Gretsch

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Gretsch guitar

Gretsch is a company that makes acoustic and electric guitars and drums . It was founded in Brooklyn in 1883 by the emigrant Friedrich Gretsch from Mannheim and since then, with the exception of 1967 to 1985, as part of the Baldwin Piano Company , has been in the hands of the family - for a total of five generations. Fender has been controlling the production and sales of the guitars since 2002 and the Kaman Music Corporation took over the drum kit. However, the Gretsch family still owns “Gretsch Guitars”.

history

The beginnings

In 1873 emigrated to the 17-year-old Friedrich Gretsch from Mannheim to Brooklyn. He initially stayed with his brother Wilhelm, who had emigrated to the USA a few years earlier . In 1883 Friedrich Gretsch founded a small workshop for the production of banjos , tambourines and drums . Other companies quickly became interested in Gretsch's instruments, which made business very good.

Friedrich Gretsch died unexpectedly in 1895 at the age of 39 during a stay in Hamburg . His only 15-year-old son Fred then took over the company. He was supported by his mother and two of his younger brothers: Walter and Louis Gretsch. From 1900 mandolins were also built in the family business . At the same time the first orders came in from Europe, which is why “Fred Gretsch Mfg. Co. ”finally moved to a ten-story building in Brooklyn's Williamsburg district (“ The House Of Gretsch ”, Broadway number 60). The company had already become one of the best-known manufacturers of musical instruments in the USA.

With the big bands emerging around 1930 , the banjo was gradually replaced by guitars. The company decided to start making guitars as well. In addition to the saxophonist Charles "Duke" Kramer, Gretsch also engaged the guitarist Jimmie Webster, who is said to have been the first guitarist to use tapping . Finally, in 1939, Gretsch's first electric guitar , the "Electromatic Line", was released. Since this model flopped, the "Synchromatic Line" was released that same year. This archtop model was much more successful.

During the Second World War , the instrument making was stopped and Gretsch, like many other companies, was forced to enter the armaments industry . In 1942 Fred Gretsch handed the company over to his sons Fred Gretsch jr. and William Gretsch. Fred jr. but was drafted by the US Army . So William Gretsch managed the company until his death from cancer in 1948. So Fred Gretsch jr. sole owner of the company. The most innovative Gretsch instrument from this time was not a guitar, but a drum set: the “Gretsch Broadkaster Drum Set”. The name was the reason why the Fender company had to rename their first solid body guitar model, the "Fender Broadcaster" to Telecaster .

Incoming success

Under Fred Gretsch jrs. In the mid-1950s, the company built many innovative guitars, for example the 6120 and the "White Falcon".

The most important contribution to the success of Gretsch was made by Chet Atkins , one of the most important guitarists of his time. Thanks to his endorsement , Gretsch was given a realistic chance to compete against the better-known manufacturers Fender with the Telecaster and Stratocaster models and Gibson with the Les Paul . Gretsch managed to sell thousands of guitars with Chet Atkins' signature on the pickguard, particularly the Country Gentleman (named after a successful piece by Chet Atkins on the 1959 album Mister Guitar ) and Tennessean , a cheaper version of the Country Gentleman .

Many rockabilly guitarists with role models such as Eddie Cochran chose Gretsch models, as did Cliff Gallup as the guitarist of Gene Vincent and, last but not least, Elvis Presley himself. Elvis Presley's guitarist Scotty Moore preferred Gibson guitars, but Presley himself played a variant of the Gretsch Country Gentleman on stage and in the recording studio , which was later sold under the name Gretsch Country Classic (now again Chet Atkins Country Gentleman reworked with the help of Roger Field , a friend of Atkins).

Gretsch soon became a serious rival to Gibson and their main competitors, Fender and Rickenbacker . Another contribution to Gretsch's success was made by George Harrison , who appeared on the Ed Sullivan Show in the mid-1960s with a country gentleman , whom he also played on the album With the Beatles and on tours. In the twelve months following this broadcast, annual sales of the model rose from around 50 to over 2000 pieces. From 1963 Harrison used the 6119-Tennessean and Duo-Jet models .

Gretsch on TV and the first twelve-string guitar

From 1966, the company's products could be seen on television every week as Gretsch provided the guitars and drums for The Monkees group . The advertising effect was as successful as that of Jimi Hendrix for the Fender Stratocaster or that of Eric Clapton for the Gibson Les Paul . Soon Gretsch could no longer meet the demand for the instruments.

