,704 --> 00:45:09,581 and there's a guy standing at the counter, 919 00:45:09,665 --> 00:45:11,583 holding the guitar in his hands, 920 00:45:11,667 --> 00:45:14,545 basically just about to take his credit card out and buy the guitar. 921 00:45:15,212 --> 00:45:17,589 And so I walk in and I walk up, and I go, 922 00:45:18,549 --> 00:45:20,467 "That's the guitar that you're supposed to be holding for me." 923 00:45:21,051 --> 00:45:23,595 And he goes, "Well, you didn't commit to it, you know, 924 00:45:23,679 --> 00:45:25,806 so, you know, it's still available." 925 00:45:26,473 --> 00:45:29,059 I said, "You're supposed to be setting it up for me, 926 00:45:29,143 --> 00:45:30,686 and I'm here to check the guitar out." 927 00:45:30,769 --> 00:45:33,564 You know, so I start getting fumed, I start getting angry here. 928 00:45:33,647 --> 00:45:36,275 Now, it's not this guy who's trying to buy the guitar's fault. 929 00:45:37,192 --> 00:45:39,736 He doesn't even know he's caught in the middle of anything right now. 930 00:45:39,820 --> 00:45:41,780 This guy starts negotiating a little bit, 931 00:45:41,864 --> 00:45:44,616 and going, "You know, the price is a little bit high, Norm, 932 00:45:44,700 --> 00:45:47,744 because the price guide says this and you're charging this." 933 00:45:47,828 --> 00:45:49,705 And then Norm looks at me and goes, 934 00:45:49,788 --> 00:45:51,999 "Rick, tell him how good my prices are." 935 00:45:52,082 --> 00:45:53,250 He goes, "You know, tell him 936 00:45:53,333 --> 00:45:55,502 that this guitar is worth what I'm asking for." 937 00:45:56,545 --> 00:45:59,214 And I said, "You're asking me to help you sell this guitar?" 938 00:45:59,298 --> 00:46:01,425 And he goes, "Rick, you've got five of these already. 939 00:46:01,508 --> 00:46:03,677 You don't need another one. This guy needs it." 940 00:46:05,095 --> 00:46:06,513 And now, I just lose it, 941 00:46:06,597 --> 00:46:08,682 because he's asking me to help him sell this guitar, 942 00:46:08,765 --> 00:46:11,727 my guitar that I was supposed to buy to this other guy. 943 00:46:11,810 --> 00:46:14,021 And I looked at him, I went, "You're an asshole." 944 00:46:14,104 --> 00:46:16,773 And I walked out of the store and I didn't come in for six months. 945 00:46:16,857 --> 00:46:18,400 I was so upset with him. 946 00:46:18,484 --> 00:46:20,777 Then Norm and I had a conversation about it, 947 00:46:20,861 --> 00:46:23,363 and I just told him, "Moving forward, 948 00:46:23,447 --> 00:46:25,782 "that, you know what, we have to kind of change this dynamic. 949 00:46:25,866 --> 00:46:27,201 "It's not a race to the finish line. 950 00:46:27,284 --> 00:46:28,994 "And if I want something, I need you to hold it for me. 951 00:46:29,077 --> 00:46:30,537 "And I need that respect. 952 00:46:30,621 --> 00:46:33,040 "We've done a lot of business for 28 years, 953 00:46:33,123 --> 00:46:34,583 and I'm not gonna play that game anymore." 954 00:46:34,666 --> 00:46:36,835 And since then, we haven't had that situation. 955 00:46:36,919 --> 00:46:38,837 If I ask him to hold it, he will hold it, 956 00:46:38,921 --> 00:46:40,631 like he does for his other cherished customers. 957 00:46:40,714 --> 00:46:43,509 But, for me, he likes to try to, you know, teach me a lesson 958 00:46:43,592 --> 00:46:44,927 and piss me off. 959 00:46:45,427 --> 00:46:46,970 Uh, but I love him regardless. 960 00:46:47,554 --> 00:46:48,931 [Norman] Just to roll back the tape. 961 00:46:49,014 --> 00:46:51,642 -[laughing] -[Norman] No, no, no. I just gotta say something. 962 00:46:52,226 --> 00:46:55,896 What you said to me is, "I'll come in tomorrow 963 00:46:55,979 --> 00:46:57,648 and we'll negotiate on it." 964 00:46:58,440 --> 00:47:00,901 -That's not like, "I'll take it." -You know what? 965 00:47:00,984 --> 00:47:02,528 That's like, "Now we'll start talking about prices... 966 00:47:02,611 --> 00:47:04,571 You're right. I just said I'll come in, and if I like it, 967 00:47:04,655 --> 00:47:06,698 -we'll try to work out a deal. -[Norman] I got a guy here buying the fucking guitar. 968 00:47:06,782 --> 00:47:08,408 -This is my interview. Fuck you. [laughs] -[Norman] You douchebag. 969 00:47:08,492 --> 00:47:10,035 -You can say whatever you want. -[crew laughing] 970 00:47:10,118 --> 00:47:12,955 You can do your... you know, you can address it towards the end. 971 00:47:13,038 --> 00:47:15,207 [Norman] Make me look like, you know, like I promised you, 972 00:47:15,290 --> 00:47:17,668 -you committed to the price. -You are a scumbag, but I love you regardless. 973 00:47:17,751 --> 00:47:20,337 [Norman] Thank you. You made me look like you committed to the... 974 00:47:20,420 --> 00:47:21,588 that you committed to the price. 975 00:47:21,672 --> 00:47:23,632 -No, it was holding a guitar-- -You said, "Hold it tomorrow 976 00:47:23,715 --> 00:47:25,175 -and I'll come and we'll negotiate-- -It's holding a guitar 977 00:47:25,259 --> 00:47:26,301 for one of your best customers. 978 00:47:26,385 --> 00:47:27,386 [Norman] Thank you, that's not a sale. 979 00:47:27,469 --> 00:47:30,347 You know what, it's not a sale. But, you know, that's how you treat your best customers. 980 00:47:30,430 --> 00:47:32,724 If I was Richie Sambora you wouldn't fuck with that. 981 00:47:32,808 --> 00:47:36,061 -All right, keep going. Blah, blah blah, blah, blah. -[Norman chattering] 982 00:47:36,144 --> 00:47:37,896 As much as sometimes he pisses me off 983 00:47:37,980 --> 00:47:40,691 and we go at it, you know what, 984 00:47:40,774 --> 00:47:42,317 he's like my brother in a lot of ways. 985 00:47:42,401 --> 00:47:43,694 So, I love him. 986 00:47:44,611 --> 00:47:45,737 Hate to admit it, but I love him. 987 00:47:45,821 --> 00:47:47,823 [rock music playing] 988 00:47:54,329 --> 00:47:56,248 [Joe] These guitars, like these, every single guitar in here, 989 00:47:56,331 --> 00:47:58,834 unless it's brand new, has some type of a story. 990 00:47:58,917 --> 00:48:00,752 You know, it's been in the hands of somebody else. 991 00:48:00,836 --> 00:48:02,754 It's been in somebody else's house, 992 00:48:02,838 --> 00:48:04,339 it's been on stage with somebody else. 993 00:48:05,591 --> 00:48:09,261 It's Tom Petty and Norm hanging out in the store, 994 00:48:09,344 --> 00:48:11,430 trying to chisel down those prices. 995 00:48:11,513 --> 00:48:14,683 [man] Norm's one of the few mom and pop stores left. 996 00:48:14,766 --> 00:48:18,770 The very definition of a mom and pop store is what Norm's is. 997 00:48:18,854 --> 00:48:21,857 You know that Norm is the one 998 00:48:21,940 --> 00:48:25,861 who goes to these places that I wish I could go to, you know, 999 00:48:25,944 --> 00:48:29,323 and find these rare guitars and brings them here. 1000 00:48:29,406 --> 00:48:33,619 So, those of us who live and work here, can play them, 1001 00:48:33,702 --> 00:48:35,537 and buy them and have them and use them. 1002 00:48:35,621 --> 00:48:38,832 You walk in here, and there's a spell that comes over you. 1003 00:48:38,915 --> 00:48:40,626 I mean, what other store has got a couch 1004 00:48:40,709 --> 00:48:43,545 and you just sit here and you talk, and, "How you doing? What's up?" 1005 00:48:43,629 --> 00:48:45,672 And oh, it's just... It's a hometown. 1006 00:48:45,756 --> 00:48:48,258 Musicians, aspiring musicians, professional musicians, 1007 00:48:48,342 --> 00:48:50,218 whatever your status is, 1008 00:48:50,302 --> 00:48:51,678 you love to be in a place 1009 00:48:51,762 --> 00:48:54,097 where you can just sort of feel at ease 1010 00:48:54,181 --> 00:48:55,557 and relaxed around instruments, 1011 00:48:55,641 --> 00:48:57,601 and being able to try one out and hear it. 1012 00:48:57,684 --> 00:49:00,145 And it's just that kind of environment where they welcome you 1013 00:49:00,228 --> 00:49:03,148 to come and pick up a guitar and try it out. 1014 00:49:03,231 --> 00:49:06,026 Going right back to 16 years old, 12 years old, whatever, 1015 00:49:06,109 --> 00:49:06,985 how we started this thing. 1016 00:49:07,569 --> 00:49:09,446 And that's the vibe in this guitar store. 1017 00:49:09,529 --> 00:49:11,990 It's right back to why we play guitar. 1018 00:49:12,074 --> 00:49:13,867 And I get inspiration from that place, 1019 00:49:13,950 --> 00:49:16,787 just walking into the place and seeing around the room. 1020 00:49:16,870 --> 00:49:19,081 There's music. Every time you pick up a guitar, 1021 00:49:19,164 --> 00:49:22,876 it should inspire you to play something or sing something different. 1022 00:49:22,959 --> 00:49:25,545 This is one of the stores you go in and you're just overwhelmed. 1023 00:49:25,629 --> 00:49:26,755 [Taylor] At first, I was terrified. 1024 00:49:26,838 --> 00:49:28,340 At first, I was like, "Oh, gosh, like, 1025 00:49:28,965 --> 00:49:30,133 everyone's so intimidating. 1026 00:49:30,217 --> 00:49:32,761 Like I would kind of like try to not be seen, 1027 00:49:32,844 --> 00:49:34,596 and not not try to talk with too many people. 1028 00:49:34,680 --> 00:49:37,683 The first time I heard about Norman's Rare Guitars 1029 00:49:37,766 --> 00:49:40,519 was actually on set of this TV show 1030 00:49:40,602 --> 00:49:42,062 I was doing called Roadies, 1031 00:49:42,145 --> 00:49:45,107 where a friend of mine who's on the show was wearing 1032 00:49:45,190 --> 00:49:47,025 a Norman's Rare Guitars t-shirt. 1033 00:49:47,109 --> 00:49:49,194 So, I was like, "What's that place with that address, 1034 00:49:49,277 --> 00:49:50,404 "like, right next to my house?" 1035 00:49:50,487 --> 00:49:52,531 We made plans to go to Norman's. 1036 00:49:52,614 --> 00:49:57,703 I think this was the week that, like, Prince died and I saw this guitar... 1037 00:50:00,789 --> 00:50:02,207 which is a Parker. 1038 00:50:02,290 --> 00:50:03,667 It just felt like Prince, you know? 1039 00:50:03,750 --> 00:50:05,961 And I was like, "Holy shit, I gotta buy it." 1040 00:50:06,044 --> 00:50:08,839 And so that was my first trip there. 1041 00:50:09,673 --> 00:50:10,590 I got this guy. 1042 00:50:10,674 --> 00:50:14,553 You walk in as a novice player, you're just like, "Hey. 1043 00:50:15,554 --> 00:50:16,763 Well, these are really, these are really cool--" 1044 00:50:16,847 --> 00:50:18,140 And you're afraid to touch anything 1045 00:50:18,223 --> 00:50:21,017 and you don't know like what... like what the rules are. 1046 00:50:21,643 --> 00:50:24,187 And then, all of a sudden, you start to have a conversation 1047 00:50:24,271 --> 00:50:26,440 with anyone who works here, 1048 00:50:26,523 --> 00:50:29,234 and you realize, they seem pretty cool. 1049 00:50:29,735 --> 00:50:30,902 Not only does he know everything, 1050 00:50:30,986 --> 00:50:33,321 but the amazing people that work with him 1051 00:50:33,405 --> 00:50:35,866 know everything about guitars, and are-- 1052 00:50:36,450 --> 00:50:38,118 I used to be embarrassed to play in front of them. 1053 00:50:38,201 --> 00:50:41,913 [chuckles] They're so good. You know, they play such great, amazing guitar. 