How I discovered Charvel and Jackson

[shreddermon]

Kramers were much more prevalent here on the east coast. (Two of my earliest guitars were Kramers.) So MTV probably had a lot to do with becoming familiar with Jackson and Charvel. Randy, of course. And all of the concerts I was going to.

As I got into high school, I discovered one of the local dealers was carrying them. So then I would make special trips just to drool over their stock. Eventually ordered my first custom Jackson from them in '85.

[leftykingv2]

I had to buy it all myself in 1985. Used my college money LOL! I think mine was the GC-25 with 8" speaker, tube stack, and bass, mid and treble controls. Electronics I gutted and wired up a Marshall 2203 circuit to a 2 1/2 watt output 50C5 / 35W4 power section. I still have it kicking around the house. I've been interested in getting another Gorilla same as the one I have just to remind me what life was like back then.

Kids today have it much better.

+1 spoiled little bastages!

[leftykingv2]

c'mon people, 1978, the first Van Halen album was the initial launch. it said it on the back cover, or on the inner sleave- "Edward Van Halen plays Charvel guitars". the rest was history.

I actually picked a guitar up in 1984 because I wanted to be Eddie Van Halen. I was 2 years old when the first Van Halen record came out. After I heard Panama and Hot for teacher my older brother came into my room one day when I was playing and said "Hey if you like Van Halen listen to this" he proceeded to put Van Halen's first album on the turn table and I was hooked twice as hard as before.

[leftykingv2]

Kramers were much more prevalent here on the east coast. (Two of my earliest guitars were Kramers.) So MTV probably had a lot to do with becoming familiar with Jackson and Charvel. Randy, of course. And all of the concerts I was going to.

As I got into high school, I discovered one of the local dealers was carrying them. So then I would make special trips just to drool over their stock. Eventually ordered my first custom Jackson from them in '85.

+1 My Kramer Baretta was the first "Nice guitar" I got. I bought it 7 months after I started playing and shortly after that the Harmony strat went into the garbage!!! I bought it used from Pgh. Guitars in South Side for $300 bucks of paper route money I scraped and saved. It had some mileage on it and was pretty beat up but it had a Duncan distortion and a non recessed Floyd on it so it was worth every penny. I still have that guitar to this day and it's still a great player.

[ginsambo]

Chris Holmes....I followed those Stars from as far back as I can remember, I saw a Jackson headstock on them. So not that far back I guess. But done deal all the same. Never could afford one back then though. I just remember thinking if only I could afford a Jackson, I could acheive instant Chris Holmes'ness. I opted for the bottles of Vodka instead, much cheaper.

[ginsambo]

Is Steve Vai a memeber of the illuminati?

[leftykingv2]

Chris Holmes....I followed those Stars from as far back as I can remember, I saw a Jackson headstock on them. So not that far back I guess. But done deal all the same. Never could afford one back then though. I just remember thinking if only I could afford a Jackson, I could acheive instant Chris Holmes'ness. I opted for the bottles of Vodka instead, much cheaper.

+1 It took me quite a while before I could afford a USA Jackson as well. Always wanted one but money was tight and never had much opportunity in the used market because of being left handed.

[Gartron]

I started listening to metal when Jackson was everywhere...so for me it was Mustaines' King V , Hammets Rhoads, Spitzs' Turtles Rhoads, Holmes' star and Collens' black crackle and Bella....ah those were the days!!!

[RR2772]

Oh yeah the price. By '96 I finally got so annoyed with that thought that I just went: I am going to order that PCS Jackson orignal Rhoads seen in catalogs '94-'95 and then find a job to pay for it. RR2772 arrived 6 months later brand new here in Denmark and the job I found turned out to be good for 5 years like 1-2 months after I put the order in. Also I was 13 months unemployed at that point in time. The rest is history.

[Hellbat]

Is Steve Vai a memeber of the illuminati?

He went through a period where he was heavily in to mysticism and symbolism. He kind of came out of it after Passion and Warfare.

[pianoguyy]

Wray's Music House (f u bill wray) and their guitar man RRR, Randy Rockstar Robertson.

I was 8. I was in the store. They had wild paint jobs, not plain or striped, but wild art. And pointy upside down tops where the tuners go (reversed headstock). I thought that was so neat.
But $2000 was a lot of money.

The rest, as they say, is history.

[pianoguyy]

He went through a period where he was heavily in to mysticism and symbolism. He kind of came out of it after Passion and Warfare.

You mean when the 80's were over and no one cared about bright shiny colors or weird astrology type words. They wanted flannel or black and heroin and our life sucks lets die.

[Shawn Lutz]

c'mon people, 1978, the first Van Halen album was the initial launch. it said it on the back cover, or on the inner sleave- "Edward Van Halen plays Charvel guitars". the rest was history.

who? what band was he in?

Eruption and Eddie is what made me want to play guitar and the Charvel connection wasn't made until years later, after I already was leaning in the RR camp for Jacksons.

[Force]

It would've been Def Leppard & Megadeth in the late 80's. Before that, I had a fascination with BC Rich after seeing some Poison vids, C.C had the coolest collection.

[fett]

I discovered Charvel by chance. I had just moved to the Pac NW in 2003. A few days in, we went to a local flea market. I just saw a really cool guitar. I bought it based on the build quality. It was a 375. That's how I got to this forum. I was hooked.