The guitars' looks, feel, tones, and stories compliment a musician, band, or guitar/art collection.
The Guitar Hunter chronicles his journeys here. Check back often.
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IonoGlobe electric guitar by Tony Cochran Guitars
The most unique feature of this electric guitar is the fully wired metal ball right by the neck. Farber Endison played this guitar in the late 50’s for a band called The Bubble Tops. Their specialty was car oriented Rock-a-billy music before anyone wanted to hear it. When Farber’s Uncle, Gropper T. Endison, was on safari in what is now known as Namibia, he had nearly been hit by a baseball size metal ball that fell from he sky. (This stuff still happens there. Google it.) He gave it to Farber claiming he could no longer bear the noises it made in his head. Farber’s brother, Clayton, a hypothetical electrical genius, wired it to the guitar and told Farber that it would enhance the almost inaudible, and probably imagined, sounds emanating from the orb. It was probably not true. What we do know is that soon after, Farber grew out his hair, quit wearing shoes, and would only play the guitar in a cave found in the mountains behind his parents’ house. He was found dead in 1965, deep in the cave with the guitar in his lap. There was a partially eaten sandwich and the diagram for five never before heard chords. To this day Clayton will not release them to the public.
Source: TonyCochranGuitars.com
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OSScaster Electric Guitar by Tony Cochran Guitars
This is the only electric guitar in existence where both an OSS device and a Tone Baker have been electronically mated successfully. Buckle up, guitarionados, this instrument is a rough old relic but its story is almost unbelievable. Osso Bucca was an immigrant who came to America in the ’60s after being fired by Galanti Guitar in Italy. He brought his knowledge of “radio gain” (that’s how it translates to English) with him to Wyoming. There he met up with Tex Gilders who had been fired by Fender for working on a device of his own, called a “Baker”. It’s not real clear what either of these devices is supposed to do singularly but, supposedly, they do it way better in tandem. The only quote from Gilder and Bucca was a note that said, “It does for tone what an oven does for biscuits”. I agree.
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Strobotac Electric Guitar - by Tony Cochran Guitars
This electric guitar was the result of sound experiments performed by Clavin P. Bogold in 1961. Unlike conventional guitar music, where notes are echoed in reverb, he attempted to make a device that preverbed or, in other words, reversed reverb. Everything was so analog and noisy back then. He recorded some surfer tunes with the guitar, but they just came out sad and oddly satanic. Now the motor knob is stuck and the elevation button and comfort control switch are not hooked up. It doesn’t preverb. It doesn’t reverb. It just verbs. Sounds amazing anyway. It might be the one-of-a-kind Strobolux Pacemaker Line bridge.
- See more at: http://www.tonycochranguitars.com/strobotac.html
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Sandpiper Electric Guitar - by Tony Cochran Guitars
Monaco “Stallion” Ceriani worked his magic with this electric guitar at the now shuttered Sandpiper Motel and Lounge in Bolivia, NC. His music was a peculiar mix of P-Funk and Psychedelic Jazz with a weird Reggae flavor that left everyone confused about how to dance to it. It is rumored he built the guitar from the broken shell of a 1965 Firebird, an old Epiphone, and his dead Mom’s jewelry box. The Lounge was closed in 1975 when US 17 caused a decline in attendance. The Stallion decided to sell the guitar and switch to screenwriting. He was contributor to many Different Strokes episodes, as well as being a musical consultant to The Partridge Family. - See more at: http://www.tonycochranguitars.com/sandpiper.html
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Arkanacaster Guitar
by Tony Cochran Guitars
This electric guitar was the property of Country Western star Diamond Ted Raymond of Deadtree, Arkansas. He fitted it with what he called “a harmonic deceptor”, a crude, but effective planking system that humanized bent notes. Diamond Ted specialized in a particularly nasty breed of Honky Tonk called Flinch Wailing. After it was outlawed by the state and condemned in the Catholic Telegraph, Diamond Ted went underground with his performances until his death in 1961. He passed out drunk while eating peanut butter with his hands, and squirrels ate his fingers off. He bled to death. Rumor has it … he wanted his guitar buried with him, but his lousy brother stole it from the funeral home. The deceptor doesn’t seem to work anymore, but it’s still a handsome piece.
Source: facebook.com
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This bass guitar was found in the wreckage of a Greyhound bus that ran off the road in 1951. There were only 6 people on the bus … the driver, 2 very deaf women from Huntsville, Alabama, a senator from Maine with his mistress, and a 12 year old off to visit his Grandmother in Tulsa. None checked in a guitar as luggage. There was a hand written note inside the case, on a thin sheet of rice paper. It said, “IT’S NOT MINE”… . Weird.
Source: facebook.com
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Ask & ye shall receive … Sparkycaster Bass Steampunk Guitar unveiled!
Detail pics link and Like us at www.facebook.com/TonyCochranGuitars
Darren Thompson contracted so violently when he was electrocuted at San Cornelius prison, in 1967, that the arms of the chair broke. The pieces were used by William Muldover to repair an old bass electric guitar he played in the prison church ensemble “The Caged Angels” … Might explain the odd, but pleasant, tone.
Source: facebook.com
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New Alumicaster guitar completed!
Like at www.facebook.com/TonyCochranGuitars for detail photos and first notice of new work. This is one of my favorite guitars I created on my work bench a little while ago. It needed a new volume pot. Rumor Has It … It’s a Strat look alike clad with aluminum from the Porsche James Dean died in. The guy I bought it from said a friend of a friend swiped a door from the car. (The car has never been accounted for, by the way.) He deskinned the door and used the sheet aluminum to shore up some bad cracks in the body of his guitar. He had documents. I believed him. Enough said.
Source: facebook.com
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NEW Dazeycaster guitar just finished!
Rumor Has It … This fiery red beauty has a pair of blue-tipped spostulators just above the pickup switch. Blue-tips are more collectible than both the yellow-tips and the natural tips. Beware: they are hard wired to the manual chrome yantas located below the string block. Do not ever use both spostulators at the same time … EVER!
Source: facebook.com
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Chalicecaster Guitar
Rumor Has It … Found in a sealed cedar case locked in the trunk of a beautiful old 1957 Cadillac purchased at an estate sale in North Chicago. Yikes. Who owned THIS puppy? Could have been a priest, could have been a vampire. Same weird vibe.
Go to www.facebook.com/TonyCochranGuitars for details and more pics of this new guitar listing.
Source: facebook.com
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