Jim, don't have much time at the moment, but I'd say don't rule out a Fender comparable to Gibson's Epiphones, like a Squire. Don't know how much they are these days but for a starter...it's certainly not a Gibson, but a lot of people prefer Fenders for their versatility. I'm not big on Strats, but they seem to work for most people, and there are Squire Teles too. And I do think that in some ways only a collector or a longtime pro is going to be able to tell the difference. In fact, I've known a couple of extremely accomplished players who use Squires on stage unless it's a special occasion. Regardless of that, though, I do think that it's easier to try to get a Gibson-type sound out of a Fender than it is to get a Fender-type sound out of a Gibson. And I'm big on single-coil, I just think it's more versatile...Johnny Ramone got something I'd say is a humbucker sound, if not a Gibson tone, with a single-coil guitar not all that far off from a Fender. Same guitar the Ventures used, if that gives you an idea...it's going to depend on what it is he wants to do. I'll try to get back on this later...