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I think a used Godin Kingpin would be perfect. Might even find the 2 pickup cutaway model in that price range, used.
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05-30-2020 10:07 AM
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The style of music he enjoys and wants to play...
Originally Posted by FredH
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What a great story!
For something that sounds relatively good unplugged how about a Casino?
The added benefit will be that he'll get good at muting open strings when he uses an amp.
Good luck!
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Thanks to all thus far. You know, of course I have started the GAS exercise, surfing the online sources (what else is there to do in quarantine, right?) and the two guitars that I have thought about were the Godin Kingpin and the Epi Casino. It is really fun to see him get excited when I show him something new. Or when I see him trying to imitate something that I have done on his guitar. Sometime he will say to me: how did you learn how to do that ? I will respond, "10,000 hours." I feel blessed that I am able to teach him. And for those of you who have grand kids, you know how special that relationship is.
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Can’t think of better advice. Originally Posted by TOMMO
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Given his young age, I'd not lock him up in one specific musical direction. Now, I love jazz, but a teenage kid may want to play other things too which are more "in" for his generation. Thus I'd get something that could be used in many kinds of music and doesn't look "dated" or like a grandpa guitar. A Casino would be a good choice but my first thought was a Tele. Though Teles have been around for almost 70 years, they are still very much "fashionable" and he'll see his own generations idols playing them (as opposed to archtops). That means a lot at that age. They are very versatile and they come in many colors and incarnations from the cheapest Squiers to very expensive custom shop samples. Even the cheap Squiers play and sound good.They are also very robust and can be carried around in a padded gig bag on his back if he commutes to friends on bike. Though nobody can mistake Teles for acoustic or semiacoustic guitars, they can be heard just enough unplugged by himself (and not by others) to practice - his parents may love that.
As for an amp to go with it, the Roland Cubes are also versatile and can be pushed in many different directions, are well made, sound good and are not terribly expensive. Players like Jimmy Raney and Ed Bickert used them a lot with great results. If I remember correctly, they have a phones out connection - which his parents may also love.
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That's really good advice and I appreciate it. Hadn't thought of a Tele. But now that's an option. I am a big fan of Roland Cubes. I have several and that would be a great amp for him as well.
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I'd check out an Epiphone Casino. Might be a bit early to lock him to something more specialized. I mean... the Beatles played 'em and Mr. Green played something very similar for a spell. I know I went many different directions in the early teens.
Casino was actually my first real electric. Got it when I was about 15. I was solidly into jazz at that point and it served well. Then I managed to get paid with a country band soon after... so not rock&roll loud, but I did learn about feedback. It was a thing. I had a great time with the Casino as a teen player.
I think the tele idea's good too, but OP said they're looking for some level of acoustic sound. Maybe it's enough? Kingpin's good for a more trad jazz thing with more acoustics. I like mine!
Just for the record: I didn't dig playing country but it was good on-stage experience. And now I can joke about having played with Ed Bouche and The Boucheroo's back in the day.
Have fun on the hunt with your protege!
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+ 1. The bridge pup on Kingpin II sounds good for bluesy/rock stuff (within volume/feedback limits), and is something he can grow with. However, if he sticks with it, he'll probably want both an acoustic and an electric fairly soon. It might make more sense to let him keep using his dad's acoustic and get him something like a Squier CV Tele, which will work for pretty much any kind of amplified music and is a legit instrument he can grow with. Originally Posted by mr. beaumont
John
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My oldest granddaughter's husband plays an Ibanez AF-75 that was my first brand-new archtop in his shows. My youngest granddaughter loves the AF75T I gave her, and took it with her when she went off to University. My grandson has the AFJ-75 that I gave him. My middle granddaughter picked out a nice Ibanez acoustic electric for her high school graduation gift. They are all young and hip; and I see to it that they are well supplied with things musical. They seem to be quite happy with the instruments.
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What a wonderful bonding experience this sounds like. It's hard to say what would be an ideal guitar for him as I don't know what style of music he likes and wants to play, but I might suggest an Epiphone 339. It's a good all-rounder. Of course, I'm biased as I play a small-body Gibson ES-139 myself, but I got that guitar in high school and it changed absolutely everything for me. The purchase of that guitar is the moment at which I became serious about guitar.
If he's particularly hip, the two things that are REALLY "in" with young and trendy players today are strats, teles, and semis. Classics for a reason, I suppose.
To make my point, here are the first rows of videos from the popular hashtag "#pickupmusic" on Instagram
The guitars we see are:
- Gibson ES Les Paul
- Ibanez AZ superstrat
- Tele
- Ergo
- Tele
- Gretsch of some kind
- Gibson ES-335
- Tele
- Tele
- D'A semi
Not saying these are the way to go, just letting you know what's hip
I'd love to know what sort of playing he likes / wants to do. I always played strats when I was learning. In fact, here is a picture of me at age 13 playing the mid-1990s California Strat which I still have and use, although it has had a neck replacement.
My big hero at the time was Hendrix, although somehow I could never make my 80s Roland Cube sound right..!
I thought that that was "it" until some years down the line when my dad let me borrow his 90s Epi Sheraton. I felt that I much more "wanted" to play that guitar, even if it felt rather alien to a kid who had just been playing strats. Ever since then, I was pretty much hooked on semi- and fully hollow guitars. I also have that Sheraton here on loan from dad.
Point I'm trying to make here is that what I generally advise, being both a guitar player and working in music retail, is that if you want to do someone a favor, get them the guitar they /really/ want. I'm not saying get him an ES, but if he likes ES, maybe that Epi 339 or Sheraton? If he likes SG, maybe a nice Epiphone SG? Hell, even a used Gibson SG is within your price range, I just sold mine for $500 this week!
Whenever I get customers with a similar predicament, I first ask about music and artists they like. Then I ask if they see anything they like. Then I pull an assortment based on that, and sit them in the acoustic room where they can be undisturbed. If they like Strats and Teles, I give them a couple of fenders, squiers, and "other" makes such as Ibanez. If they like Gibson, I give them an Epi dot, les paul, and SG, and take it from there. I'd do the same, if I were you. Let him try out a few different guitars within your price range, and see if there is one that really "clicks".
Remember, he's the one that's going to play it. Even though I started out on strats and like the sound of some strat players, I absolutely loathe playing them myself. If I were a dictator, there would only be ES guitars... but my friend hates Gibson guitars and only plays strats
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My son started playing around the same age with an acoustic, and when it was time for another guitar I offered him his choice of an Ibanez electric, Squier Strat or Squier Tele. He chose the strat, and with a small practice amp, it was the perfect choice for him. He was able to experiment with all styles, start playing with his peers, and find his own direction in music. He's 32 now, and a more talented player than I am.
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