“I get a call at 2am from my neighbor saying, ‘The fire department’s here.’ It could’ve swept right up the side and took the whole thing out”: Joe Bonamassa’s mythical Nerdville gear haul was almost completely destroyed in a fire

Joe Bonamassa’s gear collection – which is housed at the world-renowned Nerdville museum – is the stuff of legend.

Few will ever get the chance to enter the museum, but fortunately for the average guitar fan, online gear retailer Reverb was recently allowed inside to film a mini-documentary on the building’s bounty.

In a surprise to absolutely no-one, the near-40-minute film is filled with unbelievable tales of electric guitar acquisition and maintenance.

These include anecdotes of disasters nearly wiping out the entire haul, and the now-famous duffle bag of money, used in the exchange of the iconic Bolin ‘Burst, that is buried somewhere deep in the desert.

One of the most intriguing tales involves a 1958 Korina Gibson Flying V, which Bonamassa purchased for $200,000 after it had been discovered by its previous owner wrapped up in a trash bag.

“She thought it was worth $500, or less,” Bonamassa recalls. “She got significantly more from us.” After a once-over revived the “unplayable” instrument, JoBo then used it on the Conan O’Brien Show, and cycled it into his rotation of stage guitars.

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There were some modifications he left unchanged, though, and it turns out he takes this approach with all his vintage guitars: “It’s the way I got it. It’s never gonna not be what it is today. If it’s got an issue or two, just leave it. It’s all part of the story.”

One story that almost had a far more devastating ending involves a fire that nearly engulfed Nerdville and came close to destroying its priceless inventory.

“I was up in Oakland, we’d just started a tour,” JoBo says.” That night I get a call at 2am from my neighbor. He [sent] a video going, ‘Don’t worry, I got you, the fire department’s here.’

“It was during the windy season and the dry season, where that shit could've swept right up the side [of Nerdville] and took the whole thing out.”

Fortunately, one of the firefighters was a Bonamassa fan, who had plans to see JoBo live later that week in Las Vegas. Safe to say, he was thoroughly thanked for his rescue job.

The conversation also gave Bonamassa the floor to reflect on the state of the vintage gear market, which he says is dictated by the perception of scarcity, rather than scarcity itself. Not only that, he’s well aware of the influence he and his collection holds over the wider market.

He continues: “I know if I decided one day, ‘I’m going to sell 130 [Fender] tweed amps.’ We’ll sell the first 25% in a day, and then they’ll sit. I know, what I’m holding at this stage in my life, that at any point I could tank that market. I could affect it.

“If I said, ‘I’m done with the sunburst Les Paul, I’m gonna put 15 of these on the market all at the same time.’ I’ll sell five of them, then it becomes a non-event. It’s the perception of scarcity that drives a market, not actual scarcity. There are plenty of those [Les Pauls].”

Late last year, Bonamassa also welcomed Guitarist into Nerdville to show off some of the most prized guitars in his collection and share the stories behind his favorite pieces of gear.