By the early ’50s, guitar
virtuoso Chet Atkins was
a well-known Nashville studio
musician on his way to becoming
a successful recording
artist in his own right. Seeing
his potential, the Gretsch
Company asked him to work
with them to create an Atkins
signature model.
In the middle of 1954,
Atkins received his first prototype,
which was based on
Gretsch’s existing Streamliner
hollowbody model. He
approved, but requested the
addition of a Bigsby vibrato
and a brass nut to improve
sustain. After Atkins received
a second prototype with those
revisions, Gretsch began producing
his signature-model
guitar in late 1954 to be ready
to sell in early 1955.
The 1955 Model 6120
included those features
requested by Atkins, as well
as a 22-fret neck (a few early
examples had only 21 frets) and
a 24.5" scale. The body was
15.5" wide and 2.75" deep. The
transparent amber red (orange)
finish and kitschy Western
designs were intended to appeal
to country music fans. Atkins
disliked the extra cosmetic
decorations and had them
gradually removed as he and the
guitar became more popular.
The 1956 Chet Atkins 6120
pictured this month—serial
#18527—has features common
to the first two 100-unit batches
of 6120s made for the 1956
retail year. (These guitars were
actually built in late 1955.)
The distinctive features include
a large truss-rod cover (which
replaced the “bullet” cover), a
fixed-arm aluminum B6 Bigsby
(replacing the gold-anodized
version of ’55), a steer-head
headstock inlay, a rosewood
fretboard with steer and cactus
inlays, and a “G” brand near
the bass-side f-hole.
If you’d like to dig deeper
into Gretsch 6120s, you’ll find
a wealth of detailed information
in the 2010 book
Gretsch
6120—The History of the
Legendary Guitar by Edward
Ball. More on Gretsch guitars
can be found in
The Gretsch
Book: A Complete History of
Gretsch Electric Guitars by
Tony Bacon and Paul Day, and
also in
Gretsch: The Guitars of
the Fred Gretsch Company by
Jay Scott.
Dave ’s Guitar Shop
Dave Rogers’ collection is tended
by Laun Braithwaite and Tim Mullally
and is on display at:
Dave’s Guitar Shop
1227 Third Street South
La Crosse, WI 54601
davesguitar.com
Photos by Mullally and text
by Braithwaite.