Made in USA, China

[srgntschultz]

I believe i am correct in that Gibson didnt take chets name for granted,Chet was still with them when he passed away,so he never did leave them. He didnt ok any japan gretschs and didnt play any of them either. Gibson did make his studio classic models because gretsch didnt want to make a nylon guitar for him which is why he left gretsch in the first place! Which is the best nylon guitar made period! And thats by a big guitar manufactuer. AND Paul Yandell told me in an email that his favorite guitar he owned and played was the red hollowbody country gent that he played in his dvd video and by the way sounds wondeful and he told me he had gibson make it for him and that he was proud to own it and play it. ANd if everyone was like you in the USA and always badmouth american products then no one would have a job,and if they did they could pay you 2 bucks an hour or a day like they do in japan making your gretsch guitars and then you pay 2 grand for one and think its a great deal because you think chet played them. So buy American crap? Really!

[Norm]

I believe i am correct in that Gibson didnt take chets name for granted,Chet was still with them when he passed away,so he never did leave them.
He was still under contract with Gibson, so in that respect you are corect.

He didnt ok any japan gretschs and didnt play any of them either.
Chet was very loyal to his endorsement contracts so of course he didn't play Gretsch publicly. As for "he didn't OK any japan Gretsch guitars, why should he? He stopped "OK"ing Gretsch models after they went to double cutaways, mutes, padded backs, etc. The company did all that without asking him. He still got hs royalty so it was strictly business


Gibson did make his studio classic models because gretsch didnt want to make a nylon guitar for him which is why he left gretsch in the first place!

Well, that and the fact that quality control at Gretsch was in the tank via Baldwin.

Which is the best nylon guitar made period! And thats by a big guitar manufactuer.
It is an electric nylon string guitar. Classical guitarists would probably not agree that it is the "best nylon guitar, period!"

AND Paul Yandell told me in an email that his favorite guitar he owned and played was the red hollowbody country gent that he played in his dvd video and by the way sounds wondeful and he told me he had gibson make it for him and that he was proud to own it and play it.

Paul set aside the Gibsons when he caused the 6122-59 to be made and in his final days the 6120 CGP was his favorite. He told me this in emails as did his wife. Things change. Paul was extremely proud of being involved with the creation of those two instruments

ANd if everyone was like you in the USA and always badmouth american products then no one would have a job.

I have heard about Gibson's lack of customer support. Is it "patriotic" to not complain when an "all American" company won't back their product? I, for one, have no issue with Gibson. If I had the money there are certain Gibson's I'd like to own. But the 6122-59, actually any Gretsch, has a tone I prefer over Gibson. They are no longer made in the USA but they are sold by small business music stores in the USA for the same markup the Brooklyn guitars (and Gibson) sold for. Based on that, buying Gretsch is helping our economy.

Like I pointed out, Fred Gresch could not afford to buy back his company name and also rebuild the factories from scratch so the guitars need to be built overseas. At least they're not Chinese.


and if they did they could pay you 2 bucks an hour or a day like they do in japan making your gretsch guitars and then you pay 2 grand for one and think its a great deal because you think chet played them. So buy American crap? Really!

I'm not sure what the pay scale is at Terada. By the same token I don't think you do either... Like the Solemn Ol Judge used to say.... "Keep it down to earth, boys."

[Eddie Estes]

When Gibson made the studio classic based on Kirk's design it was great. They later changed it to some
stupid looking thing with a western type bridge with a crappy pickup and a hole in the back.

So Shultz I guess Paul, Brian Stezer, Steve Wariner, andcall the players now endorsing Gretsch have it all wrong but
you are right. Have heard about those guys quite a bit. You? Not so much.

[jay]

Eddie...here is a recent article where Brian talks about Gretsch's (new and old)...if you are in a hurry, its on pg 2

"The new ones are ready to go right out of the box, but the old ones take so much to play right. It’s not like you can just drop ten grand on a ’50s guitar, plug in, and away you go. In order to make it playable, you have to make it so unoriginal as to ruin the value of the guitar—just as taking apart an old car and putting in a new engine might improve the performance but makes it worth much less."

If you have never caught Setzer live, regardless of the venue, you've missed out seeing an extremely talented and tasty guitar player.

http://www.premierguitar.com/Magazine/Issue/2011/May/Brian_Setzer_The_Thrill_Is_Anything_But_Gone.aspx?Page=2#ixzz2BpLR4Tz8"

[guitarchuck]

