I remember it like it was Autumn of 2001, because it was. I just moved to Michigan and started frequenting the local instrument and pawn stores looking for guitars. One place by the name of National Pawn Brokers Outlet of Waterford was where I spent most of my money. On October 4th, I went in and saw a Krylon granite green explorer style guitar and just had to give it a test. The gentleman working there was a small older guy named Gunther. He was extremely kind, soft spoken, and seemed to take a deep interested in my hobby of playing guitar. Seriously, great salesmanship! After a visual and audible inspection of the guitar I decided to put it on layaway and make payments. At the counter, while the business was transacting, I was told they did have a case that came with the guitar. This turned out to be a lie, but that's neither here not there this many years later.
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| The actual sales stub from Rosetta's purchase. |
If you want to know more about Rosetta you can read this article, so that I don't have to repeat myself too much. Needless to say I was bummed when I paid her off and they told me there was no case, but I still owned the guitar and that's all that mattered. A Washburn A20 for $150 today would be a steal, back then it was just a good deal. What came into my possession as a single humbucker, green granite explorer style guitar quickly transformed into a project I've still yet to finish, much to my dismay. I was, and still am, so disheartened that this guitar isn't playable that I keep her in a homemade coffin in my closet. Which is where she was in 2005, when I decided to go directly to the best source, Washburn themselves, and ask questions about this guitar. HA! Yeah, right!
Even though the internet and email had been a thing for quite some years in 2005, the 1-800 number was still a much better way to contact a business back then. I know, actually having to call and talk to a person scares the shit out of me too, so you can already begin to understand my trepidation. After dealing with Washburn's phone menu system I finally found myself talking to someone who was to represent the company. I told the person I had a Washburn A20, and asked if they could date the guitar by the serial number. Immediately my question was met with confusion. The person eventually seemed to catch up with the conversation and asked for the first few digits of the serial number and explained my guitar was "most likely" a 1980 guitar, but they didn't recognize the A20 style. I explained that it was an explorer style guitar and that Howard Leese used one. Sadly I totally forgot Carlos Cavazo (SORRY CARLOS!) used a black one with red binding.
The Washburn representative was still stumped and had no clue what I was talking about. Their response to my previous information was an immediate denial that Washburn ever made an explorer style guitar, and the A20 never existed. Knowing Washburn makes both acoustic and electric guitars I thought explaining that it was an electric would help. Nope. They've never made an explorer style electric guitar and the A series did not exist - ever. I said well it was called the Stage Series. Nope. Those never existed either. I suggested they had to have some information on these guitars, which was met with the person telling me all of their records were lost in a flash flood. The longer I sat on the phone with this person the more I felt like I was secretly being recorded for a prank show, so I reluctantly accepted their denial that such a guitar line ever existed and politely let them get back to whatever else they did in the office - perhaps it was the cleaning lady answering the phone for a laugh.
Guess what happened next? In 2006 Washburn reissued the A20. I'm not sure they reissued the whole Stage Series but I know there were very nice looking brand new A20s on the market. I was so fucking mad when I saw the reissues in 2006, having been told a year prior that this guitar never existed and in not so many words either the guitar is fake or a figment of my imagination. I've since found out they were also reissued in 1996, which makes even less sense that the person on the phone would fight me Dokken style, you know, Tooth and Nail, about a guitar they should have plenty of information about while sitting at a desk in a Washburn office. Oops, guess I forgot about that flash flood. Since I own an original I never saw any reason to throw the money at one of the 06 reissues, but I really wish I had now! It's funny how in a matter of a year, give or take a few months, as far as Washburn was concerned the A20 didn't exist, and then it was miraculously reissued.
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