After the audio commentary by Michael Nesmith subsequently I've Got a Little Song Here on the DVD set The Monkees: Season One preferred Nesmith before his time with the twelve-string Monkees electric guitars. At that time only Rickenbacker produced such instruments in series. Nesmith liked the bluesy-nasal Gretsch sound much better than the typical "poppy" sound of a Rickenbacker. So he had a country gentleman rebuilt by a specialist guitar maker in Los Angeles . He played this guitar in the pilot episode of the television series The Monkees , Here Come The Monkees . (Note: After carefully reviewing the footage , the guitar that Nesmith called a country gentleman is actually a Gretsch Nashville .) The successful pilot episode led to the production of the television series. After reaching an agreement with Gretsch to provide the necessary instruments, Nesmith turned to Fred Gretsch with a request for a twelve-string electric guitar. He agreed and constructed the “blonde” twelve-string electric guitar, which Nesmith played from then on in all Monkees episodes as well as in the studio and on stage. Fred Gretsch took a liking to this instrument and from then on had it built in series.

From 1966 to 1968 Gretsch also produced the Gretsch 6123, a six-string Monkees special model.

Sale and cessation of production

When Fred Gretsch retired in 1967, he was unable to find a suitable successor to the management. Therefore, Gretsch was sold as a subsidiary to the Baldwin Piano Company. As a result, the quality of the instruments and thus the reputation of the brand name increasingly suffered from austerity measures. The production halls were moved to Arkansas and the offices to Kansas . Fires at the factory in the early 1970s caused additional serious problems, so Baldwin eventually ceased production in 1981.

revival

In the 1980s, Brian Setzer of the Stray Cats stimulated interest in Gretsch instruments with a rockabilly revival; today Gretsch produces a corresponding special model. Even Chris Isaac transition to mainstream rock contributed to the recent success. The concise Gretsch guitar sound was almost a distinguishing feature of his band Silvertone. He piqued avant-garde film director David Lynch's interest in Isaak's music, who used it in his films Blue Velvet (1986) and Wild at Heart (1990) to create a surreal 1950s atmosphere. In 1997 the Australian punk / rockabilly band The Living End became successful. The numerous Gretsch models used by her guitarist Chris Cheney include a “White Falcon” and a “Duo Jet”. But that wasn't a premiere: Billy Zoom of the US punk band X already played a Silver Jet, while hard rock guitarist Malcolm Young from AC / DC used a Duo Jet with two cutaways and occasionally a White Falcon (for example in the video for Back in Black .) A distinctive trademark has been the Gretsch White Falcon 1 from Billy Duffy , guitarist of The Cult , since the early 80s . In the 1990s, played Chris Cornell of Soundgarden a Duo Jet, as in the video for Black Hole Sun . In the video clip for Malibu von Hole , front woman Courtney Love accompanies herself on a Gretsch. The title Californication by the Red Hot Chili Peppers was recorded on an original White Falcon from the 50s, which can also be seen in the video. Other users are Ross Phillips from Hard-Fi . and Gerret "The G-Man" from The Roundhousekicks. Bono of U2 also has its own special model, the green "Irish Falcon" is printed on the pickguard the slogan "The Goal Is Soul".

Takeover by Fender and Kaman

In 2003, Gretsch and Fender signed an agreement under which Fender was given the predominant control over the manufacture and sale of guitars, allowing them to gain a foothold in the market for semi-resonance guitars, which was previously dominated by Gibson . Recently, new models and improvements to old models appeared in quick succession.

The Gretsch family continues to operate in the drum kit business, which has meanwhile been taken over by the Kaman Music Corporation , the quality of which is still regarded as solid. In 2008 Gretsch celebrated its 125th company anniversary.

Sale to DW (Drum Workshop)

On January 7, 2015, Gretsch Drums was sold to DW (Drum Workshop).

Guitars

Models

Professional Collection

Chet Atkins Country Gentleman
Hollow body models Solid body models Acoustic models
Falcon
Country Club
Anniversary 		Duo Jet
Power Jet
Silver Jet
Sparkle Jet
Jet Firebird
Power Jet Firebird
Penguin 		Synchromatic Archtop
Rancher
Artist Signature Models
Artist Models
Chet Atkins Chet Atkins Country Gentleman
Chet Atkins Hollow Body
Chet Atkins Solid Body
Chet Atkins Tennessee Rose
Brian Setzer Brian Setzer Black Phoenix
Brian Setzer Nashville
Brian Setzer Hot Rod
Billy Gibbons / Bo Diddley Billy-Bo Jupiter Thunderbird
Bo Diddley Bo Diddley Signature
Bono Bono Irish Falcon
Jimmie Vaughan Jimmie Vaughan Synchromatic
Keith Scott Keith Scott Nashville
Malcolm Young Malcolm Young I
Malcolm Young II
Reverend Horton Heat Reverend Horton Heat Signature
Stephen Stills Stephen Stills White Falcon
Patrick Stump Stump-O-Matic Electromatic Corvette
George Harrison G6128T-GH George Harrison Signature Duo Jet

