Everyone has a story, isn't that true? Guitar or work, or school or home, every one has a story to tell. What's your guitar story? Why did you pickup guitar and when and for how long before you quit and started again if that is what happened. Whether you play a Gretsch now or not or you play an Ibanez, who cares what about your guitar story?
I myself was at my friend's house during Freshman year in High School in 1982, the second half of the school year. My friend Mark had a Yamaha acoustic guitar and I was surprised by this since I never knew he played guitar. I asked him about it. I said something like "what's this?" Obviously I knew it was a guitar but more like what is this doing here? He said he plays guitar. Immediately I got the idea that I wanted to play guitar. I told my mom and she got out of a pawn shop a used Ovation acoustic, you know those plastic back jobs. I think it was from the early '70s maybe. Still have it. So I got that and took lessons with a really horrible guitar teacher. I wanted an electric so eventually maybe during the summer between Freshman year and Sophomore on the way up to Santa Barbara my mom and I went into Guitar Center and I saw all the guitars. My dad being impatient came in and asked what the hold up was. So eventually we left on our way to Santa Barbara. But that day I saw an Ibanez Destroyer, one pickup in red, not like Phil Collen of Def Leppard's three pickup job and I saw a natural Strat. Oh I saw a Hondo. The salesman said don't get the Hondo they are cheap and made out of cardboard, or built that way. I took his word for it. Went back the next weekend and took the Ibanez. Back then never was I into metal or pointy guitars but I was new at this and liked the Candy Apple Red and the design so I got it. That's the only pointy guitar I liked or like, I like the Explorer like design but I'd never buy one again tho. I liked the Strat but it was like $850 and even tho my mom was kind enough to spring for that I thought I don't deserve one so expensive so I got the Explorer. I remember the price exactly. It was $430 including case. Looking back the Strat would have held it's value probably but oh well. It was natural which is funny because it was the '80s at that point but it was early on in the decade and the '70s influence was still around as seen by the natural color Strat. I actually don't like natural Strats but natural color Teles are great. I didn't have an amp but I heard that you can plug a guitar in a stereo with the right connection so I did. Actually into the boom box. It worked but soon after my mom was in San Diego on business and got me a small Marshall amp. So that was my setup. Later that year I got interested in Gretsch because I noticed that this guy in a band I liked, a band called Bow Wow Wow, Matthew Ashman played a hollow body and I liked it. I wasn't really into Gretsch because it was not until years later that I learned about his guitar being called a Gretsch White Falcon but from the looks of it back then I wanted one. When I found out he played something called a Gretsch I thought it was a German brand because of the name on the headstock or a British brand with a German name since an English guy had that and I never saw another since Billy Duffy of The Cult. Turns out it was an American brand started by a German immigrant.
What's your story?
