# The guitar his dad gave back

> Marcus King on the childhood acoustic that came back to him, the friend he lost, and what it feels like to hold Jerry Garcia's Tiger.
- Title: The guitar his dad gave back · Guitar World | Shortify
- Summary: Marcus King on the childhood acoustic that came back to him, the friend he lost, and what it feels like to hold Jerry Garcia's Tiger. An instrument carries…
- Keywords: marcus king, epiphone, acoustic guitar, brent hinds, gear, guitar, dad, gave, back, Guitar World
- Source: Guitar World — https://guitarworld.com/artists/guitarists/marcus-king-signature-epiphone-el-dorado-acoustic
- Published: 2026-09-13T14:00:00+00:00
- Read time: 2 min
- Topics: marcus king, epiphone, acoustic guitar, brent hinds, gear
## Not just another signature
Marcus King has put his name on instruments before. The new Epiphone El Dorado acoustic is the one with his childhood in it.
## The first guitar he remembers
His dad handed him an El Dorado when he was small. It is the first guitar he remembers strumming and being pulled in by.

> The El Dorado was the first guitar I have a memory of
## Some guitars have emotion
King says the same footprint lives in the new model. Play ten acoustics and they will all sound different, and this one gives you room to find your sound.

> When you play it, there's an emotion to it. Some guitars have that and some do not.
## Epiphone is climbing
The budget brand keeps pushing into better, still affordable builds. King points to the Dave Grohl and Joe Bonamassa signatures and the Peter Green Greeny replica.
## A housewarming surprise
Packing for Nashville in 2018, King told his dad he wished he still had that first guitar. His dad had given it away years earlier, then showed up in East Nashville holding it.
## Two El Dorados, one album
He had just bought a 1981 Cadillac Eldorado. The guitar coming home and the car in the driveway gave his 2020 album its name.
## Opry guard, Tennessee stars
Before taking the original on the road, Christy Carter at Carter Vintage Guitars fitted an Opry-style pickguard. It also wears a South Carolina shape in mother-of-pearl and Tennessee stars.
## He left the build to Gibson
King did not sweat bracing or wood choice. He trusted Gibson to make the best sounding thing they could and judged it one way.

> How does the damn thing sound?
## Make people remember you
His grandfather's advice stuck when he moved to Nashville. People may forget your name, but they remember the Cadillac outside and the guitar that looks like that.

> Leave a lasting impression, make people remember you.
## Orange out, Marshall in
He heard Eddie 9V playing through a Marshall and wanted that Allman Brothers sound back. He tours with his dad's 1970 Plexi, modified with a master volume on the back.
## Tens and twelves
If Marshall ever builds him an amp, he wants more compression and 10-inch speakers for the attack. He runs a mix of 10s and 12s, having tried nearly every configuration.
## Losing Brent Hinds
They were close inside a decade, and Hinds was a groomsman at King's wedding. They rarely talked shop, though they would get stoned outside and nerd out over a Mark Knopfler solo.

> He was a brother.
## DNA on the strings
He has played Rory Gallagher's Telecaster, Jeff Beck's Yardburst, Jerry Garcia's Tiger and Freddie King's 335. Each one feels like a person arriving, not an object.

> It feels like you're getting a visit from your heroes. You can feel the soul, if you're open to it.
## Touring, then the studio
He is on the road until early October. Then he goes back in to record, with a stack of songs already written.
## Key takeaway

An instrument carries the people who played it, so pick gear that means something and play it until it means more.