When I was a young and new guitarist, before I matured into an old and crabby one, I used to preach: "never sell your best guitar – once day, it may be the only thing that makes you money when you need it."

Many years later, me and my young son have hit hard times, and the only playing I'm doing is church and charity, so I got on the train to London with my beautiful 1970s Fender bass, and sold it to a 'rare and vintage' guitar shop… not for as much as I had hoped, but certainly for more than I paid twenty-something years ago, which just shows the value of buying a classy instrument.

Over the years, I had often picked that guitar out of its case as lovingly as lifting a baby… but to my surprise, when it came to the last moment, I was surprised how easy it was to part with it. What struck me more was that the guitar shop was full of beautiful 1950s Gibsons and Martins, and several incredible items – a very early Les Paul which just oozed class, one of the old Everleys jumbos, a unique Rickenbacker prototype, and a 1950s Gretsch made of knotty pine (!) with leatherwork inlays all around the sides. All valued at pension-fund amounts, which made the price of my Fender look pretty silly.

But they all lived in glass cases. They were silent guitars.

And on the train home, I realised how sad I was that these beautiful things were no longer being played. I'm happier to hope that someone buys my old Fender, and has great times with it like I did, than for it to sit in my back room, silent and unplayed, just like those guitars in the glass cases.

- Ian B