Melody Maker

File:MM logo.jpg
Monthly
First issue	July 1926
Final issue	December 2000
Company	IPCC
Country	United Kingdom
Based in	London, England
Language	English

Melody Maker, published in the United Kingdom, was, according to its publisher IPC Media, the world's oldest weekly music newspaper.^[1] It was founded in 1926 as a magazine targeted at musicians; in 2000 it was merged into "long-standing rival"^[1] (and IPC Media sister publication) New Musical Express.

1950s–1960s[link]

Originally the Melody Maker (MM) concentrated on jazz, and had Max Jones, one of the leading British proselytizers for that music, on its staff for many years. It was slow to cover rock and roll and lost ground to the New Musical Express (NME), which had begun in 1952. MM began its Melody Maker LP charts in November 1958, two years after the Record Mirror published the first UK Albums Chart.^[2]

On 6 March 1965, MM called for The Beatles to be honoured by the British state, which happened on 12 June that year when all four were made MBEs.

By the late 1960s, MM had recovered momentum, targeting an older market than the teen-oriented NME. MM had larger and more specialised advertising; soon-to-be well-known groups would advertise for musicians. It ran pages devoted to "minority" interests like folk and jazz, as well as detailed reviews of musical instruments.

A 1968 Melody Maker poll named John Peel best radio DJ, attention which John Walters revealed may have helped Peel keep his job despite concerns at BBC Radio 1 about Peel's style and record selection.^[3]

1970s[link]

Critics such as Richard Williams, Michael Watts, Chris Welch and Steve Lake were among the first British journalists to write seriously about popular music, shedding an intellectual light on such artists as Steely Dan, Cat Stevens, Led Zeppelin and Henry Cow.

Melody Maker supported glam rock and progressive rock in the 1970s.

In 1978, Richard Williams returned again as editor attempting to take MM in a new direction influenced by what Paul Morley and Ian Penman were doing at NME and with Jon Savage, Chris Bohn and Mary Harron providing arty coverage of post-punk and New Wave while Vivien Goldman who was previously at NME and Sounds, gave the paper much improved coverage of reggae and soul music, an area in which it had fallen short of its competitors.

Internal tension came to light, principally between Williams and Ray Coleman, by this time editor-in-chief, who wanted the paper to stick to the more "conservative rock" music it had continued to support during the punk era. Coleman had been insistent that the paper should "look like The Daily Telegraph" (renowned for its old-fashioned design), but Williams wanted the paper to look more contemporary. He commissioned an updated design, but this was rejected by Coleman.

It was during this period that Melody Maker was described as "the musos' journal," and that Michael "Mick" Watts emerged as a prominent writer for the paper.^[4] In January 1972, in a defining moment for rock journalism, Watts interviewed David Bowie on the German film set of Just A Gigolo for Melody Maker.^[5] It was during this interview that Bowie claimed, "I'm gay, and always have been, even when I was David Jones."^[6] "OH YOU PRETTY THING" ran the headline, and swiftly became part of pop mythology. Bowie later attributed his success to this interview, stating that, "Yeah, it was Melody Maker that made me. It was that piece by Mick Watts."^[7] During his tenure at the paper, Watts also toured with and interviewed artists including Syd Barrett, Waylon Jennings, Pink Floyd, Bob Dylan and Bruce Springsteen.

1980s[link]

In 1980, after a strike which had taken the paper (along with NME) out of publication for a period, Williams left MM. Coleman promoted Michael Oldfield from the design staff to day-to-day editor, and, for a while, took it back where it had been, with news of a line-up change in Jethro Tull replacing features about Andy Warhol, Gang of Four and Factory Records on the cover. Several journalists, such as Chris Bohn and Vivien Goldman, moved to NME, while Jon Savage joined the new magazine The Face. Coleman left in 1981, the paper's design was updated, but sales and prestige were at a low ebb through the early 1980s, with NME dominant.

