Danelectro 56 U-2 Reissue
1998 Danelectro 56 U-2
Every guitar player eventually finds the instrument that’s just right for them. For some people it’s the first guitar that they learned to play on. Maybe it belonged to their parents, an older sibling or neighbor. We all start out with what’s available to us at the time. Some guitarists get comfortable with that one that inspired them early on and that’s what they prefer.
But more often than not, the journey plays out like this. A guitarist learns the basics, becomes a better player, finds their style and ends up playing different kinds of guitars. They get a broader perspective on what they like, what they don’t and they ultimately find “the one”. The guitar that feels best in their hands, produces the sound they want and looks cool to them.
The fact that there is so much variety in guitar designs also means that many guitarists end up owning more than one. They find having an alternative guitar that is different from their main axe brings out a new approach to their playing.
One of the second or alternative electric guitars that I often see in guitarist’s tool boxes are Danelectros. Several of the greats have been photographed playing them. Jimmy Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Tom Petty, Elvis Costello, Bruce Springsteen, Joe Perry and even alternative artists like Thurston Moore from Sonic Youth use them. The list goes on. None of those artists are particularly known for playing a Danelectro, but they all saw something in them.
Dano’s have been around since the 50’s, are affordable and look really cool. They are also a lot different than most of the other popular guitar designs. They have sort of retro and futuristic vibe all in one package. They play well and are really hard to put down. Danelectros have a vintage sound that comes from their lipstick pickups. They’re not great for Heavy Metal, but they are excellent for blues, country, rock and pop.
The famous Manny’s Music in NYC (now closed) had a Danelectro in the store that was nicknamed Old Yellow. Manny’s owner, Henry Goldrich talks about the guitar in this video. Manny’s was The Store where all of the famous musicians visited when they were in NYC back in the day. The Beatles, The Rolling Stones, The Who, Lou Reed and Bo Diddley just to name a few. Henry’s policy was, if you wanted to try out an amplifier in the store, you had to play Old Yellow. It was the only guitar he would let people use to test amps. It didn’t matter who you were. If you wanted to play an amp in the store you were using Old Yellow. The guitar was beat up, repaired and modified, but there was something about it that made it special. Everyone loved it. Many famous artists tried to buy Old Yellow off of Henry and he just wouldn’t sell it.
I’ve written about the history of the Danelectro company in a previous post. They started making guitars in the U.S.A. back in the 50’s. Eventually the company closed. Assets were bought and sold. In the 90’s Danelectro started making guitars again under new management. The guitars were reissues of their original models with some new finishes and small improvements. Production was out of Korea and eventually shifted to China and Indonesia where they still make them today. One of the things I really like about Danelectro is that the company releases new models constantly. They will also stop production on the models from previous years. They still stay true to their roots. Guitars made using lipstick pickups and Masonite bodies to retain the unique Danelectro sound.
This Danelectro was made in Korea in 1998 and is a reissue of their 1956 U-2 model. The single cutaway body is semi-hollow which makes it nice and light. It has a poplar frame with a masonite top and back. The neck is made of maple, has a C shape and is bolted onto the body. Fingerboards on these 90’s MIK ones were made of Rosewood. They use Pau Ferro now. Scale length is 25”. The neck has a 14” flat radius with 21 frets. Two lipstick pickups, a 3-way pickup selector, one volume and one tone control that is stacked and an adjustable wrap-around bridge with rosewood saddle. The finish is called Malt Shop Cream and it’s just perfect for this guitar. The “tolex like” tape that runs along the outside of the body (another Danelectro signature design) is a chocolate brown color.
The recent models are great and used ones are easy to find for just a few hundred dollars. They even make 12 strings, Double-Necks, Baritones, Basses and electric sitars. These make a perfect second guitar. Many of the best rock n roll artists in history would agree. Head down to your local guitar store and check one out.