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Instrument of the week,
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On this page every week a particular instrument from the collection will be highlighted. You get to see exampes from chapters that have not yet been published on this website, as a kind of preview. It will make you extremely curious and hungry for more.
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Futurama II, c. 1962
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Futurama was a well known name among British guitar bands in the early 1960s, before American products such as Fender and Gibson appeared in Britain. It was a brand created by Selmer, the largest instrument supplier in the UK. George Harrison (of the Beatles), Tom McGuinness (later of Manfred Mann) and Gerry Madsen (of the Pacemakers) were all using Futuramas around that time. Jimmy Page even changed his Hofner Senator for one as his musical skills improved. It all started at Blatn in Czechoslovakia with the Resonet "Grazioso" model, manufactured by the huge Drevokov Co-operative since 1955. The Czechs actually gained their inspiration from a genuine Strat that they had imported from the States earlier that year. In 1958 or shortly after, Selmer started importing this guitar, but soon changed the name in their catalogue to “Futurama” which they considered more suitable for Rock and Roll. This early sunburst version, as used by George Harrison, was simply called "Futurama Solid Guitar". It was characterised by the natural finished maple (or sometimes beech) fingerboard, three plus three machine heads, and three pickups with individual "piano"-type toggle switches. In 1959, a cheaper Futurama II version with two pickups was introduced. The original Futurama Solid was replaced by a similar looking instrument that Selmer called the Futurama III. These guitars were now made by another company in Czechoslovakia called CSHN (or “Czechoslovak Music Instruments” in English) at Hradec Kralove, who would also make the Jolana guitars. The change to a dark fingerboard and the redesigned headstock with six separate open tuners in a row were all attempts to get closer to the US examples. The Futuramas would be updated again in 1962, with more finishes, pointed headstocks, newly shaped bodies, pickups with adjustable pole-pieces, and improved vibrato units. The Futurama II’s rotary pickup selector was moved closer to the lower cutaway and the pickguard was reshaped. Finally in 1963 Selmer replaced the Czechoslovakian instruments with Hagstrom guitars for their Futurama II and III models. The original Futurama II continued to feature in the Selmer catalogue until about 1965, but its name was changed to "Futurama Duo”. Other guitars on the Futurama page were Japanese-made, such as Guyatone's Freshman, or the Sophomore, which in a later version closely resembles the Kent Polaris, or still another model also known under the brand name "Zen-On". |
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Oahu (by Dickerson) "Student" electric lap steel, c. 1939
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This small electric lap steel guitar was made for the Oahu Publishing Co. from Cleveland by Delbert J. Dickerson around 1939. The Dickerson family had been involved in the Hawaiian music scene since the 1920s. They had a factory known as "Dickerson Brothers", and Delbert J. Dickerson began manufacturing Hawaiian lap steels and small tube amplifiers in 1937 or 38. He had to compete with well established companies such as Kay, Harmony and Rickenbacker, all of which produced for Oahu, Bronson, and other music publishers promoting Hawaiian music. These publishers, often involved in pedagogy, offered instruments baring their own brand, to go with the lessons, and distributed mainly by mail. At the end of World War II, Dickerson appears to have sold the company, that became "Magna Electronics" in 1947. “Magnatone” would go on to produce some very cool guitars, including designs by Paul Bigsby and Paul Barth, and some of the best amps ever.
Dickerson offered three Hawaiian guitar models: the "Student", the "Standard" and the "De Luxe". They were typically sold with a matching amplifier and had a single-coil pickup mounted under the thin layer of finish, a design for which Delbert Dickerson had applied for a patent in 1938. The “Student”, with its pear or paddle shape, had a slightly smaller body and a hand rest with a volume control. It had a solid metal nut and bridge, a decal fingerboard, and it was covered with mottled sheet celluloid, or pearloid, which Dickerson called "Lumarith." It has ferrules in the back and the strings go through the body, resulting in a full, round tone with good sustain. Despite their apparent simplicity, these small Dickerson lap steels - only 72 cm long - were much appreciated. Hawaiian guitar wizard Sol Hoopii is featured with a similar “Dickerson” branded instrument in a 1938 photo and in some rare movies from 1943. Hopi was teaching Dickerson's daughter, Belva, and he was reportedly consulted on the design of Dickersons guitars. |
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Regal Faux Wood Grained, c. 1940
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Like other Chicago guitar manufacturers, Regal produced numerous low-cost flat tops in the 1930s and 1940s, with an endless choice of decorative paint and decal patterns. In Europe these are hard to find, but in the US they go almost unnoticed because they are so common. Faux maple, mahogany, koa, walnut, even faux metal could be obtained. Usually birch is the underlying wood, which is acoustically satisfying, but not very stable, especially if it hasn't been given enough time to dry. This makes it difficult to find originals without warped, cracked or depressed top or back.
This all original "faux koa" parlour guitar. including the Kluson 3-on-a-side tuning machines, has eighteen frets, painted position markers, a rectangular rosewood bridge screwed to the top and painted white binding around top and soundhole. It has a green Regal headstock decal, unlike the Regal archtop from week 18, with its light blue label. A square neck "Hawaiian" lap steel version was also available, with painted fret numbers on the treble side of the fingerboard. These "faux" guitars could carry many different labels: "Musical Art Conservatory", "South Sea Islands Studios", "Ball McIntire", “The Acorn”, "Griffin", depending on who marketed them. They can be quite playable, but they were, and still are, visually "cool" guitars. |
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Univox Hi-Flier,
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Univox came into existence in Japan around 1967, and was imported in the US by the Merson company, founded by Bernie Mersky before WWII. This distributor had already been marketing Merson-brand archtop electric guitars and amplifiers, and selling electric guitars and stringed instruments by Harmony, Kamico, Favilla, Tempo and Supro in the late '40s. Later Merson distributed Giannini, Westbury, Korg and others, and from the late '60s on, this company was sole representative for the US of the Swedish Hagstrom guitars. Univox lasted till 1977, when it became more difficult to produce guitars, in part due to numerous lawsuits for making close copies of Fenders, Gibsons, and of course Mosrites. Univox is also known for its amps and effect pedals, and for its synthesizers, still in production under the name "Korg”. Univox guitars debuted around 1968. Among the first Univox guitars was the Mosrite copy known later as the “Hi-Flier”, most probably built by Arai (later Aria). The Japanese affection for Mosrites was no surprise, since the band most associated with Semi Moseley's guitars was the Ventures, who were hugely popular in Japan (see week 012).
The Hi-Flier had a thin reversed Strat-type body with a German carve around the top, almost always seen in sunburst. The bolt-on neck had a three-plus-three castellated headstock, a plastic logo, a string retainer bar, a zero fret and a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard with large dot inlays. A white-black-white pickguard carried volume, tone and throggle switch. Two black-covered single-coil pickups were top-mounted, the neck pickup slanting back like on a Mosrite. A Gibson-style Tune-O-Matic bridge with round saddles was combined with a Jazzmaster-style vibrato unit. By 1970, the plastic logos were replaced by decal logos on some models, and the string retainer bar was replaced by a pair of little string trees. By '71, the Hi-Flier was available in three finishes: orange sunburst (U1800), black (U1801) and white (U1802). Accompanying the Hi-Flier guitar was a Hi-Flier bass (U1800B). The neckplates on the first ones had, apart from the serial number, the words "Steel adjustable neck" sandblasted. Later Univox neckplates had a "U" and "Japan" engraved. Around '73 or '74, more colors were added and a maple fretboard was offered. The single coil pickups were changed to two-coil humbuckers with metal sides and a see-through pink insert on top. A white one was often seen in the hands of Nirvana frontman Kurt Cobain, who owned several Hi-Fliers during the first years of his musical career. Some super-bands from the late 1960’s and early 1970’s used Univox amps: The Doors, Jeff Beck, Led Zeppelin, Billy Preston… |
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Gibson has always strived to sell student quality instruments and amps without associating them with their quality products. In the 1930s they used brand names like "Recording King", "Cromwell" and "Kalamazoo" on a range of cheaper guitars and amps. The latter name was resurrected in 1965 for a separate line of electric guitars, basses and amplifiers. Clearly these were intended to compete with Fender on the student market, and it is no coincidence that the first version of the KG-1, with one single coil pickup, and the KG-2, with two, strongly resemble Fenders Musicmaster and Mustang models. The "solid" body of the “KG” guitars was made from cast particleboard, essentially sawdust mixed with glue, while the maple necks with six-in-a-line tuners were bolted on. They could be obtained in flame red, glacier white or Las Vegas blue. The "A" designation, as for the guitar presented here, stood for an optional Maestro vibrola unit. The neck is quite playable, and due to the electronics of the Melody Maker type, combined with the composite material for the body, this guitar actually does not sound bad at all.