By 1983, the magazine had become more populist and pop-orientated, exemplified by its modish "MM" masthead, regular covers for the likes of Duran Duran and its choice of Eurythmics' Touch as the best album of the year. Things were to change, however. In February 1984, Allan Jones, a staff writer on the paper since 1974, was appointed editor: defying instructions to put Kajagoogoo on the cover, he led the magazine with an article on up-and-coming band The Smiths.

In 1986, MM was invigorated by the arrival of a group of journalists, including Simon Reynolds and David Stubbs, who had run a music fanzine called Monitor from the University of Oxford, and Chris Roberts, from Sounds, who established MM as more individualistic and intellectual. This was especially true after the hip-hop wars at NME, a schism between enthusiasts of progressive black music such as Public Enemy and Mantronix and fans of traditional white rock - ended in a victory for the latter, the departure of writers such as Mark Sinker and Biba Kopf, and the rise of Andrew Collins and Stuart Maconie, who pushed NME in a more populist direction.

1990s[link]

While MM continued to devote most space to rock and indie music (notably Everett True's coverage of the emerging grunge scene in Seattle), it covered dance music, hip hop and post rock and electronica. Two of the paper's writers, Push and Ben Turner, went on to launch IPC Media's monthly dance music magazine Muzik. Even in the mid-1990s, when Britpop brought a new generation of readers to the music press, it remained less populist than its rivals, with younger writers such as Simon Price, Taylor Parkes and Neil Kulkarni continuing the 1980s tradition of iconoclasm and opinionated criticism. The paper printed harsh criticism of Ocean Colour Scene and Kula Shaker, and allowed dissenting views on Oasis and Blur at a time when they were praised by the rest of the press.

The magazine retained its large classified ads section, and remained the first call for musicians wanting to form a band. Suede formed through ads placed in the paper. MM also continued to publish reviews of musical equipment and readers' demo tapes - though these often had little in common stylistically with the rest of the paper - ensuring sales to jobbing musicians who would otherwise have little interest in the music press.

In early 1997, Allan Jones left to edit Uncut. He was replaced, somewhat controversially,^{[citation needed]} by Mark Sutherland, formerly of NME and Smash Hits, who "fulfilled his boyhood dream"^[8] by editing the magazine for three years. Many long-standing writers left, often moving to Uncut, with at least one writer, Simon Price, departing because he objected to an edict that coverage of Oasis should be positive. Its sales, which had been substantially lower than those of the NME, entered a serious decline.

In 1999, MM relaunched as a glossy magazine, but the new design did not help. The magazine closed the next year and merged with IPC Media's other music magazine, NME, which took on some of its journalists and music reviewers.

Bands using MM adverts[link]

Advertisements in Melody Maker helped assemble the lineups of a number of major bands, including:

• Jet Black met Hugh Cornwell (then of the band Johnny Sox) after reading an advertisement in Melody Maker magazine. Cornwell joined Black in The Stranglers in 1974.
• Bill Bruford placed an ad in 1968 that was answered by Jon Anderson and Chris Squire to form the founding lineup of Yes.^[9]
• Rick Davies, backed financially by Dutch millionaire Stanley August Miesegaes, formed Supertramp, the "band of his dreams" in 1969.^[10]
• Deep Purple found the then-unknown David Coverdale in 1973.^[11]
• Depeche Mode placed an ad in 1981 and found Alan Wilder.^[12]
• Vince Clarke of Erasure found Andy Bell in 1985.^[13]
• The original members of Suede recruited guitarist Bernard Butler in 1989.^[14]
• Steve Hackett of Genesis put an ad in MM that was answered by the band frontman Peter Gabriel in 1970.^[15]
• Wang Chung got its start when Jack Hues met Nick Feldman after answering Feldman's ad for a musician in 1977.^[16]
• Noel Redding, the bassist of The Jimi Hendrix Experience, auditioned for The Animals after responding to an ad. Eventually the bassist of The Animals, Chas Chandler, introduced him to Jimi Hendrix.^[17]
• Limahl teamed up with band 'Art Nouveau' and formed Kajagoogoo from an advert he placed in MM.^[18]

References[link]

Coordinates: 50°20′42″N 4°11′28″W / 50.3451°N 4.1911°W / 50.3451; -4.1911

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Maker Church and War Memorial

Maker (Cornish: Magor) is a village between Cawsand and Rame Head, situated on the Rame Peninsula, in Cornwall, United Kingdom.

