Craig Korth Music

I have played acoustic instruments most of my life and love the finesse that goes into making a musical wooden box out of a log. I used to think that a Fender Telecaster was just a breadboard with a couple of electronic pickups thrown in and a baseball bat sawn in half that was screwed to the body for the neck. I was RIGHT! And what a glorious breadboard it is.

I have fallen in love with the Tele, the guitar, not the British T.V. My first electric guitar was a bad copy of a bad copy of a Gibson Les Paul guitar that I got when I was 13. One day when I was 14 my dad was listening to the swap shop on CHQT radio in Edmonton, Alberta and heard there was a Fender guitar for sale. He said ” I’ve heard of Fender guitars and I think they are good. Let’s go look at it.” When we got to the house, and older man brought out the guitar and this was in the case-

I thought it was hideous but it sounded SO MUCH better than my imitation guitar that we bought it and a Tweed Fender Bassman amp for $250. I sold the Bassman amp for $100 and kept the guitar. I tried to get it refinished black but the store I called said it would be $200 to repaint it, so I left it as it was. I kept it for about 29 years, and hardly played while I was on my bluegrass odyssey. There are NO electric guitars in bluegrass, and I eventually sold it to my friend so I could buy a great old Martin guitar. After I sold it, I began jonesing for a telecaster again. I bought this.

It is an incredible tome that a man in Spain named Nacho Banos put together. It weighs 10 pounds and is the most incredible tribute to a guitar I’ve ever seen. It made me want a Blackguard. I have bruises on my knees from reading it while sitting on the toilet.

Here is a video of one of my favourite guitarists, the incredible, late Ted Greene playing a Blackguard Telecaster from 1952.