Later the body outline changed to a more "SG" -like shape, with two nearly symmetrical cutouts with sharp ends, but at the advent of the 1970s, the Kalamazoo line was discontinued. Gibson started using the Epiphone brand name for cheaper versions of their current models, now produced in the Far East. Between 1965 and the early 1970s, Gibson also released "Kamalazoo" amplifiers, with Model 3 being the cheaper solid-state version. This compact combo was actually made by CMI Electronics in Chicago and was equipped with a 10 inch speaker. The “golden” front panel and stylish black speaker cloth with “gold” wire were chosen to convince any aspiring musician on a budget |
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Höfner Colorama model 164 II, c. 1962
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Hofner started making solid body guitars in 1956, introducing the models 160 and 161 with single cut body contours. By 1962 these had evolved into double-cut models with bolt-on necks, with or without a vibrato unit, and covered with paint or vinyl. They were named "Colorama" by Selmer, who operated as Hofners distributor in the UK. Demand for electric guitars had been growing since the late 1950s, so Hofner sought to increase production of budget instruments by making the body and neck construction cheaper, along with developing a finish that could be applied without wasting the time needed for the paint to dry.
The Hofner 164 II model, like the one in this collection, has a maple neck and an Abachi body, which is a very light exotic wood. The symmetrical body outline with two cutouts has been in use since 1960. The guitar features two “510”type single-coil pickups with six rectangular non-adjustable "staples" and two magnets. Despite the presence of the Hofner logo in a diamond, they were produced by Franz Pix, a Hofner employee, who set up an independent factory in 1961. The electronics are housed beneath the classic rectangular Hofner control plate, called “flick action console” in the Selmer catalogues. Two rotary knobs for the volume and two slide switches for the pickup selection are complemented by a third switch that reduces the volume to 70% in rhythm mode. The bridge was a simple 72-30 type model, with only two wheels for height adjustment, and the vibrato was Hofner's own design. The colorama is still made by Hofner, now featuring Gibson's P90-type pickups. |
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Framus banjitar model 6/76, c. 1958
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In the second half of the nineteenth century, soon after the banjo was widely accepted in the US and UK, one or even two bass strings were sometimes added between the high drone string and the lowest fourth string of the normal five-string instruments. These six- or seven-stringed banjos were more common in Britain, where the name 'zither banjos' was often being used. However, the six-string versions weren't really banjitars, due to the different tuning, with one high drone. In the US, the five-string banjo remained very popular until the mandolin, and later the tenor banjo took over. The latter was adopted in jazz, but could only play relatively high notes. Jazz players, like Johnny St. Cyr, who wanted a more extended range, started using droneless six-string banjos with two lower strings added to the usual four tenor banjo strings. However, because of their tuning, they are not technically considered banjitars either. The idea of constructing 6-string banjos designed to make life easier for guitarists has taken root in Europe in the late 1950s. The banjitar or banjo-guitar as we know it today was born: an instrument of its own right that can never replace any of the other banjo types.
Framus introduced its first banjos at the Frankfurt Music Fair in 1957, at a time when this German company was in full expansion. A whole series of "Dixi" banjos were released, including a banjitar (model 6/76). The body of these instruments consisted of a metal frame with a wooden resonator. The headstock was covered with white or burgundy “MOTS” (mother of toilet seat), as fake mother-of-pearl is often nicknamed. The six-string model proved very popular, along with the four-string tenor version (model 6/74). The Famus banjos are still in production to this day. Another European maker, Eko in Italy, was equally successful with its version of a banjitar. |
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Harmony H 53 Rocket, c. 1963
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Of all Harmony models, the hollow bodies are the most sought after. The Rocket series was released in 1959 and was intended as entry or intermediate level guitar. Their name was definitely influenced by the space race of the 1960s. They originally had a brownish sunburst finish that switched to cherry red burst in 1963. They could be obtained with one (H53) or two pickups with (H56) or without a vibrato unit (H54), or with three pickups (H59). From around 1964 they were fitted with an adjustable truss rod. The Rocket models with a single cutaway body lasted until 1967 and were quite popular. Controls consisted of individual volume and tone for each pickup, and an pickup selector switch for the two and three pickup versions.
Rocket-type guitars by harmony, but with six-in-a-row tuners, were registered in the Montgomery Ward catalogs under the "Airline" brand, and for just one year, from 1966-67, a version with one cutaway, nearly identical to the Harmony H-54 "Rocket", was available from mail order giant Sears: the Silvertone 1439. It had a tobacco sunburst finish, two silver foil pickups and a non-Bigsby vibrato. In 1968 the Rockets were given a new double cutaway body style and renamed H53 / 1, H54 / 1, H56 / 1 and H59 / 1. The latter's control layout had been changed, with master volume and individual tone controls. They remained available until 1972. In terms of sound, these guitars can compete with the best electric thinline hollow bodies on the market, thanks to the laminated maple construction, celluloid binding and of course the DeArmond Gold Foil pickups made in Toledo, Ohio. They give that characteristically bright tone, without much sustain, but they can also sound creamy and round when pushed. The hollow construction makes them sound warm and the guitar starts that sweet screaming feedback whenever you want it, or not. |
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Mailorder catalogues from the 50's and 60's Week 44:
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Mail order companies have always played an important role in the guitar world of the twentieth century. These generalists provided everything you need in and around the house, from clothing to pots and pans, electronic devices and guns to car tires. Regardless, without them the guitar would never be as widespread as it is today. Especially in the vast area that encompasses the USA, they made it possible to distribute guitars, and anything else for that matter, to the farthest corner of the continent. Especially in the South, the guitar would never have been accepted so easily, and perhaps it would never have surpassed the banjo in popularity. The idea originated in Europe: the Thonet brothers in Germany were the first to publish their catalog in 1859, soon followed in the US by Montgomery Ward (1877), Sears (1888), Aldens (1899) and Spiegel (1905), all based in Chicago. It is no coincidence that the great musical instrument factories were founded right there, so that production and distribution could go hand in hand. Penney of Milwaukee did not enter the mail order catalog business until much later, in 1962.
After WWII, companies like Harmony, with an output of about 1,000 guitars a day at some point, and to a lesser extent Kay, Danelectro, Valco, and Regal, had a regular offset market for their budget and intermediate quality instruments. Though some might consider them inferior, they were, and still are respectable players and great starter instruments. The wholesalers came up with names like "Silvertone" (Sears), "Airline" (Montgomery Ward), Penncrest (Penney), "Old Kraftsman" (Spiegel) and many more to market their instruments regardless of the company that had built them. So Kay, Harmony, Danelectro, and other guitars were all branded "Silvertone" when they appeared in the Sears catalog, or "Airline" if the cataloguer was Montgomery Ward, and so on. This phenomenon, confusing as it may be, explains why some brands are over-represented in this collection, compared to other more famous brands, such as Fender, Gibson, Gretsch ... After all, the goal was to give an overview of popular, accessible instruments with frets, not a showcase for the most exclusive ones. |
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Supertone (by Harmony) black parlour guitar, c. 1930
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In 1899 Sears, Roebuck and Co. from Chicago, by then the world’s largest mail-order company, expanded their line of guitars by Harmony and by Oscar Schmidt, who were close competitors on the guitar market at the time. The name “Supertone” was chosen in 1914 and two years later Sears purchased Harmony, mainly to take control of the ukulele market. So most “Supertone” guitars, mandolins and banjos made for Sears were built in the Chicagoan Harmony factories, until 1940, when Sears sold the Harmony company back to Harmony executives and started using the brand name “Silvertone” for their musical instruments. From now on these would not be made exclusively by Harmony any more, but by other companies as well, like Kay, Danelectro, Valco and others.
