Tag Archives: 1960s

You Say Sekova, I Say Segova – Early 1960s Kawai Electric Guitar

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Segova Kawai 1

Ah yes, the Japanese brand name game can usually result in total confusion as people struggle to figure out who made their mystery guitar.  What I’ve learned over the years is not to focus on the headstock name, but rather, focus on the build clues to figure out the maker.  Take for instance this old Kawai made electric.  On the headstock, there was just a remnant of a logo that showed SE…., and the rest was torn off.  Segova Kawai 3

So which name was it?  Years ago I would’ve focused on solving that mystery.  Like, who was this “mysterious” Segova dude?  Or was Sekova a factory in Japan?  Let me tell you peeps, it don’t matter a hill of beans!  What’s more important is to notice the pickups, knobs, and neck plate on this guitar to learn where it was born.  And from there, this old geetar could’ve had any number of names on the headstock.Segova Kawai 5Check out that 5 screw neck plate.  We always called those “tombstone” plates, and Kawai used them a lot in the early 60s.  It was kind of a bad design, since the necks and bodies were attached, like a pseudo set-neck, the finish was applied, and then the neckplates were screwed in there.  And that one screw set right into the neck heel.  So why was this a bad design?  First, the reinforcement rods were not adjustable.  So if the neck goes screwy, it cannot be removed easily without ruining the finish around the joint.  Later on Kawai stopped finishing the joint area and that allowed for much easier adjustment.  But in the early days, this is what they used.Segova Kawai 4

The sad part of that design was when a guitar’s neck went sideways, people either ruined the guitar trying to fix it, or the guitar simply went into the trash.  People are always talking about old guitars like these as “slide monsters“.  Of course, you know what that means!  But if you have a good, old-time tech in your area, or within shipping distance, these necks can be saved.  And to bring an old guitar like this back to life again is a noble deed, dude!Segova Kawai 2

Now the real beauty of these guitars can be found in the pickups.  You know, there’s a common conception that these old Japanese guitars used poor electronics with really microphonic pickups.  But in the early days of Kawai, they used really good electronics and nice wiring.  And the pickups, there were plenty of guitar makers in the US, UK, and Europe that used totally poor pickups.  You have to remember that the 1960s were still the early days for many guitar makers who were still honing their craft.  Anyway, these particular pickups sound great and can be found on a few different Kawai made guitars.  People always talk about gold foil pickups, but these pups come from the same era and sound every bit as good.  AND they have none of the cache’, so you can buy these much cheaper and get your own sound!  Here’s Mike jamming out to an old Joe Cocker tune, check it out!  Those pups sound great!

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The Lively One!!! 1964 St. George EP 85 Electric Guitar

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St. George EP85 1This is one cool old guitar!  A full hollowbody, on the smaller side, this littler bugger combines hot pickups and a severely resonant body.  Holy crap man, this guitar just wants to take right off!  It takes a steady, skilled player to control a guitar like this but back in 1964, guitar players were strumming similar Gibson models and learning the ropes of good tones.  When you’re willing to put in a little work, of course!  Isn’t that where the best playing comes from anyway?St. George EP85 2Both pickups read out identical at 3.95K, but these early single coils have a unique construction and just sound super raw, very touch sensitive.  Real good vocal range.  So many people scoff at these old Japanese pickups, but so many of them sound so good!  If you think about it, designing and winding a pickup isn’t really that sophisticated.  But hey, I’m not here to convince you, just enlighten.  Or something like that…anyway, the knobbies and pickguard are dead giveaways for a Kawai guitar.  In fact, this model is listed in the 1963 Kawai catalog.St. George EP85 4

I’m not sure if Kawai actually made this one in their factory, or farmed it out, but either way the guitar is built really well.  In fact, very well when you consider the time it was made.  Kawai had several similar models like this during the early to mid 60s, but these models were soon shelved.  Basically, if you ever find one of these you can safely bet it’s pre-1965.St. George EP85 5

The set-neck construction had a solid joint but a non-adjustable truss rod.  But alas, the combination of time and heavy gauge original strings strung to pitch just wreaked havoc on this poor neck.  I’d almost given up on getting this old gal playable, until Dano got a hold of this one.  WIth some wood clamps, a heat gun, a can of beer and a prayer, friggin’ Dano saved this wonderful guitar from a life of wall hanging!  St. George EP85 6Everything is totally serviceable on this guitar, even the tuners!  Hey, I guarantee someone could spend the rest of their lives picking away on this guitar and be totally happy.  With a slide, this thing just sings.  Using a slide on this guitar is a good thing too since you have almost constant contact with the guitar.  Believe me, this one’s a howler!  The pickups aren’t really microphonic, but the body just vibrates with sound….it’s crazy!  I’ve never played a guitar like this.  Maybe the closest would be my old Gibson ES125?  It must be the small body, but this guitar just resonates wonderfully.St. George EP85 3Good ‘ol St. George is up there on the headstock, and that name belonged to George’s Music Stores in upstate New York and Hollywood.  They imported a ton of Kawai made guitars throughout the 60s, and this is one of the earliest models.  So there it is, another great old guitar salvaged by a mad genius and played by the man with the biggest heart this side of the Mississip!  BIG thanks to Dano at Happy Guitar Repair and Mike Dugan for showing what this guitar is capable of.

