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KEEP IT SIMPLE: FENDER CHAMP AMPS Dave Belzer
In 1970, at the ripe old age of eleven, my dad
an issue, and new amps were as expensive as
they came to an agreement and shook hands.
took me to the local music store to purchase
a guitar, the storeowner made a suggestion.
Somehow my dad had convinced the owner to
my first electric guitar and amp. That day still
He had a very good condition used black face
not only lower the price of the guitar a bit, but
remains a vivid memory in my over 40 plus
Fender Champ for $50. Ah, yes! Those were
he also got him to throw in a case, a strap, a
years of what I like to refer to as GAS (Guitar
the days!
guitar stand, mic stand, and a discount on the
Acquisition Syndrome). I had been taking
mic itself. Needless to say, I was one beaming
lessons at the store with an inexpensive nylon
Now, this is where things got interesting. I only
eleven-year-old with guitar, amp, and mic in
string classical guitar and now, after saving up
had so much money and I was pretty sure, or at
hand. It was many years later that I put two
some money and a lot of pleading, the day had
least had a feeling, that my dad might help me
and two together and realized the lessons of
finally come.
out some. How much? I had no idea.
negotiation my father instilled in me that day.
I knew exactly what guitar I wanted. I had
My dad was not a musician. As far as I know
recently watched a PBS documentary on my
he never played a note on anything in his life.
black and white TV of the final Cream concert
He did have a great love and appreciation of all
Of course, the Kent ES 335 didn’t last long.
held at the Royal Albert Hall. For most of the
forms of music and passed that on to me from
It was too big for me to begin with, and then
concert Eric Clapton played his famous painted
an early age. I did learn that day what my dad
there was having to carry it around in, what
SG Les Paul, which, even through my TV,
was good at: the art of negotiation. While I was
seemed to me, the biggest case of all time. So
sounded awesome. At some point, he switch
sitting in the store, enthralled with my guitar, my
off it went. The first of my trade ups (or downs,
to a single pickup Gibson Firebird 1 that really
dad was talking to the owner. The next thing I
depending on the trade). The one thing that did
didn’t sound very good or very much like Eric
know the owner brings out a guitar case, then
stay with me for sometime was that mid 60’s
Clapton. Then, in a flash (or some abrupt film
a guitar stand, and then a white plastic case
black face Fender Champ. I used that amp
edit), he appeared with his famous 1964 cherry
containing a Shure Unisphere mic with a cable,
in my very first jams and earliest bands. That
red ES 335 to finish off the concert. Wow! Not
mic clip, and a mic stand to go with it.
is, until it became obvious it was not going to
Those lessons have served me well over
only did that guitar look good, but it sounded
the years.
cut through over the drums or rest of the band,
incredibly good too. It seemed like he and the
Wow! What was going on and who was going
even if I did have my blue/orange Univox Super
guitar were almost one as the documentary
to pay for all this?
Fuzz cranked!
away on his red 335. That final scene stuck
My focus went from the guitar I was playing to
I can’t remember how many larger amps I went
with me.
my Dad and the owner, who were going back
through in those early teen years, but I always
and forth talking numbers. All of a sudden
seemed to hang on to that Champ. I’m not
ends with Clapton staring up to heaven, wailing
Now, I had saved a little money, but nothing
near what it would take to buy a ES335, or any
real Gibson for that matter. The little music store
I went to really didn’t carry expensive guitars
like Gibson and Fender, but they did carry a lot
of affordable Japanese copies of those guitars
which were quite popular and plentiful at the
time. There, hanging on the wall, was my guitar,
a red “Kent” (yes, I said Kent) ES 335 copy,
made in Japan. It didn’t matter to me that the
guitar was totally inappropriate for an elevenyear-old, but we live and learn. What hadn’t
occurred to me was an amp. I never really
thought much about that. Since money was
May June 2016
CollectibleGuitar.com
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