History of the Electric Guitar
Rickenbacker, Fender and Gibson guitar companies are the pioneers of the modern electric guitar. The idea to create a pickup to amplify the guitar sound was shared by many inventors but the key to perfecting the pickup system was in using a solid body construction. There are several styles of electric guitars, including hollow bodies, semi-hollow and solid bodies. But the most common in use today is the solid body.
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Electro String Company
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Adolph Rickenbacker and George D. Beauchamp organized the Electro String Company to produce their own Hawaiian-type electric guitar design in 1931. The "Ken Roberts Model" and the "Bakelite Model B Spanish" electric guitars were introduced to the public in 1935.
Gibson Guitar Company
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The Gibson company began producing the ES-150 electric guitar in 1936. They introduced the ES-5 (a guitar with three pickups) and the ES-175 (a modern-shaped body design) in 1949.
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Innovator Les Paul
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Les Paul, after nearly a decade of experimentation with body types and various pickup designs, perfected a working model of a solid body guitar in 1941.
Leo Fender and the Fender Company
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Leo Fender, radio repair specialist, developed a solid body electric guitar called the "Broadcaster" in the 1940s. Fender and Doc Kaufman opened the K & F Company to produce steel guitars and amplifiers in 1944.
The "Precision Bass" and the "Telecaster"
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The Fender Electric Instrument Company manufactured the electric amplified "Precision Bass" and the "Broadcaster" guitar, renamed the "Telecaster," in 1951.
The Legendary "Les Paul" Model
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Gibson introduced the "Les Paul" electric model guitar in 1952. The design was perfected by Paul himself.
The "Strat" is Introduced
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Fender began marketing the "Stratocaster" electric guitar in 1954.
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