LEARN Electric Guitar History, its Origins and First Prototypes, until the Creation of Fender Telecaster and Modern Models.
The electric guitar was not invented overnight, nor by a single person. It was the result of years of research, study and evolution, as well as the involvement of many people in its development, until it became the true masterpieces of engineering and technology of today.
Hawaiian Guitars
The origin of the solid-body electric guitar dates back to the Hawaiian guitars that became popular in the United States in the 1930s. As these models were the first instruments that depended almost entirely on amplification to generate their sound.
This is the Rickenbacker A-22, manufactured in 1931. We can say that it is a Neanderthal electric guitar, which was popularly known as the frying pan.
First Electro-Acoustic Guitar
In the 1930s, the first electromagnetic pickups were launched, and in 1936 Gibson launched the ES-150 “Electric Spanish” guitar. The first electro-acoustic guitar with a fixed pickup installed in the body of the guitar. This pickup model continues to be recreated today under the name Charlie Christian, as this was the guitar most associated with the great guitarist.
In the 1940s many inventors, including Leo Fender and Les Paul, began developing their own solid body guitar models to avoid the feedback problems of guitars amplified with a sound box.
They very wisely thought of eliminating these sound feedbacks by mounting the pickups on a solid wooden body, thus avoiding the vibration of the pickup, or any other part of the guitar.
Electric Guitar History: First Prototypes
“The Log” Prototype
In the early 1940s, Les Paul built his first prototype of a solid-body electric guitar, known as “The Log”. It’s not hard to imagine why it got that name. In 1946, Les Paul presented his design to Gibson, with the proposal that the manufacturer develop a solid-body electric guitar, using his prototype as a reference.
But the offer was rejected by Gibson, convinced that a solid-body guitar would never be accepted by the consumer. Ironically, in the same year as Les Paul’s proposal, Gibson developed the P90 pickup model, which would have made the marketing of a solid-body guitar even easier.
Bigsby-Travis
In 1947, something that began to resemble an electric guitar was created: the Bigsby-Travis. Many will be familiar with the name Bigsby, as he was the creator of the Bigsby vibrato.
Both Bigsby and Travis worked in California, not far from Fender’s workshops, and it is not known who copied whom. But there are similarities with a Fender in the headstock, and with a Les Paul in the body shape. Fender was certainly not one to keep secrets, as in 1940 Les Paul and other developers visited his workshops.
Electric Guitar History: Leo Fender
Leo Fender rightly thought that the magnets in the pickups of the time were too large and began developing his own pickup models.
Fender was looking for a practical instrument, easy to build and easy to adjust, inexpensive compared to other types of guitar, with a clear sound and without the feedback problems of a guitar with a sound box.
He was also inspired by the removable bolt-on necks of banjos of the time, to allow for easy replacement, as he believed this part of the guitar was the most prone to problems.
First Mass-Produced Electric Guitar in History
Leo Fender left out all frills to create a simple but attractive guitar, without unnecessary embellishments. And in 1951 Fender launched the Broadcaster, which had to be renamed Telecaster to avoid the coincidence with Gretsch’s Broadcaster drums.
The first mass-produced electric guitar in history was born, and it has survived to this day, maintaining its main characteristics.
Fender Stratocaster
In 1954 Fender begins production of Stratocaster guitar. Possibly the most imitated model in history, especially for its body shape with two irregular cut to balance the instrument.
Although when Fender went to register this model at the patent office, employees made jokes about its appearance, commenting that it looked like a toilet lid.
Gibson Backtracks
Gibson thought the idea of a solid-body guitar was absurd and missed the opportunity to pioneer its development and mass production. That was until Fender began selling its products like hotcakes in the early 1950s.
But Gibson changed its mind radically after seeing the results of a new competitor, and in 1951 contacted Les Paul to develop a solid-body guitar, but in keeping with the brand’s tradition of creating high-end products.
As a result, the first Les Paul with P90 pickups was created in 1952, the Les Paul Custom in 1954, and finally the Les Paul Standard in 1958, mounted with its innovative interference-reducing dual-coil pickups, known as Humbuckers.
Another model worth mentioning, also from 1958, is the Gibson ES-335. This is the first semi-solid body electric guitar in history. Its design provides an extra level of resonance and tonal depth.
Gibson would modify the Les Paul model in 1961 by adding a vibrato system, mounted on a narrower body, with an upper cutaway to lighten the weight of the instrument and at the same time facilitate access to the lower part of the neck, giving birth to Gibson SG. The abbreviation SG (Solid Guitar) refers to its solid body.
In the 80s Superstrats Were Born
During the 1960s and 1970s, both Fender and Gibson would add new models to their catalogues, and new brands joined the manufacture of the instrument. Until the late 1970s, a visionary appeared who gave a new impetus to the electric guitar, creating what is known today as the Super Stratocaster or Superstrat.
That visionary was Eddie Van Halen. One of the first to imagine and build a guitar with Superstrat features, with high performance qualities, combined with a floating bridge.
Features that were recreated by brands specializing in this type of guitar, such as Ibanez, Schecter, Kramer or Charvel.
Electric Guitar History: Creation of 7 and 8 String Guitars
But the Superstrat not only took everything to the next level in terms of output and the number of frets, it could also be fitted with an extra string towards the bass end, to increase the punch of the instrument.
In this case the ideologist was the guitarist Steve Vai, the brand that developed the model was Ibanez, and the guitar was named Ibanez Universe. The first 7-string electric guitar mass produced, which would mark the contemporary characteristics of these models.
But Ibanez later raised the bar even higher, developing the first mass-produced 8-string solid-body guitar in 2007: the RG2228.
This would be, in general, the most outstanding aspects of the history and evolution of the electric guitar, since listing everything developed for the instrument would be almost incalculable.
Including even touch-sensitive MIDI screens integrated into the body of the guitar, as in the case of the custom model developed by Manson for Matthew Bellamy.