Why are Guitar Players So Conservative?

[drmilktruck]

I've brought this up before but thought it was worth discussing again. Supposedly rock n roll was born out a rebellious streak, seeking to break away from World War II orthodoxy. A new generation, with new musical heroes! Brands like Gibson, Fender, Guild and Gretsch catered to the new music. A decade on, the children of the first group pushed the boundaries further. Yet sixty years later (and I'm as guilty as anyone) we still play (and prefer) guitars first crafted in the 1950s - Strats, Teles, Les Pauls, Aristocrats, 6120s, 6128s. That also applies to amplifiers. Vacuum tubes are obsolete outside guitar music. Nothing else created in the 1950s is the standard. Even "radical" models like the Explorer or Firebird are mainstream, copied by numerous builders. Punk, Shred, Grunge, Metal and other musical movements still played the guitars of the 1950-60s. Original guitar makers like Parker, Steinberger, or Strandberg have struggled to make any mark. It's not just older people. Young guitar heroes play the same guitars as their forebears. Is the electric guitar destined to become the gut string or banjo of the next generation or two, doomed to become as irrelevant as the concerto or the gramophone?

 

[Duo Slinger]

I've brought this up before but thought it was worth discussing again. Supposedly rock n roll was born out a rebellious streak, seeking to break away from World War II orthodoxy. A new generation, with new musical heroes! Brands like Gibson, Fender, Guild and Gretsch catered to the new music. A decade on, the children of the first group pushed the boundaries further. Yet sixty years later (and I'm as guilty as anyone) we still play (and prefer) guitars first crafted in the 1950s - Strats, Teles, Les Pauls, Aristocrats, 6120s, 6128s. That also applies to amplifiers. Vacuum tubes are obsolete outside guitar music. Nothing else created in the 1950s is the standard. Even "radical" models like the Explorer or Firebird are mainstream, copied by numerous builders. Punk, Shred, Grunge, Metal and other musical movements still played the guitars of the 1950-60s. Original guitar makers like Parker, Steinberger, or Strandberg have struggled to make any mark. It's not just older people. Young guitar heroes play the same guitars as their forebears. Is the electric guitar destined to become the gut string or banjo of the next generation or two, doomed to become as irrelevant as the concerto or the gramophone?

Why do all the pianos seem to be the exact same? Why do luthiers still copy Stradivarius violins? I don't recall seeing the horn section look much different. I think it's just a matter of the electric guitar maturing as an instrument.

 

[GretschPlayer101]

I think the original designs are so good, bith functionality (as well as tone) and aesthetics people don't want to change to a more radical design.

 

[juks]

I for one really hope Elon Musk never goes to guitar business. you can call me conservative in regards to guitars.

I'd also like to add Rickenbacker to your list of original guitars.

 

[Emergence]

Conservative? I don’t think anyone’s accused me of that, at least that I can recall. My worldview is physicalist, a probabilistic world of data and evidence. Guitars? I play what works for me. All of mine look pretty traditional, but they’ve all been modified to give me the clarity I demand without the highs hurting my ears. Is that conservative?

I spent my working life in engineering, a creative rather than conservative occupation, especially my work in design. But I chose my tool’s carefully, choosing those that worked best without holding me back. And I was never afraid to improve the design of my tools.

Conservative? I’m more indigo than blue, less red than firebrand. Labels just don’t apply.

 

[Wonderland Drive]

Take theTelecaster:

Two pickups, three-way selector switch, one volume, one tone control ; the treble bout cutaway and curve design makes playing sitting or standing ergonomically sound , and fretboard access way up and down the neck is a breeze.

The placement of the pickups - with the capability of three settings - and the tone control provide the player with a wide array of sounds to apply to different genres/ styles of music.

Sometimes the original design can be the best design.
Perhaps guitar manufacturers who produce Telecaster style guitars are conserving a fine idea and design whilst adding their personal touches.

