Like most anyone in my age group, it was the Beatles that got me started on guitar. Mom, however, was less impressed partly due to our financial situation.
Eventually, I got a $32 Stella by Harmony in a natural finish. Over the years, I've noticed most whites had the Sear's Silvertone "cowboy" version of this guitar.
My first guitar teacher was a blonde folkie who had a Martin with pickups and a T-bird. As I recall, she appeared some with the New Christie Mistrals.
I took lessons off and on with her for a number of years and a local teaching legend.
Over time, I got frustrated with my 3/4 size instrument with its heavy gage strings. Every once and a while I would buy strings at a store called Band Box. The salesman let me play a Telecaster and suggested I bring the guitar in as it probably needed a whole set of strings. "If one's worn out, its probably time to replace them all." "I've never wore out the bottom strings," I said. I added, "But, the bridge is worn out." The salesman was skeptical, but I'd had the guitar five years at this point.
Later, I rode my blue Huffy Wheel 20# bike down to the store with the Stella tied to the sissy bar. He didn't have a new wood bridge to replace my ebonized maple one, but he had an adjustable black and white plastic one. This bridge didn't sound as good, but I found with this bridge and Martin Silk'n'Steel strings the guitar shedded its old time boxy sound and gave me decent intonation up to the fifth fret.
Later, I started playing again in a bluesier style to support our comedy troupe on going parody of radio. In addition to being rusty, it was apparent the tuners were worn out so I put on a set of used Gibson's.
As it turned out, I played this instrument for ten years until I got a new one. The next year I finally got an electric guitar which the family wasn't too happy about either. It took another year to get an amp. Until then, I used one of the original Panasonic boom boxes as an amp or plugged my guitar into the stereo.
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