Thanks for all the comments and suggestions so far, guys and gals, they've all been helpful, as I knew they would.

An additional complication I chose not to mention is that my friend has a slight deformity. After an industrial accident, years back, he lost the first joint of his index finger (right hand). So, if he uses his right hand for strumming / picking (playing that standard way) that shouldn't be too much of a problem - at least not insurmountable. But if his right hand is the fretting hand (playing Southpaw) then that could be hard. He just says:"Well, Django got by...."

norman