"This 1965 Fender Jazzmaster was purchased brand new by the ownerуs grandfather in 1965. He passed away in 1968, and the guitar was forgotten about. Recently, the ownerуs grandmother passed on, and the family discovered the guitarяstill stored in its original black case. Reportedly, the case itself had not been opened since 1968, which helped preserve the instrument for the next 42 years. The original flatwound рSpanishс guitar strings were still on it, and the finish had faded to a smooth, velvety feel. The neck was exceptionally well preserved, with very little wear on the gloss finish. It literally felt brand new. Some of the smaller construction detailsяsuch as the traditional Stratocaster knobs, celluloid pickguard, and clay-dot inlaysяhinted at it being a model from the 1964 to 1965 transition period."
"This Ibanez is an example of an Ibanez рlawsuit-eraс guitar. The 1976 Custom Agent Artist 2405 in a transparent maroon finish is a great example of Ibanezуs penchant for melding traditional design with artistic flair. The maple-topped mahogany body sports a mother-of-pearl inlay at its lower bout, matched by equally extravagant MOP fretboard inlays, and a headstock shape reminiscent of their mando-design. The pickups were originally Super 80 models, but were replaced with double-cream DiMarzio Super Distortions before the current owner purchased the guitar years ago."
"Epiphone's Century model was introduced in 1939, and the 1953 model pictured here features a maple body with a sunburst finish, a rosewood fretboard and headstock, a New York neck pickup without adjustable poles, a Bakelite pickguard, a trapeze tailpiece and octagonal volume and tone controls with peaked facets."
"In 1966, Tony Acuri competed in the Allegheny Guitar and Accordion Contest. The young guitarist didnуt place and was quite dejected, but there was a silver lining to the defeat. рMy dad said if I won first place overall in 1967, he would buy me any guitar I wanted,с remembers Acuri. рI spent a whole year practicing тMalague√aу and lo and behold, I won the 1967 competition. So the next time I was at my guitar teacherуs studio, I went through his catalogs to pick out a guitar, and I came across Gibsonуs Firebird. The only reason I wanted it was because of the cool emblem on the pickguard!с Acuriуs father put the order in and was charged $291.50яincluding a hardshell case and a $50 up-charge for the custom left-handed setup (shown on the receipt at right). In addition to the left-handed Firebird I, he purchased a Gibson Explorer GA-15RVT amp. It took more than a year for the package to arrive because apparently back in the у60s, the entire production line had to be stopped, shut down, and reset for a left-handed instrument. The best part of this tale is that Acuri still owns and uses both pieces of cherished gear."
"The Thinline Telecaster was introduced in 1968. New appointments on the Thinline included a 12-screw pearloid pickguard, a semi-hollow body, and a bass-side f-hole. Instead of using a cap on the body, Fender sliced the back from pieces of ash or mahogany, routed out chambers, and then put the pieces back together to form the finished semihollow body. The rear-routed guitar weighs about seven pounds and has a maple neck and fretboard, a six-pole single-coil in the bridge and a metal-covered single-coil with two visible height adjustment screws in the neck position. It also included Fenderуs original raised-side bridge with brass saddles and throughbody stringing. The guitar shown here is a 1969 model that has been refinished in fiesta red and modified with chickenhead volume and tone knobs."
" ""Everybody has a great gear score at least once in their lives, and mine was this one right here,"" says Corbin Booth, owner of this vintage 1963 Gretsch 6117 Double Anniversary. He purchased the instrument 15 years ago for $40 after the original owner found it on top of a pile of old possessions in their storeroom. The guitar had seen some serious playing action sometime before that, and it had also been stained and refinished. When Booth got it, the neck needed some TLC so it was reset and refretted. Ever since, this gem has been the pride of his collection. The Double Anniversary model debuted in 1958 to celebrate the companyуs 75th anniversary. Many of the early versions didnуt feature a nameplate on the headstock. In 1963, Gretsch added a bound fretboard and thumbnail fretboard inlays, and discontinued the stereo output option. The model shown here features a bound, semi-hollow maple body with an arched top and a bound 24.5"" mahogany neck. The rosewood slab fretboard has kept its luster throughout its 47-year history. The HiLoуTron pickups originally sported screened logos with a stylized ""G,"" but theyуve been wiped clean from this guitar after years of playing. A Bigsby tremolo was added to the guitar after sometime after its purchase. "
"This Style U is the most common model of all Gibson harp guitars, and this particular model from 1917 is its most common configurationя10 sub-bass strings (tuned chromatic), and six standard strings (tuned to standard tuning). Earlier harp guitars, some of which were built with 12 sub-bass strings, are considered quite rare and hard to find in good condition. This Style U model measures approximately 45.5с in length, 18.75с in width, with a rim depth of 3.5с. Its scale length is 24.75с, and it weighs approximately 9.5 lbs. In 1917, its list price was $248.21яa pretty hefty price tag for any instrument in its day."
