Teisco May Queen...A Glimpse Into the Future of Electric Bodies

Since it's coming into the month of May, I thought I'd write about the coveted and rare May Queen guitars by Teisco.  These guitars were made in the late 1960's at the height of psychedelic rock and it's clear Teisco was creating products for that market...unusual guitars that these early rockers would find cool and affordable.  Teisco was known for playing with body shapes and explored the ways in which guitars could be transformed in appearance without losing their sound quality.  The May Queen was no exception with its almost palette-like shape, which some claim was inspired from a Vox design.  I've often wondered if the "May Queen" badge was the inspiration for the lyric 'It's just a spring clean for the May Queen' from Led Zeppelin's "Stairway to Heaven", which came out in 1971.  Most May Queen guitars that I've seen are in tuxedo black and white, but there are a few out there...very few...that have a red finish that reminds one of a brick color. Another rare color for the May Queen is a beige finish that's kind of blah.  May Queen guitars have a distinctive pickguard with a 'signed' "May Queen" above the Teisco brand in old script.  Here's the red and black side by side:

How beautiful is that?  If you own one or have owned one in your lifetime, you are or were extremely blessed. 

Marchis Guitars, Part II

Well I've got something to show you this week, rather than a long discussion.  Here's the Marchis that's from Flat Eric's Blogger page:

This looks almost exactly like East Bay Ray's Marchis from the Dead Kennedys.  Natural finish, natural neck. Did they really come from the factory this way?

Now here's a Marchis from Carl, another owner.

This Marchis is obviously a much earlier Les Paul example.  What's striking is the simple black neck.  Carl says that the original scratchplate was black, too.  Notice that the later version has an applied badge plate screwed on, while the earlier version appears to have been attached as simple label.  But the script is identical.

So here are two examples of this rare guitar.  Do you have one?  Is it similar or different than these examples?  Let me know!

Marchis guitars

A reader begins his message to me with "I understand you have a great knowledge of guitars..."

Oh gosh.  I wish.

Then he asks me about Marchis guitars.  This is a badge I've never even heard of.  Nor seen.  There doesn't seem to be many of them, from a quick glance at the internet.  I did find a fellow blogger with a page on it.  My reader said he has a Les Paul Gold version of the Marchis and Flat Eric's photos show a Telecaster thinline guitar that just about matches one in a 1974 Greco catalog.  Greco utilized Dyna, Fujigen and Matsumoku in manufacturing their guitars, so it's conceivable that Marchis was a badge made by one of these three manufacturers.  Both Matsumoku and Fujigen are the most productive of the timeframe in which Marchis would have been made, however, Dyna made quality guitars as well (they were used by Fender, which is pretty darn selective).  Is it possible that Marchis is a lost Dyna badge?

And much to my surprise guitarist East Bay Ray (Dead Kennedys) owns a Marchis....which is shown in a January 2006 Guitar World on page 33.  So it can't be that horrible of a guitar.

So does anyone else own one of these lost guitars?  Tell me!

Early Guyatone Madness

I've not posted recently because I caught the flu from hell.  Literally.  I went to a concert in Hell, Michigan, and was sick as a dog the day after!  Anyhow, I thought I'd take the time today to talk about some of the legendary Guyatone guitars from the early 1960's.  Guyatone made some pretty cool house brand guitars during their days of Japanese guitar madness.  Let's take a gander.

The LG50 was made a little before the period I've been researching in the late 1950's, but it was exceptional in popularity.  Guyatone badged some of these beauties with the Antoria badge. Most of the pickguards on these guitars are white, but I've seen a few with mother of pearl which just adds to the lustre.  They tended to have blonde finishes and were played by top guitarists of the time, including Jeff Beck and Ringo Starr.

The LG60B reminds me of a tux with its black and white appearance.  The pickguard is the traditional white but really sets off this cool bass electric.  An early guitar (some were made before 1960) and extremely rare, you've got a prize if you can find one of these vintage axes.

If you've never seen an LG130T, you need to.  These compact  tremolo electrics from the early 1960's are a favorite among players who prefer offset waist guitars.  It also helps that they had beautiful chrome pickguards, although my friend Noah disputes that (he says it's damn ugly). 

The Guyatone EB4 is an extremely early example of the basses they made in that 1960's period.  They were another offset waist guitar and super rare if you can find one.  I've never seen this guitar in person.  Check out this video:

Sweet.

