Chuck Billy is Selling Off 30+ Years’ Worth of Testament Memorabilia
Every band has that guy, the one who takes the time to grab a show poster, remembers to squirrel away one of those sick limited edition merch items, holds onto one copy of every format of every release the band has ever put out, etc. Testament’s that guy is Chuck Billy, and now, after 30+ years of holding on to myriad band-related tchotchkes, he’s decided to make them available to fans.
Billy has launched a website on which he’ll be listing all of the items he’s selling along with eBay links to purchase. First up he’s featuring all his Testament show posters, of which there are currently 78 (!), but in a video in which he announces the great sell-off, he teases other goodies such as stage-used mic capsules, personal wardrobe items, a massive collection of drinking glasses and much more. Here’s the transcription of the video:
“After 30 years of touring, I finally decided, through all the crap that I’ve collected along the way, from posters to drinking cups, all the laminates, all the stickies, I finally wanna share it ’cause it’s been following me around for so long.
“Posters is probably the number one thing I have the most of, so what I finally did is I went through ’em, organized ’em, compiled ’em, wrapped ’em up, and now finally there they are,” he said. “So they look ready to go. I’ve got some special stuff that goes all the way back to 1987, some first tours. I was always the guy to grab ’em — everybody left ’em behind.
“It’s not just about the posters as well. Everything I have here that I’ve collected I’ve cherished — from things fans gave to me along the touring and all the craziness. But I also, for one thing, used to bring back all these glasses — I was so fascinated by these cups. So I have a big assortment of these cool beer-drinking mugs that I’m also probably gonna end up getting rid of, ’cause they look so cool, but I wanna share them — I want everybody else to enjoy them.
“I even have old touring jackets. I have equipment. I’ve documented all my wireless mic capsules. Every show that I’ve sang with them, I’ve put down, kept them in a box, ’cause I destroy them.
“As we go, I’m sure I’m gonna find more. I’m just going through so much. It’s been following me for 30 years. So we came up with ChuckBillysWorld.com, so I can share all these things that I’ve collected along my travels, touring with the band Testament. And just make sure that you always come back. There’s always gonna be updates. We’ll try to do social media blasts as much as we can, keep everybody hip on what’s happening. But make sure you come get it. And it’s here for ya. Yeah!”
Why is Billy suddenly selling all of this stuff off? I’d wager it’s not a money issue; the posters are very reasonably priced and won’t amount to a hell of a lot once all is said in done, plus you gotta factor in money for packaging, listing fees and all the time spent taking photos, posting the listings, etc. And even though those tour jackets are going for big bucks, I get the impression it’s something else Billy is after here. When you spend a lifetime accumulating STUFF and then that stuff just sits and sits and sits, you realize there’s no point in keeping it around. And who better than to take it than the fans that made it all possible? Some Testament fans are going to be VERY, very happy to own a one-of-a-kind tour poster for just $20.
Either that or Billy just read the Marie Kondo book, asked himself whether these items spark joy and decided, “Nope. Fuck it.”
You can see all the items currently for sale here, with more on the way soon.
[via Ultimate Guitar]