Electromatic Collection

Hollow body models Solid body models Double neck models Lap steel models Artist Signature models
Electromatic hollow body Electromatic Corvette
Electromatic Pro Jet
Electromatic Double Jet
Electromatic Junior Jet
Electromatic Junior Jet II
Baritone Jet 		Electromatic double neck Electromatic Lap Steel Bo Diddley

Others

Flat Top Collection (acoustics)

  • Dreadnought
  • Rancher Jumbo
  • Rancher Junior

Synchromatic Collection (Archtop Models)

  • Synchromatic archtop

Ukuleles, banjos

Well-known Gretsch guitarists

Neil Young plays a White Falcon

Drums

Gretsch drums were also very popular with jazz and rock drummers. Between 1950 and 1960 the instruments were used by many well-known drummers such as Elvin Jones , Tony Williams , Art Blakey , Philly Joe Jones , Max Roach and Billy Cobham . The name of the Gretsch drum line Broadkaster was the reason why Leo Fender changed the name of his groundbreaking first solid body electric guitar . This was initially called "Broadcaster", but was renamed " Telecaster " . Instruments from the transition phase without any designation, the so-called “nocasters” , are extremely rare collector's items today.

Models

  • Blackhawk
  • Catalina Club Rock
  • Catalina Club Mod
  • Catalina Club Jazz
  • Catalina Ash
  • Catalina Birch
  • Catalina Maple
  • Renown Maple
  • New Classic
  • Brooklyn
  • USA Custom

Signature models

Special edition

  • Broadkaster Series
  • USA Maple Series

Dating GRETSCH Drums

Two major fires in the GRETSCH factories in the past destroyed most of the historical records, including the serial numbers of drum production. Therefore it is unfortunately not possible to state the exact year of production using the serial number.

To give a rough indication of the age of individual GRETSCH drums, just take a close look at the badges (type plates):

Badge # 1 (1920–1971) The original GRETSCH Round Badge Design - This was the first badge that was used on GRETSCH drum sets. The badge was round with the words “GRETSCH” above and “DRUM MAKERS SINCE 1883” below. A more precise dating is then only possible via the boiler itself (3-ply until sometime in the 1950s, then 6-ply) and the boiler hardware used. The last GRETSCH drums with the Round Badge were produced in 1971.

Badge # 2 (1972–1979) The “Stop Sign” badge - the octagonal brass badge showed the GRETSCH lettering with a “T” extended to the side. The word "DRUMS" was to be found to the left of the air compensation hole eyelet, by means of which the badge was attached, to the right of the eyelet "USA" read the slogan "THAT GREAT GRETSCH SOUND".

Badge # 3 (1979–1980) 2nd version of the “Stop Sign” badge - production from the end of 1979. This badge is very similar to the previous one, but GRETSCH returned to their claim “DRUM MAKERS SINCE 1883” in block letters.

Badge # 4 (1980) The first appearance of the current badge - due to the popularity of ever larger, more individual drum sets, the GRETSCH badge was designed as a square with cut corners. No matter how you placed the drum, the logo badge always looked the same. The GRETSCH lettering was placed above the eyelet in block letters and below it again upside down. "USA" was written to the left and right of the eyelet, also upside down on the left.

Badge # 5 (beginning of 1981) Brief return to the “Stop Sign” - this time, however, the GRETSCH lettering with the characteristic “G” was used, as well as “DRUM MAKERS SINCE 1883” below the eyelet.

Badge # 6 (late 1981 until today) The Modern Day Badge - at the end of 1981 the square brass "180 ° rotatable" badge returned. This badge adorns every GRETSCH USA custom drum to this day.

The BROADKASTER and USA MAPLE badges should also be mentioned here. In terms of shape, just like the "Modern Day" badge, instead of the usual brass, they have an antique pewter look. The modern BROADKASTER series was reissued in 1998. The shell hardware on these drums has a “gunmetal finish”. The USA MAPLE series has been around since mid-2001.

Selection of Gretsch drummers

literature

  • Jens Prüwer: 125 years of Gretsch . In: Guitar Edition 06/2008, pp. 180-183 (Publisher: PPV Medien )

swell

Web links

Commons : Gretsch  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Tony Bacon, Paul Day: The Ultimate Guitar Book. Edited by Nigel Osborne, Dorling Kindersley, London / New York / Stuttgart 1991; Reprint 1993, ISBN 0-86318-640-8 , p. 41.
  2. ^ Hannes Fricke: Myth guitar: history, interpreters, great hours. Reclam, Stuttgart 2013, ISBN 978-3-15-020279-1 , p. 67 f.
  3. ↑ Fender sells Ovation and other brands to Drum Workshop (DW). January 7, 2015, accessed May 11, 2016 .
  4. ^ Roots Collection .
  5. ↑ www.freddiegreen.org: Guitarphotos .