GEAR TALKIN'™️ #16: Danelectro/Silvertone

Cheap and hollow to the core + “Family Ghost” for WARMER’s fifth anniversary

Today is the fifth anniversary of Jeff’s album WARMER! To celebrate, Jeff is sharing a solo acoustic hotel version of “Family Ghost,” which can be heard below Mark’s delightful and informative Silvertone guitar breakdown. Enjoy! —Starship Engineers

Today we shine a light on the wonderful hollow masonite guitars made in the US of A in the 50’s and 60’s, many of which have lasted way beyond their life expectancy.

There are many of these “hollow-core door” type guitars here at the Loft. Most were made by the Danelectro company in New Jersey or Kay/Harmony in or near Chicago, and branded for the store or distributor that made the order (Silvertone for Sears, Airline for Montgomery Ward, Penncrest for JC Penney, Old Kraftsman for the Spiegel catalog, Custom Kraft for St. Louis Music). For many of these, the basic construction is centered on a hollow inner frame faced with masonite front and back, edged with a wallpaper-type vinyl wrap, and bolted to a poplar neck.

The reason for these materials? Cheap. These weren’t high-quality instruments made by luthiers for musical virtuosos. They were quick and low-cost consumer-level instruments that looked great, played OK, were pumped out on a production line staffed by lower-skilled non-luthiers, and could ship cheap for the budget market. Model numbers often related to how many pickups the guitar had or reflected the suggested catalog price tag.

These guitars were made for convenience, whether mail-ordered or to be picked up at your local department store. The time usually spent on detail, finesse, and craftsmanship was channeled more into the looks. These guitars look amazing. Like surfboards! Like motorcycle helmets! Space-aged shapes, sparkle finishes in hot-rod colors, sexy chrome lipstick pickups. Some came with teeny tube amps built right into the guitar case.

Despite all their construction-quality shortcomings, they have their own thing. There is a raw, unfussy brilliance to this end of the electric guitar spectrum. Sure, you may get a splinter or cut your hand on a rogue sharp fret here or there on these unrefined gems, but there is something very welcoming and inclusive about these affordable “guitars for the people.”

Both Danelectro and Silvertone have seen modern-day brand rebirths, alongside companies like Specimen Products and the now defunct Jerry Jones who both made brand-new models, taking on those classic look-and-feels while adding their own spin with upgrades that make more professional-level instruments.

Jeff Tweedy’s 1960’s Silvertone 1449

Here is one of Jeff’s guitars from this category. It’s a 1960’s Danelectro-made Silvertone 1449 hollow-core two pickup electric guitar in sparkle black with white sides. It’s very much like the single pickup model seen for decades in the hands of the late great Dex Romweber, who played the crap out of his with the seminal North Carolina duo/trio, Flat Duo Jets. There are certain instruments that become synonymous with a particular artist or performer, sometimes so much so it’s odd to see someone else playing that instrument. Jimi Hendrix and the upside-down white Stratocaster, Paul McCartney and the Hofner violin bass, and of course Jeff Tweedy and his Kel Kroydon “Birds of Paradise” acoustic guitars. I always think of Dex when I see this model. His stay on this earth came to a close recently, but wow, he sure burned bright while he was here.

Thankfully we can still feel Dex’s impassioned presence listening to the recordings he left behind… the music that he put so much life and breath and blood and sweat into. Thank you, Dex. Salute!

For more deep and not-so-deep dives into gear and stuff at the Loft, visit the Loft’s main Instagram.

This Week in Wilco, Etc.

2021 / April 8: On The Tweedy Show #166 Jeff debuts a new song called “Ambulance.” It is later released on Wilco’s album Cruel Country.

2010 / April 11: Wilco performs a 38-song show at Carnegie Music Hall in Pittsburgh. The evening includes a cover of Big Star’s “Thank You Friends” and their own songs “More Like the Moon” and “I’m a Wheel,” played in a set-closing “rave” version.

1997 / April 12: Wilco plays their first ever show in Ireland, at Whelan’s in Dublin.

Family Ghost (5th anniversary hotel version)