This black “Supertone parlour guitar was made from unexpensive wood, but it looks quite lustruous due to the decals of oriental and floral design and the checkered binding around sound hole and edges. The fingerboard in grey pearloid adds to the dramatic effect. The instrument, at some point, belonged to Emily (Emiria) Hiskey, according to the inscriptions on the top and the back. In spite of some cracks and visible wear mainly on the back, apparently this guitar was not played extensively, since the frets and the fingerboard are almost intact. After all, this is a showcase object, more than a fine sounding and easy playing guitar. |
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Kay K 6437 all mahogany archtop,
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In 1957, the old K37 model was renamed the "K6437 All-mahogany Arched Guitar", along with other Kay acoustic archtops, which were mostly given new numbers, often reminiscent of their forerunners. The K6437 was top of the line within the "normal" Kay 39,37 cm body length archtops, with a retail price of $ 59.95, compared to $ 34.95 for the faux flame K 6858 and K6868 with maple fingerboards. The 1959 catalog states: “A popular model that guitarists really go for. Super auditorium size. Genuine mahogany top, back and sides; slim reinforced mahogany neck. Oval rosewood fingerboard; celluloid edges. Deluxe heads, with built-in covers. K6437 Natural Brown hand-rubbed polished Mahogany...”
This description needs some clarification: the K6437 sold well, but it was not exceptionally popular, and the size was the same as the other archtops in its category. The neck is not very slim, certainly not by today's standards, but maybe slightly more than before 1957, because of the truss rod added since. The surface of the fingerboard is slightly curved, but to call this "oval" would be an exaggeration. At least some things were correctly described: the wood selection is correct, even though the body is laminated mahogany, and the closed Kluson tuners were indeed marked with "Deluxe". Still, as the better exponent of its peers, the K6437 can stand the comparison to more famous Gibson or Gretsch instruments, although the warm sound it produces is not very big. This model survived until 1965, when, along with a number of others, it was discarded to make way for a whole host of new models and new shapes. |
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Teisco ET-200 and Teisco Checkmate 66, c. 1969
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In 1946 Atswo Kaneko, a renowned Hawaiian and Spanish guitarist, and Doryu Matsuda, an electrical engineer, started up Teisco. In the beginning Teisco instruments were primarily built for domestic distribution in Japan, but as the '60s arrived, the company took part in the export market. Wholesaler Sears sold their guitars and amps under the name “Silvertone”. Around 1961, Westheimer Sales Company in Chicago began importing Teisco-made Kingston’s, although these weren’t promoted in the trade press until the beginning of 1964. That year the first solid-state amps were released, although tube amps remained available at least until 1966. 1964 also marked the beginning of the golden age of “Teisco del Rey” guitars. Three years later Kawai, another Japanese instrument making company, took over Teisco. The Teisco brand name was abandoned in 1980, only to revive in a completely new setting since2018.
In 1965 the” ET-200” name was introduced to replace the old designation “MJ-2L”, “E” standing for electric and “T” for tremolo, not for “tulip”, as you would expect from the body shape. After Teisco was taken over by Kawai in 1967 the ET-200 was redesigned to look like the guitar presented here, with the tulip-shaped body with double cuts and slightly out-curved horns, and with the floral pick guard. The rather chuncky C-profile of the neck is typical of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, ending in a Strat-style headstock. The dark Brazilian Rosewood fingerboard features a "zero fret". The slightly microphonic single coil pickups deliver the quintessential Japanese vintage twang. This lightweight guitar - only 2.25 kg – with its peculiar sound, proved useful for Indie-musicians in the ‘90s. Together with the “Checkmate 66”, a solid state Teisco amp from circa 1969, the ET-200 was the perfect set for the low budget beginning guitarists in the early 1970’s. This low output amp has three inputs, a headphone jack and tree knobs: volume, tone and tremolo: as simple as it gets. |
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Custom Kraft (Lectrolab) Model 600 tube amp, 1960s
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The history of this amp is a bit mysterious, to say the least. In 1922 Bernard Kornblum founded a musical instrument company in St. Louis, Missouri. As a young violinist he had emigrated to the USA from Vienna, Austria. Today SLM (St. Louis Music) is still a successful wholesaler of musical instruments. From the 1950s to 1968, Custom Kraft was a house brand of SLM, selling Kay guitars and amplifiers by Valco, Sound Projects, and others. The Model 600 presented here is said to have been made by Lectrolab, the primary brand name for amplifiers made by Sound Projects Company in Chicago Illinois, Cicero Illinois, and Venice Florida. In short, it appears to have been produced for SLM by Sound Projects under the Custom Kraft brand, and seems identical to the non-tremolo 3-Tube Amplifier Lectrolab model R203. But on the folder “parts list and instructions” it says: “Kay Musical instrument Company, model n ° 705”. So it is hard to draw any conclusion.
Either way, it's a cheap workhorse, no doubt made by one of the major Chicago manufacturers. It has an 8”speaker and the tubes are a 35W4, a 50C5 and a 12AU6, making it a great recording studio amp comparable to the Fender Champ. The gray glitter coating, the "gold" control panel with red lettering and the fabric speaker cover with "naive" stripes turn this simple amplifier into a little gem. |
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Guild Cordoba T50 “Slim”, 1965
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In 1954, Guild started a line of full-size hollow-body electics, of which the Granada X-50 was the only non-cutaway. In 1961, this model was renamed Cordoba X-50 and a thinline version was introduced, with a body thickness of only 2 inches: the Cordoba T-50 "Slim". It had to compete with a similar model from Gibson: the ES-125 T. This guitar had already secured a solid place on the market and it was therefore not easy for Guild to take on this battle. The T-50 can hardly be found in the Guild catalogs, unlike its brother, the T-100 with one cutaway. However, the T-50 offered the opportunity to buy a quality guitar for less money. Recently there has been a reissue that comes very close to the original. The big difference is the P-90 pickup, after the old Gibson type single-coil, so there is a big difference in sound.
The guitar shown here was made in 1965 and apparently, it has not been played extensively. It has a mahogany body with an arched spruce top and a beautiful mid-size mahogany neck. The unbound rosewood fingerboard is inlaid with mother-of-pearl dots. The instrument features two f-holes, a chrome G-style tailpiece and an adjustable rosewood bridge. The original Guild single-coil pickup, with its very simple volume and tone controls, sounds less aggressive than a P-90 but rich enough for jazz, blues or classic rock. |
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Noble EG 686-2HT, 1968
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After the Ventures became guitar gods in Japan, Japanese makers used their Mosrite guitars for inspiration, and even started to build real “Mosrite” copies (see “week 12” on Mosrite and the Ventures). This Noble EG 686-2HT was most likely made by Tombo in Japan for the US import company "Strum and Drum" (see "week 23"). It's a cool nod to Mosrites semi-acoustic "Combo" model, made in 1965. The Mosrite "Combo" wasn't as popular as their "Venture" models, but it was certainly attractive in its own particular way.
The Noble, first made in 1967, came close, with its single f-hole and mirrored outline, but it had features of its own: two single coil pickups that look like humbuckers, and nifty "N" fingerboard inlays, just like the "Norma" of "week" 23 ". The headstock is quite different and it only vaguely evokes the image of the original. The tone is crisp and clean, with some sparkle and grit. It's well made, with carefully finished woodwork and good electronics. The back is flat, but the top has a German curve: a deep fluting all around. The varnish is very dark brown, almost black. After two years production ceased, making this model even rarer than its great example. |
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Hofner model 175 I,
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Towards the end of 1962 or early 1963, Hofner introduced a new guitar model based on the Fender Jazzmaster: the 175 I, featuring an off-set waist body with a built-in vibrato tailpiece. Some were simply finished in red or white, but most were covered with vinyl, often embossed in geometric patterns. These were combined with dramatic marbled scratch plates and matching perloid headstock overlays, giving the guitar a flashy and streamlined look. The most radical innovations, however, were the electronics. Three pickups of the newly designed 511 "Staple" type were controlled by means of four wheels inserted into the pickguard, operating the master volume and three individual tone pots. A discreet four-way pickup selector and a solo rhythm slide switch did the rest. The one-piece bolt-on maple neck with tulip machine heads featured a rosewood fingerboard with celluloid fret markers and binding. Production of the 175 I lasted less than 18 months and it was never delivered to the UK market by Selmer in London, unlike the even more revolutionary 176 model, which became Selmer's famous Hofner Galaxie model in 1964.
