By Alan Chenkin, Still has guitars and plays when it suits him.
A first guitar, like a first car, does not have to be new. Most first guitars were “beaters” that got a lot of use and had many hands on them. You may do things to your first guitar that put a lot of stress on it, and you may not want to do that to an expensive Axe.
My first place to look would be Craigslist, to find a nice axe between $100 – $500. preferably with a case and a stand, if it has one. Look for a name brand, and bring a friend who knows guitars with you, to check it out. Consider getting a Jumbo acoustic (it’s bigger) or an acoustic – electric. Name brands are not always best, and brand-new guitars that are very cheap may not be good starters. Also get to a music store, or Amazon, and get a guitar tuner. It will save you hours of tuning attempts and broken strings.
If you have a solid-body electric guitar, this tuner would be best: Korg GA1 Guitar and Bass Tuner
This is a good beginner package:
The Seagull carries a higher price tag, but is considered a good starter guitar:
Note these are both acoustic electric guitars, and can be played with or without an amp.
My first guitar was a Fender Stratocaster knock-off, nicknamed the “Joe Baatz” guitar, after it’s first owner.
It looked something like this:
It had a hard case and mirror finish, except where it was worn off from playing. Eric Clapton has a Black Fender Stratocaster named “Blackie”. Bruce Springsteen has a Fender Esquire/Telecaster (modified) guitar that he still performs with. Actor Jeff Bridges has a collection of 50 + guitars. BB King, the late Blues Legend, had a Gibson ES335 named “Lucille”. When you play, your guitar is your musical partner and takes on an almost mystical persona.
Practice every day, jam when you can, and keep 10 -30 songs (sheet music or tabs, including Happy birthday and some Christmas songs) with you, to play popular recognizable music for your friends.
If you are unsure about learning to play the guitar in a short period of time, please read my Quora answer on the topic: “What is an effective way to learn guitar quickly?”
Break a leg, and carry a spare set of strings!
Thanks for reading my blog – feel free to share!
Edited from my answer in Quora.