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I bought her in 1988 working in a restaurant
washing dishes (obviously I was still in school).
That was in the Spring. I got it a couple of weeks
before I played my first ever gig. I paid $725 or
for it at the time. I think if I looked hard
enough, I could find the receipt/contract. And
still, thanks to my Dad for going to the music store
with me, besides the obvious that I wasn't driving yet.
At the time, I had no idea that Gibson had been
purchased a couple of years back and the new management
started faithfully reissuing the classic models with
better appointments. This is the Junior that
Gibson should be for sale and not that sorry excuse
they're making now. Mine's identical to a 1954,
only add a Tune-O-matic bridge and Grovers (that won't
fall apart). The Volume and Tone knobs even have
the little metal markers (I don't know what their
official names are). Everything is stock. I
never would have guessed that this would be the first in
a long line of Gibson guitars that I'd own, love, be
obsessive about, and enjoy.
Guitar World did an article on Joe Walsh when he was
promoting Got Any Gum (it's still not a bad album, it
just had a terrible mix). The magazine had a page
dedicated to what he brings out on the road and his
Junior was there. And then there was another photo
with him playing it. I loved its looks. I
even knew back then not to get crazy buying an expensive
guitar since I haven't been playing a long time, so I
started small with "my first good guitar".
It had a Tone knob too, not like my Washburn, so I
was moving up.
I learned a lot on her. It was the first guitar
I 4-tracked. Once I bought my Gold Top, the Junior
became my slide guitar; tuned open E. It's still
like that. But every now and then, when no one's
looking, I tune it back to regular tuning and enjoy that
super big sound.
I appreciate this guitar more and more than when I
first got it, so that says something. If I ever go
homeless, I'll be the one in the cardboard box with the
Junior and Goldtop.
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Year:
1987