The spectacular red and gold brocade vinyl body covering gives the guitar a regal touch. Other tolex finishes were in cream or red, or else a more luscious black and gold or black and silver. The big advantage was time savings during production: no complicated spraying process or drying times for paint. Other brands used similar materials for finishing their guitars, drums, accordions etcetera in the 1960s: Hagstrom, Eko, Gretsch and many more. |
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Kay "Del Oro" Hawaii scene Parlour, c. 1937
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This flattop parlour from the Kay factories in Chicago is a typical product from the time when everyone could and wanted to have a guitar. The cheap materials such as birch for the sound box were enhanced by using painted or stenciled motifs. These could be purely decorative with floral or geometric elements, or imitations of inlays in more expensive woods or other materials. But often they were figurative scenes with gondolas, cowboys or, as here, palm trees and Hawaiian skirts. These simple subjects were supposed to evoke the atmosphere in which the guitar could fulfill its romantic and soothing function. Here a man serenades a local beauty on an exotic beach. It was supposed to symbolize the good life in Hawaii and its music that was so popular at the time.
Instruments like this were built in great numbers by the major Chicago manufacturers such as Oscar Schmidt, Harmony, Richter and Kay, especially in the years just before the Second World War. “Del Oro”, and to a lesser extent “Vaquero”, were the brand names used from the 1920s to the 1950s for the instruments Kay made for wholesaler Spiegel. In the Spiegel mail-order 1937 Fall and Winter catalog No. 144, this guitar is described as "Moonlight at the beach in Waikiki, Dark Walnut finish". Priced $ 6.98. The faux-flame "walnut" background contrasts well with the scene in green and white . Although the construction and finish feel a bit clumsy, they are solid enough not to fall apart when shipped to its, often young, owner, and to please him for years to come. |
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Jolana Star IX, 1970's
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Although this guitar is just outside the time frame of the story being told here (1920-1970), it should not be left out during this Christmas period. Its striking shape makes it a perfect fit for this week.
The history of electric guitar production in the Czech Republic began in 1953, when the Rezonet factory in Blatne started operating under its new manager, Mr. Josef Ruzicka. In 1959 the Blathe factory was closed and replaced by a new guitar factory called "Neoton" in Hradec. It was also managed by Ruzicka and was soon renamed "Jolana", probably after Ruzicka's daughter. In the 1960s the company gained popularity all over Europe, especially in the USSR, but in the UK as well, with some famous musicians such as George Harrison, Jimmy Page and Eric Clapton using Jolanas in their early years. In 1970 Jolana added the "IX" to its line of "Star" models, but the concept was very different. It had a radically redesigned body and headstock shape and new pickups, and a bass version was released at the same time, the "Basso IX". Metallic colors were introduced, more in keeping with the futuristic forms. The vibrato and electronics were the same as with the old Star models, although the quality of these devices was not great. In addition, these guitars are somewhat unbalanced, due to the weight difference between the heavy maple neck and the ultra-light alder body. And playing this guitar seated is hard without a strap. The output is not very high, but crisp and clear. After all, the greatest asset of this instrument is its eccentric “screwdriver” shape. Jolana continued to produce electrics until the late eighties. |
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Epiphone Zephyr, model E 321, c. 1950
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Before 1930, Epiphone, as a leading banjo maker, and Gibson, as a mandolin and guitar company, coexisted peacefully for about a decade, but that year Gibson developed a superior archtop guitar: the L-5. Epiphone countered by introducing nine new "Masterbilt" archtop guitars, marking the beginning of a 27-year rivalry, and around 1935, Epiphone released its first electric models. Gibson responded with an electric Hawaiian toward the end of the year and the first electric Spanish toward the end of 1936. After the war, Gibson focused on electrics, with a total of six models. Epiphone only had four: the Century, Zephyr, Zephyr Deluxe, and the low-end Kent, all of which only had one pickup. The Zephyr range of instruments and amps was available in "complete outfits" or "starter packs" including the instrument, case, amp and a cord. But Epiphone got back into the competition unusually slow, no doubt because of Epi Stathoupoulo's death from leukemia in 1944 and his brothers' split four years later. They got back together in 1956, but it was too late to save the company, so the following year they had to sell it to the “Chicago Musical Instrument Company”, Gibson's parent.
The Zephyr archtop presented here was built in New York, probably in or around 1950. These Spanish-electric, non-cutaway guitars, made between 1939 and 1958, were Epiphone's answer to Gibson's ES-125 and ES-150. It is a model E321 with a natural blonde finish (the sunburst version was model no. E322). Although it had a lower signal output than Gibson's standard P-90, the tonal quality of the "New York" single coil pickup in the center position is its main asset. It has two f-holes in the laminated spruce top, laminated maple back and sides. 1-ply pyralin body and neck binding and nickel hardware. The two white control knobs on Mastervoicer plates with position markers are really cool. The Frequensator tailpiece was optional. The set 3-piece mahogany-maple neck, topped with a Brazilian rosewood fingerboard, is inlaid with mother-of-pearl notched-block postion markers. The headstock logo is of the classic Epiphone metal "bikini" type. |
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Framus Americana, model 5/136, c. 1960
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Produced between 1958 and the mid-1960s, the "Americana" is a rare bird that doesn’t even appear in the original Framus catalogs or in the Framus Museum in Markneukirchen. This lightweight archtop has a smaller body than most comparable Framus models. Its outline is close to the Gibson "Les Paul", but the use of spruce and maple for the top and back also makes it very similar to the "Club" models by Hofner, Framus' closest competitor in Germany. In this respect, it illustrates the Framus (and Hofner) violin making tradition from which it originated, also due to the presence of the single S hole. The bridge has adjustable plastic saddles, and the mahogany neck has the typical factory truss-rod cover, and three-on-a-side tuning mechanics made in the Framus factory. It is completed by a black floating metal pickguard with two integrated pickups, switches, and volume and tone controls. This unit produces a warm, fat vintage sound, contrasted with clean mids and highs. The controls offer a wide variety of choices, perfect for 50's and 60's blues or rock.
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Fender Musicmaster/Duo-Sonic II, 1964
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Not only did the Musicmaster firmly establish Fender's tradition of student-model guitars in the 1950s, it started a line that was favoured by several indie rock and alternative artists many years later. So it fits perfectly into this collection. In 1955, following a request from Fender Sales to develop a guitar for people on a budget and/or with smaller hands, designers started working out the Musicmaster and its two-pickup variant, the Duo-Sonic. Both original models came out in 1956 and were sort of smaller brothers to the Stratocaster, with short-scale necks, Strat-like headstocks, one or two single-coil pickups and slightly smaller bodies. Pickguards were made in aluminum for durability. Throughout the years, the Musicmaster and Duo-Sonic were offered in various body and pickguard colors, but the biggest change occurred in 1964, following the release of the Fender Mustang, which was, essentially, a Duo-Sonic with a vibrato bridge. Both models, now called “Musicmaster II” and “Duo Sonic II”, were redesigned using Mustang features. The headstock was enlarged, the body was slightly offset and fitted with a plastic pickguard. The separate chrome control plate housed the volume and tone pots, as well as the input jack. All three models were offered with the option of either a normal 24-inch scale or a short 22.5-inch scale. Fender also introduced red and blue as color options, equipped with “crushed pearl” guards, and black-plastic pickup covers. The Duo-Sonic, now essentially a Mustang without a vibrato, became obsolete and was discontinued in ’69. The Musicmaster disappeared together with the Mustang in the beginning of the 1980’s, only to come back to life later in the form of reissues. The guitar presented here is a dacota red Duo-Sonic that for some reason was equipped with a Musicmaster neck.
