Gretsch 6120 | |
---|---|
Manufacturer | Gretsch |
Period | 1955–present |
Construction | |
Body type | Hollow |
Neck joint | Set |
Woods | |
Body | Maple laminate |
Neck | Maple |
Fretboard | Rosewood |
Hardware | |
Bridge | Tune-O-Matic bridge with rosewood base or Bigsby cast aluminum bridge |
Pickup(s) | two Dynasonics (single coils) or Filtertrons (humbuckers) |
Colors available | |
Antique Natural, Vintage Sunburst, Wine Red, Tangerine, Lime Gold, Purple, Black, Emerald |
The Gretsch 6120 is a hollow body electric guitar with f-holes, manufactured by Gretsch and first appearing in the mid-1950s with the endorsement of Chet Atkins. It was quickly adopted by rockabilly artists Eddie Cochran, Duane Eddy, and later by Eric Clapton, Brian Setzer, Reverend Horton Heat, and many others. Pete Townshend received one as a gift from Joe Walsh in 1970, which he would later use on recordings for Who's Next and Quadrophenia . It has been Manu Chao’s preferred electric guitar to play live since 2002. Poison Ivy Rorschach of The Cramps notably played a 1958 Gretsch 6120, which she bought in 1985. She said it was her favourite guitar to play. After George Harrison played Gretsch Country Gentleman and Tennessean models (which, like the 6120, were developed with and endorsed by Chet Atkins), Gretsch found that they could scarcely keep up with demand.
The 6120 was the first in the line of "Chet Atkins" signature Gretsch Guitars. [1] The prototype for the 6120 was first presented to Chet Atkins in 1954 and was labeled as a Streamliner Special with the serial number 13753. A second prototype was made, adding a vibrato tailpiece and a metal nut. Both prototypes had an unbound headstock, which didn't carry over to the production models of the 6120 when it debuted in 1955. [2]
Originally priced at $385, the 6120 was quite expensive compared to models from other companies, such as Gibson's Les Paul Goldtop which retailed at $225 or Fender's Telecaster at $189.50. [3]
In 1958, the thumbnail "neoclassic" fret markers were introduced. The DeArmond pickups were discontinued, with Gretsch using their own "FilterTron" humbuckers. [1]
Due to changes in musical tastes and changes in Gretsch company ownership in the late 1960s resulting in deteriorating quality, production of the 6120 ceased in the late 1970s. Values of the existing instruments soared when rockabilly artist Brian Setzer of the Stray Cats was seen playing an old 6120 in his early 1980s music videos. Gretsch subsequently went back into the guitar business and new 6120 guitars are widely available.
Today, a wide range of 6120 models are available, including an assortment of Brian Setzer signature models and faithful reissues of 1950s classics. Like most Gretsch guitars, production is now based in Japan at the Terada factory, although custom-shop American-made 6120s are also available.
Note that in the mid-1960s, the proper name of the 6120 changed from "6120 Chet Atkins Hollow Body" to "6120 Nashville", but the original name is again in use, although a Brian Setzer signature model is called the "Brian Setzer Nashville" (another 6120 is called the Brian Setzer Hot Rod).
Chester Burton Atkins, also known as "Mr. Guitar" and "The Country Gentleman", was an American musician who, along with Owen Bradley and Bob Ferguson, helped create the Nashville sound, the country music style which expanded its appeal to adult pop music fans. He was primarily a guitarist, but he also played the mandolin, fiddle, banjo, and ukulele, and occasionally sang.
Brian Robert Setzer is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He found widespread success in the early 1980s with the 1950s-style rockabilly group Stray Cats, and returned to the music scene in the early 1990s with his swing revival band, the Brian Setzer Orchestra. In 1987, he made a cameo appearance as Eddie Cochran in the film La Bamba.
Ray Edward "Eddie" Cochran was an American rock and roll musician. His songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and "Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire in the mid-1950s and early 1960s. Cochran experimented with multitrack recording, distortion techniques, and overdubbing, even on his earliest singles. Cochran played the guitar, piano, bass, and drums. His image as a sharply dressed and attractive young man with a rebellious attitude epitomized the stance of the 1950s rocker, and in death, Cochran achieved iconic status.
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A semi-acoustic guitar, also known as a hollow-body electric guitar, is a type of electric guitar designed to be played with a guitar amplifier featuring a fully or partly hollow body and at least one electromagnetic pickup. First created in the 1930s, they became popular in jazz and blues, where they remain widely used, and the early period of rock & roll, though they were later largely supplanted by solid-body electric guitars in rock.
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