The name means a ruin in Cornish, but another Celtic name is Egloshayle, (not to be confused with Egloshayle on the River Camel) which means, the church on the estuary, a very apt description of the church's location.

The village and its neighbour Rame are in the civil parish of Maker with Rame and the parliamentray consituency of South East Cornwall.

History[link]

In their western advance across England, the Anglo-Saxons halted at the Tamar, but in 705, King Geraint of Cornwall gave the promontory on the Cornish side of the mouth of the Tamar to Sherborne Abbey, to keep control of the Tamar mouth in Saxon hands. This was royal land, and remained in Devon until 1844.The Normans installed the Valletorts as tenants of most of the land controlling the Tamar. From them, Maker passed by marriage to the Durnford family and then to the Edgcumbe family.

Parish church[link]

The church of St Julian is a typical 15th century Cornish church. It was a time of rebuilding throughout the country and churches were designed for preaching the word rather than stressing the liturgy. The aisles are the same length as the nave, and there is a massive western tower. The font is Norman, but was originally at St Merryn.^[1] The Edgcumbe chapel was added in 1874.

Notable residents[link]

• William Hughes (writer), barrister and writer, was born here

References[link]

External links[link]

Media related to Maker at Wikimedia Commons

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Gibson Guitar Corporation

Type	Private
Industry	Musical instruments
Founded	1902[1], Kalamazoo, Michigan
Founder(s)	Orville Gibson
Headquarters	Nashville, Tennessee, USA
Area served	Global
Key people	Orville Gibson, Ted McCarty, Les Paul, Seth Lover
Subsidiaries	Aeolian, Baldwin, Chickering, Electar, Epiphone, Garrison, Gibson Amphitheatre, Hamilton, Kramer, Maestro, MaGIC, Slingerland, Steinberger, Tobias, Valley Arts Guitar, Wurlitzer
Website	Gibson.com

The Gibson Guitar Corporation is a Nashville, Tennessee-based guitar and instrument manufacturer. It was founded in 1902 in Kalamazoo, Michigan by Orville Gibson as "The Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Mfg. Co., Ltd." and was a maker of mandolin instruments^[1]. Gibson invented archtop guitars by using the same type of carved, arched tops found on violins. By the 1930s, the company was also making flattop acoustic guitars, as well as one of the first commercially available hollow-body electric guitars, used and popularized by Charlie Christian. It was bought by Chicago Musical Instruments in 1944, which was then acquired by the E.C.L. conglomerate that changed its name to Norlin Inc. This was seen as the beginning of an era of mismanagement.

Gibson sells guitars under a variety of brand names^[2] and built one of the world's most iconic guitars, the Gibson Les Paul. Many Gibson instruments are among the most collectible guitars. Gibson was at the forefront of innovation in acoustic guitars, especially in the big band era of the 1930s; the Gibson Super 400 was widely imitated. In the early 1950s, Gibson introduced its first solid-body electric guitar and in 1952 began producing its most popular guitar to date—the Les Paul, designed by Ted McCarty and Les Paul. After being purchased by the Norlin corporation in the late 1960s Gibson's quality and fortunes took a steep decline until early 1986, when the company was acquired by its present owners. Gibson Guitar is a privately held corporation owned by its chief executive officer Henry Juszkiewicz and its president David H. Berryman.