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Gretsch model 6117 “Double Anniversary”, 1968
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In 1958, Gretsch introduced the “Single” and “Double Anniversary” models, to celebrate its 75th year of existence. These guitars were quite affordable compared to most limited editions or special releases. Clearly, the effort worked. Both models, available in sunburst or in a stylish ‘Two-Tone’ green, quickly became a mainstay of the company’s line-up. The Double Anniversary, of course, got its name from its dual pickup configuration. In 1960, Gretsch introduced rosewood fingerboards rather than ebony, and provided the Anniversary models with single-coil pickups, the “Hilo’Tron”, designed and produced within the company. It’s hard to see these moves as anything other than a downgrading. The original “Filter’Trons”, made by DeArmond had more gain and punch, although an original “Hilo’Tron” in good condition can still sound extremely good through a quality amplifier. Yet the “Anniversaries” remained quite popular throughout the early 60s. They had some advantages to the more expensive, over-equipped models: they didn’t have the pointless, rattling, weight-increasing mute device or the arguably rather ugly snap-on pad covering the access hole in the back of the guitar’s body. After Baldwin bought out Gretsch in 1967, ending the golden era of the company, the single pickup model disappeared. The Double “Anniversary” soldiered on, now only available in the sunburst finish, until its retirement a decade later.
The 6117 is a lightweight guitar constructed much in the same way as other Gretsch hollow body models. It is made from braced laminated maple, with dual f-holes and one rounded cutaway. The neck has the traditional shorter 24.5-inch Gretsch scale length. The Space Control Bridge allows players to adjust the spacing of the strings to taste. This is great if you like to go fingerstyle versus flatpicking. The guitar has a three-way pickup selector and a three position master tone selector on the upper bout, a master volume control at the front-bottom bout, and individual volume controls for each of the two pickup at the lower rear. The “Hilo’Trons” are bright low resistance pickups with a little girth and bite in their original form, They retain the clarity and sparkle that were major sonic objectives for Gretsch at the time. |
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Unbranded ex-faux resonator, probably by Oscar Schmidt,
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This guitar started life as a “faux” resonator, just like the Rex from week 14, but this one was turned into a “real” resonator guitar at some point. Although it resembles the faux resonators made by Regal, Valco and Kay, it is most probably made by Oscar Schmidt, who brought out similar guitars branded “Melofonic” or “Stella”. The Oscar Schmidt Company was founded in 1871 and incorporated in 1911. Schmidt (1857–1929) was a German immigrant to the United States who was involved in selling musical instruments in New Jersey. During its long existence, the company has produced a wide range of string instruments, not only guitars but also numerous models of parlour instruments such as autoharps, celtic harps and guitar-zithers. It operated a wide number of guitar brands such as Stella, Sovereign, La Scala, Oahu, Bruno, Galiano, Miami, Reliance, Bluebird, Collegiate, Avalon, Marcia, Lyra, Victoria, Jewel and others . Following the death of Schmidt in 1929 the company struggled during the early 1930s, and was finally dissolved on May 18, 1937.
Although the difference is rather obvious, some manufacturers of faux resonators were accused of producing and distributing fake resonator guitars. There's a certain amount of collectability in faux resonators, since they combine the best of both worlds: mellow aged wood warm acoustics blended with old timey metallic echoes. Now equipped with a real resonator, this lightweight, solid wood guitar with its segmented f-holes, has a dark two tone sunburst finish. |
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Crucianelli (HF)
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The Crucianelli company was founded in Castelfidardo in 1888 by Sante Crucianelli, a former partner of Paolo Soprani, a pioneer in the regional accordion industry. The first instruments were inexpensive button accordions that were fairly easy to play. During the early 1960’s, both Crucianelli and Eko, facing the crisis that hit the accordion world, made the business decision to diversify into manufacturing guitars. The relationship to Eko, led by Oliviero Pigini (1922-1967), determines Crucianelli’s entire guitar history. During the glitter celluloid era between 1960 and 1965 the two companies are in stiff competition. A matching Crucianelli instrument is released for each Eko model. From 1965 on both companies specialize more and more in their own field, Eko in acoustic flattops and electric solidbody guitars, and Crucianelli in semi-acoustics. Technical contributions from both factories melt together on certain Vox models. Pigini was planning to merge the guitar business of both companies, but unfortunately he died in 1967 and the project did not materialize. Crucianelli guitars are often confused with Eko and sold as such. Those guitars rarely profess their true origins, they hide in a maze of brand names, some belonging to Crucianelli, especially “Élite”, “Elli-Sound” and “Custom Built”.
Crucianelli offered viol shaped guitars and basses similar to those produced by Hofner, Vox and a number of Japanese builders. Sold as “HF”, “España” or “Lear”, they are clearly inspired by eighteenth century violas d’amore, for example the one in the Boston Museum of Fine Arts (inv. nr. 17.1719). The electronics are straightforward: two single coil pickups with volume and tone controls and a three-position toggle switch. A Bigsby-type vibrato, a see-through plectrum plate, three on a side "Van Ghent" tuners and an open scroll type head complete this strange looking guitar. |
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Guild Starfire III, 1963
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Guild was founded in 1952 by Alfred Dronge, a guitarist and music-store owner, and George Mann, a former executive with the Epiphone Guitar Company. The first Guild guitars were produced in New York City. The company’s initial workforce was made up of former Epiphone employees who lost their jobs following the 1951 strike. Due to Dronge’s love for jazz, the company focused on full-depth hollow body electrics before moving onto flattops and acoustic archtops throughout the ’50s.
The Guild Starfire made its way onto the scene in 1960. After entering the folk market with their acoustic guitar line they decided to properly focus on the electric market. Accordingly, the Starfire I, II and III semi-hollow range was born and so was the Starfire legacy, which would stretch decades into the future. The Starfire IV is perhaps the best known. From 1963 the Starfire models would be fitted with humbuckers to accommodate musical tastes at the time. The semi-hollow range was followed by the semi-solid line of guitars, which are associated with the Starfire style that we’re accustomed to today. The Starfire III was a 24 3/4″ scale model , with a 20 fret rosewood fingerboard and a cherry red finish. It had a single-cutaway thin mahogany hollow body and a mahogany neck, much like the Gibson ES-225. It included two DeArmond pickups. Each pickup had its own volume and tone controls, and a pickup selector was on the top side of the upper bout. A Bigsby tremolo was added as opposed to the simple hardtail pieces of the previous models. |
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Eko 500V 4, ca. 1965
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The Eko Company was founded in Recanati, Italy by Oliviero Pigini in 1959. From the start Pigini was in the accordion manufacturing business, but he decided to reconvert the factory to build guitars, following the example of Swedish accordion manufacturer Hagström. Although primarily distributed throughout Europe, some models were exported to the US, partly by Vox, but primarily by the Lo Duca Brothers in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Eko started by building flat top and arch top acoustic instruments. The solid bodied 500V series electrics took an obvious inspiration from the already established Hagström Deluxe and Standard models, but the body shape was reminiscent of the Fender Jazzmaster. The accordion influence was prevalent in the design,
The early 60’s were the best years for Eko, selling millions of affordable instruments that could also be used at a semi-professional level. Eko even took over production of Vox guitars when demand grew, but American importers started distributing close copies of Eko guitars. Soon Eko was nearly squeezed out of the American market, though the company managed to survive until 1985. Since then the guitars are built in China and the Czech Republic. This guitar is listed in the 1964 catalogue as the Eko Model 500/4V, “4V” meaning 4 pickups. It has a sparkle plastic topping and a glued-in neck. The pushbutton switching, inspired by accordion designs, offers some interesting pickup combinations. The four patented, alnico 5 single-coils have plenty of clarity and snap and the tremolo has a smooth, rolling action. |
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Kaykraft Archtop model “A” Tenor Guitar, c. 1930
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In the 1920’s a general dissatisfaction about inadequate pay ran through the many Chicago’s instrument-making companies. After an argument about wages three luthiers left Lyon and Healy, and by 1927 they were working for Stromberg Voisinet. Two of them, Giuseppe Zorzi and Philip Gabriel are held responsible for designing the “Venetian” body shape that would become part of the company’s identity. Between 1929 and 1935 many models were brought out showing the new outline: six-string guitars, tenors and mandolins, archtops as well as flattops.
