“When people ask, ‘Why do you need so many?’ They don’t get what it is to be a collector. You have the ability to preserve things”: Joe Bonamassa on why he takes gear collecting so seriously

Joe Bonamassa has explained what it is about guitar collecting that he finds so fascinating – and admitted to being addicted to buying vintage gear.

It’s common knowledge that Bonamassa’s home, Nerdville, is a museum in all but the fact that fans can’t buy an entrance ticket to oggle at the inventory of ultra-rare vintage guitar equipment.

“I do live in kind of like a museum situation where I'd make coffee in the morning next to a tweed amp,” he accepts, in conversation with CBS Mornings. “That's perfectly normal behavior for me.”

The bluesman's high-profile purchases are often documented on social media, with Gary Moore’s SLO 100 and Lowell George’s Dumble Super Overdrive two recent, and pricey, purchases. But each individual piece of gear has its own story to tell. And that's why Bonamassa is so committed to the collecting game.

“Every instrument is different,” he reasons. “When people ask, ‘Why do you need so many?’ they don’t get what it is to be a collector. As a collector, you're a custodian. You have the ability to preserve things; use them.

“That's why I love guitars and amps. They function. I play them live and in the studio. I love the fact that something that's that old, we're talking about almost three-quarters of a century with some of these things, is still cool and relevant today.

“When I look at a Gibson Les Paul Standard from 1959, or a Fender Stratocaster from 1954, I go, ‘Wow. Every single part of this, from the screws to the capacitors that wire the thing, was made here,’” he goes on.

Totting up how much he’s spent over the years would take a mathematician of heroic proportions. All JoBo knows is that he won’t change his habits.

“It's like primitive social media. Ever since I've been able to save up $200 or more, I've spent it all on guitars,” he continues. “Any guitar player or collector will sacrifice fiscal responsibility for the next thing; it's the chase. It is an addiction, but I live in it.”

Some of his gear-buying adventures make for quite the reading. At times, he's breathed new life into Les Pauls that have spent decades collecting dust under staircases, and carved the names of guitar legends into others. Each story, each piece of gear, is unique.

In related news, the guitarist has revealed his intriguing secret hack for writing heavy riffs and has just released a signature combo amp with Fuchs. It’s been built by a renowned disciple of Howard Dumble, with Bonamassa calling it “the worst-kept secret in the amp world”.