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Pioneering 'superstrat' guitar
Commercially introduced 1981
Floyd Rose option introduced 1982
Production life 1981 to date
Classic guitar designs of the 70s were about as common as zoot suits at an open air festival. American giants Gibson and Fender plummeted in quality as they struggled to match the low prices of Japanese imports, while the majority of Japanese companies seemed content to plagiarize existing designs. Faced with an uninspiring selection of models in their local guitar shop, guitarists opted for the DIY approach, devising their own instruments from parts offered by a whole new rank of specialist suppliers. Slowly a new concept emerged-that of a go-faster Stratocaster, souped up with more powerful pickups and an improved tremolo.
The Jackson Soloist was the ultimate development of this concept. Grover Jackson's slick combination of elements of both Gibson and Fender concepts was the ultimate heavy rock guitar, its aggression epitomized by a razor-sharp headstock that some hardened metallers found too dangerous for on-stage use! The success of Jackson's design would be ironically underlined by the fact that by the end of the decade both Gibson and Fender would blatantly copy his development of their own designs.
By Melanie Bradley
Jackson Soloist Guitars for Sale
Best Prices / low monthly payments
