As the photo gallery below clearly illustrates, Framus — the Germany-based manufacturer of guitars, basses, banjos, amps and more — has made some very distinctive and cool-looking instruments over the years.
Electric Framus models really took off in the 1950s, due to the success of rock 'n' roll. By 1966, Framus was one of the biggest guitar producers in Europe, employing about 300 workers. Eventually, competition with Japanese manufacturers and other factors led to the company going bankrupt in the late '70s.
Of course, Framus has been associated with other artists besides The Beatles and Earl Slick. There's Bill Wyman of The Rolling Stones (a major fan of the Star Bass), of course, plus Jan Akkerman, Blackbyrd McKnight, Uli Jon Roth, Rik Emmett, Bruce Palmer, Jet Harris and many others.
Be sure to check out the 10 most iconic Framus instruments, below. Note that the name of each guitar contains a link to that guitar's page at the Framus Vintage Archive.
Damian is Editor-in-Chief of Guitar World magazine. In past lives, he was GW’s managing editor and online managing editor. He's written liner notes for major-label releases, including Stevie Ray Vaughan's 'The Complete Epic Recordings Collection' (Sony Legacy) and has interviewed everyone from Yngwie Malmsteen to Kevin Bacon (with a few memorable Eric Clapton chats thrown into the mix). Damian, a former member of Brooklyn's The Gas House Gorillas, was the sole guitarist in Mister Neutron, a trio that toured the U.S. and released three albums. He now plays in two NYC-area bands.