1054 00:50:41,997 --> 00:50:45,041 Everybody was just so nice. I always felt welcome here. 1055 00:50:45,125 --> 00:50:46,626 Like, I can just kind of hang. 1056 00:50:46,710 --> 00:50:49,045 There's been a few times where I would come by and say hi, 1057 00:50:49,129 --> 00:50:51,423 because I was in the neighborhood. 1058 00:50:51,506 --> 00:50:52,591 It's a hang suite, man. 1059 00:50:52,674 --> 00:50:54,050 When you get to know Norm 1060 00:50:54,134 --> 00:50:56,136 and the guys in here, it's a family thing. 1061 00:50:56,219 --> 00:50:57,387 It's really home. 1062 00:50:57,471 --> 00:50:58,555 [harmonizing] ♪ Hello ♪ 1063 00:50:58,638 --> 00:51:00,515 -♪ Hello ♪ -♪ Hello ♪ 1064 00:51:00,599 --> 00:51:02,559 ♪ Hello ♪ 1065 00:51:02,642 --> 00:51:05,520 It's like your favorite local restaurant, you know, 1066 00:51:05,604 --> 00:51:08,315 where the owner's always there and that's why it's a good restaurant, 1067 00:51:08,398 --> 00:51:11,485 'cause the owner's always there, making sure 1068 00:51:11,568 --> 00:51:13,695 everyone's doing it the way he wants it done. 1069 00:51:13,779 --> 00:51:16,573 You're allowed to be who you are at whatever level you are. 1070 00:51:16,656 --> 00:51:18,867 It's chill. I've come in here, looked around, 1071 00:51:18,950 --> 00:51:21,536 and I think maybe once, I didn't buy something, 1072 00:51:21,620 --> 00:51:26,750 I never leave the store without getting a guitar, which is crazy. It's crazy. 1073 00:51:26,833 --> 00:51:29,044 Sometimes, you look at the price tags of some of these guitars, 1074 00:51:29,127 --> 00:51:30,170 you'll be like, "Holy shit." 1075 00:51:31,421 --> 00:51:35,091 There are several different kinds of collecting that people do. 1076 00:51:35,175 --> 00:51:38,637 There are certain collectors that only want instruments 1077 00:51:38,720 --> 00:51:42,682 that have no issues, no refinishing, no parts swapped out. 1078 00:51:42,766 --> 00:51:46,228 You know, they want the most original conditioned type instruments, 1079 00:51:46,311 --> 00:51:48,772 and a lot of them don't even play, you know, 1080 00:51:48,855 --> 00:51:51,566 a lot of collectors are looking at it strictly as a... 1081 00:51:51,650 --> 00:51:53,610 as a financial investment. 1082 00:51:53,693 --> 00:51:55,320 [Mike] But these vintage instruments, 1083 00:51:55,403 --> 00:51:58,573 they're like Stradivarius, or Picasso, pieces of art, 1084 00:51:58,657 --> 00:51:59,991 and they just go up in value. 1085 00:52:00,075 --> 00:52:03,328 It's a win-win. You get to play your guitar on records, 1086 00:52:03,411 --> 00:52:05,622 write songs with it, hang it on the wall. 1087 00:52:05,705 --> 00:52:08,708 It's beautiful to look at, and it's a great investment. 1088 00:52:08,792 --> 00:52:10,335 Norm was right there at the right time. 1089 00:52:10,418 --> 00:52:12,671 [Vince] Buying and selling and knocking around instruments, 1090 00:52:12,754 --> 00:52:15,632 they do it because they really are crazy about it. Aand they are crazy. 1091 00:52:15,715 --> 00:52:16,550 [laughs] 1092 00:52:16,633 --> 00:52:18,677 Basically, Norm is selling me real estate, 1093 00:52:19,261 --> 00:52:21,930 and that real estate is going... skyrocketing. 1094 00:52:22,013 --> 00:52:24,474 So, Norman supplies that passion 1095 00:52:24,558 --> 00:52:26,268 for those who have it. 1096 00:52:26,351 --> 00:52:29,604 And the ones that don't have it, he sells back to me. 1097 00:52:29,688 --> 00:52:31,565 Being a guitar player 1098 00:52:31,648 --> 00:52:35,944 and understanding what these scratches and dents mean, 1099 00:52:36,027 --> 00:52:38,321 you know, to quote Eric Clapton 1100 00:52:38,405 --> 00:52:40,699 and how I like to buy my guitars too, 1101 00:52:41,241 --> 00:52:44,286 is that I like to buy the ones that were highly favored. 1102 00:52:44,953 --> 00:52:48,206 Where, you know, you can tell somebody loved this guitar, 1103 00:52:48,874 --> 00:52:50,959 and for some reason had to give it away. 1104 00:52:51,042 --> 00:52:54,921 Right now, I'm on the cusp of too big to unwind. 1105 00:52:55,005 --> 00:52:58,717 I have 400 guitars, 400-plus guitars, 400 amps. 1106 00:52:58,800 --> 00:53:01,970 And you're like... [sighs] You know, there's a point where 1107 00:53:02,053 --> 00:53:05,432 the saturation point becomes... I'm very aware of that. 1108 00:53:06,182 --> 00:53:08,852 And how much... how much do you need? 1109 00:53:08,935 --> 00:53:11,563 Yeah, you get spun up, and then you start making sets, 1110 00:53:11,646 --> 00:53:12,814 and you make, you know, like, 1111 00:53:12,898 --> 00:53:14,774 "I want to get every color and stuff like that." 1112 00:53:14,858 --> 00:53:18,695 And yeah, the addict and the collector comes out. 1113 00:53:18,778 --> 00:53:22,407 When you're in acquisition mode, you're rolling like this. 1114 00:53:23,283 --> 00:53:26,536 Here's common sense. Here's fiscal responsibility. 1115 00:53:26,620 --> 00:53:30,332 And you close, and you just go, "I'm in here, 1116 00:53:30,415 --> 00:53:31,708 I'm this, I want that." 1117 00:53:31,791 --> 00:53:34,586 And then, all of a sudden, it just stops 1118 00:53:34,669 --> 00:53:38,673 and you go, "Okay, probably should just sit back 1119 00:53:38,757 --> 00:53:40,050 and enjoy what you have." 1120 00:53:40,133 --> 00:53:44,220 Because, on several occasions I'll pull out cases, 1121 00:53:44,304 --> 00:53:47,557 and I'm like, "Oh, my God, I forgot I had this," you know? 1122 00:53:47,641 --> 00:53:49,684 Dumbbell, you've had it for ten years, 1123 00:53:49,768 --> 00:53:51,019 you know, you forgot you bought it. 1124 00:53:51,102 --> 00:53:54,397 There was a very prolific period for me 1125 00:53:54,481 --> 00:53:57,275 when I was here and in the other store a lot. 1126 00:53:57,901 --> 00:53:59,778 I had almost 100 guitars. 1127 00:54:01,071 --> 00:54:03,031 And then I got really cross with myself, 1128 00:54:03,114 --> 00:54:06,076 because there was no way you could play 100 guitars. 1129 00:54:06,159 --> 00:54:11,081 And so, I sold almost three quarters of them. 1130 00:54:11,164 --> 00:54:14,876 Now I have a rule... to buy a new guitar 1131 00:54:14,960 --> 00:54:16,628 is to sell an old guitar. 1132 00:54:17,170 --> 00:54:21,257 So, it becomes a lot harder to make those decisions. 1133 00:54:21,841 --> 00:54:24,177 [Joe] One of the things about collecting 1134 00:54:24,260 --> 00:54:26,972 and this whole thing, this whole room that we're in, 1135 00:54:27,055 --> 00:54:31,226 is the fact that we are purveyors of cool. 1136 00:54:31,309 --> 00:54:33,979 You know, and you only buy stuff that you think is cool. 1137 00:54:34,062 --> 00:54:36,898 That's the... that's the only litmus test that you got to have. 1138 00:54:36,982 --> 00:54:38,358 "Do you really like this stuff? 1139 00:54:38,441 --> 00:54:41,194 Do you think it's cool? Do you want to display it?" 1140 00:54:41,277 --> 00:54:44,072 Or in my case, make a theme park out of it. Sure. 1141 00:54:44,155 --> 00:54:46,116 You know, and that's really where... 1142 00:54:46,199 --> 00:54:47,742 It's the long and short of it. 1143 00:54:47,826 --> 00:54:51,663 Nobody knew back then that you could take a $300 guitar 1144 00:54:51,746 --> 00:54:55,417 and then people would pay 50,000 or 60,000 bucks for it 40 years later. 1145 00:54:55,500 --> 00:54:57,585 You know, certain guitars are desirable, 1146 00:54:57,669 --> 00:55:00,839 and a lot of times, it's because of who plays them. 1147 00:55:00,922 --> 00:55:03,299 There's a lot of things that are old, buy doesn't mean they're great. 1148 00:55:03,383 --> 00:55:06,594 I actually remember the first time I went into Norm's store. 1149 00:55:06,678 --> 00:55:08,013 I got in an argument with him, 1150 00:55:08,096 --> 00:55:11,141 because my first vintage guitar was a Stratocaster, 1151 00:55:11,224 --> 00:55:13,893 1964 Stratocaster I got in Florida, 1152 00:55:13,977 --> 00:55:17,230 which I actually borrowed the money, 'cause I couldn't afford it for $200. 1153 00:55:17,313 --> 00:55:19,232 And so, I went into his store one day, 1154 00:55:19,315 --> 00:55:21,151 and he had one, I wanted a backup. 1155 00:55:21,234 --> 00:55:23,361 He had one similar. And I said, "Well, how about that one?" 1156 00:55:23,445 --> 00:55:25,238 He said, "That's $20,000." 1157 00:55:25,321 --> 00:55:28,158 And I wanted to slug him. Like, that's immoral. 1158 00:55:28,241 --> 00:55:30,493 I got mine for 200 bucks. What's going on? 1159 00:55:30,577 --> 00:55:32,662 But Norm had the vision that he saw 1160 00:55:32,746 --> 00:55:34,539 that the market was gonna explode. 1161 00:55:35,415 --> 00:55:37,167 And I didn't, I was stuck in the... 1162 00:55:37,250 --> 00:55:38,877 in the dark ages for a long time. 1163 00:55:38,960 --> 00:55:41,546 I just couldn't bring myself to spend that kind of money on an instrument. 1164 00:55:41,629 --> 00:55:43,590 And, of course, now, it's way past that. 1165 00:55:43,673 --> 00:55:46,426 And I've become a collector by default over the years. 1166 00:55:46,509 --> 00:55:47,802 I just buy them to play them, 1167 00:55:47,886 --> 00:55:50,472 and they've started to pile up in my house now. 1168 00:55:51,848 --> 00:55:52,932 As I look around this room 1169 00:55:53,016 --> 00:55:55,810 and I see all of these guitars in here, it's kind of overwhelming. 1170 00:55:55,894 --> 00:55:57,729 But if you zero in on one, right, 1171 00:55:58,480 --> 00:56:00,899 and you pick up that guitar and you start to play it, 1172 00:56:00,982 --> 00:56:02,150 it will talk to you. 1173 00:56:02,233 --> 00:56:04,736 And it tells you, "I'm gonna teach you how to play different." 1174 00:56:04,819 --> 00:56:06,112 And it's absolutely true. 1175 00:56:06,196 --> 00:56:09,616 The way I'll pick up a Strat or a Tele, compared to a Les Paul. 1176 00:56:09,699 --> 00:56:10,784 I'll hold it different, 1177 00:56:10,867 --> 00:56:14,996 my fingering is still structurally the same, 1178 00:56:15,080 --> 00:56:18,666 but I'll hold it tighter or looser, or you know, 1179 00:56:18,750 --> 00:56:20,293 or grab onto it for dear life. 1180 00:56:20,376 --> 00:56:21,961 They all speak to you differently. 1181 00:56:22,045 --> 00:56:25,215 Going to a shop like Norm's, the whole idea was that you... 1182 00:56:25,298 --> 00:56:26,466 you would discover something. 1183 00:56:26,549 --> 00:56:28,510 Are you gonna find that magic instrument, 1184 00:56:28,593 --> 00:56:30,470 that magic guitar that speaks to you? 1185 00:56:30,553 --> 00:56:32,931 Sometimes, I'd have a general idea what I was looking for, 1186 00:56:33,014 --> 00:56:34,307 or maybe I wasn't looking for anything, 1187 00:56:34,390 --> 00:56:37,477 and kind of finding that perfect surprise. 