Description
One of the last of the great USA-made Gretsch Guitars…. this ’78 Chet Atkins “Nashville” was made in Booneville, Arkansas during what is referred to as the “Baldwin” era for Gretsch (from 1966 – 1980, when Baldwin owned the company). This Chet Atkins electric archtop, Model 7660, was renamed the “Nashville” in 1964 and renumbered to a “7660” in 1971. It is 16″ wide and 2 1/2″ deep. It was given open and bound F-holes in 1973 and the curved flat-arm “Gretsch-logo” Bigsby-made B6-C vibrato in 1975. This one is less “Classic Gretsch Orange” in color, and more of an “amber red” as Gretsch called it in their brochures… quite attractive, really, and with some nice grainy wood, to boot. It has obviously seen very little play time– it is really clean, clean, clean. I’d call it “EX+/NM”, just remarkable considering it is only 20 years younger than me, at age 46! The serial# on the tag inside is 9-8228. There is absolutely zero finish checking and not even any pick marks on the pickguard. There is very little fret wear. The nickel parts (the top bridge, and the Bigsby) have a very nice patina from age. The binding is beautifully aged, and excellent, with only a few tiny nicks. There is a tiny bit of belt buckle rash that could be buffed out on back, and a tiny tear in one pickup black top. It comes with a brand-new Canadian-made TKL hard-shell case, not original, that is a bit too large at both bouts (probably ideally for a 17″ guitar). Sturdily built, it weighs 8.4 lbs. The guitar features a maple laminated body. The neck is rock maple with a rosewood fingerboard. It has an adjustamatic bridge for great intonation control; an Indian rosewood fingerboard with cool neo-classic “thumb-print” inlays; a bone nut with zero-fret; a squared silver “signature” pickguard; no mute; no nameplate; and silver pickup rings on the Black-Top ceramic-magnet Filter’Trons (these are great-sounding pickups!). Both pickups read around 4.65k ohms. Filter’Trons have the warm humbucking tone of a PAF but with the brightness and clarity of a single coil (see link below). The guitar has “humpback” sealed tuners, and the highly-thought-of Burn gearbox on heel for truss rod adjustment. There is a master volume on upper treble bout and two individual VOL knobs down below, and 2 toggles: a tone/phase switch and a “stand-by” switch. The one switch either switches the pickups or changes the capacitors for 3 different tone sounds. Those tone sounds include brightness all the way up, a roll-off of brightness, and brightness all the way off. Especially with the Bigsby and a bit of over-drive, these can be ideal Rockabilly guitars. But also popular for other styles– ask George Harrison, Brian Setzer, Billy Duffy and Chet Atkins! Very unique electronics, both the pickups and the switching– is a key feature of this axe (and Gretsch, in general). You just have to get used to it. I believe the finish is nitrocellulose, since it does luminesce green under my black light (which I use to delineate finish change or any cracks, etc). The guitar has not been set up since I’ve owned it (over 25 years), and it plays fantastic still…. no issues. It has a fairly slender neck and nut width of 1.68″. Before it was Model 7660, this model was initially the 6120, and it was discontinued in 1980. They are actually quite rare, especially in this “near-museum” condition. Older Gretsch USA-made guitars remain one of the most under-rated and under-appreciated guitar values in the marketplace… and this includes the Baldwin era, during which this one was manufactured. But I think they are starting to finally become recognized. This one is 45 years old but looks like a young stud. Astute collectors and players alike would be wise to jump on this well-maintained, and lightly-played specimen.