This mahogany bodied model “A” tenor with spruce top, bound fingerboard and floating bridge has an adjustable mahogany neck and a “Venetian” banjo-type headstock with decorated white celluloid overlay. After loosening the large wing nut on the neck block inside it’s possible to adjust the action to ones liking. The company’s banjos were equipped with the same system at that time. When I bought this instrument twelve years ago it was in a deplorable state (see: more pictures), but it has regained its former glory since. |
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Epiphone Olympic Double, 1965
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In 1957 Gibson purchased its major competitor on the market: the Epiphone Guitar Company, and moved production to Kalamazoo, Michigan, turning the brand into its “second class” line. For over a decade, from 1959 through early 1970 Epiphone solid body guitars and basses were produced in limited numbers right alongside some of the greatest Gibsons of all time. Vintage 1960s Gibson Epiphone solid body guitars (Crestwood, Coronet, and Olympic) represented some of the highest quality and best sounding instruments of their generation. They provided unique shapes, pickup arrangements, and tonal signatures not seen on comparable Gibson models of the day. From 1960 until 1962 the Epiphone Olympic started out looking similar to the Gibson Les Pauls Special Doublecut. In 1963, the Olympic was redesigned to match the other Epiphone solid body guitars such as the Coronet and Wilshire, and could be had now in a one and a two version, a normal and a shorter ¾ scale. The double cutout Les Paul style Olympic body shape was retained as the “Special”. In 1965 the headstocks of the Olympic Single and Double were changed to a batwing shape with six in a row tuner layout.
This rare all mahogany solid body Epiphone Olympic, made in 1965, is in fair condition. The cherry red finish has aged and has time spiders, nicks and scratches. There is a black spot, like a burn mark at the back, as if Jimmy himself tried to set the guitar on fire. It is thin and light, good for playing live, and it has great sustain. The chunky C-profile set neck with its rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays is attractive to the grip, and the Maestro Vibrola is a useful extra. |
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Rickenbacker 325 Jetglo 1964 replica
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In the early 1960s Rickenbackers history became forever wedded to the Beatles, who used several guitar models from this company. Before the group broke up, John Lennon would own at least four. This love affair began in 1959, when Lennon had seen guitarist Jean "Toots" Thielemans, playing a Rickenbacker. The next year while at Hamburg, he bought himself a natural-blonde Model 325 with a Kauffman vibrato. In early 1964 Rickenbacker provided him with a new 325, updated with Lennon in mind. It was sent to him at the Deauville Hotel in Miami while the Beatles recorded their second performance in the "Ed Sullivan Show". Lennon's new 325 was painted black with a double-layered white pickguard, an extra fine-tune knob, improved Ac'cent vibrato and slimmer semi-hollow unbound Jetglo body with a solid top, short 20.75 inch scale and dot fretboard inlays. Lennon quickly adopted this guitar to his main instrument. At some point he bent the vibrato arm, presumably to get it out of his way. The set list from the Shea Stadium concert in New York 15 August 1965 was and still is scotch-taped to the top edge of the guitar.
When this model went into production it sold for about £400. Nowadays a 325 jetglo from 1964 can be had for an average of 20 000€, and the closest thing nowadays, the Rickenbacker Model 325C64 Jetglo, for around 3500 €. John Hall of Rickenbacker has lawyers on hand ready to attack anyone, business or private, trying to sell copies, and when one shows up, usually made in Japan in the 70’s, it is still very expensive. |
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Norma EG-400
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Don Noble, a well-known accordion player and entrepreneur, began importing Italian made accordions, as well as guitars in the 1950’s. Somehow Noble became involved with business man Norman Sackheim and his son, Ron, who imported hardware, like nuts-and-bolts, from Japan. Eventually in 1963 the name “Strum and Drum” came up. Nobel, and Sackheim imported quite a line-up that included Italian guitars from EKO, Avanti, Wandre, and Goya. However from 1965 until 1969, you could find guitars with lots of pickups and switches, often sparkle-covered, under the brand names “Noble” and “Norma”, the latter being the feminized version of Norman Sackheim’s surname.
Initially Strum and Drum used a factory called Tombo, Japanese for “Dragonfly, now specialized in harmonicas under the “Lee Oskar” brand name, but eventually they began buying guitars from many different Japanese factories. They had a pretty good run that coincided with the rise and fall of the first electric-guitar boom, selling to United States music stores and retailers. Unfortunately shortly after they purchased the "National Guitar" brand name in 1969, Norman Sackheim was killed in a plane crash while on a trip to Moscow. The Company ended somewere in the beginning of the 1970’s. This guitar from around 1967, a Norma EG-400 in 2 Color Sunburst, very similar to the EG-450-2 in the 1968 catalogue, appears to be well made and in remarkably good condition for its age. The fingerboard inlays are appropriately "N"-shaped, except that, sideways-on they read "Z". The headstock looks somewhat oversized and the saber-toothed pickguard is very similar to the ones found on the British “Burns” guitars. A boatload of knobs and switches guarantees a great number of different switching options. |
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Fender Electric Violin after 1999
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Electric violins first entered the market in the 1930s and 1940s, manufactured by companies such as the Electro Stringed Instrument Corporation, National, and Vega. In 1958 Fender produced a very small number of electric violins. However, this attempt at a solid body violin did not catch on, which led other violin luthiers to attempt to fill the void. It wasn’t until the late ‘60s - with the rise of rock music and such electric guitar playing trailblazers as Jimi Hendrix - that the electric violin began spawning its first true rock heroes. On the 1969 Frank Zappa’s album “Hot Rats”, violinist Don "Sugarcane" Harris on the track "Willie the Pimp", proved that violin could indeed fit inside the realm of rock. That year Fender, by then taken over by CBS, reissued the Electric Violin again (with a strap-button!), until 1975. Fundamental changes to headstock, tuners, neck, fingerboard, bridge, pickup plate strap-button and body contours significantly altered the appearance and tone. In 1999 the Fender Company relaunched the electric violin again, but by then the instrument was very different from Leo Fenders original design.
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Premier (Multivox) model 110 tube amp
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Premier was a guitar and amplifier brand run by New York-based wholesaler Peter Sorkin, founder of Multivox in the mid-1940s. In the 50's and 60's it was the brand that you bought if you couldn't afford a Fender. The amplifiers are still sought after by blues harmonica players for use with their microphones to achieve a distorted and "fattened" tone. They are low on power, yet long on tone, so they sound good with guitar too.
The Model 110 was and is a nice and handy 15 Watt amp with two 6V6, two 12AX7 and one 5Y3 tube and a 10" Speaker. There are three inputs for instruments and one for microphone. With its red knobs and two-tone body, covered with tan and woodgrain tolex, it has style. It features an "overbite" cabinet, meaning the top part extends over the speaker area, which is under a shelf. Inside is a Jensen speaker with a Premier “Studio” model label. The serial numbers of both speaker and pots indicate 1951 as the date of manufacture. |
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Framus Strato 5/154,
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Frederik Wilfer from Schönbach, then still part of Germany, now called Luby in the Czech Republic, founded the Framus company in Erlangen in West Germany in 1946. This city became a center for instrument makers from the old Schönbach area displaced after World War II. The company only offered violins at first, but soon it moved to nearby Bubenreuth and evolved into guitar making. Producing thinlines and archtops initially, they added solidbody electrics to their catalogue in 1958 with the “Hollywood” models, somewhat inspired by Gibson's Les Paul and SG. In 1963 the "Strato", roughly modeled after Fenders "Stratocaster" and "Jazzmaster", replaced the "Hollywood". These guitars had a solid, unspecified-wood body with sandwich construction, a bolt on multiply neck with rosewood fretboard, a tremolo and single-coil pickups.
The olympic white 1963 model 5/154 presented here belongs to the first generation of Stratos. Later came the "Strato Deluxe", the "Super", the "12 string" and the "Melodie" with 9 strings, all with numerous variations of a double-cutaway solidbody with 1, 2 or 3 single coil pickups. At the top of the spectrum was the elaborate Golden Strato de Luxe, with gold hardware and onboard organ effects. The last Statos were built in 1972, in a time when Framus started to feel the pressure from Japanese and other Asian manufacturers. |
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Harlin Brothers squareneck acoustic, 1930's
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Harlin Brothers was a music firm in Indianapolis. George, Jimmy, Win, Herb and Jay Harlin ran a music store that had a large teaching facility specializing in Hawaiian style guitar lessons. Harlin Brothers also published Hawaiian sheet music, and they outsourced their own line of guitars to factories in Chicago like Harmony and others, who stamped them either "Harlin Bros. Indianapolis" or "Harlin Bros. Chicago". They were in business from around 1930 to 1960, active as innovators, businessmen, performers and teachers, selling flattops, arch tops, resonator guitars and electrics. In 1945, they developed the Multi-Kord, that was to become the first commercially-successful pedal steel guitar The pedals were designed to make tuning easier and faster. Although the Multi-Kord was one of the best steel guitars made at that time, the cable system was the weak link.