"Messenger guitars were built in Astoria, OR in 1967 and 1968 by the San Francisco-based Musicraft, Inc, and were the first to feature a magnesium-aluminum alloy neckяa design that preceded those of Travis Bean and Veleno guitars by some seven years. The guitar also features two ahead-of-the-curve appointments for 1967: stereo output and a built-in fuzztone circuit. There are two outputs and the switching system allows for routing both pickups through one output jack or sending them to each jack separately to be hooked up to two separate amps. The fuzztone circuit was referred to as the рTone Messer.с It gave a large signal boost and an incredibly ratty distortion. Indeed, the guitar would vibrate wildly when the рTone Messerс was employed, and the hollow body would break into controlled (usually), endless feedback. The best known player of Messenger guitars was Mark Farner of Grand Funk Railroad."
"This early Martin is a 0 concert body size with a 28 Series styling. The 0-28 was the smallest in the 28 Series, while the dreadnought D-28 is currently the largest. It has Brazilian rosewood back and sides with a solid spruce top. The cedar neck matched with an ebony fingerboard and has an ice cream cone-style volute at the 12th fret neck joint. The body features herringbone purfling and a stripe on the back, ivory binding, and a C.F. Martin & Co., New York stamp on the inside of the body. "
"This guitar has an unusually rich and significant musical history. You heard it on Hank Williamsу рIуm So Lonesome I Could Cry,с рLovesick Blues,с and рCold, Cold Heart.с It was used to record рBlue Eyes Crying in the Rain,с one of Chet Atkinsу earliest recordings for Bullet Records. And it was featured all over Patsy Clineуs debut album, Patsy Cline. It even toured the Pacific with Frank Tennilleяyes, that Tennilleуs fatherяand Bob Crosbyуs band during WWII. The battered and bruised guitar showcased here is a 1938 Gibson L-5 used extensively by Nashville session and radio guitarist Jack Shook. Shookуs L-5 has a carved spruce top complete with bound f-holes, carved figured-maple back and sides, a blonde finish, and multi-ply binding. The guitar features a figured maple neckяebony necks were also availableяthatуs matched with a bound ebony fretboard. It has an adjustable ebony bridge and a gold-plated tailpiece with an engraved silver insert that was new to the model in 1937. The multi-bound blackface headstock sports a pearl flowerpot inlay and Grover Imperial tuners. The guitar was originally equipped with a raised multi-bound pickguard, but that became a casualty from years of radio gigs, studio sessions, and worldwide traveling."
"The Vootar is half bass, half guitar and all German design and craftsmanship. Itуs a combination of famed artist, musician and producer Klaus Voormanуs eye for design (he also designed the Beatlesу Revolver cover) and luthier Stuart Malcolm Bilcockуs ability to transform Voormanуs idea from pen and paper to bass and guitar. The Vootar has eight strings (top four are bass and bottom four are guitar), six pickups and two stereo inputs, so you can play bass and guitar at the same time. The front pickup responds to all eight strings. The middle and rear pickups separate the two sets of instrument strings so they can be activated with mini-switches in three different positions. All the pickups except the neck are custom-made and handwound by Harry H┼usel of H┼usel Pickups, and the guitar features custom-made ETS single bridges. The neck and body are made of Brazilian cedar."
"The bass shown here is an early Music Man StingRay bass prototype custom built for Ball in 1976. Not only is this historically significant for being one of the first Music Man instruments ever built, but also because it now can be seen as a torch-passing moment between Leo Fender and Sterling Ballяcurrent owner and CEO of Ernie Ball Music Man. It has an ash body finished in a 3-tone sunburst that has aged to a deep chocolate brown around the edges. The neck is a one-piece maple with a walnut stripe down the back and bullet truss rod adjustment on the headstock. It has the original string-through-body bridge with ferrules on the back and adjustable bridge mutes. The unique feature of the bass is the pickup, which was fabricated using two StingRay bass pickup covers, cut and rejoined to form a pickup with five pole pieces in each coil. The pickup is mounted with each string placed between two pole pieces, which are the original 3/8"" diameter Alnico V rod magnets. The preamp is the original Music Man 2EQ active preamp. And Dudley Gimpel, Ernie Ball Music Manуs production manager and master luthier, says the iconic bassу cool nickname is Old Smoothie, because рits sound is very fat and smooth, with the typical punch of the StingRay, but a little more subdued and much mellower tone.с"
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