That Was The Year... 1964 Corsairs, Vikings and Revolutionaries
GRETSCH INTRODUCES THE 6187
Viking model with a sunburst double-cutaway, hollow, bound maple body and two f-holes. The bound ebony fingerboard features pearl thumbnail inlays up to the 12th fret then offset dots above. It’s loaded with two covered rail humbuckers, a master volume, two more volume controls, a pickup selector and more switches; add to that a string mute, a roller bridge assembly, a Bigsby vibrato tailpiece and a leatherette back pad and there’s not much wood to see!
INTRODUCING THE BEATLES IS THE
first Beatles album released in the USA and the fab four get their first us chart topper with I Want To hold Your hand. It stays in the number one position for seven weeks and the group lands at JFK airport for its first American tour. The UK flies over half a ton of Beatles wigs to support the tour!
FORD’S CONSUL CORSAIR IS
now available to purchase. A mid-sized car, saloon or estate along the lines of the 61/62 ford Thunderbird. There is also a convertible version built by Crayford.
AFTER PROTOTYPES, GUILD FINALLY LAUNCHES
its George Barnes Acousti-Lectric jazz-bodied guitar with a carved spruce top and carved curly maple body; the rock maple neck has a bound ebony fingerboard and block pearl inlays. Its most unusual feature is the longitudinal brace bar inside the body on to which the twin humbucking pickups are mounted. The top has two corresponding apertures allowing the pickups to pass through. As the controls are mounted on the scratchplate with only the pickup selector on the body, the natural acoustic resonance of the instrument remains. It comes in blonde or sunburst.
PLANS FOR THE WORLD TRADE CENTRE IN
New York City are announced; boxer Cassius Clay converts to Islam and changes his name to Muhammad Ali and beats sonny Liston to become the new heavyweight champion of the world. The Rolling stones begin their first American tour as the headline act with The Ronettes as a support. A sprinkling of births includes Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses), Tommy scott (space), Neneh Cherry, Andy Bell (erasure), Diana Krall and Wynonna Judd.
IN JAPAN KAWAI RELEASES ITS REVOLUTIONARY
Amp In Guitar solidbody model! More traditionally it also introduces the sT3W guitar, a three-pickup design with separate rocker switches for each pickup. These and the rotary controls are all mounted on a large scratchplate and there’s a vibrato unit and a crude bridge. The rosewood ‘board has abalone coin-slot inlays and the headstock precedes the enlarged strat shape used by fender in the 70s.