A Dying Art?

From the desk of Ned P. Rauch:

I came across the guitar pictured to the right at a recording studio in Vermont over the weekend. It reminded me of those far-out, custom-painted jobs from way back. Like this one of George Harrison's. And this one of Eric Clapton's. And this one that Hendrix painted and, later, broke. It wasn't just a 60s thing—Eddie Van Halen certainly knew about painting guitars. But you don't see that kind of thing too much anymore. Now, if people decorate their instruments, they tend to plaster them with stickers. Or, if they're Eddie Vedder, they use electrical tape.

(Photo courtesy of me, 'cause I snapped it.)