Pearl Guitars...brought to you by Matsumoku and Hayashi

Pearl badged MIJ guitars have a mysterious history depending on whom you talk to. They appear to have been widely distributed, finding their way to Australia, Canada, Europe and the United States so they must have been fairly successful.  I haven't seen proof that the Pearl badge originated from the infamous Pearl drum corporation although the logos are suspiciously similar.  Perhaps it was a brief venture during the guitar craze of the 1970's by that company.  We may never know.  Most people assume that Pearl badged guitars were made by the famous percussion instrument maker and Pearl guitars are often sold with that information presented as fact.  Perhaps someone can enlighten me.  Till then, I'm on the fence about the origin of Pearl guitars.

Pearl electric guitars which were made by the venerable Matsumoku, were good Les Paul copies.  They came in sunburst and blond finishes from what I've seen of them.  Pearls were carried by Great West Musical Imports to the North American continent and I do not know if they distributed the guitar badge worldwide exclusively.  Some have mother of pearl pickguards in addition to the Pearl badge inlay, which add to the beauty of the Pearl image.  It would be interesting to know if they originally came that way from Matsumoku.  They seem to be pretty rare here in the United States but far more numerous among our friends in Australia so I wonder just how many were sold in their heyday.  They appear to be classified as a medium-quality guitar, but they sure look good to me. 

Pearl acoustics, however, were made by top Japanese acoustic guitar-maker Hayashi. They appear to have been gorgeously crafted with inlays of mother of pearl on the frets on occasion. Most Pearl acoustics from what I've seen were made of high quality tonewoods based on Gibson designs, although I'm not an acoustic guitar expert.  Finishes can be anywhere from sunburst to natural and they seem far more numerous in existing quantities than their electric cousins.  Pearl acoustics are praised by their owners as high-quality instruments and little wonder...they ARE Hayashi products!  You can read more specific information about Pearl acoustic guitar models HERE by Blogger friend Martin on his Vintage Japanese Acoustics blog.  

Another interesting thing with Pearl badges is that some "Pearl" inlays are gold and others mother of pearl.  I wonder if one color denotes a higher-end instrument model.  Again, I don't know the answer to that.  Yet another mystery to solve. 

Quest Atak V

Of all the crazy MIJ guitars I've seen, this one is really unique.  They're a little outside my area of study, since they were made in the 1980's, but they so embody the era of metal bands and long hair.  The Quest Atak series is pretty awe-inspiring in designs from the time, but the Atak V is an axe to savor.  Want to see the fluid, flying shape of one?  Go to this webpage.  Awesome, isn't it?

In addition to the crazy shape, I love the color blending on the guitar...it looks like it just came out of a fire someplace.  Must be some hot guitar madness being generated by that Atak.  Looks like you can score an Atak for as little as $120, but that's peanuts for as beautiful as these guitars look to me. 

If you own one of these pieces of guitar art, let me know how they sound!

Japan Quake 2, Hy-Lo, Hi-Lo?

Been watching the devastation over in Japan...yikes.  I honestly don't know if they will ever be able to return to normal after this.  Still haven't heard from some of the larger guitar manufacturers to find out if their factories still stand...and if the talented people making guitars in the region are still with us.  We'll just continue to pray to the guitar gods that all is well.

Meanwhile, a mystery has unfolded.  Two guitars:  Hy-Lo or Hi-Lo.  Made by the same company?  I don't know...after looking around and viewing a few for sale here and there, I have a hunch that these badges were made by different companies-thus Hy-Lo and Hi-Lo.  My guess after reading a lot of boards from owners is that Hy-Lo was made by Kawai Teisco, while Hi-Lo was a Matsumoku badge.  Why?  Well, one person claims that they bought their Hy-Lo from a Teisco catalog back in the late 1960's (nothing like an eyewitness account from a direct owner).  And Hi-Lo electrics sure look like a Matsumoku product to people who collect Matsumoku badges.   I really don't know.  To add to the confusion, both electrics and acoustics were made with this badge name, so it must have been somewhat successful as a badge here in the United States.  For now, I've got them divided on the list under these makers until someone puts me right who knows the answer or I find a person with  Hi-Lo who can testify that it was made by a specific maker because they have direct knowledge of it.  I'm confident that Hy-Lo is a Kawai Teisco product.  What I don't know, what I'm unsure of, is the Hi-Lo badge.

Does your head hurt reading this?  It hurts mine just thinking about it as I write.  Sorry.

Anyhow, if you know of the origin of Hi-Lo guitars, let me know.  I'm going to take an aspirin now and lie down after that previous paragraph.  Whew.