Let’s say that a genie appears to you and tells you that you can name 5 artists’ electric guitars, and *poof* he will give you what you wish. You begin to salivate, because you can’t wait to hold “Blackie” in your arms, and you think to yourself, “WOW! Nobody’s going to believe that this Les Paul belonged to Jimmy Page.” Quickly the genie brings you back to earth when he tells you that you are not the first one on his dream guitar wish-granting list. You realize that it’s time to get creative. Here’s what I would tell him:
- Joey Burns (Calexico) - 60s National Airline - Who cares that is isn’t made out of wood? Have you seen Calexico live? The guitar isn’t one I would play everyday, but it has a great sound, and it’s nice to expand the guitar horizons. I think it would be a great choice when you want to play melancholy electric.
- Billy Duffy (The Cult) - Gretsch White Falcon - My first reaction the first time I saw a Gretsch White Falcon: “Whoa! Did his other guitar break?” You know, the one with the locking trem and the pointy headstock. Nope, he was just breaking from the 80s pack. In the video “Fire Woman” it was interesting, but when I saw them in concert in 1988, it was amazing. You could hear the wood of the guitar, and those pickups weren’t made by DiMarzio - Hallelujah!
- Jack White (The White Stripes) - Gretsch White Penguin - OK, it’s another Gretsch named after a white animal. I like the DeArmond pickups. Jack White gets a really compressed sound on the most recent album. How much of that is due to the pickups? Give me one, and I’ll let you know! This guitar is for that day when you want to turn it up and be loud. I saw one of these in Gruhn’s when I was there, it was awesome.
- Dave Keuning (The Killers) - Fender Starcaster - The headstock is a little strange, but it’s got those Seth Lover “Wide-Range” Humbuckers in Fender’s attempt at an ES-335 body. How does it play? I don’t really know. The reports on CBS made Fenders aren’t the best, but I am willing to take a chance. Plus, friends will come over and say, “THAT’S a FENDER?”
- Emmett Kelly (Bonnie ‘Prince’ Billy) - Eko - Will Oldham made his way to Jerusalem in early 2007. The sound was fantastic, and his guitarist’s Eko though a Fender Twin was great. This guitar was a double cutaway loosely based on a Strat, but certainly didn’t have that typical Strat sound (which I love). I loved the look and it made me want to look further than the big guitar manufacturers and take a chance.
What would you choose?
Let’s see if I can come up with some good ones…
1.) SRV - Lenny - The SRV $350 pawn shop guitar that his wife bought for him. A heavily modified Fender Strat with a great story behind it.
2.) Brian Setzer - Gretsch 6120 Hot Rod - Love the hot rod cherry red hollow-body, just a beautiful guitar. I believe that was one of his signature models they made. Close to the Chet Atkins one, and very similar to the White Falcon as well.
3.) Slash - Gibson Les Paul - Always loved his guitar for some reason.
4.) Buddy Holly - Fender Strat - An oldie but a goody.
5.) Randy Rhoads - Karl Sandoval “Polka Dot” Custom Flying V - One of the guitars that Metal originated from. Not usually a fan of the flying V or polka dots, but this guitar would be cool to have.