#18897 by Craig Maxim
Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:12 pm
Mon Jan 07, 2008 9:12 pm
Top 20 strangest guitars
http://www.musicgadgets.net/2006/05/08/top-20-strangest-guitars/1/
Whatever your tastes are, there is a guitar for you. From Fender to Gibson and all the other million guitar makers, there has to be any model you like. Maybe not? Then you are one of those with a really strange taste and this is the post for you.
This compilation shows the 20 strangest guitars we have been able to find. Some of them can not even be played or, at least, are not comfortable enough to do it. With others, you have to be a genius to play. Anyways, all of them have some singularity which makes them special.
Let’s enjoy this bizarre tour.
1.– Flipout
See something strange in this guitar? Yeah, the body is reversed. Or maybe it’s the neck which is reversed? Anyway, this doesn’t seem like a comfortable guitar to play, at least if you want to get to the higher notes in the fretboard. You can get one for $459 online.
2.– Gun guitar
Play and kill at the same time with the Gun guitar. Someone from Gizmodo saw this in a Japanese Yamaha store, where there must be lots of weird guitars, have a look at the bass in the left. The price is about $700, not bad if only you could shoot with it.
3.– Pikasso
Pat Metheny is one of the most famous jazz guitar players and winner of lots of Grammys. The Pikasso guitar was built for him by luthier Linda Manzer in 1984 and it has 42 strings.
4.– Jeweled Jesus
A Fender Stratocaster carved by Doug Rowell for Mike Deasy in 1969, representing the figure of Jesus with a hand on the bridge. For more weirdness, it was stolen from him and returned 25 years later after announcing it on a webpage.
5.– Cigar box guitar
The guitar for people with little money. Many famous rock and blues players made one themselves when they were young and couldn’t buy one. Made from whatever you could find: cigar box, broom handle,… Carl Perkins, composer of “blue suede shoes” built one in his youth.
6.– Toilet seat guitar
This toilet seat guitar includes all the accessories for making it look very real, like the turd and the toilet paper. Makes me wonder, does it sound like sh*t?
7.– Harp Guitar
For some people (like me) it’s difficult enough to play the guitar, let alone if it is combined with a harp. This is a combination of two instruments in one, and there are thousands of models, with differing number of strings and configurations.
8.– Satan angel guitar
I have no additional info about this guitar, but the picture is weird enough to be included here. Recommended for death-metal and satanic bands, I suppose.
9.– Naked lady guitar
Wanna be really provocative? Then you have to play with this guitar or the next one, whichever fits you most. Both are guaranteed to scandalize your audience and, of course, their mothers. Have a look where the jack is connected.
10.– Wangcaster
If you need to show your virility on stage the Wangcaster is your guitar. Picture says it all, so no more comments. Well, the pubic-hair pickguard is nice to have too.
11.– Electric harp guitar
Didn’t have enough with the acoustic harp guitar? The electric harp guitar is equipped with a headless 6–string neck and a Steinberger Trans-Trem. Opera-rock anybody?
12.– Heat Hawk
This guitar could only be made in Japan. It includes an internal amp and speakers, and makes sounds when you pull the trigger. It gets my vote for the ugliest design I have ever seen.
13.– Guitar & bass
If you can’t stand your bassist any more you have to get this guitar and kick him out of the group. But you will need long fingers to be able to play it comfortably. If only you had two more hands…
14.– Nano guitar
In the opposite of the the last one, you will need a really small hand to be able to play this, as it’s only 10 micrometers long, and the smallest "guitar" in the world. So small you can’t even use a pick and have to play it with a laser light. Of course, you can’t also hear how it sounds, but it’s a great piece of engineering.
15.– Skatar
The first combination of a guitar, a bass and a transport. Get on stage, play the damn thing and be the first to leave on your skateboard. Just take care not to step on the strings.
16.– Scary Guitar
Another guitar for which I have no info, but won its place here if only for the oddly shaped head.
17.– Ibanez Tripleneck
You can’t do an article about strange guitars without showing some owned by Steve Vai. When we thought that the double-neck used by Jimmy Page was almost too much, we find the triple-neck. One twelve-string neck, one regular 6–string and a fretless one configure this singular guitar. It must hurt to carry it for a while. Steve wanted to use it on his Sex and Religion tour but it was too expensive to carry, because of its fragility.
18.– Ibanez Heart Tripleneck
The last guitar wasn’t weird enough, so pushing it a little further, this has a heart-shaped body. Designed also by Steve Vai, it was replaced by the last one because this was too difficult to play and doesn’t really make much sense.
19.– Birdfish
This is so strange I almost can’t describe it. The character of the sound of the guitar is defined mainly by it’s body and it’s resonant properties. This guitar has no body and uses two cylindrical resonators, which can be changed at any time. The pickups can also be adjusted to get the sound you want.
20.– Air guitar
Is there something weirder than playing guitar with a guitar that doesn’t exist? So even if you are really musically-challenged you can create solos like a virtuoso. Developed by the Helsinki University of Technology you only need a camera and a computer to become a rock star.
21.– Guitar Theremin
OK, I know this was the top 20 strangest guitars and this makes the 21, but it’s not really a guitar so it doesn’t count, take it as a bonus for reading up to here. This is played by moving your hand up and down the neck and tapping at the red button, in a theremin-style. No, sorry, it doesn’t shoot lasers and can’t fry your enemies.