Gibson has pursued legal action against manufacturers selling similar guitars and been active in environmental issues. In the late 2000s the company came under scrutiny for potential violations of the Lacey law. Authorities say wood was mislabeled to hide illegal ebony wood exports from India and that emails show an intent to illegally import rosewood and ebony wood from Madagascar. Gibson claims authorities are bullying him without filing charges. The issues has raised concerns among guitar owners on whether they could be punished for unknowingly owning guitars with illegally obtained wood, which led to some initiatives to protect individual consumers from the Lacey law.

History[link]

Gibson mandolin orchestra:

• 1920 F-4     • 1917 H-2
• 1924 K-4 mando-cello

• 1929 mando-bass

Orville Gibson
(pre 1910)

L-5

ES-150

ES-175D

Super 400 CES

Orville Gibson (born 1856, Chateaugay, New York) started making mandolins in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. The mandolins were distinctive in that they featured a carved, arched solid wood top and back and bent wood sides. Prior to this, mandolins had a flat solid wood top and a bowl-like back similar to a lute. These bowl-back mandolins were very fragile and unstable. Disdainful of the shape, Orville Gibson characterized them as "potato bugs". Gibson's innovation made a distinctive, darker-sounding mandolin that was easier to manufacture in large numbers. Orville Gibson's mandolin design, with its single-pieced carved sides and a single-pieced neck, was patented in 1898; it would be the only innovation he patented. Orville Gibson died in 1918 of endocarditis (inflammation of the inside lining of the heart chambers and valves).^[3]

Orville Gibson began to sell his unique instruments in 1894 out of a one-room workshop in Kalamazoo Michigan. In 1902 Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Mfg. Co, Ltd. was incorporated to market the instruments. Initially, the company produced only Orville Gibson's original designs. Aware of changing trends, the company hired designer Lloyd Loar in 1919 to create newer instruments.^[4]

During the 1920s Gibson was responsible for many innovations in banjo, guitar and mandolin design. In 1922, the Gibson F5 mandolin model was introduced. That particular model later became known as the ultimate bluegrass mandolin. Gibson soon became the leading manufacturer of archtop guitars, particularly the L-5 model, also a Loar design. Loar left the company in 1924.^[5]

In the 1930s, Gibson began exploring the concept of an electric guitar. In 1936 they introduced their first "Electric Spanish" model, the ES-150. Other companies were producing electric guitars but the Gibson is generally recognized as the first commercially successful electric guitar. Other instruments were also "electrified"; such as steel guitars, banjos and mandolins.

During World War II, instrument manufacturing basically stopped at Gibson due to shortages of wood and metal. Only a few instruments were made with whatever parts were at hand. Gibson did war production instead, making wood parts for various military needs. Such shortages continued for a few years after the war and the only notable change occurred in 1946 when the Gibson name on the instrument headstock changed from a cursive script to the block style used to this day. This is seen at the head of the information block at top.

In 1944 Gibson was purchased by Chicago Musical Instruments, which took over marketing and sales of Gibson products while allowing the Kalamazoo factory to operate largely independently.

The ES-175 was introduced in 1949. The model has seen some variations over the years but it is still in production.

1953 Les Paul
Goldtop

Les Paul Custom

Les Paul Standard

Les Paul Junior

Gibson and Ted McCarty[link]

In 1948, Gibson hired music industry veteran Ted McCarty, who was promoted to company president in 1950. During his tenure (1950–1966), Gibson greatly expanded and diversified its line of instruments. The first notable addition was the "Les Paul" guitar. McCarty was well aware of the strong sales of the Fender Telecaster. In 1950, Gibson decided to make a solid-body guitar of its own according to its own design philosophy despite the fact many other guitar manufacturers were contemptuous of the concept of a solid-body guitar. Designed by the guitarist Les Paul, it was released as his signature model in 1952. The "Les Paul" was offered in several models, including the Custom, the Standard, the Special, and the Junior.^[6]

L-5 CES

Byrdland

ES-350T

ES-335T

In the mid-50s, the Thinline series was produced. Many guitarists did not like the bulk of a full-size archtop and wanted a thinner guitar. TheByrdland was the first produced. The first Byrdlands were slim, custom built, L-5 models for guitarists Billy Byrd and Hank Garland. Later, a shorter neck was added. Other guitarists who tried Gibson samples liked the idea and the model went into production. Other models such as the ES-350T and the ES-225T were introduced as less costly alternatives.^[7]

In 1958, Gibson introduced the ES-335T model. Similar in size to the hollow-body Thinlines, the ES-335 family had a solid center, giving the string tone a longer sustain.

