Madison

Madison Store Manager
josiah@davesguitar.com

Originally from St. Louis MO, Josiah started spending his summers in Wisconsin in 2016 to work for an uncle. After a short stint as a professional photographer and a trip to the Galloup School of Guitar Building he joined the Madison shop in 2019 splitting his time between a few different roles. In preparation for his retirement Mike Turk worked closely with Josiah to prepare him to manage Dave's in Madison, passing down timeless lessons in customer care, dealer relations, and most importantly connecting with people. When he's not in the shop you can find him either hunting, fishing, working on his own instrument projects, or restoring vintage firearms.

Sales & Photography
kirk@davesguitar.com

I fell in love with guitar on the stairs to the third floor of my Babcia's (Grandma) house. On a landing was an old kids' nylon string guitar out of tune without all of its strings. I was mid-single digits and remember clearly being amazed at how that little box with strings could make noise. My parents were not as interested as I was in getting a guitar out of the JC Penny catalog for me for Christmas. So, I settled for teaching myself to play the spinet we had at home. At 18 I bought an ESP LTD M50 and a Hughes and Kettner combo, and started my guitar playing journey in earnest. An Ex gave me an Almirez (not a typo) acoustic, and I spent my free time at the tattoo shop I worked at teaching myself to play. Between now and then I have played guitar, bass and synth/keys in several bands, taught myself to play drums, and learned photography. Which all led to me working at Dave's Madison where I do the vast majority of the photography for our shop, many of our online listings, and also find time to help people get the right Strat, 4003, 330, G6120, 5E3, I-35, RG5130, L-5, D-18, DynaComp, Mark IV, JC40, Microtubes, Princeton, StingRay, Streamer, Tele, or whatever it is they are looking for. I love talking gear, and I know a little bit about a lot of this stuff.

Acoustic Sales
John@davesguitar.com

John got into music sales a little later in life, having spent most of his career in marketing and advertising. Along the way, he bought and sold countless guitars through local Madison music stores, including Dave’s. He loves talking guitars with customers and is a big fan of Bluegrass music. His favorite pickers include David Grier, Trey Hensley, Billy Strings, Mollie Tuttle and of course Tony Rice.

Sales & Shipping
Robert@davesguitar.com

Local to the city of Sun Prairie, Robert has been active in the music scene since his early teenage years. He studied Recording/Music Technology at Madison Media Institute and specializes in extended range baritone guitars. There was a piano and a couple of acoustic guitars at home, but the world or Rock and Metal captivated interest after a fateful Christmas with a new PlayStation II and Guitar Hero. Because of the host of artists that contributed to the game's music library there the was plenty of exposure to the legends of Rock, but none quite struck a chord quite like Buckethead. Known for his last name and sporting a kilt; Robert is always happy to help musicians find their bliss and reach their goals.

Sales & Accessories
Isaac@davesguitar.com

Isaac has been playing guitar in a rock band ever since he was five years old. Born and raised in Madison, he now splits his time between ordering small goods and effects pedals for the Sun Prairie store, touring nationally with his band Disq, working as a producer and recording engineer. He is also well versed in Funk, Bluegrass and Jazz music, gigging around town periodically. Isaac is happy to assist customers with anything from fuzz pedals to high end/boutique acoustic instruments. His favorite guitars are his Gibson Custom '64 SG, Triple Pickup Fender Jaguar and Martin D-18 Authentic '39 Reissue. His favorite musicians include The Beatles, Eric Dolphy, Norman Blake, XTC, Judee Sill, Oliver Nelson, Alice Coltrane, The Beach Boys and Charles Mingus to name a few.

Sales Electric
Chris@davesguitar.com

With his head in the clouds (literally) and his feet firmly planted in the glory days of yesteryear, Chris is your go-to for all things Gibson and Fender in the shop. He is always happy to discuss the fine details of every model offered by the aforementioned brands and also help you nail the tone you are chasing by pairing your selection with the appropriately awesome tube amplifier.

Repair
Joe@davesguitar.com

Joe likes Goose

Repair