GUITARS, NOT WHAT THEY SEEM TO BE

They say you can't judge a book by it's cover, and that is certainly true when it comes to guitars. Let me explain.

About two years ago, I decided I'd like to learn to play the guitar. The obvious thing was that I would need to buy a guitar since I didn't have one. Not knowing anything about guitars, I turned to the ultimate source, the information highway, i.e. the internet. Because of my naivety, I was impressed by the fancy looking guitars, and was sure that those beautiful pearl inlays and gold tuners, as well as the quilted tops and birds-eye fretboards (all terms I learned on the internet), would certainly make the guitar sound wonderful when I learned to play it.

The first guitar I chose to buy was a Morgan Monroe Seranade. It is truly a beautiful guitar. It has a quilted maple top, bubinga back and sides in the grand auditorium style. It has a beautiful rose abalone inlay at the twelth fret. I began to learn to play on this wonderful guitar for about two months.

As I was learning to play, I continued to look at guitars and soon decided that every guitar player should also have a twelve string guitar. So, I purchase a Washburn D13-S12 twelve string guitar. When it arrived, and I got my first look at it, I decided that that the Wasburn truly looked like a guitar should look. It was a dreadnought style, which in simple terms means big.

As I continued to take guitar lessons at the local Community College, I realized that my Morgan Monroe guitar was really the most impressive looking guitar in the class. However, I did notice that it did not sound as good as my instructor's guitar. I knew that I could not afford to buy a guitar of the calliber that the teacher was playing, but that was enough incentive to prod me into visiting the local guitar stores in search of something that sounded a little better than my existing guitar. After all, one can never have enough guitars! By this time, I knew two things. First I wanted a dreadnought style guitar, and second I wanted a guitar that sounded better than the ones I owned.

I found a Yamaha FG-420A, 1989 vintage guitar that looked very plain, but sounded wonderful with its full, rich tones. Afterall, I had learned that a fancy looking guitar doesn't necessarily produce good sound.

Several years have passed, and the Yamaha is still the best sounding guitar that I have in my collection. Yes, I have acquired a total of six guitars now. My collection also includes a wonderful F-340S Takamine made in October 1980, and originally purchased by someone in California in 1981. I also own two electric guitars, a Fender Lite Ash Telecaster, and a G&L Tribute Telecaster.

As I continue to learn to play, I still look at guitars, but more often than not, I listen to them first. I have also learned that some of the so-called cheap, foreign-made guitars of the 1970's and 1980's are actually some of the best sounding guitars of today, and are treasured by their owners.