Explorer

Flying V

non-reverse (left) & reverse Firebird

Gibson SG

In the late 50s, McCarty was aware that Gibson was perceived as a "conservative" company, generally making traditionally shaped instruments. He decided to change that. In 1958, Gibson produced two new designs: the eccentrically shaped Explorer and Flying V. These "modernistic" guitars did not sell initially. It was only in the late 1960s and early 70s when the two guitars were reintroduced to the market that they sold very well. The Firebird, in the early 60s, was a reprise of the modernistic idea, though less extreme. In the 1950s, Gibson also produced the Tune-o-matic bridge system and its version of the humbucking pickup, the PAF ("Patent Applied For"), first released in 1957 and still sought after for its sound.^{[citation needed]}

In 1961 the body design of the Les Paul was changed due to the demand for a double-cutaway body design.^[8] Les Paul did not care for the new body style and let his endorsement lapse. The new body design then became known as the SG (for "solid guitar"). The Les Paul returned to the Gibson catalog in 1968 due to the influence of players such as Keith Richards, Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, and Peter Green. Both the Les Paul and the SG became very popular with rock and roll and blues guitar players.

The 70s to today[link]

On December 22nd 1969 Gibson parent company, Chicago Musical Instruments, was taken over by a South American brewing conglomerate, E.C.L. Gibson, Inc. remained under the control of CMI until 1974, when it became a subsidiary of Norlin Musical Instruments (a member of Norlin Industries - named for ECL president Norton Stevens and CMI president Maurice Berlin). This began an era widely perceived as being characterized by corporate mismanagement and decreasing product quality similar to Fender's period under CBS ownership.

Gibson left Kalamazoo in 1984, then previous factory became Heritage Guitars

Gibson Showcase at Nashville

Gibson Factory at Memphis

Between 1974 and 1984 production of Gibson guitars was shifted from Kalamazoo to Nashville, Tennessee. Early Nashville-built guitars suffered from both inexperienced workers and climate-control problems in the humid South.^{[citation needed]} The Kalamazoo plant was kept going for a few years as a custom-instrument shop, but was closed in 1984; several Gibson employees led by plant manager Jim Duerloo established Heritage Guitars in the old factory, building versions of classic Gibson designs. The company was within three months of going out of business before it was bought by Henry E. Juszkiewicz, David H. Berryman, and Gary A. Zebrowski in January 1986.^[9] The survival and success of Gibson today is largely attributed^{[by whom?]} to this change in ownership.^{[citation needed]} Currently, Juszkiewicz is CEO and Berryman is president. More recently new production plants have been opened, such as Memphis, Tennessee, as well as Bozeman, Montana. The Memphis facility is used for semi-hollow and custom shop instruments, while the Bozeman facility is dedicated to acoustic instruments.

In mid 2009 Gibson reduced its work force to adjust for a decline in guitar industry sales in the United States.^[10]

In 2011, Gibson acquired the Stanton Group, including Cerwin Vega!, KRK Systems and Stanton DJ. Gibson then formed a new division, Gibson Pro Audio, which will deliver professional grade audio items, including headphones, loudspeakers and DJ equipment.^[11]

Gibson announced a partnership with the Japanese-based Onkyo Corporation in 2012. Onkyo, known for audio equipment and home theater systems, became part of the Gibson Pro Audio division.^[12]

Instruments[link]

Brand names[link]

