I’ve seen folks wonder when it was going to happen, and it looks like it has finally did. The Buck Owens Telecaster, which is a good looking guitar if I should say so myself, is a MIM Tele, and it costs $2,000.
I remember his Tele. I was a kid, it was a Saturday night, and the fam was all sitting around watching Hee Haw. “Glooooom, despair, and agony on me…if it weren’t for bad luck I’d have not luck at all…” He didn’t use it on that song, but it showed up occasionally on the show.
We watched it every Saturday night. I liked watching Buck Owens and Roy Clark. In my kid mind, they were funny, and, even then, I realized that they were both great musicians. And the two of them had pretty good chemistry and made me laugh.
As an 8 or 9 year old, it was a good time. I still remember enough about the show and the music and the fun that it has stuck with me all these years later. Buck Owens remains, to me, what that Bakersfield sound is supposed to be. And he should since he pioneered that sound. I didn’t even realize that sound had a name until a few years ago. I’ve always enjoyed it.
As a complete tangent, I didn’t know until recently that he was from just up the road in Sherman. I always thought he was a born and raised Californian. I also didn’t realize that he didn’t really like Hee Haw, but like most every job I’ve ever had, they paid him enough that he did the job.
You can hear his influence in several artists, especially Dwight Yoakum. Up to now, Epiphone’s Dwight Trash Casino is one of only a couple of signature guitars I’ve wanted. I didn’t find out about that one until it was too late. As I recall, it was an Epi Elitist. So it wasn’t a cheap one either. I’d love to get one of these Buck Owen Teles, but it’s a little too rich for my blood.
Don’t get me wrong. I’m not throwing shade on the guitar or the fact that it’s not MIA. I’m sure it’s a great guitar and worth what they’re asking. Truthfully, I wouldn’t get it no matter where it was made. The price is a bit much for what I want to pay for a Tele. But this is the first time I’ve seen a MIM Fender hit that $2,000 point. That’s more than some MIAs cost.
Ensenada is making some great instruments. In fact, the Tele I have is from there. I’ve also got a Strat from there. A couple of them in fact. They’re not shabby instruments! The MIM instruments are, in my mind, supposed to be a little more affordable than those that are MIA. Hitting that $2k mark means that they may not be so much anymore.
So, the new question is when Epiphone is going to hit that price point. They’re getting close. Awfully close. But they’re not there yet. If Fender is now there, I imagine that Epi will probably hit it with a model or two next year.
And since I mentioned it up there, here’re the signature guitars I’d like some day. I had the Nita Strauss Ibanez. It was a super nice guitar. I liked it, but it wasn’t for me. It wasn’t one that I had planned to get. I just picked it up at the local GC and played it once, and decided I needed to give it a chance. I’ve also got a Jimi Hendrix Monterey Strat. I bought it to be more of an art piece that hangs over the door of my little music room. It doesn’t really get played. It just hangs there and looks cool. Those are the only signature guitars that I’ve had/got.
I almost bought one of those Emily Wolfe Epi Sheratons a couple years ago. Like the Nita Strauss Ibanez, it wasn’t one that I went looking for. I was in the market for a 335-esque guitar and walked into the local GC where a black one was hanging on the wall. It looked really cool, and it played and sounded like a 335 should. They had another regular Epi 335 on the wall next to it. I liked the neck on the 335 better than the Sheraton, so that’s the one I took home.
If they ever make one, I’d be all over a Henry Garza signature Strat. Even though Los Lonely Boys isn’t nearly as active (or don’t seem to be) as they were 20 years ago, that guy is still one of my fave players. As far as signatures that I know are out there, here’re the ones I’ve said I would like. One of those Dwight Trash Casino guitars. I’d kind of like an SRV Strat some day just because SRV. I kind of dig the Brad Paisley Tele. Then there’s the Brent Mason Tele. I dig the Robert Cray Strats. I want that one mostly because it’s a hard tail, and there aren’t too many of those out there. Now I can add the Buck Owens Tele to that list.