The Chetboard

Today, FedEx delivered a Rickenbacker 660 solid body guitar. I've loved Rick's for a long time, but always shied away due to the narrow neck. The 660 is one of the few Rick models with a "wide" nut (1.75"). I posted a picture of the guitar on FaceBook, and my friend (and John Knowles FGQ proof reader) Kathy Bohem posted the reply, "Why, George, Why?". Of course, this might have been in response to the actual shape of the guitar, but it got me thinking....

Why not a Rick? In the broader sense, the question is moot, as there are hundreds of examples of "why" a Rick might be used, but in the narrow scope of FingerStyle, you never see them. I am curious as to why finger pickers don't use Ricks.

No right or wrong answer.....I am just throwing this out there.

Some might prefer some pickup adjustment options that Rics don't have...polepiece adjustment, etc. We used to sell them in the store I worked during the sixties and seventies but only their twelve strings really had any impact. That and their bass guitars.
The guitars were a nice looking, beautiully made with great finishes but bland, unremarkable sounding guitars as I remember but I live a sheltered life.

"...there are hundreds of examples of "why" a Rick might be used..."

John Lennon is the only working musician I ever heard of using a six string Ric and he was no lead player. I have no idea why they're still made but that's just me.

A lot of times it's a matter of celeb identity. Chet, Jerry and Merle were never seen with one so the finger style guys never looked in that direction.

They're reissuing the Kaufman Vib-Rola on their guitars or at least they were for a while. That's the unit Chet used before Bigsby's came out.

Semie Moseley worked for Rickenbacker for a good while

"John Lennon is the only working musician I ever heard of using a six string Ric and he was no lead player. I have no idea why they're still made but that's just me"

All of Pete Townshend's early Who recordings were on a 6-string Rick. John Fogerty used a 6-string Rick on Creedence stuff. John Kay used a 6 string Rick on Steppenwolf stuff. The Smiths use them. All of R.E.M.'s stuff was on a 6-string Rick. The 6- string Ricks have a great great rock and roll history. That being said, you can get a good FingerStyle sound out of them.

They just sound good.

I'm just wondering why nobody uses them?

Hi George-

I'm a Rick fan too. I've always wanted a 360-12 like George Harrison played, or at least a 330-12 with toaster pickups. I love that electric 12 string sound, and the reverse stringing on the octaves on a Rick sound really good.

Fred Newell, who was staff guitarist on Nashville Now for years, used Ricks a lot. He did both lead and fingerpicking on them. (Fred also played guitar and banjo with Jerry Reed in the 70's, and also played on a lot of the Alabama records.)

I've never owned a Rick 6 string, but a local music store where I worked in the mid 70's was a Rick dealer, And they had some 6 strings. You can get somewhere between a Tele sound and a Gibson P-90 sound with them. As you said, they do have a narrow neck.

I spent an hour playing a Rick 12 in Gruhn's a couple of years ago.

Craig

I'm just wondering why nobody uses them?..."

Again, I think it's a matter of connecting celeb to guitar

I'm just wondering why nobody uses them?

Because no one (of note) is currently using them.

Norm wrote:I'm just wondering why nobody uses them?..."

Again, I think it's a matter of connecting celeb to guitar

I'm just wondering why nobody uses them?

Because no one (of note) is currently using them.

Thanks.

Thanks.

That sounds like cynical oversimplification but it's not meant to be.

There are really very few guitar "stars" currently running to begin with.

Country is dominated by the Telecaster, Gibson keeps reinventing the Les Paul because that's what they sell most of.

Gretsch does well with their line thanks mainly to the association with Chet.

That leaves Rickenbacker and Guild to fight for third place marketshare and every NAMM show brings on a new flood of "latest and greatest" new lines twice a year.

Even here it's been a long time since anyone ever suggested going to Rickenbacker. I really can't remember when the name even came up last. They're pretty and well made but no one seems to be interested in them...certainly not as a primary guitar.

Yeah...the fact that the name never comes up was part of the reason why I posted. They sound good, have their fan base, and at least in the 50's and 60's, they had wide appeal. I was just wondering why no finger pickers used them when the sound was as good, or at least as unique, as any other model. Kinda like, what would have happened if Chet would have endorsed Rick instead of a gretsch....

Anyway, like I said, no right or wrong answer....

I have a Ric 370/12 which is basically the same model as Roger McGuinn(Byrds) used but without the built in compressor. It has the toaster pups and the 12 string saddle. The narrow neck on the 12 is helpful to me because I can cover the strings better that way with my left hand. Learning right hand technique with fingerpicks takes a lot of patience and practice which I'm more able to accomplish in retirement. Still it is a challenging process. Love the jangly sound of this model. I've been thinking about a 360/6 but so far haven't gotten the itch bad enough to pull the trigger on one.

if Chet would have endorsed Rick instead of a gretsch...."

Initially he didn't even want to endorse Gretsch. He was perfectly happy with his D'Angelico. They hooked him on "design your own guitar" for us. It was Webster's idea.

He got some pickup tweaking ability with the P-90 on his Gibsons and on the D'Angelico and even the Dynasonic/DeArmond pickups Gretsch used for a while.

Ric pickups don't have any string adjustment at all. If Chet hadn't gone to his D'Angelico and then to Gretsch he likely would have stayed with Gibson because he liked good size hollowbodies.

Rickenbackers have been around and I'm sure he may have played this guy's or that guy's but the Rics obviously never interested him otherwise he would have owned one or two over the years.

Some folks thought they sounded good.

I never cared for their tone but then I don't have any influence on guitar society. I've played them, didn't like the feel or the sound of them. I like to be able to adjust the poles on at least one pickup on my guitar because the thumb generally plays louder