Fret King Black Label Country Squire Semitone Special FKV21SAGB Introduction and back story At Fret-King, we love to listen to what guitarists want, ‘cos after all, it’s them we’re creating guitars for. Dennis Drumm, MD of Fret-King explains: “When Scottish blues/rock/reggae legend Ash Gupta, lifelong card-carrying wearer of the 'Rhinestone F', scion of seminal '60s bands like The Images and The Motion, and guitar collector extraordinaire, challenged Fret-King to make a latter day version of the cherished '62 Blonde (which he acquired in an 'axetraordinary' deal involving cash and a Vespa scooter, then later wrecked in a fit of power-chording in Perth, back in '66) we couldn’t resist...”
In these heartbreakingly cool images from 1964, The Images, then Edinburgh’s answer to 'what a girl wants', featured guitarist Ash, and the first love of his life, a beautiful blonde. The '62 Blonde, which was rare at the time, had to be rebuilt by an ancient Edinburgh cabinet maker after Ash’s Townshend-esque excesses, at which point 'The Blonde' was stained bottle green – creating Ash’s first 'Greeny'. The sound of that instrument became so much a part of Ash’s life, and so famous, that when Ash had to choose between finishing university and taking up his recording contract, you can guess which path won. The '62 bottle green blonde was snapped up by another leading Edinburgh R&B band and has long since vanished into the echoes of the past. No known photos exist of Greeny MkI, and Ash achingly regretted losing 'The Blonde' every waking moment of his life. So, in the '90s, he commissioned legendary Glasgow luthier Jimmy Moon to recreate 'Greeny', but this time based on a '74 semi-acoustic body, at which point the single coil configuration was supplemented by a pair of PAF-type pickups with a coil tap. Greeny MkII was born!
Greeny MkII