 

[BCRatRod73]

“Original guitar makers like Parker, Steinberger, or Strandberg have struggled to make any mark.”
Aesthetics matter. I prefer a design that’s pleasing to the eye. I like design elements that flow. I’d guess there are a lot more guitar buyers who agree with those three things than disagree. There’s nothing wrong with a new design. Sometimes the new design or brand finds a following, sometimes not so much. I have no problem with innovation so long as it solves a problem or creates a new sound or way of doing things, but if it’s innovation such as Henry J. and what he did to Gibson then no thanks.
I think the old designs work well for the majority of the market that just so happens to have the money to spend. Seems like the ones clamoring for innovation don’t have the money in large enough numbers for companies to make a profit.

 

[TV the Wired Turtle]

I've brought this up before but thought it was worth discussing again. Supposedly rock n roll was born out a rebellious streak, seeking to break away from World War II orthodoxy. A new generation, with new musical heroes! Brands like Gibson, Fender, Guild and Gretsch catered to the new music. A decade on, the children of the first group pushed the boundaries further. Yet sixty years later (and I'm as guilty as anyone) we still play (and prefer) guitars first crafted in the 1950s - Strats, Teles, Les Pauls, Aristocrats, 6120s, 6128s. That also applies to amplifiers. Vacuum tubes are obsolete outside guitar music. Nothing else created in the 1950s is the standard. Even "radical" models like the Explorer or Firebird are mainstream, copied by numerous builders. Punk, Shred, Grunge, Metal and other musical movements still played the guitars of the 1950-60s. Original guitar makers like Parker, Steinberger, or Strandberg have struggled to make any mark. It's not just older people. Young guitar heroes play the same guitars as their forebears. Is the electric guitar destined to become the gut string or banjo of the next generation or two, doomed to become as irrelevant as the concerto or the gramophone?

Man remains the same and the machine bends to his intent. No more doomed to change is the guitarist with his guitar, than the hunter and his rifle. -tv

M

 

[Randy99CL]

I don't believe I am conservative at all.
When electric guitars were new lots of people came up with lots of new ideas. Many didn't work so well and are gone.
Inventors have had 70 years to create better designs and improvements on the old and some are still here but most are gone.

The best designs worked, were accepted and loved. Many are working hard to come up with the new idea that works and sells a million but it just ain't happening.

 

[Henry]

Remember, jazz was edgy. Mozart was edgy. What was edgy, becomes the norm.

Novelties are novel because they are novel! Now, Rock isn't edgy, it's grandpa music. Well at least the rock most of us listen to

Lol, there are millions, maybe billions, of non-rock songs being sold.

Rock has existed for 70-80 years out of a human history of thousands of years. Lots of navel-gazing, self--rcing people say the 50s-80s era made music that will last forever unlike current music. We shall see if any of Rock has the longevity of the classical composers who have passed the test of time.

 

[Henry]

And, doc, I believe there is a medical answer, right? When the brain is growing, new experiences create new neural pathways. Once the brain is fully developed, it takes a lot more work to develop new neural pathways, and most people, most of the time, take the easy route of traveling the existing neural pathways they created before age 21 or so.

When you're young and full of vim, you want something new, avant garde. When you're old, you want familiarity and comfort.

 

[Ricochet]

We pay tribute to our heros and eras that have passed. Doing so while using old guitar designs and fashion-sense of yore seems wholly appropriate. It makes us feel warm and fuzzy. It completes the picture.

Modern guitar designs like Steinberger, Parker while technically extremely clever, disconnect from the aforementioned romantic notion, and on gut level always feel a bit soulless and cold, like something is missing.

 

[Desirsar]

Gretsches aren't super mainstream yet, aren't we all still rebels here?

 

[BuddyHollywood]

I don't know if it's because guitar players are conservative. I think it's more that tried and tested designs are relied upon for the tone they produce, the playability they are known for and for how timeless and cool their designs are.

About 10 years ago I designed an electric guitar and a bass. I tried to go back to my childhood and imagine what I thought an electric guitar looked like. I showed players pictures of them on all of the forums and had them for sale on eBay and Reverb. My Jedi Master luthier partner and I were willing to build our guitars to any spec a player wanted for $1,000. We sold 0 guitars. Nobody cared. The lesson I learned? There are already too many great guitars to choose from. If this design came out in 1963 instead of 2013 I may have had a chance to market and sell them. I was too late. I'm not surprised the hottest new guitar design in the last 10 years is a tweaked Stratocaster copy. I also love Gretsch, Fender and Gibson!


At least I used mine on an album I recorded. It sounds like a fat Telecaster.