Searching Hy and Lo – 1966 Hy Lo Model 2103 Hoshino Gakki Guitar

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HyLo Ibanez 6

For about six years in the 1960s, the Hoshino Gakki company (better known by their most popular brand, Ibanez) produced guitars at their Tama plant in Japan.  And yes, it was the same place that produced the early Tama drums.  The factory churned out some really kooky designs and this Hy Lo model 2103 is a good representation of the kook factor!  The segmented guard is very reminiscent of the early UK Burns guitar design.HyLo Ibanez 5Most of the Tama made guitars had their share of quirks.  For instance, many of the clear celluloid pickguards they used tend to deteriorate over time.  And the thicker guards they used, like on this Hy Lo, were prone to shrinking.  But some of these Tama models had cool little details like sparkle inlays on the pickups, small puffy labels (remember those old puffy stickers?), and some cool graphics.  Plus, this particular tremolo is one of my favorites from the old days!  The switches almost always seem to be a source of frustration when it comes to tech work, and honestly they were some of the worst to come out of Japan.  The switches never seem to be fully off, so unless you sink some work into them there is always this tone “bleed”, especially since the wiring is parallel.HyLo Ibanez 4Notice that strip of darker wood running through the headstock.  That was sorta a Tama trademark, as was the small metal label often nailed to the headstock.  These guitars were made under a few different names (like Maxitone) and most had this small label with similar graphics.  These Tama made guitars were also imported into many European countries, and it seems like the wackiest designs were destined for locations outside the USA.  Serious collectors spend lots of time searching all over the world for those rare little weird nuggets of Tama guitar design.HyLo Ibanez 2 Hoshino made quite a few different models and the identifier is often located on the back of the headstock via that small sticker, which ALWAYS seemed to fall off!  But the necks on these feel very fine, just a little chunky, and the bodies were almost always made of solid wood.HyLo Ibanez 1Notice that little “Japan” stamp near the neck heel?  And check out this subtle belly contour.  And you have to take note of that trapezoid neck plate, that’s a definite Hoshino marker.  This guitar is on the light side and balances real well.HyLo Ibanez 3

I haven’t seen too many of these model 2103s, so I’d say that this is a rather rare model.  I’ve seen maybe three in about five years.  Of course, that doesn’t mean they’re not floating around out there.  It just means there ain’t too many of them!  At least we have this one documented for posterity.  Dano at Happy Guitar Repair made this one playable, and Mike Dugan makes it play.

American Idol? – 1967 Idol SG-5 Japanese Electric Guitar

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Idol Ricky 6Here’s an incredibly rare guitar that was saved from certain doom.  The poor old gal had sat neglected for many years and lucky for her she found her way into the gentle arms of Dano and myself!  Really, when I found this I knew what it was right away, knew how rare it was right away, and was totally amazed that one of these Idol Ric copies still existed!  Totally lucky find.Idol Ricky 5This old gal had been through some wars and abuse, but during this time in Japan the guitar makers were really stepping up their game in an effort to seriously compete in the domestic guitar market.  In the end, it wasn’t to be because the demand for electric guitars was already in serious decline.  So all we’re left with are some limited production, high quality guitars that were quickly forgotten in the history of electric guitars.Idol Ricky 4Idol was one of the brands to arise out of the Teisco buyout of 1967.  Idol, Honey, and Firstman guitars all arose from this era, and all disappeared rather quickly.  All these guitar names shared similar qualities and all are still highly regarded in Japan, with some Firstman models commanding big bucks.  But these Idol guitars seem to be rather rare in any market, and this particular Ric model was extremely rare for Idol.  It is basically the same guitar as the Honey SG-5, with a few differences.Idol Ricky 3During this era a curious neck plate was used.  That white plastic cover only served to cover the real neck joint underneath.  Several other Teisco hollowbody guitars from this time share the same feature.  But as odd as it seemed, this guitar was built to be a high-quality instrument and it shows in a lot of aspects.  The guitar just feels solid, very similar to the original model it was copying!Idol Ricky 2Over the past few years I’ve developed several friendships with some Japanese people and they’re always amazed how I come across guitars like these.  A few collectors had only seen this model in the famous “Bizarre Guitars” book, and even that example was missing some pieces.  These guitars were designed and sold for the Japanese market, so how one ended up in a Louisiana closet is just beyond me.  Most of the time guitars like these were brought back to the states by servicemen stationed in Japan.Idol Ricky 1Several Firstman, Idol, and Honey guitars made their way into the hands of some popular Japanese guitar players at the time.  People who have only played some of the less expensive Japanese imports would be pleasantly surprised by the build quality of these guitars.  As the 60s wore on into the 70s, Japanese guitars were busy building a solid reputation, and this Idol model is a good example of that genesis!

Big time props need to go out to Dano at Happy Guitar Repair.  He did some MAJOR work bringing this one back to life and cleaning it up.  And as always, Mike Dugan gives her the once around!