St. George
St. George
Also known as: Saint George, St George
UnclaimedSt. George was a guitar brand active from the early to late 1960s, named after the St. George Music Supply stores — the original opened in Utica, New York, and a Hollywood location was later run by Anthony George on Sunset Boulevard. Most St. George instruments were budget-tier Japanese imports distributed by Buegeleisen & Jacobson of New York and WMI of Los Angeles, with the bulk of production...
St. George was a guitar brand active from the early to late 1960s, named after the St. George Music Supply stores — the original opened in Utica, New York, and a Hollywood location was later run by Anthony George on Sunset Boulevard. Most St. George instruments were budget-tier Japanese imports distributed by Buegeleisen & Jacobson of New York and WMI of Los Angeles, with the bulk of production attributed to Shiro Musical Instrument Manufacturing in Japan. These models, often identified by a white shield headstock badge, included single-cutaway hollow-body electrics, solid-bodies styled in line with other Japanese makers of the era, basses (including 6-string variants), and acoustic and classical guitars.
A smaller and more sought-after batch of St. George guitars was built in Riverside, California by luthier Paul Barth under his Bartell operation. These California-made instruments carry a script logo rather than the shield badge and are regarded as significantly higher quality than the imports, including 6- and 12-string configurations. St. George–branded amplifiers were also produced in California by amp designer Ray Massie.
The brand wound down after the 1960s and has no active production. Today St. George instruments circulate as vintage pieces, with the Japanese-made models trading at entry-level prices and the Bartell-built examples drawing collector interest.
St. George has 3 products cataloged on Equipboard, including Extended Range Guitars, Solid Body Electric Guitars, and Electric Basses. Their gear is featured by 2 artists, with the strongest followings in Rock. Notable users include John Frusciante and Tom Morello.
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