th e va lu e o f th e be s p o k e : custom shop gu itars 101 / vhcle Issue 06
generally include boutique manufactures such as Lindy Fralin, Dimarzio, and Jason Lollar, amongst others. But what’s most interesting about this company is just how exclusive their products are. At present, they supply to just fourteen shops worldwide… yes, fourteen. So getting your hands on one might prove to be a challenge.
handcrafted, quality checked to the nth degree, and quite simply perfect. But what’s wrong with that old electric I picked up off a friend of a friend’s brother, who used to play ‘in some band’ years ago? Well, nothing really. It’s still a guitar and will undoubtedly sound like a guitar, or somewhere close to it. Aside from having enjoyed a life of being thrown around, drawn on, painted, dented and scratched. It’s served its purpose. But there are alternatives…
There’s more than just a handful of these custom shop, somewhat obscure manufacturers out there, though. New York based Sadowsky Guitars started as the hobby of a young college graduate, Roger Sadowsky in 1979. After almost seven years of luthier training, Sadowsky started out modifying vintage Fender basses, which were at that time relatively inexpensive. He improved their sound by adding more noise reduction technology and replaced the passive electronics with an active preamp, increasing the signal to noise ratio. Once the price of vintage instruments began to take off however, Sadowsky started creating entire bass guitars, and ultimately the wealth of signature artist models available today. In fact, a look at the company’s client list reads like something of Grammy roll call, with Sting, Prince, and Paul Simon amongst those having placed orders. Even the world of metal values the bespoke, with Metallica’s Jason Newsted once placing an order for eight of Sadowsky’s basses.
Within guitar circles, and of course outside of guitar circles, there are two names or shall we say brands that have stood the test of time as being the iconic manufactures of this famous electric instrument. Yes, Fender and Gibson, the eminent names in American guitar production that have defined, and continue to define, a good majority of the imagery behind rock and roll music. Yet aside from their universal presence across the world’s stages, there is a rather interesting array of what I like to call boutique manufactures out there that really are in a league, or should I say world, of their own. The Angry Angus Guitar Company. Based out of the New England Blackstone Valley, the guitars are the brainchild of Dean Campbell, a former master luthier at Fender USA, who on departing from the company took all his insight and expertise to design and build something truly special. The guitars adopt the celebrated aesthetic of Fender’s Stratocaster and Telecaster models, but go that bit further when allowing their customers to tailor their purchase. Pickup choices for instance are virtually limitless, and
The endorsements are made all the more impressive however when you consider that unlike megaproducers Fender and Gibson, Sadowsky has never handed out freebies or had artists under contract. In fact, business became so good for Sadowsky, that at one stage, he was able to turn down a request from
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