Pristine guitars from the Golden Era are wonderful objects to collect but nothing beats an instrument that has some tales to tell. Take, for instance, the workhorse D-18 owned by Daniel Bachman. Bachman’s father purchased this Martin new in ’71. Passed down to Daniel when he turned 18, the guitar has seen its fair share of battle scars, cigarette burns and neck damage… not to mention an M.I.A. pickguard. Oh, and when Bachman gets aggressive with his thumb, there’s some string rattle going on, too.

Despite all of the above, we can’t think of a better fit for this talented musician who is channeling deep into the spirit of John Fahey and the American Primitive guitarists. In our video, Bachman plays his sped up instrumental version of William Moore’s Paramount 78 side “Old Country Rock” and you simply forget you’re listening to a Martin from the ‘70s. That rumble is powerful and timeless and that’s all that matters.

“I think this is going to be the one that I have for my whole life,” Bachman says. We hope so.

Sponsored by Maury’s Music and Martin Guitar.