Here we have a square neck, flattop lap steel guitar with an all mahogany body, stamped inside: “Harlin Bros., Chicago, IL”. Some features correspond to what is known about "Richer" guitars from Chicago but it could as well be made by Regal, Harmony or Kay. The neck joint is at the twelfth fret out of 18 in total. Although binding and pickguard are merely painted, the overall quality is very good with “Kluson” tuners, inlaid neck markers, a pyramid bridge and string pins. |
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Regal model 1206 archtop, 1940's
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Emil Wulschner, a retailer and wholesaler in Indianapolis during the 1880s, founder of the "Wulschner and Son" company, opened a factory around 1896 to build guitars and mandolins under three different trademarks: “Regal”, “University”, and “20th Century”. In 1904 Lyon & Healy purchased the rights to the “Regal” trademark, but started a new independent Regal company in Chicago in 1908 that marketed ukuleles and tenor guitars, but not 6-string guitars. In 1930 Regal bought the rights to the Stewart and LeDomino names from Tonk Bros and had licensed the use of Dobro resonators in a series of guitars. In 1934 they acquired the rights to manufacture Dobro brand instruments. Regal-built Dobros stopped in 1940 and during World War II, guitar production lines were converted to the war effort. Regal doesn’t seem to have recovered after the war and in 1954 company was sold to Harmony.
This Regal model nr. 1206, with laminated ached top and back, looks a lot like the Gibsons that were made in the 1930’s. In fact it is modeled after the higher end Regal archtops, which featured solid wood back and tops. Even tough Regal once was a major guitar producer in Chicago alongside Harmony and Kay, their archtops are quite hard to find, even cheaper ones like this. It has the light blue label and includes the original Kluson tuners, bone heel, trapeze style tailpiece, rosewood bridge, and bone nut. There are 20 Frets with inlaid dots, on the rosewood fingerboard. The scale length is 65 cm. |
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Harmony "Silhouette" model H15, ca. 1966
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Vaguely inspired by the offset Fender Jazzmaster, this model was first called the “Silhouette” from its debut in 1963 until 1968, when it was renamed the “Bobkat”. Nearly identical models by Harmony were sold by wholesalers Sears and Aldens using the “Silvertone” and “Holiday” brand names. These models have surged in popularity recently in part due to Annie Clark of St. Vincent touring and recording with a Harmony H15v, and they still are some of the best player-grade vintage deals around.
A vibrato tailpiece was optional, and the slim line short scale neck and narrow bound fingerboard were popular with many players. But the real assets of this lightweight redburst guitar are the two "Golden Tone" single coil De Armond pickups. Finished in chrome with a gold metallic foil insert, they are very similar in design to a Gibson P-90 pickup, but by some they are considered as good if not better and they certainly have a great and special tone. Designed by Rowe Industries in Chicago, they were attached using two hollow rivets and mounted at an angle to enhance tonal effect. They can deliver everything from spanky twang in the bridge position to warmer, mellow jazzy tones with only the neck pickup selected. There's a certain percussive cut, jangle, and surprising kick that lingers in your ears. |
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Kumalae soprano ukulele nr. 1 (A)
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Jonah Kumalae, born in 1874 was a Hawaiian politician, businessman, publisher, musician and ukulele manufacturer. In the beginning of the 20th century, the ukulele had already found popularity with the people of the Hawaiian Islands, while on the mainland it was only just starting to catch the interest of people. Kumalae applied for, and won a bid to display his ukulele design from 1911 at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition of 1915 and won a Gold Award. This enabled him to market and sell his ukuleles to companies on the U.S. Mainland and so he was instrumental in ushering in a 'new wave' of ukulele and Hawaiian music popularity. Compared to Nunes, and Kamaka, two other successful ukulele manufacturers, Kumalae is considered to be the most prolific, producing as many as 300 to 600 ukuleles per month at the peak of his business.
His ukuleles were made of Koa wood. He had a grading system for his ukes: OABCDE or 012345, "O or 0" being the least expensive on this scale and "E (5)" the most expensive, meaning finer curly Koa and more inlay and hand work. This particular uke is a 1 or "A". The 'Gold Award' logo on the headstock can be found on most ukuleles he produced between 1911 and his death in 1940. |
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Fender Jaguar, december 1963
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Fender introduced the Jaguar model in 1962. This short scale (24″ instead of 25.5″) guitar was considered a high-end instrument. It was to be the better version of the Jazzmaster. The two single coil pickups with notched metal side plates (“saw teeth”) are more powerful and better shielded, which eliminated some of the hum problems associated with the Jazzmaster. The Jaguar shared the same rhythm circuit, but the lead-circuit works different: there is a separate on-off switch for each pickup and a bass-cut” or “strangle” switch that adds a capacitor to the circuit, resulting in an even thinner sound when switched on. The Jaguar has nearly the same body and peghead shape as the Jazzmaster, and both share the same type of floating tremolo-bridge. The string mute was never popular with the players, since it allows zero control over the muting and it could detune the guitar.
Initially adopted by surf guitarists the Jaguar was considered Fender’s top-of-the-line model until 1967 when Jimi Hendrix changed everything with his use of the Stratocaster. Then Jaguars everywhere began collecting dust until they became popular again in the 90's, thanks in part to some alternative rock and indie rock guitarists. This particular guitar was made end of 1963, a year before Fender management was handed over to the CBS corporation. Fender's palette of colors used in the '60s closely aligned with those used on General Motors cars, with most of the paint coming from the same place. This one is in good shape and could be a strongly faded Fiesta red example, if it was not simply oversprayed at some point. |
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Rex Faux Resonator , 1930's (with a photo of the original owner)
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Rex was a Gretsch brandname starting circa 1902 until at least 1939, used mostly for instruments manufactured by other companies. Most Rex guitars are dated from 1925 to 1933. The woodwork was often done overseas and then shipped to the US for final assembly. There was a hiatus with the Rex line early 1930’s, after which Gretsch brought it back, contracting out the manufacturing of some models to Harmony. In the 1950’ and ’60 the brand was revived by Gretsch for the distribution of Chicago made guitars and amps by the likes of Harmony and Kay.
The Rex “faux” resonator presented here is a budget guitar, most probably made in the 1930’s by the Oscar Schmidt company. The “looks” make up for the inexpensive materials. The round metal plate fitted around the bridge suggests the presence of a resonator cone where there is none. The decal rosette and the silvery golden sparkle finish on the fingerboard and originally on the “resonator” cover, almost make you forget that this is a "cheapo" guitar. It came with a photo taken in 1939 of the original owner, Mr. Charles Allen Chuck, who apparently has been playing this instrument a lot. The wear and the patina add to the vintage charm of this old parlour guitar. |
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Gibson BR-9 lap steel guitar and amplifier,
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Towards the end of the 1940’s, the Gibson line was expanded with the new BR-9 lap steel and amp, aimed at the huge student market for Hawaiian music. It was the most popular Gibson lap steel, sold with a matching amp as an outfit. The guitar was in production from late 1947 to 1959. Nearly 14.000 were made between 1954 and 1959, which is almost half of Gibson's total postwar output of lap steel guitars. Except for a handful of prototypes sporting a prewar P-13 pickup, the first BR-9s had the standard postwar non-adjustable Alnico pickup. Around 1951, the P-90 took its place and ran through the end of production in 1959. This six course guitar has a solid wood body, beige crinkle finish, numbered fingerboard markers for ease of locating playing positions, Cremona brown Lucite unit cover, Kluson tuners and tone and volume controls with plastic knobs.
Originally the portable amp was only available with the instrument at $99.50 for the set. Twin inputs allowed for student-teacher sessions, with just one volume control and an on-off switch. The BR-9 amp stayed in the Gibson line until about 1955, when it was replaced by the GA-9. |
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Mosrite
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The Mosrite company was founded by Semie Moseley in Bakersfield, California in 1952, the same year as Fender started. Semie Moseley was born in Durant, Oklahoma in 1935. Mosrite guitars, including the one presented here, were known for innovative design, beautiful engineering, very thin, low-fretted and narrow necks, and hot (high output) pickups. The Vibramute tremolo is far superior to the Bigsby system or the less expensive units that most companies were using at the time.