1188 00:56:37,560 --> 00:56:40,188 But, you know, go around the wall and just grab the necks. 1189 00:56:40,980 --> 00:56:42,649 You know, for me it's all... it's a feel thing. 1190 00:56:42,732 --> 00:56:45,902 You know, I grab the neck, I don't even have to take it off the wall. 1191 00:56:45,985 --> 00:56:48,113 If I feel it and it feels kind of like, 1192 00:56:48,196 --> 00:56:49,989 "Hey, this is in the ball game." 1193 00:56:50,073 --> 00:56:52,158 You know, then I take it to another level. 1194 00:56:52,242 --> 00:56:56,663 I think that even young people... My boys are 20 and 24, 1195 00:56:56,746 --> 00:56:58,164 so I look to them a lot. 1196 00:56:58,248 --> 00:56:59,541 How do your friends react? 1197 00:56:59,624 --> 00:57:03,044 And, yeah, a lot of kids buy things online, 1198 00:57:03,128 --> 00:57:07,048 but I also know customers here that are young people 1199 00:57:07,132 --> 00:57:09,175 that give a shit about the exchange, 1200 00:57:09,259 --> 00:57:12,053 that give a shit about picking it up and plugging it in, 1201 00:57:12,137 --> 00:57:14,472 that give a shit about being amongst this. 1202 00:57:14,556 --> 00:57:18,226 One of the things I would say that why the guitars still sell online too, 1203 00:57:18,309 --> 00:57:21,104 a lot of the reason is you're not gonna find another one. 1204 00:57:21,187 --> 00:57:24,482 Buying online is great if you know exactly what you want 1205 00:57:25,150 --> 00:57:28,069 and you have an idea of what it's gonna sound like. 1206 00:57:29,362 --> 00:57:31,364 But it has to be something generic. 1207 00:57:31,448 --> 00:57:33,199 If you're shopping for vintage stuff, 1208 00:57:33,283 --> 00:57:34,576 you have to come and listen to it. 1209 00:57:34,659 --> 00:57:36,661 You gotta sit with it in your hands. 1210 00:57:36,744 --> 00:57:38,580 It's a tactile experience. 1211 00:57:38,663 --> 00:57:42,792 Two perfectly great guitar players can sit down with the same guitar, 1212 00:57:42,876 --> 00:57:45,462 and one of them will love it and one of them will be "meh." 1213 00:57:46,087 --> 00:57:49,466 You know, it's... it's very, very personal, the decision. 1214 00:57:49,549 --> 00:57:52,343 A professional musician, you're going be spending a lot of time. 1215 00:57:52,427 --> 00:57:53,887 This thing's helping you make your living, 1216 00:57:53,970 --> 00:57:56,431 so you got to make the right choice, you know. 1217 00:57:56,514 --> 00:57:59,142 [Joe] People hanging out on the couch and playing together 1218 00:57:59,225 --> 00:58:00,852 and talking and laughing, 1219 00:58:00,935 --> 00:58:03,438 and, you know, obviously, when that's happening, 1220 00:58:03,521 --> 00:58:05,023 it helps drive sales, 1221 00:58:05,523 --> 00:58:07,066 but it also just fosters the community. 1222 00:58:07,150 --> 00:58:08,985 And I think Norman's just has a community 1223 00:58:09,068 --> 00:58:11,362 that most other music stores don't have. 1224 00:58:11,446 --> 00:58:13,072 [all cheering] 1225 00:58:14,199 --> 00:58:20,413 The vibe of the store is the reason why guitar stores should exist. 1226 00:58:20,497 --> 00:58:24,542 It wasn't even about the guitars sometimes. 1227 00:58:24,626 --> 00:58:28,379 There was always just an element of the family, 1228 00:58:28,463 --> 00:58:30,381 not just of the people who work there, 1229 00:58:30,465 --> 00:58:31,883 but of the people who shop there. 1230 00:58:31,966 --> 00:58:35,637 We've had a lot of really kind of touching moments in the store as well, 1231 00:58:35,720 --> 00:58:40,225 and a lot of stuff that, you know, is, you know, 1232 00:58:40,308 --> 00:58:41,601 a little on the sad side, 1233 00:58:41,684 --> 00:58:45,897 and you know, it's just an experience that, 1234 00:58:45,980 --> 00:58:47,440 you know, you kind of had to be here. 1235 00:58:47,524 --> 00:58:50,610 But we had a young man who came into the store, 1236 00:58:50,693 --> 00:58:54,364 his name was Kyle Grady and his mom, June, 1237 00:58:54,447 --> 00:58:56,950 and they were really sweet folks, and they came in. 1238 00:58:57,033 --> 00:59:02,038 And Kyle had some type of really rare cancer in his face. 1239 00:59:04,123 --> 00:59:08,211 And his eye was removed, he had, like, a patch over his eye. 1240 00:59:08,294 --> 00:59:10,713 He looked like he was probably a really good-looking kid. 1241 00:59:11,256 --> 00:59:13,299 He had been through it with these surgeries. 1242 00:59:13,383 --> 00:59:15,301 And he came in and he said, 1243 00:59:15,385 --> 00:59:17,845 "You know, I know you're friends with Richie Sambora. 1244 00:59:17,929 --> 00:59:20,265 He said, "You know, I've been going through a lot of these surgeries 1245 00:59:20,348 --> 00:59:22,642 "and, you know, they've been really, 1246 00:59:22,725 --> 00:59:24,102 you know, hard on me. 1247 00:59:24,185 --> 00:59:25,770 He said, you know, "One of the things 1248 00:59:25,853 --> 00:59:29,607 "that really kept me going was, I'm a big fan of Richie Sambora, 1249 00:59:29,691 --> 00:59:32,986 "and I have this little cassette tape of me playing 1250 00:59:33,069 --> 00:59:35,280 "some of Richie's tunes, the Bon Jovi tunes. 1251 00:59:35,905 --> 00:59:38,074 And he said, "Would you do me a favor? 1252 00:59:38,157 --> 00:59:39,701 Could you give this to Richie for me?" 1253 00:59:40,368 --> 00:59:42,912 And it was, really, a moving moment. 1254 00:59:42,996 --> 00:59:45,415 His mom really wanted... they weren't sure... 1255 00:59:45,498 --> 00:59:47,750 He, you know, he said one of his friends had said, 1256 00:59:47,834 --> 00:59:50,003 "You know, you shouldn't go in the store. 1257 00:59:50,086 --> 00:59:52,463 You know, the way you look, you know, they might start making fun of you." 1258 00:59:52,547 --> 00:59:54,299 That was the opposite really, of what happened. 1259 00:59:54,799 --> 00:59:57,760 It was really, you know, we were really moved for the kid. 1260 00:59:57,844 --> 01:00:00,972 And I called Richie, who happened to be in town at the time, 1261 01:00:01,055 --> 01:00:04,392 and I said, "You know, Richie, there's this kid in the store 1262 01:00:04,475 --> 01:00:08,813 "and he's gone through some really bad bouts with cancer, 1263 01:00:08,896 --> 01:00:12,400 "and he's had part of his face removed, and this and that," 1264 01:00:12,483 --> 01:00:14,402 you know, and that he seems like a really nice kid. 1265 01:00:14,485 --> 01:00:16,779 "And he was really inspired by your guitar playing. 1266 01:00:16,863 --> 01:00:19,782 "He gave me a cassette tape that he wants me to give to you/ 1267 01:00:20,366 --> 01:00:22,660 "You know, I just thought maybe I'd put you on the phone with him, 1268 01:00:22,744 --> 01:00:24,829 to just give him a couple words of encouragement." 1269 01:00:25,413 --> 01:00:28,166 And Richie said, "Is he in the store right now? 1270 01:00:28,708 --> 01:00:30,376 And I said, "Yeah, he's over here now." 1271 01:00:30,460 --> 01:00:32,587 He said, "Keep him there. I'll be right over." 1272 01:00:32,670 --> 01:00:34,005 And he jumped in his car... 1273 01:00:37,008 --> 01:00:38,051 he came over... 1274 01:00:40,136 --> 01:00:41,846 [breathes heavily] 1275 01:00:48,227 --> 01:00:51,397 [voice breaking] Sorry for being emotional. Excuse me. 1276 01:00:52,357 --> 01:00:54,651 It meant so much to him and his family. 1277 01:00:56,277 --> 01:00:57,820 You have no idea. 1278 01:00:57,904 --> 01:01:02,033 And Richie is one of the all-time biggest hearts, 1279 01:01:02,116 --> 01:01:05,453 one of the greatest guys I've ever known, for him to do that. 1280 01:01:07,455 --> 01:01:09,582 They... they stayed in touch. 1281 01:01:10,833 --> 01:01:11,834 And, uh... 1282 01:01:12,877 --> 01:01:16,005 they would kind of text each other and email each other 1283 01:01:16,089 --> 01:01:17,548 and talk from time to time. 1284 01:01:18,299 --> 01:01:21,219 And they were giving Richie an award for The Midnight Mission. 1285 01:01:23,012 --> 01:01:27,392 And I flew Kyle and his mom out 1286 01:01:28,851 --> 01:01:30,019 to be with him that day. 1287 01:01:31,187 --> 01:01:33,189 It was one of the great moments of his life. 1288 01:01:33,272 --> 01:01:34,941 And his mom was so appreciative. 1289 01:01:36,109 --> 01:01:38,653 A few months later, Kyle passed away. [sobs] 1290 01:01:41,864 --> 01:01:43,741 And it was something, you know, 1291 01:01:45,118 --> 01:01:49,247 that I know brought happiness to this kid who... [breathes heavily] 1292 01:01:50,957 --> 01:01:52,208 ...had been through so much. 1293 01:01:53,000 --> 01:01:56,504 I'm sorry, I should really... I should cut this, you know. 1294 01:01:59,841 --> 01:02:03,886 Some people are dealt a really tough hand in life, 1295 01:02:03,970 --> 01:02:06,973 and it was one of the moments that meant the most to me. 1296 01:02:10,476 --> 01:02:12,770 I've done so many things like that, 1297 01:02:14,105 --> 01:02:16,983 visiting children's hospitals where these kids are dying. 1298 01:02:17,066 --> 01:02:20,570 It is a very, very, very, very hard thing to do. 1299 01:02:21,446 --> 01:02:25,324 You just bring hope and you talk to them 1300 01:02:26,492 --> 01:02:28,202 almost in an existential manner. 1301 01:02:28,786 --> 01:02:29,704 So it's like, 1302 01:02:31,456 --> 01:02:32,749 how you doing? 1303 01:02:32,832 --> 01:02:34,375 It's more like being a friend. 1304 01:02:34,459 --> 01:02:36,461 You have to have a conversation with them 1305 01:02:37,545 --> 01:02:39,464 from past, present, and future. 1306 01:02:43,843 --> 01:02:46,179 Fucking sad. Sorry, I'm a bit choked up. 1307 01:02:50,391 --> 01:02:51,601 That's what you do. 1308 01:02:58,149 --> 01:03:00,860 By the way, even if you don't like guitars, 1309 01:03:00,943 --> 01:03:03,571 and you've already seen Norm's good looks... 1310 01:03:03,654 --> 01:03:06,574 So those things happen upon entering the store, 1311 01:03:06,657 --> 01:03:09,744 but to look around, oh, my God, 1312 01:03:10,411 --> 01:03:11,913 even if you're not a guitar person, 1313 01:03:11,996 --> 01:03:13,831 it's just so warm and welcoming. 1314 01:03:13,915 --> 01:03:15,792 But here's also the exciting thing. 1315 01:03:15,875 --> 01:03:18,127 When I was first brought into the back, 1316 01:03:18,961 --> 01:03:21,380 oh, delightful. 