Having said this, there are a lot worse guitars out there, and as well as being historically important, the 1820 bass can certainly provide the goods when required.Acoustic guitars have been used to make music and entertain crowds since the Middle Ages. Over the course of the 70s, the Japanese output improved dramatically, and in many ways these early 70s models are a low point for the brand. These new Epiphones were based on existing Matsumoku guitars, sharing body shapes, and hardware, but the Epiphone line was somewhat upgraded, with inlaid logos and a 2x2 peghead configuration. The Matsumoku factory had been producing guitars for export for some time, but the 1820 bass (alongside a number of guitar models and the 5120 electric acoustic bass) were the first Epiphone models to be made there. The small body size meant an acoustic version of the club series was not possible.īy the end of the 1960s, a decision had been made to move Epiphone guitar production from the USA (at the Kalamazoo plant where Gibson guitars were made), to Matsumoto in Japan, creating a line of guitars and basses significantly less expensive than the USA-built models (actually less than half the price). The difference between the Club 60 and the Club 50 (in 1960 at any rate, specifications changed over time) was primarily in ornamentation: an ebony fingerboard, elaborate neck marker inlays and body binding.įrom 1960 all of these models were upgraded with the new Hofner features listed on page 2 of this catalogue: adjustable truss rod, 'slenda-nek' and 'Super Response' toaster pickups.Īvailable in blonde or brunette finishes at 42 gns. There were three models, the Club 60, shown here, and the slightly less ornate Club 40 (one pickup) and Club 50 (two pickups) shown on page 8 of this catalogue. With its laminate spruce top, and maple back and sides, it was actually quite similar to the larger, more-obviously hollow instruments Hofner was famous for.

The Hofner Club series had been around since 1957, and although borrowing the styling of the all-solid Gibson Les Paul, was actually a hollow-body, albeit without f-holes or the larger body size of most other Hofners. Selmer 1960 Hofner and Futurama catalogue.

Egmond acoustic guitar model no 10