I usually stay out of these argument type threads, but my guess is that everone on this board has items made in foreign countries, especially China. Most shoes are made there now. I agree, it's a shame that more things aren't made in U.S.A. any more, but it's a fact of life now. If a person vowed to buy everything "Made in U.S.A." I would say that you would spend a lot of time, money and energy to do so. I would also think it would almost be impossible in this day and age. Even if it's made in U.S.A. it has foreign components. Gibson guitar cases are made in Canada and probably some of the components to build the guitar are made elsewhere. I'm positive that the Ebony didn't come from here. Look inside your amplifer sometime, not very many U.S. made parts in there! My Dodge Caravan was assembled in Canada. My Dad's Honda Civic was assembled in U.S.A. It's a different world now.
The only made in the U.S.A. guitar that I have at the present is my old Harmony that I got when I was 13. I have a Gretsch G6122-1959HOF Country Gentleman made in Japan and a Del Vecchio Dinamico made in Brazil. I would like to get another Gibson Studio CEC to keep. I've had 4 or 5 Gibson Country Gentleman's. Each one varied somewhat. Out of the 4 or 5 there was one that was really great and I wish that I had kept it. I've also had about 4 Gretsch NC/CG's. They were all almost exactly alike, I just love my present HOF model. I've had probably 4 or 5 original U.S.A. Gretsch guitars and the quality and consistency wasn't nearly as good as the current models.
That being said, I would still love to have a Gibson Chet Atkins Studio CE/CEC or a Gibson Chet Atkins CE/CEC again someday. (Or a Kirk Sand and I would like a nice U.S.A. made steel string acoustic of some sort!)

[BillB]

I bought a new Gibson CEC over the phone from Sam Ash back in the early '90s. It had that horrendous hum that others have experienced, so I tried contacting Gibson, just as I had done with an Ovation that I had trouble with. I tried calling Gibson at least 3 times, and each time, they would connect me with their service department (as did Ovation). I never spoke to anyone in Gibson's service dept., because I couldn't afford the phone call after being on hold for 20 minutes (back before cell phones with unlimited minutes). However, with Ovation, I spoke with a service person who was very helpful and told me exactly how to get my guitar directly to them for repairs. Interestingly enough, Ovation upgraded the electronics in my '84 Elite model to the newer (at that time) OP-24 system by my request, adjusted the neck, and installed new strings for $175. I had the guitar back after about 3 weeks. Yet, I couldn't even get Gibson's service dept., to pick up my call.

After that, I tried writing them a letter, and received no response. In '97, when I started using "text-based" internet, I emailed them to ask about my guitar. All I really wanted to know was somewhere I could take it that was an authorized Gibson service center. But again, I received no response from Gibson. I sold that CEC for about half of what I bought it for. So, my experience with Gibson was not a good one, and even when I saw the Studio Classic advertised, I was leery of it because of that experience.

The Studio Classic is about the only Gibson that I might possibly ever own. But now, I know Kirk Sand and others that might be helpful if I had problems with it. Apparently, folks have a very hard time finding the CE/CEC pickups whenever they go bad. I also wouldn't turn down a great deal on an old Gibson archtop, etc. But there's just not much out there in the Gibson world that I want to spend my money on. If I had the money, I'd buy one of Kirk's guitars in a hurry. I remember playing the Paul Yandell model with the Prismatone II, and that was about as good as it gets IMO. My favorite guitar that I actually own is my 2006 Nashville Classic (in rare sunburst) that was built the year before the NC model became the CG. It will be with me until I die. My wife bought it for me for my 50th birthday (surprised me big time), and it's a wonderful guitar. Paul Yandell played a big role in bringing the NC/CG model back with Chet's specs, and that makes it very special to me.

With that in mind, here's a question: Does anyone remember what Chet said when Paul told him that he thought his (Chet's) best sound was when he played the '59 Gretsch?

Bill B.

[Norm]

Here you go, Bill...

______________

I remember one time, after he went with Gibson, I said to him something about recording with the old Country Gentleman. He said he didn’t want to. I think he felt it was dishonest to use it after going with Gibson. One day, years after he went with Gibson when I was playing a Gibson Country Gentleman too, I was over at his office and I said, ‘You know Chet that Gibson Country Gentleman doesn’t have as good of tone as your old Gretsch Country Gentleman.’ He replied ‘Well, don’t tell anybody.’

Paul Yandell_CGP

___________

[BillB]

That's it, Norm!
Now, I will agree with srgntschultz about Paul's Gibson that he used on the video. That was a nice guitar, but there were only a few of those made. Paul's friend, Robbie, had one at CAAS one year that Paul had found for him, and it actually said "Paul Yandell" on the truss rod cover. I believe Paul's had Ray Butts pickups, but I'm not sure if Robbie's did. Again, there were only a handful made, kind of like the "fleur de lis" Studio Classic guitars. I take either one of those Gibsons if the price were right for me.

Bill B.

[rkk2786]

Like my dad said, both are great guitars, play what you like, he didn't care much for narrow minded thinking or narrow minded people, who cares where the guitars are made!

All that matters is what you guys want to play and have fun with!

Micah Yandell

[srgntschultz]

Michah I totally agree with your dad Paul! I have a lot of guitars and like them all. ANd I havent seen any Eddie cd's or guitar models out lately either! I play out all the time and have fun doing it,not for a job or living but for the fun of it.ANd by the way Eddie tommorow is veterans day here in the USA!Thanks isnt enough for all the veterans for all that you do,you are simply the real american hero's for all americans here in the USA! God Bless You All! And i really dont care what guitar any great recording artist uses or endorses,because they would all sound great on any guitar in their hands no matter the make. Which is way more than i can say about your playing Ed! ANd by the way i have heard a few cuts from David Pauls new cd,very very impressive by the way! ANd i bet he will have another signature guitar out soon,which he so deserves as does any great guitar player,not just him! Peace!