1317 01:03:21,464 --> 01:03:23,466 [curious music plays] 1318 01:03:28,721 --> 01:03:32,099 [Jeff] There's the stuff out there, which is all great stuff 1319 01:03:32,183 --> 01:03:33,643 and there's lots of it. 1320 01:03:34,894 --> 01:03:36,062 But there's a back room 1321 01:03:37,104 --> 01:03:39,774 and that's... that's where the gold is. 1322 01:03:40,358 --> 01:03:42,735 There's vaults that go back that way. 1323 01:03:42,819 --> 01:03:44,028 He's like, "What are you looking for?" 1324 01:03:44,111 --> 01:03:45,530 And you'd be looking around, going, 1325 01:03:45,613 --> 01:03:46,989 "Well, I was looking, like... 1326 01:03:47,073 --> 01:03:51,536 "like anything mid '60's, I'm looking for a Dove. 1327 01:03:51,619 --> 01:03:53,538 But yeah, I'll come back when you got--" 1328 01:03:53,621 --> 01:03:55,122 "Hold on, don't move." [laughs] 1329 01:03:55,206 --> 01:03:58,042 You'd be there. And then he'd go behind the door, 1330 01:03:58,125 --> 01:03:59,919 or someone would go behind the door, 1331 01:04:00,002 --> 01:04:01,963 and then five minutes later, 1332 01:04:02,046 --> 01:04:06,259 three 1966, '67 Doves were standing right there. 1333 01:04:06,342 --> 01:04:09,011 And then he had the Hummingbirds in case you wanted to change your mind. 1334 01:04:09,095 --> 01:04:10,763 I just thought, "Wow, 1335 01:04:10,847 --> 01:04:14,058 "like, how big is whatever room that is behind there, 1336 01:04:14,141 --> 01:04:15,977 and why aren't we allowed to go in there?" 1337 01:04:16,060 --> 01:04:19,063 The guitars in the back kind of have to stay how they are. 1338 01:04:19,146 --> 01:04:20,773 A guitar up front, you jnow, 1339 01:04:20,857 --> 01:04:24,193 someone knocks off a switch tip from a Telecaster and it's no big deal. 1340 01:04:24,277 --> 01:04:25,820 We throw another one on there. 1341 01:04:25,903 --> 01:04:29,490 But you knock off the switch tip from a '52 Telecaster, 1342 01:04:29,574 --> 01:04:31,617 and now it's not all original anymore. [chuckles] 1343 01:04:32,118 --> 01:04:33,452 And that's actually kind of a big deal. 1344 01:04:33,536 --> 01:04:36,414 If Norm doesn't want to bring someone to the back, 1345 01:04:36,497 --> 01:04:38,749 it's like, "What, I'm not good enough," or something like that. 1346 01:04:38,833 --> 01:04:41,752 But really, it can just be these guitars aren't supposed 1347 01:04:41,836 --> 01:04:44,881 to be put in the hands of everybody who wants to see them. 1348 01:04:44,964 --> 01:04:47,049 I've noticed that Norm is more protective 1349 01:04:47,133 --> 01:04:49,844 of historically significant guitars, 1350 01:04:50,344 --> 01:04:51,637 maybe than even guitars 1351 01:04:51,721 --> 01:04:53,389 that technically would make him more money. 1352 01:04:53,472 --> 01:04:57,268 That's what he cares about, preserving the history of the instruments that he loves. 1353 01:04:57,351 --> 01:05:00,855 But also on the flip side, I've seen him take out Tom Petty's guitar 1354 01:05:00,938 --> 01:05:02,481 and show it to a bunch of people, 1355 01:05:02,565 --> 01:05:06,360 just because someone could walk in and say, "My mom and I are huge Tom Petty fans." 1356 01:05:06,444 --> 01:05:08,029 And he'll just say, "You wanna see something cool?" 1357 01:05:41,395 --> 01:05:43,773 [Joe] There's the stuff you see in the store. 1358 01:05:43,856 --> 01:05:46,400 And then there's the "secret stash." 1359 01:05:49,612 --> 01:05:52,156 [Tim] I had heard about the warehouse forever. 1360 01:05:52,239 --> 01:05:54,075 Get into Norm's car one day, and we drive, 1361 01:05:54,158 --> 01:05:55,910 and I'm talking to Norm and I kind of don't know 1362 01:05:55,993 --> 01:05:57,119 where it is, which is what he wants. 1363 01:05:58,454 --> 01:06:03,376 [Joe] And it was the scene out of that Indiana Jones movie 1364 01:06:03,459 --> 01:06:05,628 where they find the holy grail, 1365 01:06:05,711 --> 01:06:08,798 and it goes into this secret warehouse where all these crates 1366 01:06:08,881 --> 01:06:10,299 and there's forklifts... 1367 01:06:11,050 --> 01:06:15,012 I just remember popping these things open with a crowbar, 1368 01:06:15,096 --> 01:06:18,599 and it's just floor to ceiling, guitars, guitars. 1369 01:06:18,683 --> 01:06:19,517 And you're like, "What?" 1370 01:06:19,600 --> 01:06:20,977 He's like, "Yeah, I have 12 of these." 1371 01:06:21,060 --> 01:06:22,061 I'm like, "What?" 1372 01:06:23,354 --> 01:06:26,565 There's the great stuff that people want in the store, 1373 01:06:26,649 --> 01:06:30,069 but there's also the cut above stuff that you never see again. 1374 01:06:30,152 --> 01:06:32,613 The once in a lifetime guitars, the mint stuff, 1375 01:06:33,197 --> 01:06:36,951 the stuff that is so preserved that it looks like it was made yesterday, 1376 01:06:37,034 --> 01:06:39,829 and it's 70 years old in some cases with the acoustics. 1377 01:06:39,912 --> 01:06:41,747 It's 60 years old, 70 years old, 1378 01:06:41,831 --> 01:06:43,249 in the case of the solid bodies. 1379 01:06:43,791 --> 01:06:47,920 I did pick up a guitar there and I touched the tuning key 1380 01:06:48,004 --> 01:06:50,798 and it basically turned to sand in my hand. 1381 01:06:50,881 --> 01:06:52,425 [laughing] 1382 01:06:53,926 --> 01:06:56,137 So there is... I think they... I think it's time 1383 01:06:56,220 --> 01:06:58,973 for these guitars to... to be put into people's hands. 1384 01:06:59,056 --> 01:07:02,685 I mean, it was an amazing... I mean, I was like, "Norm, I'm sorry." [chuckles] 1385 01:07:02,768 --> 01:07:04,145 Ah, he goes, "Oh, happens all the time." 1386 01:07:04,228 --> 01:07:06,939 And some of these guitars have barely been played, 1387 01:07:07,023 --> 01:07:09,275 and some of them don't have a scratch on them. 1388 01:07:09,358 --> 01:07:11,861 And you realize he's spent his entire life 1389 01:07:11,944 --> 01:07:14,113 actually archiving and collecting 1390 01:07:14,196 --> 01:07:16,741 the best examples of the best guitars. 1391 01:07:16,824 --> 01:07:18,325 It's... it's jaw dropping. 1392 01:07:19,035 --> 01:07:21,370 [Joe] And he has all this stuff. 1393 01:07:21,454 --> 01:07:24,248 It's a lifetime worth of collecting. 1394 01:07:24,331 --> 01:07:26,292 It's a lifetime worth of passion. 1395 01:07:26,375 --> 01:07:30,337 And that's what makes Norm's Rare Guitars special. It's him. 1396 01:07:35,468 --> 01:07:39,513 I saw Norm's store on YouTube first. 1397 01:07:39,597 --> 01:07:43,642 I think one of the first videos I saw was when 1398 01:07:44,393 --> 01:07:46,437 Richie Sambora was here with Orianthi. 1399 01:07:46,520 --> 01:07:48,189 And I used to play that video over 1400 01:07:48,272 --> 01:07:49,690 and over and over and over again. 1401 01:07:49,774 --> 01:07:52,359 Like, I just... they just looked like they were just having so much fun. 1402 01:07:52,443 --> 01:07:54,153 Today, at Norm's Rare Guitars, 1403 01:07:54,236 --> 01:07:57,740 I got my really great buddy over here, Richie Sambora. 1404 01:07:57,823 --> 01:08:01,035 -What's happening, man? -And the great Orianthi. 1405 01:08:01,118 --> 01:08:02,536 And both of them were just kind of killing it. 1406 01:08:02,620 --> 01:08:04,914 Every guitar they would give to him... [babbling] 1407 01:08:04,997 --> 01:08:07,166 This chick plays like she means it. 1408 01:08:07,249 --> 01:08:09,543 [playing guitar riff] 1409 01:08:13,130 --> 01:08:16,425 Yeah, I mean there's ten million views on that video, you know. 1410 01:08:16,509 --> 01:08:19,095 And I didn't know he was filming, which is a funny thing. 1411 01:08:19,178 --> 01:08:20,221 "Here's a guitar, try it." 1412 01:08:20,304 --> 01:08:22,306 And then Richie's grabbing a guitar, and I was grabbing one, 1413 01:08:22,389 --> 01:08:24,308 and then, you know, he was throwing, like, 1414 01:08:24,391 --> 01:08:26,435 shiny things and really cool things at me. 1415 01:08:26,519 --> 01:08:28,771 I'm like completely engrossed with that. 1416 01:08:28,854 --> 01:08:30,356 It was pretty insane when people, like... 1417 01:08:30,439 --> 01:08:32,691 You got that many views on that... on that video. 1418 01:08:32,775 --> 01:08:35,236 But I guess because we didn't know that it was being filmed, you know? 1419 01:08:35,319 --> 01:08:39,073 So, it was really natural and just obnoxious. [laughs] 1420 01:08:39,156 --> 01:08:41,075 When social media got big, 1421 01:08:41,158 --> 01:08:42,827 people actually had 1422 01:08:42,910 --> 01:08:45,496 this look into the store, this inside look. 1423 01:08:45,579 --> 01:08:47,748 It was like, all of a sudden, a window had been opened, 1424 01:08:47,832 --> 01:08:50,376 and everybody could see the inner workings 1425 01:08:50,459 --> 01:08:52,795 and the people jamming out on the couch. 1426 01:08:52,878 --> 01:08:56,674 And, "You wanna know what's going on on Tuesday at four o'clock? 1427 01:08:56,757 --> 01:08:58,509 Like, check social media." 1428 01:08:58,592 --> 01:09:00,177 'Cause they're pretty routine about it. 1429 01:09:00,261 --> 01:09:02,221 [playing upbeat music] 1430 01:09:02,304 --> 01:09:04,723 [playing harmonica] 1431 01:09:07,726 --> 01:09:10,771 I noticed Norm's social media taking off 1432 01:09:10,855 --> 01:09:14,650 before Norm noticed Norm's, social media taking off. 1433 01:09:15,317 --> 01:09:16,735 At first, he was like, he didn't know, 1434 01:09:16,819 --> 01:09:18,529 he needed a minute to get his sea legs, 1435 01:09:18,612 --> 01:09:20,406 but he's become a really great presenter. 1436 01:09:20,489 --> 01:09:22,449 Norm over here at Norm's Rare Guitars. 1437 01:09:22,533 --> 01:09:24,743 [Marlene] I mean, after a while, Norm loved the YouTube channel, 1438 01:09:24,827 --> 01:09:27,663 like YouTube videos, like every day. 1439 01:09:27,746 --> 01:09:29,415 Hey, everybody, Norm over here. 1440 01:09:29,498 --> 01:09:31,792 And I once again have my buddy Frank Stallone. 1441 01:09:31,876 --> 01:09:33,294 They let him out for the week. 1442 01:09:33,377 --> 01:09:35,045 His nurse said he's okay. 1443 01:09:35,754 --> 01:09:37,840 You know, I'm not sure about that, you know, but-- 1444 01:09:37,923 --> 01:09:39,133 Neither am I, actually. 1445 01:09:39,216 --> 01:09:42,928 Well, anyhow, Stan, I would like my $20 at this point. 1446 01:09:43,012 --> 01:09:46,432 -Well, you weren't there. -Oh! Well, how do you remember stuff like that? 1447 01:09:46,515 --> 01:09:49,393 -I mean... -Hey, LSD, it's mind expanding. 1448 01:09:49,476 --> 01:09:51,437 I remember, I remember everything. 1449 01:09:51,520 --> 01:09:53,230 [Jen] He's definitely a celebrity on YouTube. 1450 01:09:53,314 --> 01:09:55,274 Every time somebody comes in, it's like, "Oh, I love your show." 1451 01:09:55,858 --> 01:09:57,359 And he'll be like, "What show?" 1452 01:09:57,443 --> 01:09:59,069 And I was like, "Norm, the YouTube channel." 1453 01:09:59,153 --> 01:10:00,321 I was like, "That's where they see you at." 1454 01:10:00,404 --> 01:10:02,072 And he's just like, "Oh, that thing." 1455 01:10:02,156 --> 01:10:05,242 I mean, we get viewers from everywhere. 1456 01:10:06,827 --> 01:10:08,913 Hey guys, welcome back to another episode of "Guitar of the Day." 1457 01:10:08,996 --> 01:10:10,164 I'm your host, Michael Lemmo. 