On a cold and frosty morning in October of 1997 (yes, it IS cold and frosty sometimes in October in Canada!) I made the decision that I was going to make the purchase of all purchases. Yes, I was going to buy my very own Noel Gallagher Epiphone Supernova.

Way back in 1996, Noel was approached by one of his favorite guitar makers, Epiphone, with the possibility of producing a Noel Gallagher signature guitar. This was a very big honour for Noel. Only the biggest stars have signature guitar models, including John Lennon and B.B. King - true musical legends. Of course, Noel jumped at the chance. Epiphone was originally going to call the guitar the Chieftan, but Noel joked to British guitar magazine Total Guitar that they should call it the Supernova, and the name stuck. I could go on and on about the specifications of the guitar etc. etc. but I won't here. If you want you can visit this page where I've included a review of the guitar from Maximum Guitar magazine in complete guitarese. This page is for information on how I got mine.

I thought it would be quite easy to get one - just expensive! So, I went down to all of the local music stores here in Regina and eventually located one that dealt Epiphones. I'm no Jason Rhodes (Noel's guitar man) when it comes to guitars, so I didn't know that certain guitar shops stock types of guitars... I guess you could compare it to a car dealership. So, the first question you should ask when you're calling around is if they carry Epiphone. Just so you know, it is VERY difficult to get any information about this guitar on the internet, so your best bet is to talk to human guitar gurus at your local Epiphone dealer! I did it the hard way and eventually came out with my own Epi, so I'm sharing everything I know with you!

Before I go on, let me say that this guitar is pretty expensive (yet apparantly it is mid-priced compared to the range of guitar models out there) but there can be a lot of bargaining done. Officially, this guitar retails for between $1299 and $1347 USD (about £550 to £649). However, I got mine for a mere $1000 CDN - hundreds of dollars cheaper than the list price. You probably won't ever get one that cheap unless you know someone... the lad who is teaching me guitar knows the guy who sold me my Epi really well, so I managed to get it dirt cheap. The mark-up on guitars is incredible, so make sure you bargain! If you can do it, make sure you have a big chunk of cash with you the day you pick it up. Chances are, if you only have the bare minimum required for the first payment, you won't get as good of a deal.

When I finally got around to ordering the guitar, I found out that it was on back order and would take 9 months to get it! Be patient. If you are serious about this guitar, the dealer WILL find a way to get it for you - and believe me, it IS worth waiting for!

All of the Epiphone dealers in every country must get their guitars from that country's distributor, so if the distributor is out of them, you'll have to wait. If you have the advantage of living in a bigger city, however, there is probably more than one Epiphone dealer. Call around - sometimes if you're lucky, you might find one that is already in stock!

I was lucky. Even though my guitar was not supposed to be in until the end of July, it arrived in mid-May. What's even more incredible is that I ended up paying it off completely on Noel's birthday - that was the best part! I'm just learning right now, but it is really a joy to play this guitar. All of the people at the guitar shop AND my very picky guitar teacher absolutely love this instrument; I've never read a bad review on it either!

I hope this information helps - you can always call the toll free Epiphone number in North America if you need more information. (1-800-444-2766)

As Radiohead once said, anyone can play guitar. If you're a really big Oasis fan, you'll love this guitar to bits, and you'll really want to learn how to play!

Oasis fans' mouths are watering now...