1980: A Year in Guitar History

Gibson began shifting production from Kalamazoo to Nashville during this period. When the Kalamazoo factory closed in 1984, some of its craftsmen stayed behind and started Heritage Guitars in the same building.

Late Norlin era. Quality began improving in the early 1980s as Norlin invested in better processes. The Kalamazoo factory continued as a custom shop until it closed permanently in 1984.

The CBS era. After CBS purchased Fender for $13 million in 1965, they prioritized volume over craftsmanship — introducing the larger headstock, heavier polyester finishes, and the three-bolt neck. Quality is generally considered lower than pre-CBS production.

Built by Matsumoku Industrial Co. in Japan — one of the first guitar factories to use CNC mills. These Matsumoku-era Epiphones featured thin finishes and solid construction, and are increasingly collectible.

Among the earliest Taylors. Bob Taylor and Kurt Listug bought a failing guitar shop for $3,000 — Bob was just 19. Guitars from this period are extremely rare, pure hand-built luthiery before any CNC tooling.

Built at Yamaha's Kaohsiung, Taiwan factory, which produced millions of acoustics over 35 years. These "Green Label" guitars were workhorses — affordable, consistent, and used by countless beginners and professionals. The factory closed in early 2007.

The era of the SG2000, co-developed with Carlos Santana. He told Yamaha the prototype was too light, leading to a heavier body and a patented brass "Sustain Plate." The SG2000 was marketed as a Les Paul killer and is one of the most acclaimed Japanese electrics ever made.

Built at Yamaha's Hamamatsu custom workshop, which has operated continuously since 1966. These are individually handmade by master luthiers — the same shop that produced the original Red Labels.

A San Dimas-era Jackson — hand-built in the original Charvel shop where Grover Jackson personally oversaw every instrument. On December 23, 1980, Randy Rhoads commissioned the Concorde here — the first guitar to bear the "Jackson" name, named after the supersonic jet he'd just flown home on.

From ESP's earliest days as a replacement parts shop in Tokyo — not a guitar manufacturer. Any complete guitar from this period is extremely rare.

Built at Baldwin's Booneville, Arkansas facility. Almost none of the skilled Brooklyn workforce relocated. Two factory fires in 1973 further disrupted production. Chet Atkins withdrew his endorsement in 1979. Production ceased entirely in 1981.

Built at Rickenbacker's Santa Ana, California factory, where they've been for over 60 years. Rickenbacker has never outsourced production — every instrument is built by roughly 60 employees producing only 8,000–12,000 guitars per year.

Features the Hi-Gain pickup, introduced in 1969 to replace the Toaster with a hotter output suited to heavier rock. Vintage reissue models still use the original Toaster design.

Built at Guild's legendary Westerly, Rhode Island factory — widely considered their golden age. While competitors suffered quality dips in the '70s and '80s, Westerly production maintained consistently high standards for 35 years.

The "Dream Machine" era — Schecter's first complete guitars, hand-built in Van Nuys, CA with a max output of 40 per month. Tom Anderson (later of Tom Anderson Guitarworks) ran the wood shop. Mark Knopfler played Dream Machines extensively during Dire Straits' early years. Now highly collectible.

An original Evanston, IL Dean. Dean Zelinsky was just 19 when he unveiled the V, Z, and ML at the 1977 Winter NAMM show. The ML was named after his best friend Matt Lynn, who died of cancer at 17. Only about 6,000–8,000 total guitars were produced, making originals genuinely rare.

The Adamas era. Its top was a sandwich of two carbon graphite sheets with birch between them — only 1.27mm total, one-third the thickness of a normal guitar top. The carbon fiber came directly from Kaman Aerospace's satellite and supersonic aircraft program.

Takamine pioneered the factory-installed acoustic-electric guitar with the Palathetic pickup in 1978 — six individual piezo transducers, one per string. This same basic design is still in production essentially unchanged. Bruce Springsteen has used Takamine for over 30 years.

Post-Leo Fender era. Fender severed ties in 1979 and immediately founded G&L Musical Instruments. Music Man continued without him but steadily declined, reaching near-bankruptcy by 1984.