THE GUITAR RECEIVED ITS FIRST JOLT OF ELECTRICITY MORE THAN 130 YEARS AGO — AND IT’S BEEN HUMMING ALONG EVER SINCE. HERE ARE 50 MILESTONES WORTH CELEBRATING.
BY BRAD TOLINSKI
AN ACOUSTIC GUITAR is a wonderful thing. It’s expressive, it makes a beautiful noise and it’s portable. You can take it anywhere and it will work just fine, from a New York City subway station to the top of Whiskey Dick Mountain in Washington. Its only drawback is it’s a little quiet. One-on-one, a piano, a trumpet or tuba will kick its mellow ass.
As early as 1890, guitarists knew they needed amplification if they were going to be heard. And they were right. Once the instrument found its way to a wall socket, the guitar became an unstoppable force powering the music of Elvis Presley, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones and… Cannibal Corpse!
Over the next 12 pages, Guitar World traces the electric guitar’s evolution — from shrinking violet to life of the party — in 50 astonishing moments. So, buckle up and hold on to your Strat. It’s gonna be a wild ride.
1. The nation’s first electricity-generating power station opens its doors (September 4, 1882)
What does the first power station have to do with the electric guitar? Well, ya can’t have an electric guitar without electricity, ya big dummy! In 1882 Thomas Edison helped form the Edison Illuminating Company of New York, which brought electric light to parts of Manhattan, but progress was, er, shockingly slow. Most Americans still lit their homes with gas light and candles for another 50 years. Only in 1925 did half of all homes in the U.S. have electric power, and it wasn’t until 1960 that virtually all dwellings had electricity.
2. The first patent for an electric guitar design is given to inventor George Breed (September 2, 1890)
In September 1890, U.S. Navy officer George Breed was granted a patent for a design for an electrified guitar. His design was based on a vibrating string in an electromagnetic field, but his “guitar” was small and extremely heavy, and it produced only exceptionally bizarre sustained sounds reminiscent of a cat in heat. Breed is now almost completely unknown as a musical-instrument maker and his instrument now resides in the dustbin of obscurity, but, hey, you gotta start somewhere…
3. Lee de Forest patents the first electronic amplification device (January 29, 1907)
Let’s face it, an electric guitar without an amp suck
