John Frusciante Unknown Stratocaster (First Electric Guitar)

John’s first-ever electric guitar was a Stratocaster. According to John, prior to that, he owned an acoustic. So, in order to convince his father to buy an electric, he learned how to play the whole Sex Pistols album.

In an interview with Rick Rubin (see link in the quote below) John also explained how prior to getting an electric guitar, he was mostly into punk rock. With him getting an electric guitar also came the discovery of Hendrix, and his musical interests changed somewhat.

I wanted to play an electric guitar years before that, but nobody would buy me one. And I just didn’t like the sounds of an acoustic. […]

Once I actaully had an electric guitar, I just became obssesed with Jimi Hendrix, and that lead me to being into Jeff Beck, and Cream…

John Frusciante of the Red Hot Chili Peppers | Broken Record

Unfortunately, John does not mention what brand the guitar was. Most likely, it was a Stratocaster copy of some sort. He does mention that he was around 12 or 13 when all this happened, so this gives us at least an approximation of when he first started playing an electric guitar.

Feedback

GroundGuitar counts on your criticism and feedback. In case you notice anything wrong with the information posted on this page, or you have knowledge of something that you would like to share, be sure to leave a comment below.

In case you want to talk to me directly and privately, please use the Contact Form and I will get back to you as soon as possible. (Dan)

Subscribe
Notify of
guest
1 Comment
newest
oldest most voted
Inline Feedbacks
View all comments
Adam
Adam
11 months ago

This Stratocaster is potentially seen in the footage of Ike live at Time Speed in 1986, posted by Matthew Goodman. Around the 8:16 mark you can see John playing some kind of Stratocaster with stickers all over it (can also tell it’s a strat by the headstock, a different guitar to the performance guitar he’s playing for the rest of the show)
The videos in 240p so it’s tricky to make out other details.

Last edited 11 months ago by Adam