Gibson also owns and makes instruments under such brands as Baldwin,^[2] Epiphone,^[13] Kalamazoo,^{[citation needed]} Kramer,^[14] Maestro,^[15] Slingerland,^[2] Steinberger,^[16] Tobias,^[17] Valley Arts^{[citation needed]} and Wurlitzer.^[2]

Gibson purchased Garrison Guitars in 2007.^[18]

Gibson serial numbers[link]

Gibson models may not be easily identified by serial number alone,^[19][20] and as of 1999 the company has used six distinct serial numbering systems.^[19] By 2006, that number had risen to seven.^[20]

In 1977, Gibson introduced the serial numbering system in use until 2006.^[20] An eight digit number on the back shows the date on which the instrument was produced, where it was produced and its order of production that day (e.g. first instrument stamped that day, second, etc.).^[19]

An exception is the year 1994, Gibson's centennial year; many 1994 serial numbers start with "94", followed by a 6-digit production number^{[citation needed]}.

The Gibson website provides a book to help with serial number deciphering.^[19]

After 2006[link]

In 2006 Gibson introduced a 9 digit serial number system.^[20] The system is largely the same as the 8 digit system used since 1977,^[19] but the 6th digit now represents a batch number.^[20]

Recent innovation[link]

MaGIC[link]

In 2003,^[21] Gibson debuted its ethernet-based^[22] communications protocol, MaGIC, which it had developed in partnership with 3COM, Advanced Micro Devices and Xilinx.^[21] Replacing traditional analog hook-ups with a digital connection that would, "satisfy the unique requirements of live audio performances" may have been the goal of this project.^[22]

This system may require a special pickup,^[21] but cabling is provided by standard Cat-5 ethernet cord.^[21][22]

Self-tuning guitar[link]

The Gibson "self-tuning guitar", also known as a "robot model", an option on some newer Les Paul, SG, Flying V and Explorer instruments,^{[citation needed]} will tune itself in little more than two seconds using robotics technology developed by Tronical GmbH.^[23]

Corporate social responsibility[link]

Gibson's corporate social responsibility efforts include a participation in Music Rising, which facilitated the replacement of tens of thousands of privately owned, hurricane-damaged instruments.^[2]

Unauthorized copies[link]

Gibson has sought legal action against those that make and sell guitars too-similar to their own.

In 1977 Gibson sued Hoshino/Elger for copying the Gibson Les Paul.^{[citation needed]}

In 2000, Gibson sued Fernandes Guitars in a Tokyo court for allegedly copying Gibson designs. Gibson did not prevail.^[24]

Gibson also sued PRS Guitars in 2005, to stop them from making their Singlecut model. The lawsuit against PRS was initially successful.^[25] However, the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed the lower court decision and ordered the dismissal of Gibson's suit against PRS.^[26]

Authorized Gibson designs[link]

Gibson makes authorized copies of its most successful guitar designs. They are less expensive than those bearing the Gibson name. A former competitor, Epiphone was purchased by Gibson and now makes competitively priced Gibson models, such as the Les Paul, sold under the Epiphone brand,^[27] while continuing to make Epiphone-specific models like the Sheraton and Casino. In Japan, Orville by Gibson once made Gibson designs sold in that country.^[28]

Recent criticism and controversy[link]

Gibson has come under scrutiny for allegedly importing illegal rare wood in potential violations of the Lacey Act.^[29] Though no charges have been filed, two police raids of Gibson factories found ebony wood from India with misleading labels authorities say were used to hide violations of Indian export law.^[29] Gibson claims the labeling was a mistake and that the transaction was approved by Indian authorities.^[29]

On November 17, 2009 federal authorities seized six guitars and several pallets of alleged endangered and illegal, rare ebony wood that Gibson had purchased and stored at their factory.^[30][31] Until the investigation has been concluded, Henry E. Juszkiewicz, CEO and Chairman of Gibson Guitar Corporation, has taken a leave of absence as a board member of the Rainforest Alliance.^[32]