By Chris Swope



When the Gretsch White Falcon originally descended onto the conservative landscape of 1950s electric archtop guitar society, I imagine it caused a stir similar to Jane Mansfield walking down the street in "The Girl Can't Help It". Sunbursts and Blondes must have stopped in their tracks, mouths agape at the sight of all that lily white beauty decked to the nines with gold sparkle binding, jeweled knobs and gold plated appointments!



Still, aside from its designer, jazz guitarist Jimmy Webster, I'm not aware of any famed jazz cats embracing the model. My first glimpse of the White Falcon was on an episode of "Night Flight" and I'm not even sure if it was Steven Stills or Neil Young who stepped briefly from the darkness into the stage lights with this big white Gretsch, but I got goose bumps when I saw it. Soon after, with the birth of MTV, the White Falcon made its presence known to an entire generation via that dude in Bow Wow Wow, that dude in The Cult and most of all by that dude from Long Island with the hair piled high. Brian Setzer and the Stray Cat's "Stray Cat Strut" forever cemented in my mind the image of the Gretsch White Falcon as the ultimate Rockabilly Twang Beast.

This White Falcon, model G6136T, sports most of the classic late fifties appointments: Filtertrons, Neo Classic thumbprint inlays, gold sparkle binding right down to the f-holes, and the beautiful V-shaped Falcon headstock that is such a stunner. The Gretsch Bigsby adds yet another point of classy elegance to this model which is truly in a league of its own.

From the moment I took this gig and held my first modern Gretsch, I have continually been blown away by the fit and finish of these guitars. Sonically, they have a voice all their own and are remarkably versatile guitars. The humbucking Filtertrons provide a wonderful tonal mix from the wide open warmth of the neck pickup and the brilliant shimmer of the bridge pickup. And to tell the truth, I feel cool as hell when I play them!