What Was Your First Guitar?

[JMintzer]

Harmony Dreadnaught Acoustic. No longer have it. Wouldn't want it on a bet...


Jamie

 

[tiboy]

My first guitar was purchased circa 1968 from the local Two Guys store. It was a no name guitar. I remember that the guitar and amp cost $30 total. I had to deliver a lot of newspapers to afford them. I soon formed my first and only band with two friends. Our set list consisted of playing the opening riff of 25 or 6 to 4. I played on the high e string and my buddy played on the low e string with his thumb over the top. We graduated the 4 note Twilight Zone riff before disbanding. Forty-five years later, I'm not much better.

 

[Desperado]

My first guitar was an old and battered acoustic. There was an old school punk that lived in a flat across the hallway, he'd had for around 15 yrs. He never played it and was having a clear out and was about to throw it on the tip. I asked to have it and he was happy for me to take it.

A friend of mine helped me to get it strung and playing ok. I used that beast for about 3 years before buying one of my own. What a difference it made to my playing when I actually had a decent instrument to play!

 

[WishICouldPlay]

There is a long backstory to this which I shall expunge in the interests of brevity and everone's sanity.
Back when I was about 15, my Dad got this notion in his head that he should learn to play the mandolin. So were sitting chatting one day when he pipes up and says "Son, I want you to teach me how to play the mandolin." Now, I wasn't any Jesse McReynolds or Bobby Osborne, but I could play a bit so I said "OK Dad, I'll try". So we started. Now, I have to give him credit, he did work at it and really made a legitimate effort. After about a month, when he had progressed to the point where he could kinda hold the pick and make some kind of scratching noise across the open strings that made the dog howl, I looked at him and said "You know Dad, this isn't going very well, maybe we should do something different". Looking incredibly relieved he said "Well I don't really want to give this up, what do you have in mind". Trying to look contemplative (as best a 15 year could do), I said "Why don't you and I build me an electric guitar".
He pondered for about two seconds and said "Yes, I think we could do that". So we did ... ergo my first electric guitar. 'Course I didn't do any of the work and it turned out quite well. LP clone. Played it for years.

 

[cjmwrx]

An Early 80s Gibson SG faded I got in 89. Walnut with a repaired headstock break. I sold stuff during lunch breaks in highschool to buy it for 200.00. I was a bit of a hot head when I was a kid, and it had the neck and the headstock broken off again when it went against my brothers head a few years later.

 

[sergiodeblanc]

I sold stuff during lunch breaks in highschool to buy it for 200.00.

Bhangin'

 

[Albrecht Smuten]

Encore strat copy:

And eventually a 20kW B.C Rich combo...

Neither the guitar nor the hair nor the stripped sweater made me Kurt Cobain surprisingly...

 

[enigma]

My first guitar was an Ibanez Artist that I bought from Sam Goody in 1979. Here's my 2nd guitar that I still have from 1984: Guild S281 w/ Kahler tremolo that was replaced with a Gibson hardtail and currently loaded with Seymour Duncan Pearly Gates.

 

[Mike Duncan]

1987 Squier Stratocaster MIJ in Dakota Red - basically a '62 RI with Gotoh tuners. I did terrible things to that guitar. I used to go Southworth Guitars in '88 or so, I was 16, and wanted a real 60s Strat. I loved how they looked - all beaten up - loved it and loved SRV. So, again in '88, I began the relic process. I bought a lefty trem and installed it myself (bought it from Brian Meader in '88), burned cigarettes in the headstock (my parents smelled the cigarette smoke and thought I was being a rebelous teen and smoking, I had come clean and tell them I was a hardcore guitar nerd and was aging my guitar!!), began denting / scrapping the body up...I was a teenager, but I knew what I wanted, a Strat that appeared to be vintage. I wish we had the Internet back then. My Dad though I was nuts. Sadly, about 10 years ago I thought I'd refinish the guitar. I used a chemical stripper on a hot day, left the body on my deck too long, and the glue seams popped. I still have everything, just in pieces in the case.

 

[Mikegarveyblues]

Encore strat copy:

And eventually a 20kW B.C Rich combo...



Neither the guitar nor the hair nor the stripped sweater made me Kurt Cobain surprisingly...

I had an Encore Strat. By far and away the worst guitar I ever owned. After a week or so the neck seperated from the body and I had to glue it in.

 

[Albrecht Smuten]

I had an Encore Strat. By far and away the worst guitar I ever owned. After a week or so the neck seperated from the body and I had to glue it in.

Same here, bro. No problem with the neck, but the switch and the bridge started to fall apart very quickly. Not that I cared back then (I was 14 and played the electric guitar!)

 

[rugerpc]

Ambitiously, this:

I had high aspirations.

The next one was this:

I still have both.

 

[AP515]

My mom's 58 Martin parlor guitar. Still have it. All opriginal except for the bridge.

 

[RickO]

I received this "amp-in-the case" Danelectro/Silvertone July 5th, 1966, (traded it for a ES-330TD in '68).

 

[]-[@n$0Ma☩!©]

I received this "amp-in-the case" Danelectro/Silvertone July 5th, 1966, (traded it for a ES-330TD in '68).

I want one of those!

 

[Hopeful Sinner]

My first was a blue Harmony something or other... I remember it being in really bad condition and the highest action EVER! I do not miss it, but I am thankful for the fire it lit...

 

[Texas_minor_blues]

An Aria Pro II
Don't recall the model
It was ugly but it played really nice

 

[gush]

I didnt own my first guitar. It belonged to my uncle but my dad had it. It was disassembled in its case kept under mom and dads bed. I was 15 and had started learning guitar on my dads POS acoustic when I found it. I put it together and started playing it. It was a fender duo-sonic with a very very short scale.

I purchased an old fender amp that was a combo but somebody had built a cabinet to put the amp section into. speaker cab was a music man 4x12 that I still wish I had. I was on top of the world I was. My mom told me not to buy that amp because it was just a phase,hmmmmmm.

 

[Texsunburst59]

Here's my very 1st "Real" guitar my dad bought for me in '79. It's was gigged to hell for over 20 yrs.
I still have it and will never sell it.

 

[vchizzle]

A National LP copy, black w/gold hardware that belonged to some dude in prison that traded it in to a local store - I hope that thing was sanitized before I got it:vroam:
At any rate, I didn't catch anything from it

No, I don't have it and wouldn't want it back...although it seemed pretty solid and well built for what it was.