The Hard Rock Cafe founders didn’t intend it to become a museum with a menu. It all started after Eric Clapton threw a fit about people sitting in “his” seat. The restaurant actually did become popular with British musicians because they’re easily lured by guitar-shaped decor and the smells of non-wilted vegetables, so Clapton asked them to hang his own guitar up on the wall above his preferred seat. It’s how they mark their territory.
Speaking of pissing contests, word soon got around about Clapton’s special place card, which especially offended Pete Townshend, who had zero concern about saving his seat until that exact moment but suddenly cared very much that Clapton had something he didn’t and handed over his own guitar. He wasn’t even there. He sent it in with a note that said, “Mine’s just as good as his! Love, Pete.” Soon, it became a status symbol to have your guitar hanging up in the Hard Rock Cafe, born of the time-honored tradition of guitarists attempting to prove that Clapton ain’t shit.
The cafe wasted no time leaning into the music memorabilia business, now boasting the largest private collection in the world of about 86,000 pieces, ranging from Elvis’s Rolls Royce to paperwork from an accident Bruce Springsteen got into in the ‘70s. They get the stuff from the artists themselves, auctions, and other collectors, although those last ones can get a little weird. “We stay away from things like hair and teeth,” said the director of memorabilia, “the really odd pieces that people would need to get a DNA test for” and probably police reports.