1458 01:10:10,247 --> 01:10:12,750 "Guitar of the Day" is a show 1459 01:10:12,833 --> 01:10:16,754 where we pick basically our favorite guitar of the day and we showcase it. 1460 01:10:16,837 --> 01:10:20,216 First we start off in the back and we open the case. 1461 01:10:20,299 --> 01:10:24,470 It's a 1960 Gibson ES-330. 1462 01:10:24,553 --> 01:10:26,639 Once we take it out front, we demo it. 1463 01:10:26,722 --> 01:10:29,099 We go through every pickup for the world to see. 1464 01:10:29,183 --> 01:10:30,142 So let's check it out. 1465 01:10:30,226 --> 01:10:31,769 [Oates] Each one of these guitars, 1466 01:10:31,852 --> 01:10:33,729 kind of makes you play something different. 1467 01:10:33,812 --> 01:10:37,858 It leads you down a musical path in some way or another. 1468 01:10:39,443 --> 01:10:42,029 [Lenny] Norm's social media is dangerous. 1469 01:10:42,696 --> 01:10:45,491 You know, you watch those videos, "Guitar of the Day," 1470 01:10:45,574 --> 01:10:47,910 you look at the pictures on Instagram, 1471 01:10:47,993 --> 01:10:52,790 and you end up wanting so many things you see. 1472 01:10:52,873 --> 01:10:55,334 So, uh, you know, you gotta be careful. 1473 01:10:56,001 --> 01:10:58,462 The way he helps struggling artists 1474 01:10:58,545 --> 01:10:59,755 that come through the store. 1475 01:10:59,838 --> 01:11:01,924 "Hey, play a song. We'll put it on our YouTube channel." 1476 01:11:02,007 --> 01:11:05,094 And you can sit on that couch and you can play 1477 01:11:05,177 --> 01:11:06,262 and they'll put it out. 1478 01:11:06,345 --> 01:11:08,889 And so, it's such an important place, 1479 01:11:08,973 --> 01:11:12,017 I think, for a young musician 1480 01:11:12,101 --> 01:11:14,645 to go and just get a little bit of exposure. 1481 01:11:14,728 --> 01:11:16,772 He's very, very supportive. 1482 01:11:16,855 --> 01:11:20,901 I remember when he first played for Norm and started to sing, 1483 01:11:21,819 --> 01:11:24,363 I suddenly... I saw him go very quiet. 1484 01:11:28,117 --> 01:11:31,120 ♪ Hello, my sweet Maria ♪ 1485 01:11:33,455 --> 01:11:35,833 ♪ Always really nice To see ya ♪ 1486 01:11:35,916 --> 01:11:37,960 He nurtures really, you know. 1487 01:11:38,502 --> 01:11:40,754 ♪ Oh, nothing's changed... ♪ 1488 01:11:40,838 --> 01:11:43,465 I've been in the store over the years, and walked in, 1489 01:11:43,549 --> 01:11:46,677 and there's these people that nobody has ever heard of 1490 01:11:46,760 --> 01:11:49,847 that just grab a guitar and start noodling around. 1491 01:11:52,391 --> 01:11:54,935 Like a dog is, they're hanging, and all of the sudden, whoop, the ear goes up, 1492 01:11:55,019 --> 01:11:56,812 and it's like, "What's going on over there?" 1493 01:11:56,895 --> 01:11:58,772 And then you start to talk to the person. 1494 01:11:58,856 --> 01:12:00,858 And then I've watched those videos that... 1495 01:12:00,941 --> 01:12:03,736 that we all see on online. I've watched them happen. 1496 01:12:03,819 --> 01:12:05,821 [playing blues music] 1497 01:12:11,035 --> 01:12:13,537 It's cool to see hundreds of thousands of people 1498 01:12:13,620 --> 01:12:15,789 watch you and watch your video, 1499 01:12:15,873 --> 01:12:19,376 and when you're there, you're playing all these amazing guitars. 1500 01:12:19,460 --> 01:12:21,211 That's the great thing about Norman's. 1501 01:12:21,295 --> 01:12:24,131 It's only something you can do there. You can't do it anywhere else. 1502 01:12:24,214 --> 01:12:28,052 [Rogo] Norm's platform definitely helped elevate my platforms a lot, 1503 01:12:28,135 --> 01:12:30,512 because especially with the YouTube algorithm 1504 01:12:30,596 --> 01:12:33,724 and people are searching some unique guitar, right? 1505 01:12:33,807 --> 01:12:35,517 So they'll punch in the name of that guitar 1506 01:12:35,601 --> 01:12:36,977 and Norman's Rare Guitars, 1507 01:12:37,061 --> 01:12:38,937 that's the first thing that pops up for a lot of people. 1508 01:12:39,021 --> 01:12:41,273 And then they'll see me and they'll see me play the guitar. 1509 01:12:41,357 --> 01:12:44,902 And I think even Billy Gibbons, he called the store one day. 1510 01:12:44,985 --> 01:12:47,780 He's like, "Who's that girl that plays those resonator guitars?" 1511 01:12:48,655 --> 01:12:50,824 So, it's certainly... certainly not a bad thing. 1512 01:12:50,908 --> 01:12:53,577 And it's really cool being exposed to people 1513 01:12:53,660 --> 01:12:55,996 all around the world through... through his platform. 1514 01:12:58,665 --> 01:13:01,168 [Joe] That's one of the coolest things about the social media stuff 1515 01:13:01,251 --> 01:13:02,211 that... that I dig, 1516 01:13:02,294 --> 01:13:05,214 is just, it really exposing me to the other musicians. 1517 01:13:05,756 --> 01:13:08,634 [Kiefer] He's finding musicians and bands that he thinks are worth breaking, 1518 01:13:09,385 --> 01:13:12,805 and then sets them up in here and makes them play. 1519 01:13:12,888 --> 01:13:14,890 So the customers hear about them, 1520 01:13:14,973 --> 01:13:18,519 and then, obviously, it goes out to the social media space 1521 01:13:18,602 --> 01:13:20,145 and he's actually making a difference. 1522 01:13:20,229 --> 01:13:21,563 That translates. 1523 01:13:21,647 --> 01:13:26,860 Marcus King, I remember when he came in the store. 1524 01:13:26,944 --> 01:13:29,196 So, we start to do a video and they start rolling it 1525 01:13:29,279 --> 01:13:30,781 and he starts playing, and then... 1526 01:13:32,241 --> 01:13:34,868 he opened his mouth and started singing. 1527 01:13:34,952 --> 01:13:37,704 ♪ I've been driftin' And a-driftin', baby ♪ 1528 01:13:40,499 --> 01:13:43,460 ♪ Just like a ship Out on the sea ♪ 1529 01:13:50,717 --> 01:13:53,429 ♪ Said I've been driftin' A-driftin', Mama ♪ 1530 01:13:54,888 --> 01:13:57,599 ♪ Just like a ship Out on the sea ♪ 1531 01:13:58,600 --> 01:14:00,769 [Mark] The voice that came out of this kid was like, 1532 01:14:01,645 --> 01:14:05,232 it was... it stopped you dead in your tracks. 1533 01:14:05,315 --> 01:14:09,194 And it was like, "Oh, my God, this is... I am watching 1534 01:14:09,903 --> 01:14:12,322 "the real deal right now. 1535 01:14:12,823 --> 01:14:14,992 "Like, this kid is gonna have a serious career 1536 01:14:15,075 --> 01:14:16,160 in this industry." 1537 01:14:16,994 --> 01:14:19,371 ♪ See my baby one morning ♪ 1538 01:14:21,373 --> 01:14:24,168 ♪ She was walking home Down the street ♪ 1539 01:14:24,251 --> 01:14:27,379 [Mark] It was, uh... That was a pretty magic moment 1540 01:14:27,463 --> 01:14:29,465 to watch live in person. 1541 01:14:29,548 --> 01:14:32,134 We met for the first time at my last job 1542 01:14:33,093 --> 01:14:34,428 at Norman's Rare Guitars. 1543 01:14:34,511 --> 01:14:35,929 You walked in, I'll never forget it, 1544 01:14:36,013 --> 01:14:38,724 you were playing in the corner and we're like, "He's good. We should do a video." 1545 01:14:38,807 --> 01:14:40,726 And so we turned on the camera and then you started singing, 1546 01:14:40,809 --> 01:14:42,561 and we were all like, "Oh, my God!" 1547 01:14:42,644 --> 01:14:45,814 And then the video got, like, two million views or something like that. 1548 01:14:45,898 --> 01:14:47,858 It was crazy. I'd never been a part of anything quite like that. 1549 01:14:47,941 --> 01:14:50,194 Yeah, that was the first viral video I think that... 1550 01:14:50,277 --> 01:14:51,862 that was ever on that channel. 1551 01:14:51,945 --> 01:14:55,741 And then, I've been kind of watching the rise of Marcus King ever since. 1552 01:14:55,824 --> 01:14:58,619 Man, I got to tell you, it's... it seems like it's all happening. 1553 01:14:58,702 --> 01:15:03,540 Man I'll tell you that... that video really kind of 1554 01:15:04,249 --> 01:15:06,293 launched a career, really. 1555 01:15:06,376 --> 01:15:08,504 Something that I was already on my way to do, 1556 01:15:08,587 --> 01:15:09,796 but that video helped a lot. 1557 01:15:09,880 --> 01:15:11,757 I remember talking to Joe Bonamassa about you, 1558 01:15:11,840 --> 01:15:14,426 and he said, Marcus King, he said, I'll never forget it, 1559 01:15:14,510 --> 01:15:15,427 he said, "It's not if..." 1560 01:15:16,553 --> 01:15:17,471 It's when." 1561 01:15:17,554 --> 01:15:20,224 And the when is right now. 1562 01:15:21,600 --> 01:15:22,518 [woman whooping] 1563 01:15:22,601 --> 01:15:25,312 When people come in here and they sound really good, 1564 01:15:25,395 --> 01:15:26,980 I'll tell Norm or Norm will tell me 1565 01:15:27,064 --> 01:15:28,482 like, "Oh, let's get a video with them, 1566 01:15:28,565 --> 01:15:29,983 because they just sound amazing. 1567 01:15:30,067 --> 01:15:33,362 And so, we get to highlight unknown artists 1568 01:15:33,445 --> 01:15:36,865 and it's... it's a great way to show new artists to our audience. 1569 01:15:36,949 --> 01:15:40,536 A lot of people have come in before they were ever known by anybody. 1570 01:15:40,619 --> 01:15:42,538 Post Malone, coming into the store, 1571 01:15:42,621 --> 01:15:47,000 no tattoos, long hair, looking like a kid. 1572 01:15:47,084 --> 01:15:49,753 [over phone] Hey, everybody, Norm over here at Norman's Rare Guitars. 1573 01:15:49,836 --> 01:15:51,380 Look at this little chunker. 1574 01:15:51,463 --> 01:15:53,674 The young men that just came in, 1575 01:15:53,757 --> 01:15:57,386 Jason Probst and Austin and Douglas. 1576 01:15:57,469 --> 01:15:59,137 And they had a funny thing happen 1577 01:15:59,221 --> 01:16:01,390 to 'em in the parking lot at Topanga Plaza. 1578 01:16:01,473 --> 01:16:03,725 Not really funny, but it's funny 1579 01:16:03,809 --> 01:16:05,852 that they ended up at Norm's Rare Guitars. 1580 01:16:06,687 --> 01:16:09,648 Well, we drive like a Suburban 1581 01:16:09,731 --> 01:16:11,817 and someone broke into the back 1582 01:16:12,401 --> 01:16:15,362 and stole the back seats without us knowing. 1583 01:16:15,445 --> 01:16:16,947 -And a guitar. -And... and his guitar. 1584 01:16:17,030 --> 01:16:18,282 So we actually had to come here and get a guitar. 1585 01:16:18,365 --> 01:16:19,950 -And... -We knew right where to go. 1586 01:16:20,033 --> 01:16:22,369 They stole my Martin 000-15. 1587 01:16:22,452 --> 01:16:24,997 And so, we went looking around, 1588 01:16:25,080 --> 01:16:28,208 and went to Norm's to check it out, 1589 01:16:29,209 --> 01:16:31,628 and we bought another one. 1590 01:16:31,712 --> 01:16:32,879 So that was pretty awesome. 1591 01:16:32,963 --> 01:16:34,840 But it is funny that they ended up here, 1592 01:16:34,923 --> 01:16:37,843 because you were planning on possibly going someplace else. 1593 01:16:37,926 --> 01:16:40,762 -And then, somebody suggested Norm's Rare Guitars. -That was me. 1594 01:16:40,846 --> 01:16:42,014 -What a guy. -Yes, sir. 1595 01:16:42,097 --> 01:16:44,266 All right. So he knows where to get good guitars. 1596 01:16:44,349 --> 01:16:47,227 -Thank you, Austin. So, uh... -Play something for him, Austin. 