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The Oldest Johnny Cash Guitar

In 2022, a Martin acoustic owned by Cash sold for US$437,500.

It was sold by Julien’s Auctions for $437,500 as the only known 1950s era Johnny Cash guitar.

This story is not about that guitar. This is about a guitar being used in a Toronto recording studio. It is a 1954 Martin D-18 that the owner, Peter Linseman inherited from his father.

The acquistition story was in a sworn affidavit from Rosilie Linseman. She bought it from Fred Roden’s Record Corral in Toronto in 1956 as a birthday present for Peter’s father. He wanted a Martin-D-28 with inlays. She put down a deposit, but when she returned the guitar was gone. Johnny Cash bought that D-28 and left the D-18 in it’s place. She took Johnny Cash’s replacement guitar although her husband was a little disappointed. He grew to like it. In the affidavit, Rosalie said they met Johnny Cash after a concert and tried to return the guitar, but he “graciously” refused.

Follow along now.

In 2007, Peter got the guitar as his father passed away.

He began to prove the D-18’s origin story.

He searched early photographs of Johnny Cash. He even went to The Johnny Cash Museum. Early photographs of Cash’s first appearance on the Grand Ole Opry radio broadcast in 1956 look like they corroborate the family claim. The pattern on the tortoiseshell-style pick guard is a perfect match.

According to experts, that can’t be reproduced.

Oldest Johnny Cash Guitar
Oldest Johnny Cash Guitar

As Linesman waits for more confirmations, we are witnessing a new piece of guitar history come on the market. Please subscribe to the YouTube channel after you watch this episode of Every Guitar Has A Story. It is about another Grand Ole Opry Martin:

 
 
 

Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s Guitars

Kenny Wayne Sheppard’s Guitars It started out as a simple request from a Social Media follower of Kenny Wayne Sheppard.

Would you post a picture of all the guitars you have?

The embarrassment of riches became obvious when he replied about the impossibility of that picture. “After my post yesterday several people asked if I would post a pic of all my guitars. I don’t have a pic of all of them together. I don’t even have all of them in the same place to be able take a pic of them together… but I do have a more recent pic of some of them in storage together!”


I know several rich people. When you say, “You are rich,” they often reply, “I’m not rich, Bill Gates (insert another name) is rich.” Kenny Wayne’s response to the size of his collection sounded very familiar. “There’s definitely a lot of them but I have several friends who have many more guitars than I do!”(Check out the pic)


The upside of the revelation is that he is now thinking of selling some of them.

I’m looking forward to seeing what comes on the market and how he will handle the sales.

I bet it will not include his favorite, a 1961 Fender Strat.


We have videos of nearly 100 instruments.

Here is a 1963 Fender Strat that is not for sale because it is family.

Subscribe to the YouTube channel after you watch this episode:

 
 
 

All Rights Reserved Every Guitar Has A Story 2026 - Mark Valentine 816-520-8430

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