Moseley's "Ventures line", designed for the popular American guitar band The Ventures, was generally considered to be the flagship of the company. The “Ventures" model, roughly the same as this mark IX, started in 1963 and ran through 1967. The band was extremely popular in Japan, and orders for the Ventures model poured in from the Far East, the South Pacific, and all over the world. Then, in a period of a few months, it all collapsed. Moseley Semie was a visionary but lacked many basic skills necessary to be a good businessman. But then in 1970 Moseley started making guitars again, and moved his factory three times in the next 20 years. Due to Moseley's lack of focus though, the company would never become as profitable as his competitors. In August 1992, Semie Moseley died. The punkrock band The Ramones also played a big deal in popularising Mosrite, because the Mark II model was one of Johnny Ramone's favorite guitars. Since the Ramones, Mosrite has been associated with loud rock'n'roll as often as it's been with Ventures-style surf music. Most of the Mosrites were exported to Japan, where their popularity remained very strong and where many companies made guitars inspired by them. The quality of the originals always remained very respectable. Mosrite guitars are hard to find, and expensive. |
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Hofner Club 50
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Karl Höfner (1864-1955) started his business In 1887, first concentrating on violin making. Taking advantage of the growing popularity of the guitar in the 1950s and the self-imposed trade restriction in Great Britain until 1960, Höfner was able to gain an important part of the British guitar market for 2 decades. That’s why the Beatle members have all had Hofner guitars at some point. Trough London distributor Selmer the company could export an incredible 95% of its bowed instruments and between 65% and 70% of its guitars. In 1959 Höfner employed 127 in the factory and had 144 outworkers, bringing the total number of employees to 271. The guitars were referred to not by numbers but by names, for example “Club 50” (from 1955).
The Hofner "Clubs" were small hollow-bodied archtop guitars without sound holes, which up to about 1959 were constructed with flat backs and carved solid spruce tops. The Club 50 was provided with two rosewood and bakelite bar pickups and an oval control. The headstock showed the Hofner logo with three vertical dots below decreasing in size, on a plain style black background. The three piece maple-beech-maple neck had a rosewood fingerboard with single dot inlays and a three ply black-white-black nut, but no truss-rod and no binding. The Clubs had a scale-length of 635mm and they are still being produced today. |
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Silvertone (Danelectro) amp-in-case model 1457
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Silvertone was a brand created and promoted by Sears for its line of consumer electronics and musical instruments from 1916 to 1972. Taking advantage of the explosion of guitar music, Sears commissioned various manufacturers to produce guitars and amps for its catalogue under the Silvertone brand . These included famous names such as Harmony and Kay, but this guitar of the week, model 1457, was made by Danelectro of Neptune, New Jersey.
The 1960s Silvertone amp-in-case models are frequently prized by collectors today. Before the “1457” model came out in 1964, Silvertone had already sold many black “1448” and “1449” model amp-in-case guitars early to mid-1960s. The 1448 had a single lipstick pickup, while the 1449 was equipped with a two-pickup configuration. Their cases had a small built-in amplifier, and the guitars themselves had very short-scale 18-fret necks, which proved popular with beginners. The 1457 model was the higher-end model with a two pick up redburst electric guitar with “sparkling silver color accents”. It included a foot switch and cord. Here's the original description from the 1964 Sears catalog: “All-in-1 Guitar Outfit". “The Guitar: long 21-fret fingerboard of Brazilian rosewood. Dual pickups let you switch from full deep tones to sharp, treble tones. 2 volume, 2 tone controls. Solid-center body. Sunburst red finish. The built in amp: 3 tubes plus rectifier; volume, tone controls; tremolo strength and speed controls. On-off foot switch for remote tremolo. Big 8 inch speaker. Vinyl-covered hardboard, with red rayon lining, sparkling trim. About 39 x 14 x 3 inches. Model 1457L weight approximately 27 pounds". Silvertone amp-in-cases often pop up in attics throughout the US and prove to be very useful, especially for bluesy sounds. |
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Herrnsdorf semi acoustic guitar
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The Gustav Herrnsdorf company was founded in 1865 as a musical instrument distributor. In 1927 recorder production began, and from 1953 on electric string instruments were made. The guitar and bass production was mainly specialized in the field of electrically amplified instruments, thanks to the integration of the “Elektroakustischen Werkstätten” founded by Willy Goller - hence the name “Rellog” for the pickups. In 1964 the company became semi-state and “Gustav Herrnsdorf” became "Herrnsdorf KG". They built archtop, solidbody and lap steel guitars. In the 1960s, approx. 6000 pieces were produced annually for the Soviet Union by approx. 16 employees. Annual production was 8000 to 9000 pieces. Finally on April 23, 1972 the company was completely nationalized and guitar production ceased.
The secret of this guitar from the end of the ‘60s is the magnetic “Rellog” pickup hidden under the fingerboard and thus invisible from above. Such pickups integrated in the neck are typical for Eastern-Germany. The single coil pickup impresses with its very clear, slightly acoustic jazzy sound. Another peculiarity is the neck-joint with a bolt for easy resetting. The guitar is very comfortable to play due to the relatively thin body. The cutaway allows solos to be played in higher registers. The acoustic sound is mid tone to bright and surprisingly loud. |
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Rickenbacker
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In 1931 George Beauchamp, who was involved in the creation of the resonator guitar three years before, developed the first commercially successful electric guitar: the Rickenbacker Model A-22 Electro Hawaiian. Nicknamed the "Frying Pan" because of its shape, it was also the first solid body guitar. The 1/12 inch horseshoe electro-magnetic pickup, mounted on a cast aluminum frame with a gold enamel finish, sounded much better and louder than the Stromberg-Voisinet system brought out in 1928 (see the first item on the “Kay electrics” page). The electric sound was new, and for Hawaiian music it proved to be more than acceptable to the general public.
In 1935 the Bakelite model "B" with a more conventional outline was introduced. It was less prone to temperature changes than the amuminium A-22. To reduce the weight, parts of it are hollow, covered with white stainless-steel plates. Commercially, it was the most successful musical instrument manufactured by Rickenbacker. Production ended in the 1950’s, but the model is still being used and much sought after. |
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Watkins Rapier 22
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The London-based Watkins company was run by three brothers, Charlie, Sid and Reg, who originally produced amplifiers. They were already successful in the 1950s with the Clubman and V-front Dominator models. The Copicat, a band-echo device, became an instant best-seller in 1958. In 1959 they brought out their first guitar: the rapier Deluxe, owing more to Gibson than to Fender. Around 1961 Reg Watkins redesigned body and headstock to an approximation of Fender’s market-leading Stratocaster. They were the first guitars to incorporate the new polyester spraying technique. Rapiers were mostly produced in red but there are a few white ones about, the occasional natural wood and even a light ice blue. Sid and Reg Watkins made the guitars in their factory in Chertsey Surrey. In 1963-64 the Watkins company re-branded itself as Wem. In the late 60's the decision was made to split the guitars away from the amps as a separate company and the name Wilson was adopted, “Wilson” being the maiden name of the brothers' mother.
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Keykord (Kay)
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To attract non-musicians, and thus potential buyers, all kinds of devices were introduced by producers and publishers in the USA in the 1920s and '30s. So customers were led to believe they could learn how to play an instrument, no matter how untalented.
Thus the Keykord was introduced by Stromberg-Voisinet -later Kay- from Chicago, with a keyboard hiding a complicated mechanism for playing chords. The accompanying manual from 1929 reads: "the Keykord action removes the technical difficulty of playing these instruments". However, the Keykord guitar and banjo would never sell well. After all, the launch was badly timed: the ukulele hype was waning and the 1929 stock market crash heralded a crisis period of at least ten years. Moreover, the complicated key system proved not to be a good alternative to the "normal" fingerings of the real ukulele. |
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Crystal Radio Receiver, c. 1920
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Domino Californian
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J.R. Stewart "Le Domino" ukulele
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Hopf Saturn 63
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Egmond Rambler. Week 1:
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