1597 01:16:47,311 --> 01:16:48,604 Yeah, play a little something here. 1598 01:16:48,687 --> 01:16:50,856 This is an Eric Clapton reissue, you know? 1599 01:16:50,939 --> 01:16:52,608 Yeah. This is a pretty guitar. I don't know, 1600 01:16:52,691 --> 01:16:54,860 I can't really play very well. Let me just play a little... 1601 01:16:57,112 --> 01:16:59,489 And then I played the same thing that I always play. 1602 01:17:00,866 --> 01:17:02,909 All right, Jason Probst, thank you so much, buddy. 1603 01:17:02,993 --> 01:17:04,036 -Nice meeting you. -Austin. 1604 01:17:04,119 --> 01:17:05,203 -Nice to meet you. -Norman, pleasure. 1605 01:17:05,287 --> 01:17:06,872 -Thank you. -Norman's rocks. 1606 01:17:06,955 --> 01:17:08,874 Here we go. Norm's Rare Guitars. 1607 01:17:09,625 --> 01:17:12,794 Yeah, that's beautiful. I fucking forgot about that wholeheartedly. 1608 01:17:12,878 --> 01:17:14,588 But it's really awesome to see. 1609 01:17:15,380 --> 01:17:17,924 I'm super different now. Way cuter. 1610 01:17:18,008 --> 01:17:21,470 At the end of the day, I think the success of the social media 1611 01:17:21,553 --> 01:17:24,473 runs tangentially with how authentic he is 1612 01:17:24,556 --> 01:17:26,767 as a person in his store. 1613 01:17:26,850 --> 01:17:28,060 And that's why he's successful. 1614 01:17:28,143 --> 01:17:30,604 If you are as advertised, 1615 01:17:30,687 --> 01:17:32,731 people want to follow that. 1616 01:17:32,814 --> 01:17:34,191 [Norman] Well, you know, one can only hope 1617 01:17:34,274 --> 01:17:37,444 that they've done something good for the industry that they're part of. 1618 01:17:37,527 --> 01:17:39,363 I hope that we are doing, 1619 01:17:39,446 --> 01:17:41,239 and that people appreciate is that, 1620 01:17:41,323 --> 01:17:44,409 we do try to introduce young talent to a lot of people, 1621 01:17:44,493 --> 01:17:47,162 and also, you know, vintage players 1622 01:17:47,245 --> 01:17:50,791 that maybe are not well-known, as well-known as they should be. 1623 01:17:50,874 --> 01:17:52,793 Giving back is very important. 1624 01:17:52,876 --> 01:17:55,629 And like the city of Los Angeles has been so good to me 1625 01:17:55,712 --> 01:17:59,466 that I kind of feel like I have to do something to give back to the city, 1626 01:17:59,549 --> 01:18:03,095 because it's really done things for me in my life 1627 01:18:03,178 --> 01:18:06,390 that I never would've imagined could've possibly happened. 1628 01:18:08,433 --> 01:18:10,602 [rock music playing] 1629 01:18:12,688 --> 01:18:14,481 [Melissa] I don't know if people know how much money he raised, 1630 01:18:14,564 --> 01:18:17,901 how much he gave back to the... the community. 1631 01:18:17,984 --> 01:18:21,029 He gives to charities, and he's big on The Midnight Mission. 1632 01:18:21,113 --> 01:18:23,240 [Joe] We live in one of the richest cities in the world, 1633 01:18:23,323 --> 01:18:27,577 yet there's 70,000 people that don't have a roof over their head. 1634 01:18:27,661 --> 01:18:30,080 We did a charity event in Malibu for him, 1635 01:18:30,163 --> 01:18:33,041 and it was a big success, and he's done more of those since. 1636 01:18:35,293 --> 01:18:39,047 ♪ Here she comes for me... ♪ 1637 01:18:39,131 --> 01:18:40,382 He's a workaholic, 1638 01:18:40,465 --> 01:18:42,551 and he has, you know, so much every day. 1639 01:18:42,634 --> 01:18:46,430 His daily schedule, I would not wish that upon anyone, 1640 01:18:46,513 --> 01:18:48,140 but he's like the Energizer Bunny, 1641 01:18:48,223 --> 01:18:50,559 and work is, like, what fuels him. 1642 01:18:50,642 --> 01:18:52,185 Old man works the hardest. 1643 01:18:54,312 --> 01:18:55,897 [Jen] It's 'cause you're the strongest, Norm. 1644 01:18:55,981 --> 01:18:59,526 I am. I must be. I'm the most determined. 1645 01:18:59,609 --> 01:19:02,863 But on top of it, he's like, "I'm gonna see who I can get 1646 01:19:02,946 --> 01:19:04,114 "to play these Midnight Mission shows 1647 01:19:04,698 --> 01:19:07,451 "because I have this big opportunity to help 1648 01:19:08,034 --> 01:19:10,036 "and I have all these celebrities coming into the store. 1649 01:19:10,120 --> 01:19:11,913 What's the worst they can say, is no." 1650 01:19:11,997 --> 01:19:15,333 The Heartbreakers got involved with the Midnight Mission a few times, 1651 01:19:15,417 --> 01:19:18,420 because we like Norm and he asked us to do it. 1652 01:19:18,503 --> 01:19:19,713 We wanted to help. 1653 01:19:20,630 --> 01:19:23,383 You know, I always feel like I could have done more 1654 01:19:23,467 --> 01:19:26,720 and we will continue to do more. 1655 01:19:26,803 --> 01:19:31,516 And I thank Norm Harris, especially for, uh, 1656 01:19:32,434 --> 01:19:35,979 getting me involved and Dana, for being so enthusiastic, 1657 01:19:36,062 --> 01:19:38,482 and The Midnight Mission 1658 01:19:39,733 --> 01:19:41,568 is a good way to spend your money, 1659 01:19:41,651 --> 01:19:45,822 because they're... they're honest people 1660 01:19:45,906 --> 01:19:50,744 and the money actually has immediate effect 1661 01:19:50,827 --> 01:19:52,788 on people that need it very badly. 1662 01:19:52,871 --> 01:19:55,540 Through Norm and his many 1663 01:19:55,624 --> 01:19:58,210 connections and friends, and family, 1664 01:19:58,293 --> 01:20:00,504 he's brought in, I would say millions 1665 01:20:00,587 --> 01:20:01,963 to The Midnight Mission. 1666 01:20:02,047 --> 01:20:04,090 If you took all the people who donate to us 1667 01:20:04,174 --> 01:20:06,760 because they learned about us through Norm, 1668 01:20:07,427 --> 01:20:10,597 I mean you could... that number probably would even go higher. 1669 01:20:10,680 --> 01:20:13,391 The Midnight Mission, it's a great cause. 1670 01:20:13,475 --> 01:20:15,310 We need you guys to step up. 1671 01:20:15,393 --> 01:20:16,978 It's my favorite cause, 1672 01:20:17,062 --> 01:20:21,525 and we're gonna feed over 250,000 meals 1673 01:20:21,608 --> 01:20:24,986 to homeless people just from these two nights and more. 1674 01:20:25,070 --> 01:20:29,157 We just got some of our toys and we just got 60 guitars 1675 01:20:29,241 --> 01:20:31,034 that we are gonna give to the homeless kids. 1676 01:20:31,117 --> 01:20:33,912 [Georgia] He is truly humble. It's not false humility. 1677 01:20:34,454 --> 01:20:38,583 And that may be one of the outstanding qualities about Norm, 1678 01:20:38,667 --> 01:20:42,712 is that he doesn't even know how magnificent he is 1679 01:20:42,796 --> 01:20:44,089 and it's part of his charm. 1680 01:20:44,172 --> 01:20:47,801 It's like, "Do you even know?" He doesn't know. 1681 01:20:47,884 --> 01:20:51,638 And I'm like, "It's Norm!" Like, I adore Norm. 1682 01:20:51,721 --> 01:20:54,641 And I think that anyone who meets him feels that way. 1683 01:20:56,393 --> 01:20:59,604 You know, in the years that he's participated in our toy drive 1684 01:20:59,688 --> 01:21:00,814 and our Christmas event, 1685 01:21:01,523 --> 01:21:03,108 I've come to see what a gift 1686 01:21:03,775 --> 01:21:06,570 giving somebody a musical instrument versus a toy. 1687 01:21:06,653 --> 01:21:10,657 He's giving these children gifts that will last a lifetime, 1688 01:21:10,740 --> 01:21:12,868 and maybe even become something for them 1689 01:21:12,951 --> 01:21:15,078 to process their emotions. 1690 01:21:15,161 --> 01:21:16,454 Maybe even a future career. 1691 01:21:16,538 --> 01:21:18,164 [woman] Where... where are we, Norm? 1692 01:21:18,248 --> 01:21:19,624 We're down at The Midnight Mission, 1693 01:21:19,708 --> 01:21:22,085 and we're trying to give some kids a merry Christmas. 1694 01:21:22,168 --> 01:21:28,008 The ripple of Norm Harris has been life saving and life changing, 1695 01:21:28,925 --> 01:21:30,468 to the people in Skid Row. 1696 01:21:30,552 --> 01:21:34,556 His legacy is, uh, is immense. 1697 01:21:37,601 --> 01:21:41,438 [Joe] One of the things about my friendship over the years with Norm, 1698 01:21:42,147 --> 01:21:44,608 is the fact that I see 1699 01:21:44,691 --> 01:21:47,193 how much good he does for people. 1700 01:21:47,861 --> 01:21:49,487 He's the type of person 1701 01:21:50,488 --> 01:21:53,325 that my family always tried to make me, 1702 01:21:53,408 --> 01:21:55,243 is he'd rather give than receive. 1703 01:22:01,458 --> 01:22:02,834 Hey, guys, Norm over here. 1704 01:22:02,918 --> 01:22:05,587 I'm in my hospital bed with Marlene, 1705 01:22:06,254 --> 01:22:08,757 and I just want to let you guys know that 1706 01:22:08,840 --> 01:22:11,551 we're making some improvements. It's little by little. 1707 01:22:11,635 --> 01:22:14,220 I'm in, actually, a rehab center right now. 1708 01:22:14,804 --> 01:22:18,099 They took me out of the hospital, which is a good sign. 1709 01:22:18,183 --> 01:22:22,896 So we're hoping that I kind of get back to my old self, 1710 01:22:22,979 --> 01:22:24,356 or close to it. 1711 01:22:24,439 --> 01:22:26,483 And all the love that I've received 1712 01:22:26,566 --> 01:22:29,152 and so many messages... 1713 01:22:29,986 --> 01:22:33,698 I love all of you, and I am overwhelmed with it, 1714 01:22:33,782 --> 01:22:36,534 and it gets me teared up when I read a lot of the stuff. 1715 01:22:37,202 --> 01:22:39,162 But, I love you guys. 1716 01:22:39,245 --> 01:22:42,874 I don't know who deserves as much love as I'm getting, 1717 01:22:42,958 --> 01:22:45,001 but I'm overwhelmed by it. 1718 01:22:45,585 --> 01:22:47,671 And thank you guys for everything. 1719 01:22:48,421 --> 01:22:49,714 [indistinct chatter] 1720 01:22:49,798 --> 01:22:51,925 -[Joe] Still buying. -[laughter] 1721 01:22:52,008 --> 01:22:55,011 This is no, this is the first... this is the first guitar 1722 01:22:55,762 --> 01:22:56,846 I've ever bought from this store 1723 01:22:56,930 --> 01:22:58,390 that Norm didn't personally make the deal on. 1724 01:22:58,473 --> 01:22:59,724 -Yeah. Yeah. -And it's like... 1725 01:22:59,808 --> 01:23:00,850 That's why I always tell people, it's like 1726 01:23:00,934 --> 01:23:03,728 if you buy a guitar from Norm's Rare Guitars, you'll... 1727 01:23:03,812 --> 01:23:08,358 Norm gives the final say, you know, on all the deals, 1728 01:23:08,441 --> 01:23:10,610 which is so good to be here today 1729 01:23:10,694 --> 01:23:13,446 because you know, you knocked off, like, 7,000 or 8,000 grand off it. 1730 01:23:13,530 --> 01:23:14,489 [laughing] 1731 01:23:18,201 --> 01:23:20,036 Yes, this is a business, 1732 01:23:20,120 --> 01:23:22,998 and you have to sell guitars in order to buy new guitars 1733 01:23:23,081 --> 01:23:24,165 to sell more guitars. 1734 01:23:24,249 --> 01:23:26,209 But there's a real passion behind it. 1735 01:23:26,292 --> 01:23:28,753 And it's driven on a real personal level 1736 01:23:28,837 --> 01:23:30,296 that the music is what matters. 