Rebirth At Gretsch
I am having fun watching the rebirth of an American legend.
I recently visited the Fred Gretsch Company, met a number of the workers, and
looked at the pieces and parts that go together and make magic.
Fred
Gretsch bought back the company his uncle and sold a number of years before and
he has tried to get both guitar and drum manufacturing back to its glory days. A
lot of times drummers don't know what's going on with guitarists, so here's an
idea.
Gretsch has a growing number of reissue models produced in the
Orient. They look like the classic 50s and 60s models, but with new electronics.
A very few handmade American versions are made and these have steep price tags.
Once
Fred Gretsch felt he had moved forward with guitar manufacturing, he wanted to
bring back "That Great Gretsch Sound" in drums.
The company
selected a handful of colors and started limited production which has grown over
the last dozen years. This is a company that embraces its past and uses the same
nitrocellulose lacquer for what seems like forever.
The lug design goes
back to the early 50s and the shell configuration of 6 plies of maple/poplar
has been around over 40 years.
But... it's the sound!
Gretsch
uses a 35 or so degree bearing edge, as opposed to today's common 45 degrees.
The drums just sing!
If you'd like to read more about Gretsch Drums, I
invite you to order an autographed copy of my book,
"The Great American Drums". It's $ 19.95 plus
shipping. | |
