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GRETSCH
ABOVE A closer look A June ’56 list pitched the Penguin at the top of “I think that’s because so few originals were made,”
at David Gilmour’s wallet- Gretsch’s solidbody models at $475, with the $400 he said. “Also, like all Gretsch guitars, there are
busting White Penguin, Chet 6121 in second place, ahead of the $350 Round so many ways to dress up a Penguin now, with
photographed at 2019’s Up, $310 Silver Jet, $300 Jet Fire Bird, and $290 Duo bindings, colours, woods, and so on. It all works.”
auction preview event at
Christie’s in London Jet. The White Falcon, meanwhile, was listed at a cool The scarcity of the original Penguins turned them
$650. That same year, a Les Paul Goldtop listed at into rare birds indeed. One of the few this writer
$235, a sunburst Strat $274.50. has seen was owned by the late Scott Chinery, with
The few Penguins that Gretsch made mirrored whom I worked on a book about his collection. “An
the changes going on elsewhere at Gretsch. In about enigmatic guitar, to say the least,” said Scott as we
’58, that meant a shift to humbucking Filter’Trons, pored over his ’56-style Penguin. “The original owner
thumbnail markers, horizontal headstock logo, Space fooled around with it for a few months and then put
Control bridge, and a control layout of three volume it under his bed. Forty years later, when he took it out,
knobs and a selector each for tone and pickups. In it had appreciated to $80,000! It’s the rarity and the
1961, there was a change to a double-cut style that mystique that make it worth so much. I don’t know
Gretsch was applying across most of its models. Ed that it’s a great guitar as far as playing goes but it
Ball has done the best research into 1950s Gretsches, certainly has an aura about it. It’s exciting to me.”
published in his Ball’s Manual book, and his guess is Another famous Penguin I came across was the one
that fewer than 50 single-cut Penguins were produced. owned by David Gilmour, which I encountered when
There must have been even fewer double-cuts. we photographed it for my Ultimate Guitar Book. This
one had some 1958-style appointments, including
s( Ð{³ U( " s ¤ÊUqɺ Filter’Trons – and an unfortunately damaged pickguard.
Since Gretsch’s revival in the late-1980s, the That didn’t stop someone from paying $447,000 for
company has made various reissues of the Penguin. it at David’s big Christie’s auction last year though.
Stephen Stern at the company’s Custom Shop told Quite a chunk of change for a $475 guitar that, at the
me that the Penguin is the Shop’s most popular model. time of its release, almost no-one wanted.
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