1737 01:23:30,380 --> 01:23:32,382 And that this is the... this is the foundation. 1738 01:23:32,966 --> 01:23:34,009 You can make your music, 1739 01:23:34,092 --> 01:23:36,219 but you can't make guitar music without one of these. 1740 01:23:36,302 --> 01:23:37,679 And we're gonna help you find one. 1741 01:23:37,762 --> 01:23:42,267 And it's got every sense from the much smaller store in the beginning to now, 1742 01:23:42,350 --> 01:23:44,310 that it is not a corporation. 1743 01:23:46,229 --> 01:23:48,940 [Sarah] This is like the Cheers spot, this is the hangout. 1744 01:23:49,024 --> 01:23:50,567 You don't get that anymore. 1745 01:23:50,650 --> 01:23:54,070 Like, companies try and create that artificially, 1746 01:23:54,154 --> 01:23:55,613 like when you sit at the Starbucks 1747 01:23:55,697 --> 01:23:57,866 and they want everybody to sit there 1748 01:23:57,949 --> 01:24:00,744 and how can we market to the kids to entice them 1749 01:24:00,827 --> 01:24:02,746 to, like, hang out here. 1750 01:24:02,829 --> 01:24:04,539 This is organic. 1751 01:24:04,622 --> 01:24:06,916 [Kiefer] Every instrument that's come through this door 1752 01:24:07,000 --> 01:24:08,460 that makes it to the wall for sale, 1753 01:24:10,670 --> 01:24:11,838 has gone through Norm. 1754 01:24:12,547 --> 01:24:16,009 No one's gonna dispute the authenticity of this place, 1755 01:24:16,092 --> 01:24:19,554 of Norm, of his passion for the instrument, 1756 01:24:19,637 --> 01:24:21,389 and his passion for the players. 1757 01:24:21,473 --> 01:24:22,557 [Rob] He still loves this. 1758 01:24:22,640 --> 01:24:25,685 At a time where he could really phone it in, he doesn't. 1759 01:24:26,227 --> 01:24:27,896 That's why Norman's Rare Guitars 1760 01:24:27,979 --> 01:24:32,150 is as successful as it is, is because he did the work. 1761 01:24:32,233 --> 01:24:34,569 That's what Norman's Rare Guitars is today. 1762 01:24:34,652 --> 01:24:38,573 It's the work, it's the passion and it's the love of guitars. 1763 01:24:38,656 --> 01:24:41,284 Thomas Edison, he invented the light bulb. 1764 01:24:41,367 --> 01:24:43,369 You have inventors and creators. 1765 01:24:43,453 --> 01:24:44,496 Norm should be on that list 1766 01:24:44,579 --> 01:24:48,792 'cause he basically created the vintage guitar market and store. 1767 01:24:48,875 --> 01:24:51,002 I believe he should be credited with that. 1768 01:24:51,086 --> 01:24:56,007 These guitars are all Norm's, and they will all find homes. 1769 01:24:56,091 --> 01:24:59,260 And you know, there's something really cool about saying like, 1770 01:24:59,344 --> 01:25:01,054 "I got this at Norm's." 1771 01:25:01,137 --> 01:25:04,516 [in Spanish] It's easy to be successful when everything comes 1772 01:25:04,599 --> 01:25:05,558 from the heart. 1773 01:25:06,226 --> 01:25:09,521 I think that Norman's Rare Guitars is that. 1774 01:25:09,604 --> 01:25:11,648 [in English] Norm has put the time in. 1775 01:25:11,731 --> 01:25:14,818 I think Norm will probably, in some sense, 1776 01:25:14,901 --> 01:25:17,779 always be connected with vintage guitars. 1777 01:25:17,862 --> 01:25:19,656 You know, it's in his blood. 1778 01:25:21,032 --> 01:25:23,326 [woman] Welcome back, Norm! 1779 01:25:23,409 --> 01:25:24,369 [man] There he is. 1780 01:25:24,452 --> 01:25:27,372 [woman] We're so excited to see you in the shop. 1781 01:25:28,289 --> 01:25:29,165 Whoo! 1782 01:25:29,791 --> 01:25:31,334 Yes. 1783 01:25:31,417 --> 01:25:33,378 -Partially. -[all laugh] 1784 01:25:34,003 --> 01:25:37,132 [woman] Yes, Norm. [clapping] So happy. 1785 01:25:38,341 --> 01:25:40,635 -Thank you, boys. -[man] We should put you right to work. 1786 01:25:40,718 --> 01:25:42,720 [woman laughs] Put you right to work. 1787 01:25:43,429 --> 01:25:45,431 [indistinct chatter] 1788 01:26:02,365 --> 01:26:07,203 [interviewer] How do we keep that Norman's Rare Guitars trust 1789 01:26:07,287 --> 01:26:08,663 when Norman is gone? 1790 01:26:08,746 --> 01:26:11,666 [Nick] When he is gone? You mean... 1791 01:26:12,333 --> 01:26:15,503 [interviewer] Retired or... It's inevitable he'll not be here one day. 1792 01:26:16,379 --> 01:26:18,214 [Nick splutters] You know what, 1793 01:26:18,298 --> 01:26:19,799 I haven't really given that much thought. 1794 01:26:19,883 --> 01:26:22,218 I don't... I don't know whether, uh... 1795 01:26:23,428 --> 01:26:25,889 That's a... that's a very saddening thought for me. 1796 01:26:25,972 --> 01:26:29,309 Norman doesn't have an exit strategy. 1797 01:26:29,392 --> 01:26:32,061 You know, we just take one day at a time, 1798 01:26:32,145 --> 01:26:36,774 and we hope that if anybody would take over the store, 1799 01:26:36,858 --> 01:26:38,902 that they keep the same employees. 1800 01:26:38,985 --> 01:26:43,531 He's built up a reputation of honesty and fairness, trust, 1801 01:26:43,615 --> 01:26:46,534 and, um, people rely on him. 1802 01:26:47,869 --> 01:26:50,079 One of the people that I would have to say is 1803 01:26:50,163 --> 01:26:52,498 as crazy about guitars as Norman 1804 01:26:52,582 --> 01:26:54,000 is Joe Bonamassa. 1805 01:26:54,584 --> 01:26:57,712 And he loves everything about guitars. 1806 01:26:57,795 --> 01:27:01,674 And I would say he's got the same outlook 1807 01:27:01,758 --> 01:27:03,551 that Norman does. And, uh... 1808 01:27:04,427 --> 01:27:06,554 But he... You know, he's young 1809 01:27:06,638 --> 01:27:09,057 and he's got his career to think of. 1810 01:27:09,140 --> 01:27:12,769 But Norman would love to see him in the store also. 1811 01:27:13,394 --> 01:27:16,397 I think that he's gonna have a long career 1812 01:27:17,148 --> 01:27:18,650 and he's fabulous, so... 1813 01:27:19,317 --> 01:27:21,152 But that's who we think of sometimes. 1814 01:27:30,411 --> 01:27:34,707 I can't think of the, you know, the store without Norm. 1815 01:27:34,791 --> 01:27:38,503 I know Norm since I was a kid and I wanted to work with him, 1816 01:27:39,045 --> 01:27:41,506 and I'm doing that right now. 1817 01:27:41,589 --> 01:27:43,800 I just cannot imagine, you know? 1818 01:27:43,883 --> 01:27:47,053 My life without Norm, it's unthinkable. 1819 01:27:47,136 --> 01:27:50,640 Well, Norm is not replaceable, and he never will be. 1820 01:27:50,723 --> 01:27:52,976 I'm so glad that there's all this media, 1821 01:27:53,059 --> 01:27:55,144 and this... all of these films 1822 01:27:55,895 --> 01:27:57,897 and all the work he's done for charity 1823 01:27:57,981 --> 01:28:01,859 that is a record permanently of who he is and what he has done, 1824 01:28:02,568 --> 01:28:04,279 because it'll make it easier 1825 01:28:05,113 --> 01:28:07,115 for us to talk about him in 50 years. 1826 01:28:07,198 --> 01:28:08,074 It really will. 1827 01:28:08,157 --> 01:28:12,287 [Joe] Everybody who's working here just has to do their job 1828 01:28:13,079 --> 01:28:15,707 the best they know how, and it'll work. 1829 01:28:15,790 --> 01:28:17,208 And people are doing that. 1830 01:28:17,292 --> 01:28:20,461 People are making an extra effort. I think that's the key. 1831 01:28:20,545 --> 01:28:24,590 We know what Norm wants, so it's up to us to do it. 1832 01:28:24,674 --> 01:28:28,594 [Nick] We will have to keep Norman's standards if he's not here. 1833 01:28:29,220 --> 01:28:32,140 We have to use his eyes to buy stuff, 1834 01:28:32,223 --> 01:28:34,100 and his way of working, 1835 01:28:34,892 --> 01:28:38,104 and his love of really cool stuff. 1836 01:28:38,688 --> 01:28:42,108 You know, for the rest of the Harris family, if nothing else. 1837 01:28:43,484 --> 01:28:46,654 [Lenny] I'm sure that he's got people that will look after the business. 1838 01:28:46,738 --> 01:28:50,283 I'm sure he's trained people as to how he likes to do things, 1839 01:28:50,366 --> 01:28:52,994 and the specimens that he likes to purchase. 1840 01:28:53,077 --> 01:28:56,497 And, you know, I'm sure he's got a huge warehouse of things 1841 01:28:56,581 --> 01:28:57,874 that still haven't been seen. 1842 01:28:57,957 --> 01:29:02,420 So, I hope that the business will continue on into the future 1843 01:29:02,503 --> 01:29:04,672 for young players to discover. 1844 01:29:12,305 --> 01:29:16,017 [Rob] Maybe the storefront will close, 1845 01:29:16,517 --> 01:29:19,187 but the name, the brand, 1846 01:29:19,937 --> 01:29:23,107 the memory will live on for as long as everyone 1847 01:29:23,191 --> 01:29:24,484 who can remember it. 1848 01:29:24,567 --> 01:29:29,280 Norman's, it's... I mean, it sounds so cliche and so funny, 1849 01:29:30,156 --> 01:29:31,866 but it really is... 1850 01:29:31,949 --> 01:29:36,204 I mean, Norman's Rare Guitars, it is an institution as... 1851 01:29:36,287 --> 01:29:38,331 You know, most people who aren't musicians 1852 01:29:38,414 --> 01:29:40,583 or guitar players are going, "Yeah, please." No. 1853 01:29:40,666 --> 01:29:43,669 But those of us who have been around here 1854 01:29:43,753 --> 01:29:46,923 and who have that passion of vintage guitars 1855 01:29:47,006 --> 01:29:48,883 and have that passion for music, 1856 01:29:49,509 --> 01:29:50,843 it's going to live on. 1857 01:29:50,927 --> 01:29:53,846 The storefront might be gone, but it's still gonna be here. 1858 01:29:55,473 --> 01:29:58,768 [Taylor] I'd be sad as the selfish customer that loves his guitars, 1859 01:29:58,851 --> 01:30:03,231 but for this to be the turning point for Norm to... 1860 01:30:03,314 --> 01:30:05,233 to pivot into his next chapter, 1861 01:30:05,316 --> 01:30:08,486 I'd be thrilled for him, because then he'd be able to look at this... 1862 01:30:08,569 --> 01:30:12,281 this thing that he built as just an overwhelming victory, 1863 01:30:12,365 --> 01:30:14,033 a stunning success. 1864 01:30:14,117 --> 01:30:16,369 Something that matters to anyone that... 1865 01:30:16,452 --> 01:30:20,206 that gives a shit about guitars frankly, across the world. 1866 01:30:20,289 --> 01:30:21,707 That sounds dramatic, but it's true. 1867 01:30:23,084 --> 01:30:25,586 [Robbie] All those guitars that are out in the world, 1868 01:30:25,670 --> 01:30:28,714 that come from Norm, you know, they all got a story. 1869 01:30:28,798 --> 01:30:31,926 They all go back to the source on this. 1870 01:30:32,760 --> 01:30:35,096 And of course, you know, we're... 1871 01:30:35,179 --> 01:30:38,224 we're all living in these times and things change, 1872 01:30:38,307 --> 01:30:43,062 and we don't have much control over a lot of these things. 1873 01:30:44,063 --> 01:30:47,358 But I think that so much, 1874 01:30:47,441 --> 01:30:50,570 it's been spread out there, so much already, 1875 01:30:50,653 --> 01:30:55,449 what Norm has given to the guitar world and everything. 1876 01:30:55,992 --> 01:30:59,912 You know, it's been a... a tremendous gift. 1877 01:30:59,996 --> 01:31:02,999 And so, I think that lives on forever. 