Marty Stuart introduces the Tom Petty song

and describes the mandolin

[flautalee]

I don’t think you are correct that Marty’s mandolin previously belonged to Clarence White. Rather Marty’s bought Clarence White’s Stratocaster b-bender from Clarence’s widow.

I am very sure that Marty’s Gibson mandolin is the one he bought when he was 13 or 14. It IS covered with a couple of dozen sets of initials, names, and signatures, scratched in the finish or written in permanent marker, on the belly and back of his mandolin.

The mandolin is well loved, with bare patches in the finish from Marty’s picking.

I was allowed to photograph his mandolin after a wonderful concert in Bethel Woods NY this past October. No autographs due to Covid, but a nice roadie show a handful of us Marty’s mandolin and Martin guitar fitted with a b-bender (how cool). I’d read about JRCash scratching his initials into this mandolin. I was totally blown away to see SO many initials, etc.

So I do not believe Clarence White owned Marty’s mandolin. If I’m mistaken, I apologize.