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Lot Essay
LD: This is the one I've marked as the Apollo guitar for reference because that's where it was conceived. It's a particularly nice example of an Eric Clapton Strat. made by Larry Brooks at the Custom Shop, specifically for Eric. It was the first to reflect changes you had wanted, which came about following a meeting with Larry Brooks and John Page with a view to changing a few things on the [signature] guitars. They came to rehearsals [for the Apollo's 50th Anniversary Concert] at The Apollo [Theatre, New York, June 1993], and you gave them some new specs.
EC: Yes...I think the changes were to the neck and some finishing.
LD: Yes I think it was the neck, we were already using Lace Sensors then on the early guitar. It's a particularly nice instrument, it's been ...well played as you see from the wear. That's what's good about maple, it shows up wear more than a rosewood neck.
EC: Which is nice ...I like it, it gets my approval.
LD: When we're using black Strats. I would have two or three on the go generally - and they would all be used. Some nights he'd play one, and then Eric would bust a string, and he'd play another one for the whole set. So it's very difficult to say which guitar was used for each specific thing...And they were always ... made to look as uniformly similar as possible... After a certain period, Eric asked them not to put his signature on the headstock. For his guitars only - not the production models ...This would have been about the time it happened then - there would have been another brief to the builder...don't put my signature on the headstock.
EC: Yes...I think the changes were to the neck and some finishing.
LD: Yes I think it was the neck, we were already using Lace Sensors then on the early guitar. It's a particularly nice instrument, it's been ...well played as you see from the wear. That's what's good about maple, it shows up wear more than a rosewood neck.
EC: Which is nice ...I like it, it gets my approval.
LD: When we're using black Strats. I would have two or three on the go generally - and they would all be used. Some nights he'd play one, and then Eric would bust a string, and he'd play another one for the whole set. So it's very difficult to say which guitar was used for each specific thing...And they were always ... made to look as uniformly similar as possible... After a certain period, Eric asked them not to put his signature on the headstock. For his guitars only - not the production models ...This would have been about the time it happened then - there would have been another brief to the builder...don't put my signature on the headstock.