“It was a quality instrument to learn on. Without my dad, who knows what kind of tree trunk I would’ve had”: You’ll never guess what guitar thrash metal pioneer Kerry King learned to play on

Guitarist Kerry King of Slayer displays the Dean Guitars Kerry King signature model guitar at the Dean Gordon Guitars Space at Anaheim Convention Center on April 13, 2023 in Anaheim, California.

Kerry King is perhaps best associated with the Dean and B.C. Rich electric guitars he has brandished throughout his career. However, this wasn't always the case. He actually kickstarted his guitar journey by playing his dad's Gibson ES-175, a hollow body guitar known as the workhorse of jazz guitars.

“It was a fat Ted Nugent guitar,” King reveals in the latest issue of Total Guitar. “It was a big guitar for me as a teenager, but looking back now after playing guitar for so many years, it was fun.