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http://www.musicgadgets.net/2006/05/08/top-20-strangest-guitars/1/
Whatever your tastes are, there is a guitar for you. From Fender to Gibson and all the other million guitar makers, there has to be any model you like. Maybe not? Then you are one of those with a really strange taste and this is the post for you.
This compilation shows the 20 strangest guitars we have been able to find. Some of them can not even be played or, at least, are not comfortable enough to do it. With others, you have to be a genius to play. Anyways, all of them have some singularity which makes them special.
Let’s enjoy this bizarre tour.
1.– Flipout
See something strange in this guitar? Yeah, the body is reversed. Or maybe it’s the neck which is reversed? Anyway, this doesn’t seem like a comfortable guitar to play, at least if you want to get to the higher notes in the fretboard. You can get one for $459 online.
2.– Gun guitar
Play and kill at the same time with the Gun guitar. Someone from Gizmodo saw this in a Japanese Yamaha store, where there must be lots of weird guitars, have a look at the bass in the left. The price is about $700, not bad if only you could shoot with it.
3.– Pikasso
Pat Metheny is one of the most famous jazz guitar players and winner of lots of Grammys. The Pikasso guitar was built for him by luthier Linda Manzer in 1984 and it has 42 strings.
4.– Jeweled Jesus
A Fender Stratocaster carved by Doug Rowell for Mike Deasy in 1969, representing the figure of Jesus with a hand on the bridge. For more weirdness, it was stolen from him and returned 25 years later after announcing it on a webpage.
5.– Cigar box guitar
The guitar for people with little money. Many famous rock and blues players made one themselves when they were young and couldn’t buy one. Made from whatever you could find: cigar box, broom handle,… Carl Perkins, composer of “blue suede shoes” built one in his youth.
6.– Toilet seat guitar
This toilet seat guitar includes all the accessories for making it look very real, like the turd and the toilet paper. Makes me wonder, does it sound like sh*t?
7.– Harp Guitar
For some people (like me) it’s difficult enough to play the guitar, let alone if it is combined with a harp. This is a combination of two instruments in one, and there are thousands of models, with differing number of strings and configurations.
8.– Satan angel guitar
I have no additional info about this guitar, but the picture is weird enough to be included here. Recommended for death-metal and satanic bands, I suppose.
9.– Naked lady guitar
Wanna be really provocative? Then you have to play with this guitar or the next one, whichever fits you most. Both are guaranteed to scandalize your audience and, of course, their mothers. Have a look where the jack is connected.
10.– Wangcaster
If you need to show your virility on stage the Wangcaster is your guitar. Picture says it all, so no more comments. Well, the pubic-hair pickguard is nice to have too.
11.– Electric harp guitar
Didn’t have enough with the acoustic harp guitar? The electric harp guitar is equipped with a headless 6–string neck and a Steinberger Trans-Trem. Opera-rock anybody?
12.– Heat Hawk
This guitar could only be made in Japan. It includes an internal amp and speakers, and makes sounds when you pull the trigger. It gets my vote for the ugliest design I have ever seen.
13.– Guitar & bass
If you can’t stand your bassist any more you have to get this guitar and kick him out of the group. But you will need long fingers to be able to play it comfortably. If only you had two more hands…
14.– Nano guitar
In the opposite of the the last one, you will need a really small hand to be able to play this, as it’s only 10 micrometers long, and the smallest "guitar" in the world. So small you can’t even use a pick and have to play it with a laser light. Of course, you can’t also hear how it sounds, but it’s a great piece of engineering.
15.– Skatar
The first combination of a guitar, a bass and a transport. Get on stage, play the damn thing and be the first to leave on your skateboard. Just take care not to step on the strings.
16.– Scary Guitar
Another guitar for which I have no info, but won its place here if only for the oddly shaped head.
17.– Ibanez Tripleneck
You can’t do an article about strange guitars without showing some owned by Steve Vai. When we thought that the double-neck used by Jimmy Page was almost too much, we find the triple-neck. One twelve-string neck, one regular 6–string and a fretless one configure this singular guitar. It must hurt to carry it for a while. Steve wanted to use it on his Sex and Religion tour but it was too expensive to carry, because of its fragility.
18.– Ibanez Heart Tripleneck
The last guitar wasn’t weird enough, so pushing it a little further, this has a heart-shaped body. Designed also by Steve Vai, it was replaced by the last one because this was too difficult to play and doesn’t really make much sense.
19.– Birdfish
This is so strange I almost can’t describe it. The character of the sound of the guitar is defined mainly by it’s body and it’s resonant properties. This guitar has no body and uses two cylindrical resonators, which can be changed at any time. The pickups can also be adjusted to get the sound you want.
20.– Air guitar
Is there something weirder than playing guitar with a guitar that doesn’t exist? So even if you are really musically-challenged you can create solos like a virtuoso. Developed by the Helsinki University of Technology you only need a camera and a computer to become a rock star.
21.– Guitar Theremin
OK, I know this was the top 20 strangest guitars and this makes the 21, but it’s not really a guitar so it doesn’t count, take it as a bonus for reading up to here. This is played by moving your hand up and down the neck and tapping at the red button, in a theremin-style. No, sorry, it doesn’t shoot lasers and can’t fry your enemies.
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