![]() ![]() The guitars made just after this interesting cluster were a mixed batch of a couple of Burl Ives (6004) guitars, a couple of Baritone Ukes (6945) and the rest of the #138xx batch in addition to #13900-13949 were Jet solidbodies, including several Tenor jets (6127). perhaps preparing for the 1954 NAMM show? Maybe. Within this group of 50 labels there seems to be a lot of unique and "custom" activity happening at the Brooklyn factory. Those are actually all the numbers I've encountered from the #13750-13799 range of labels. Then at #13773 I've documented another special build, a model 6028 acoustic archtop with Cats-eye soundholes. with Chet's Streamliner Special (6120 prototype) at #13753, this pre-production White Falcon at #13757, and I've documented the other two known pre-production examples of the 6120 at #13767 and #13770. ![]() Then the production history gets interesting. ![]() The following batch was a group of 100 Corvette hollowbodies (#13550-13649). Serial number 13450 is attributed to the Mary Osborne Falcon Prototype (block markers), but the next 99 numbers were applied to a batch of Jet solidbodies (#13451-13549). The Gretsch White Falcon has picked up its fair share of admirers over the years (albeit most from a distance!) and is famously associated with several name guitarists including Neil Young, John Frusciante, Brian Setzer and Billy Duffy.No need to read between the lines. In 1971, the company renumbered the nonstereo/ mono and stereo double-cutaway versions to 75 respectively, however, in 1980 both the 75 models were discontinued with the 7595 being available only on special order.īy 1981 Gretsch had discontinued them all. The Project-O-Sonic design was a bold leap into the new-fangled world of stereo and although stereo guitars never really caught on, it was a sure sign of Gretsch’s continued ethos of progression.īy 1962 White Falcons were being shipped with a double-cutaway as standard and it wasn’t until the early 70s that Gretsch began to reintroduce the original singlecutaway version as model number 7593. In the same year, a stereo version of the White Falcon arrived with a patented system called Project-O-Sonic, designated as model number 6137. In 1958, a pair of noise-cancelling dualcoil Filter’Tron pickups were added, providing a little more in the way of sparkle and crunch to the overall tone. These comparatively harder tonewoods lend a bright acoustic resonance to the White Falcon’s natural sound and when coupled with a pair of single coil, high output DeArmond DynaSonic pickups it makes for a full, clear tone that cuts through with plenty of twang.Ĭoupled with a pair of single coil, high output DeArmond DynaSonic pickups it makes for a full, clear tone that cuts through with plenty of twang Stairstep tuners, a V-contoured headstock and a ‘G’ monogram tailpiece adorned with a V-shape reminiscent of car bonnet ornaments were all set off against a custom colour-style white finish (with more than a sprinkling of gold throughout for that aureate touch of class). In a similar vein to Fender and Gibson’s infatuation with the 1950s motor craze, the angular geometry of dream cars was strongly reflected in the White Falcon’s design. Although the Gretsch company had set up shop in Brooklyn, New York in 1883, it certainly wasn’t stuck in the Victorian era and was a notably forwardthinking firm with regards to aesthetics. It was appearance as much as anything that made the White Falcon stand out from the crowd. The angular geometry of dream cars was strongly reflected in the White Falcon’s design Originally intended as a one-off display centrepiece for the 1954 NAMM trade show, it ended up turning so many heads that by the following year Gretsch had put it into regular production, designated as the model 6136. The jewel in Gretsch’s crown came in the form of a guitar called the White Falcon. ![]()
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