Expert: Andrea Murphy Date: 9/23/2006 Subject: the blk/wht strat
Question where is the signiture blk/wht guitar that made eddie so famous and who owns it now. what changes where made to this axe and in what years were the changes made and most importantly, why?
Answer Hi there,
I am assuming that you mean the red, white and black striped guitar "Frankenstrat" that Eddie made famous. There were some black and white and yellow and black Ibanez guitars in 1979, but the Frankie was used during the first 2 tours with a few appearances in later years. Eddie retired it, and supposedly still has it in his collection of hundreds of guitars. He made several replicas to replace it and used them through the early 90s. I am not aware of huge changes to the replicas other than the addition of the Floyd Rose and the locking trem which appeared around 1984 when Eddie signed with Kramer.
When Eddie signed his deals with Music Man (91) and then Peavey (95)in the 1990s...the Floyd and the locking nut remained, The main differences were more rounded frets, body shape and style, and an emphasis on woods and pickups that lead to a warmer tone and greater sustain. He had many guitars from each company and they each had different attributes. He is now with Charvel, I don't have a ton of details since they are overpriced...and are customized.
I heard a quote once from Ted Nugent. He was aggravated that he couldn't reproduce Eddie's sound and was convinced that there was something in his guitar or gear that produced the tone. Eddie got on Ted's guitar and amp...and sounded like Eddie. He sounds the same no matter what guitar he picks up.