 

[oneforsorrow]

Man remains the same and the machine bends to his intent. No more doomed to change is the guitarist with his guitar, than the hunter and his rifle. -tv

M

I love this statement! Well put, sir. Well put.

 

[oneforsorrow]

If it ain't broke ...

 

[Synchro]

I’m going to approach this from a different perspective. How long have houses had doors and windows? The materials have advanced, but the basic design concept is ancient.

It would be difficult to hit all the high spots, but if we look at a handful of postwar guitars, we see designs that are with us today. Look at the Telecaster. As I write, I’m looking at a Telecaster manufactured in 2021, which is recognizably similar to one made in the late 1940s. I could not imagine any way to improve upon the basic design. Certainly, there are other ways to make a solid-body guitar. Such as a Les Paul, or a Stratocaster, but there isn’t much you can do to make a Tele better than it was when the model first emerged.

Leo did try to make a Super Tele, and it ended up being the Stratocaster. He expected that it would replace the Telecaster, but the demand for Teles never went away. Nor has it for Les Pauls, ES-335s, Gretsch 6120s, etc.

Speking of the 6120, how far back does the basic design concept go? It’s not that different from an ES-175, which isn’t that different from an ES 150, and on and on it goes, back to the Gibson Model O. 16” archtops sell, because that’s a size with which many people are comfortable. The overall concept of a 6120 could be said to go back to 1908.

We don’t change, because there’s no reason to change. A ‘58 ES-335 is perfectly viable, 65 years later. Innovative designs, like the Parker Fly, are great, but at the end of the day, most of us don’t really need all of its features.

Houses have doors and windows, because such a design is compatible with the way humans live. I would opine that guitars work the same way. The basic designs matured in the ‘50s, and there’s no reason to move on from them. If I was offered a monetary grant, to design the ultimate guitar, the design concept would be in line with the guitars I already own. I could think of a handful of refinements, mostly some electrical ideas, but the basic concept would probably be quite similar to the guitars I already own. I just can’t think of anything to be gained by moving away from those concepts.

 

[Cryin_Caleb_Aaron]

 

[Tubejockey]

Guitars have not changed much because they are more than just a tool. We don't care too much what a tool looks like as long as it works well. A guitar is much more personal, more intimate. It becomes a part of us as we create with it. This is why we want it to be much more than merely functional, we want it to be beautiful. It is functional art.

I have a significant harem of guitars, mostly traditional in design. My son has a handful of Strandberg styles, 7 and 8 stringed stuff, fanned-fret, etc. I've tried the new designs enough to feel comfortable on them. I have to admit that they do play well and are lightweight and ergonomic, but they don't offer any new tones or lend themselves to anything musical I can't do on my own. If I really need the extended range, I have a baritone. I can understand the attraction from an ergonomic standpoint, but they just look a bit goofy.

By contrast, take a good look at a strat. It is perfectly ergonomic in every way that counts. It has great tones at your fingertips. It has very few limitations, but honestly a few limitations seem to inspire me to push a little more. And it has a beautiful look as well. Everything has a nice balance. It has a lovely shape, very womanly. Which may be part of the allure. Maybe the muse is summoned more readily with it precisely because it has that familiar human shape. Holding it and playing it conjures images of human relationships and struggles.

 

[Mr Twangy]

I don't know if it's because guitar players are conservative. I think it's more that tried and tested designs are relied upon for the tone they produce, the playability they are known for and for how timeless and cool their designs are.

About 10 years ago I designed an electric guitar and a bass. I tried to go back to my childhood and imagine what I thought an electric guitar looked like. I showed players pictures of them on all of the forums and had them for sale on eBay and Reverb. My Jedi Master luthier partner and I were willing to build our guitars to any spec a player wanted for $1,000. We sold 0 guitars. Nobody cared. The lesson I learned? There are already too many great guitars to choose from. If this design came out in 1963 instead of 2013 I may have had a chance to market and sell them. I was too late. I'm not surprised the hottest new guitar design in the last 10 years is a tweaked Stratocaster copy. I also love Gretsch, Fender and Gibson!
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At least I used mine on an album I recorded. It sounds like a fat Telecaster.

Those are really beautiful. And they look like they would sound good.