Gibson Frank Zappa Roxy SG - Heritage Cherry
Frank Zappa has long been hailed as one of the most inventive rock guitarists ever to have graced the stage and studio. The live performances with his band The Mothers at the Roxy Theatre in Hollywood from December 1973 and afterdocumented in the album Roxy & Elsewhere and on subsequent DVD releasesare often considered to display the pinnacle of his unbridled invention.
The heavily modified SG Special used in those shows is an iconic instrument among Zappa fans, and now Gibson USA recreates that legendary SG in perfectly faithful detail to bring the Frank Zappa Roxy SG to anyone seeking an extremely versatile, and superbly playable modified-vintage SG Standard.
Zappas original SG Special was an early 60s model with a fast, slim neck profile and the smaller pickguard characteristic of the era, which would have been made with P-90 pickups originally. While it reflects the heavily modified state of FZs guitar, the Frank Zappa Roxy SG still functions perfectly as a straight-up vintage-reissue SG when desired. But just flip either of the two mini-toggle switches to split the uncovered humbuckers coils, or to throw the pickups out of phase, and you leap into funky Zappa-certified tonesall aided by the highly functional Maestro-style vibrola with Lyre tailpiece. And with its natural neck and headstock, and a carefully color-matched rendition of FZs faded nitrocellulose Cherry finish, the Frank Zappa Roxy SG looks every bit as distinctive as it sounds.
Body and Neck
The Frank Zappa Roxy SG begins with the same time-tested tonewoods that helped to make the SG Standard legendary in the first place. The body is crafted from solid Grade-A mahogany in the iconic double-horned style with beveled edges for enhanced playing comfort. A solid, quarter-sawn, Grade-A mahogany neck is carved in the slim early 60s profile that Zappa preferred, which measures 0.775 at the 1st fret and 0.910 at the 12th, for superb speed and comfort. Its topped with a Grade-A rosewood fingerboard with pearloid dot inlays and 22 frets made from wire based on precise measurement of the jumbo frets on the original Roxy SG. Like FZs guitar, the neck is natural mahogany, and the headstock is white.
Pickups and Electronics
The modified electronics on FZs original Roxy SG were a big part of that guitars mojo, and Gibson USA goes all out to replicate that versatility in the Frank Zappa Roxy SG. Two enhanced 57 Classics with four-conductor wiring replicate the same thick, juicy tone of the humbuckers Zappa added to his guitar. They are routed through a pair of mini-toggle switches mounted in a channel under the pickguard, to yield coil-splitting for single-coil tones, and out-of-phase tones, both of which were a big part of Zappas signature sound. The remaining control complement includes the traditional three-way toggle selector and an independent volume and tone control for each pickup.
Hardware and Plastics
Tremolo was a key part of FZs signature sound, and the Frank Zappa Roxy SG is loaded with a Maestro-style vibrola with decorative Lyre tailpiece and flat bar handle to give the same creative kick to your own playing. A Tune-o-matic bridge offers precise intonation, while a set of Grover tuners with historic rounded buttons are both efficient, and true to the look of the original guitar. The guitar carries the smaller early 60s five-ply SG pickguard with special dimensioned neck spacer to alter the position of the neck pickup to match FZs original guitar and a traditional black truss-rod cover.
Features
- Grade-A mahogany body with iconic double-horned design
- Mahogany neck with Frank-preferred slim 60s profile
- Bound rosewood fingerboard with pearloid dot inlays
- Pair of split-coil '57 classic pickups with 2 mini toggles
- Maestro-style vibrola with decorative Lyre tailpiece and flat bar handle
- Grover tuners with 16:1 tuning ratio
Q & A
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| Product | SKU | Qty |
|---|---|---|
| Frank Zappa Roxy SG - Heritage Cherry | 381772 |
