Guyatone

Guyatone
IndustryMusical instrument
Founded1933; 91 years ago (1933) as "Matsuki Manufacturing" in Yamanashi[1]
FounderMitsuo Matsuki[1]
Headquarters
Oswego
,
United States
Key people
  • Toshihiko Torii
    (Engineer)
  • Nathaniel DeMont
    (Owner)
ProductsElectric guitars, amplifiers, effects units
ParentDeMont Guitars LLC
Websiteguyatone.com

Guyatone (Japanese: グヤトーン or ガイアトーン) is a Japanese guitar brand and manufacturing company that produces electric guitars, guitar amplifiers, and effect pedals. In the 1930s, the predecessor company was established as the oldest electric guitar manufacturer in Japan, and produced guitars under Guya brand until 1940. In 1948 after WWII, the company was re-established to produce electric Hawaiian guitars. In 1951, Guyatone brand was established for electric guitars,[2] and in 1955, their first solid-body guitar was introduced.[3]

During the late-1950s to mid-1960s, the trends of surf music caused the electric guitar boom,[4] and riding on this big wave, Guyatone electric guitars with unique designs and low prices were exported to Europe and America under the various brands, and played by various guitarists including Hank Marvin from the Shadows,[5] Jimi Hendrix in the early days,[6] Steve Howe of Yes, and others.

Over the 90 years of history, Guyatone encountered three crises in 1940, 1968[3] and 2013.[7] In the mid-2010s, the company and the brand were taken over by Toshihiko Torii (former Guyatone R&D engineer) and Nate DeMont (DeMont Guitar), then merged as the Guyatone & DeMont Guitars LLC.[8]

  1. ^ a b Company History Archived 2019-10-29 at the Wayback Machine by Frank Meyers, Author of "History of Japanese Electric Guitars", on Guyatone website, 13 October 2019
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference fjestad2014 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ a b Bacon, Carter & Elder 2018, p. 186, Guyatone: "One of the oldest Japanese guitar brands, Guyatone dates from the 1930s when Mitsuo Matsuki set up in Tokyo. The Guyatone brand was based on Matsuki's nickname “Guya,” someone who takes care of tools. Guyatone's first solid-body electric debuted in 1955, the “Les Paul Model,” styled more like early Nationals and Supros. Exporting began in the late 1950s. Budget Guyatones (some branded Star or Antoria) proved popular in the UK, where little else was available. Hank Marvin was an early customer. / Around 1968 the electric guitar market crashed in Japan. Many companies failed, including Guyatone. It re-emerged as the Guya Co Ltd. ... / Matsuki died in 1992. ..."
  4. ^ Millard 2004, p. 128, amateur players and the 1960s guitar boom: "The number of amateur players buying electric guitars increased exponentially in the 1960s as teenagers rushed to form guitar bands and prices of instruments dropped."
  5. ^ Cite error: The named reference burns was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  6. ^ Cite error: The named reference vectrum was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference tbd2013 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Cite error: The named reference guyatone.com was invoked but never defined (see the help page).