The sweet sound of success: ‘Norman’s Rare Guitars Documentary’

In September of last year, I put my son on a flight to Australia, where he would spend the next month backpacking throughout t that country’s eastern coast. He then flew to Bangkok, Thailand, for another month, this time enjoying the jungles and beaches in the surrounding regions. Finally, he concluded his Pacific trek with a jaunt to Japan, where he spent three weeks in Tokyo, taking in the historic sites and reveling in the nightlife.

We hoped it would be the trip of a lifetime, and it was. But my son got something extra from the experience that none of us (including him) ever expected: He fell in love.

My son met a fellow traveler and they got fairly attached to each other over their three-month journey. My wife and I sensed something was brewing when he referred to this young woman  more frequently during our weekly calls. At one point, he finally came clean and admitted that they were not only an item but a pretty serious one.

My son has always had girlfriends, but never anything that I would have termed “serious.” Both my wife and I could tell by how he was talking that this scenario was definitely different. At one point, I asked if this was going to continue after the trip was over. He was emphatic that it would.

That’s when I inquired where she was from.

Now, I’m not saying that my son always makes things harder for himself, but it has been a trend in his decision-making. So, when he said that she was from Los Angeles, my first thought was, “Couldn’t you have found someone a little closer to home?”

Like any dad, my brain immediately went to “That’s a six-hour flight,” “How many times can you legitimately see each other in a given year?” and “Please, God, don’t move to L.A.” Logistically, the distance seemed like a massive hurdle to overcome. 

But like any lovestruck kid, none of that seemed to matter.

When he arrived home just before Christmas, he announced that the only thing he wanted as a present was a plane ticket out to see her. And since we’re accommodating parents, that’s exactly what we gave him.

So, just after New Year’s, my son boarded a flight to California to see his new girlfriend and meet her parents. Surprisingly, the parents agreed to house him while he was there.

Before his departure, I gave my son a long talk, explaining the intricacies of dads and their daughters and how he should handle himself when he arrived. I told him that his parents would be sizing him up when he walked out of that airport, and it was imperative that he be on his game, especially during the first 48 hours.

I rarely see my son nervous, but he was a wreck the day before he left. He couldn’t eat and barely slept, so I knew that this trip was really important to him.

My son also doesn’t do anything without adding a little excitement to the mix, and this trip was no exception. Two days after he arrived, the Palisades Fire broke out in the hills surrounding Los Angeles. And guess where his new girlfriend’s parents’ house is located?

Needless to say, after barely getting to know my son, this family was leaning on him to help evacuate to a safer location. Thankfully, they were able to return, and their house was spared, but the experience was traumatizing for everyone involved.

Unfortunately, the Los Angeles Lakers also postponed their games that week, which meant the surprise tickets I had purchased for the lovebirds would be wasted. However, his girlfriend was nice enough to take him to many other major attractions around L.A., including the most famous guitar store in America, Norman’s Rare Guitars on Ventura Boulevard. Not only did my son get to meet Norman that day but he also had the opportunity to play several of the instruments in his collection.

So, I suppose it was serendipity when we all realized that a documentary about Norman and his famous guitar store had been released just two weeks earlier. When my son arrived home this past weekend, we sat down and watched the film together.

“Norman’s Rare Guitars Documentary,” tells the unlikely story of how a young man with a love of music mistakenly fell into the world of collectible guitars. The film also highlights a multitude of top-tier guitarists and their pilgrimages to Norman’s to pay respects, play, and purchase the greatest guitars in the world.

If you have any interest in music (especially guitars), put this endearing documentary on your list to watch. There’s nothing special to note other than how one man formed a life, family, and community around his love of the guitar. And that’s pretty special.

A vintage “B+” for “Norman’s Rare Guitars Documentary” is now available to stream on Netflix.

Got a question or comment for Dom? You can email him at moviediary@att.net.