1878 01:31:07,378 --> 01:31:09,881 [Joe] And I'm lucky, we're all lucky, 1879 01:31:10,631 --> 01:31:13,593 to have lived in the time when there was a Norm Harris. 1880 01:31:13,676 --> 01:31:17,680 And to see it flourish and grow and be what it is. 1881 01:31:17,763 --> 01:31:20,224 And he's accomplished everything that I think he set out to do 1882 01:31:20,308 --> 01:31:21,809 when he started off in Miami. 1883 01:31:21,893 --> 01:31:23,978 I think he's become an icon, a legend, 1884 01:31:24,061 --> 01:31:27,398 and just on a personal note, a friend, a family member, 1885 01:31:27,481 --> 01:31:31,569 and the kind of person, regardless of what he did for a living, 1886 01:31:31,652 --> 01:31:33,487 that you look up to and respect, 1887 01:31:34,071 --> 01:31:37,783 and know that there's still people out there that operate that way. 1888 01:31:37,867 --> 01:31:41,871 I feel like this obligation to take over the store, 1889 01:31:41,954 --> 01:31:44,165 and I can't get there. 1890 01:31:44,248 --> 01:31:48,211 Like, if it's not for you, you can't make yourself 1891 01:31:49,045 --> 01:31:51,214 love something and be passionate about something. 1892 01:31:51,297 --> 01:31:53,341 I mean, I love it because it's my dad's, 1893 01:31:53,424 --> 01:31:55,676 but that's his love. It's not mine. 1894 01:31:56,177 --> 01:32:00,723 And I want, you know, my son or daughter... 1895 01:32:00,806 --> 01:32:03,017 [crying] ...I want them to see the store. 1896 01:32:03,100 --> 01:32:06,395 I want them to know what their grandfather built. 1897 01:32:07,271 --> 01:32:08,773 I don't want to just tell them. 1898 01:32:09,732 --> 01:32:13,611 I want them to actually see it, to understand, 1899 01:32:13,694 --> 01:32:16,197 because, sure, it's just a guitar store, 1900 01:32:16,781 --> 01:32:18,199 but it's not just a guitar store. 1901 01:32:19,283 --> 01:32:21,035 To me, it's so much more than that. 1902 01:32:21,118 --> 01:32:23,371 And to so many people, it's so much more than that. 1903 01:32:25,289 --> 01:32:26,999 So I hope they get to see that. 1904 01:32:31,629 --> 01:32:33,631 [mellow music plays] 1905 01:32:43,391 --> 01:32:45,309 [Norman] In my mind, I'm still the young man 1906 01:32:45,393 --> 01:32:47,186 that started Norm's Rare Guitars. 1907 01:32:47,270 --> 01:32:50,982 But when I look in the mirror, I realize time has flown by, 1908 01:32:51,691 --> 01:32:53,734 and, you know, I'm kind of old school, 1909 01:32:53,818 --> 01:32:58,823 and I always thought that the thing to do is to just try to provide, 1910 01:32:58,906 --> 01:33:01,033 you know, as well as I could for my family. 1911 01:33:01,867 --> 01:33:03,119 But I do have regrets. 1912 01:33:03,202 --> 01:33:05,496 I kind of wish I would've coached more ball games 1913 01:33:05,579 --> 01:33:08,541 and spent a little more time with my kids and my wife. 1914 01:33:08,624 --> 01:33:13,421 But I thought the, you know, my work was the main thing 1915 01:33:13,504 --> 01:33:15,089 that I was supposed to do. 1916 01:33:15,172 --> 01:33:19,427 Now looking back, I can see that I wish I would've done some other things. 1917 01:33:19,510 --> 01:33:22,638 Can't go back in time, so I regret spending 1918 01:33:22,722 --> 01:33:25,599 not as much time with my family as I probably should. 1919 01:33:25,683 --> 01:33:27,310 But I'm fortunate to be able 1920 01:33:27,393 --> 01:33:30,313 to have turned a hobby into a business, 1921 01:33:31,022 --> 01:33:33,232 and I love what I do. 1922 01:33:33,316 --> 01:33:35,693 And, you know, it's a small business, 1923 01:33:35,776 --> 01:33:39,196 and small businesses have a lot of challenges, 1924 01:33:39,280 --> 01:33:44,410 and this cancer thing has really kind of brought that to the forefront. 1925 01:33:45,036 --> 01:33:47,788 And, you know, when they first talked about the cancer, 1926 01:33:47,872 --> 01:33:48,956 I thought this could be it. 1927 01:33:49,040 --> 01:33:52,418 I thought the family and the business, that could be over. 1928 01:33:53,002 --> 01:33:58,090 But my kids got me into social media and the Internet, 1929 01:33:58,174 --> 01:34:00,176 and selling guitars on the Internet. 1930 01:34:00,718 --> 01:34:02,136 And I'm very thankful that they did, 1931 01:34:02,219 --> 01:34:05,014 because it's brought us a worldwide audience, 1932 01:34:05,097 --> 01:34:07,850 and, you know, the store future is up for grabs. 1933 01:34:07,933 --> 01:34:10,227 I mean, we still don't know what's going on, 1934 01:34:10,311 --> 01:34:11,687 but we're doing the best we can. 1935 01:34:12,730 --> 01:34:15,191 You know, when I'm gone, I hope these guitars go on 1936 01:34:15,274 --> 01:34:17,985 to make beautiful music with a lot of people. 1937 01:34:18,069 --> 01:34:21,405 And, you know, I hope the business wasn't for nothing. 1938 01:34:21,489 --> 01:34:26,744 And, you know, neither of my kids really are interested in, 1939 01:34:26,827 --> 01:34:28,662 you know, making the business go on. 1940 01:34:28,746 --> 01:34:31,999 So, I'm gonna have to find somebody that, 1941 01:34:32,625 --> 01:34:34,919 you know, loves the business and will treat it like I did. 1942 01:34:35,711 --> 01:34:37,922 My dad gave me some good advice when I was younger, 1943 01:34:38,005 --> 01:34:40,007 and he said, "When you're in business, 1944 01:34:40,091 --> 01:34:41,592 "try to be as truthful as you can. 1945 01:34:41,675 --> 01:34:43,969 "Tell people everything you know about your product 1946 01:34:44,053 --> 01:34:46,263 "so you don't wake up in the middle of the night 1947 01:34:46,347 --> 01:34:48,015 with people yelling at you." 1948 01:34:48,099 --> 01:34:51,435 And, you know, I think that was a good piece of advice. 1949 01:34:51,519 --> 01:34:54,188 So, you know, I've met so many great people, 1950 01:34:54,271 --> 01:34:56,440 you know, doing what I do in the business, 1951 01:34:56,524 --> 01:34:59,110 and, you know, it's just amazing. 1952 01:34:59,193 --> 01:35:01,612 And, you know, hopefully, we treated everybody 1953 01:35:01,695 --> 01:35:04,532 from the people who were, you know, 1954 01:35:04,615 --> 01:35:06,826 busboys in a restaurant 1955 01:35:06,909 --> 01:35:11,580 to presidents, and, you know, congressmen 1956 01:35:11,664 --> 01:35:15,167 and movie stars and big-time musicians, 1957 01:35:15,251 --> 01:35:17,628 I hope we treated them all equally and right. 1958 01:35:17,711 --> 01:35:21,298 I'm humbled by all that the store has done for us, 1959 01:35:21,382 --> 01:35:23,968 and I love the store 1960 01:35:24,051 --> 01:35:26,470 and I love the worldwide audience 1961 01:35:26,554 --> 01:35:28,556 that we've gotten since we've been able 1962 01:35:28,639 --> 01:35:31,559 to do all this Internet and social media, 1963 01:35:31,642 --> 01:35:33,686 and it's all for the music. 1964 01:35:33,769 --> 01:35:38,732 So I hope that, you know, when time goes by, people will, 1965 01:35:38,816 --> 01:35:40,484 you know, continue to play these guitars 1966 01:35:40,568 --> 01:35:42,111 and make good music on them. 1967 01:35:42,194 --> 01:35:45,739 And I love the family that we've made through the Internet, 1968 01:35:45,823 --> 01:35:48,826 and I hope that it goes on. 1969 01:35:48,909 --> 01:35:49,910 Love you all. 1970 01:36:04,091 --> 01:36:05,676 What does the guitar mean to me? 1971 01:36:05,759 --> 01:36:08,053 First word that comes to mind is "freedom." 1972 01:36:08,137 --> 01:36:11,474 It's freedom. It's escapism at its finest. 1973 01:36:11,557 --> 01:36:13,851 To me, I always say it's six strings in the universe. 1974 01:36:13,934 --> 01:36:17,480 Oh, the guitar is, it's the most familiar thing in my life. 1975 01:36:17,563 --> 01:36:19,648 I pretty much live and breathe guitar, 1976 01:36:19,732 --> 01:36:23,486 and it's my main sort of instrument for communicating. 1977 01:36:23,569 --> 01:36:26,989 I definitely communicate better on the guitar than I do verbally. 1978 01:36:27,072 --> 01:36:29,700 I'll be more comfortable sitting with a guitar in my lap, 1979 01:36:29,783 --> 01:36:32,244 watching TV and not play, 1980 01:36:32,328 --> 01:36:33,662 than I would be without it. 1981 01:36:33,746 --> 01:36:35,080 There's something very comforting, 1982 01:36:35,164 --> 01:36:38,918 the way it fits on my body, the way I've gotten used to holding onto it. 1983 01:36:39,001 --> 01:36:42,254 The fact that it's there. Oh, my gosh, if you have an idea that falls from the sky, 1984 01:36:42,338 --> 01:36:46,592 it's been everything from a best friend to a life raft, 1985 01:36:46,675 --> 01:36:48,969 where it's just... it's filled the time, 1986 01:36:49,053 --> 01:36:51,263 where otherwise, I certainly know myself, 1987 01:36:51,347 --> 01:36:53,140 I could become destructive... 1988 01:36:53,224 --> 01:36:55,976 [chuckles] ...and the guitar has saved me more than once. 1989 01:36:56,060 --> 01:37:00,231 The guitar is the biggest thing in the world to me, next to my family. 1990 01:37:00,314 --> 01:37:01,982 It's my favorite thing to do. 1991 01:37:02,066 --> 01:37:03,859 It is my favorite thing to talk about. 1992 01:37:03,943 --> 01:37:05,277 It is my favorite thing to look at. 1993 01:37:05,361 --> 01:37:07,071 It's my favorite thing to listen to. 1994 01:37:07,154 --> 01:37:09,865 It's... it's completely all encompassing 1995 01:37:09,949 --> 01:37:11,825 my whole entire life. 1996 01:37:11,909 --> 01:37:13,827 It's been an extension of my personality. 1997 01:37:13,911 --> 01:37:17,039 It's sort of, it's enabled me to travel all over the world. 1998 01:37:17,122 --> 01:37:19,750 It's enabled me to make a living. 1999 01:37:19,833 --> 01:37:21,877 It's enabled me to... 2000 01:37:21,961 --> 01:37:25,714 to work in a venue where I met my wife of 37 years, 2001 01:37:25,798 --> 01:37:28,175 and I will never get tired 2002 01:37:28,259 --> 01:37:31,095 of even looking at the simple shape of a guitar, 2003 01:37:31,679 --> 01:37:35,349 or the finish or the colors or the variations of them, 2004 01:37:35,975 --> 01:37:38,811 let alone the sound and what you can get out of it. 2005 01:37:39,478 --> 01:37:41,063 The guitar means everything to me. 2006 01:37:41,146 --> 01:37:44,483 It's, uh... It's the nucleus 2007 01:37:46,026 --> 01:37:49,280 of the art that I make, the music that I make, you know? 2008 01:37:49,363 --> 01:37:51,865 It was the power... 2009 01:37:54,618 --> 01:37:55,869 within the music. 2010 01:37:55,953 --> 01:37:58,914 As, Santana says, "It's a weapon of peace," you know. 2011 01:37:58,998 --> 01:38:00,332 It's a part of me. 2012 01:38:00,416 --> 01:38:05,296 It's just a... a part of my... my DNA, and it's me. 2013 01:38:06,130 --> 01:38:08,007 It's my world, and it's... 2014 01:38:08,090 --> 01:38:09,633 there's no one that can touch it. 2015 01:38:09,717 --> 01:38:12,928 It's just my life. It's just my everything.