PRESENCE - Volume 43
Inspiration For Guitarists
I’ve owned a lot of guitars over the years. Working in a music store will do that to you.
At one point, I was a total gear-head — always buying, selling, and chasing that next “special” instrument.
One of the wilder ones I owned was a mid-’60s Vox Stereo 12-string electric.
This thing was a Frankenstein’s lab of chrome and knobs.
Each 3 string group had its own pickup — six pickups total — and you could send the bass strings to one amp and the treble strings to another. Each pickup had its own tone and volume control. That’s twelve knobs. Plus three pickup selectors. It was completely insane.
I bought it before the vintage craze hit — $400 from a guy who brought it into the shop. I kept it about a year, brought it to one gig, and realized it just didn’t feel good to play. The action was high, the neck felt weird, and setting up a stereo rig that worked with my pedals was a nightmare.
So I sold it… for the same $400 I paid for it.
Fast forward a couple decades, and my friend Steve posts a Reverb listing he saw: the exact same model, going for over $10,000.
I’ll admit, that stung a little.
But the regret was purely financial. Musically, I don’t miss that guitar one bit. It was more science experiment than instrument.
The guitar I actually love is my 1963 Gretsch Corvette — technically a “student” model.
I’ve had it for over 20 years, and it’s been through a lot: a refret, a neck pickup added, new tuners, bridge, tailpiece, nut — basically rebuilt from the ground up.
It’s probably worth less than many Mexican Strats, but it feels like home every time I pick it up.
My Gretsch Corvette gets a lot of play at recording sessions due to the unique sound it gets. This pic was from a session at the Fidelitorium Recording Studio a couple years ago.
That’s the funny thing about guitars: vintage doesn’t automatically mean valuable, and expensive doesn’t automatically mean inspiring.
The right guitar is the one that pulls something out of you.
This week’s video is an in-depth look at using the Number System to see how to play chords and solo in different keys:
Here are a couple videos featuring my 1963 Gretsch Corvette:
Thanks for reading and for all your support!
Keep practicing smart,
Dustin