”This surprising instrument is a bit like the symbol of our belief, of our continuous research, of our continuous penetration into the art of Luthiery of the second half of the twentieth century and never fails to fascinate even today, nourishing groups of admirers who observe it in absorbed contemplation, just like with a great meditation wine or a good warming cognac.
Lorenzo
In fact, its shapes capture the eye as well as its colors warm the heart: it is a unique instrument.
The nickname Shrike (in English is a way to call a certain kind of birds) comes from the particular shape of his V shape pick-ups that have had great appeal on the collective imagination, so much that Tim Shaw, the legendary project designer who was in charge of the rebirth of Gibson at the end of the 70s, designed a boomerang shape version of them that he applied to V2, a very special version of Flying V that saw the light at the end of the decade.
The 950 pickups were particulars also in the internal design, each one was composed of two sets of 3 coils each and it was possible to split them in half V to combine each one with the other (ie the top half V of the pickup at the neck could be combined with the lower half V of that at the bridge). They were innovative pickups with a unique sound but unluckily even delicate almost everyone had to be rewound across the years.
The remaining of the electronic part of the 950 Shrike is composed of the volume potentiometer and in the 4 selectors to select the various combinations of the pickups’ coils.
The Greco 950 was built in the old Teisco factory in Nagano, Japan. From 1967 to 1969, the factory kept on producing instruments, even if the contract with Teisco was closed in 1966. Then the factory was renamed Teisco Gen Gakki and started to produce instruments under various brands like Greco, Idol and others, acquiring a reputation among American importers in the late 60s thanks to their high-quality levels and competitive prices.
The 950, that is practically impossible to find in Europe and for this reason has become a collector’s holy grail, also reveals herself a very versatile instrument, going from funky, to soft jazz to rock blues, giving joy to the ears beyond the eyes.
The tobacco sunburst, is probably the best known and beloved version of the 950 Shrike: even here the presence of the zero key denotes the typical Japanese sympathy for Italian productions, while the neck and the headstock wink at the American Rickenbacker, the diamond-shaped holes are those of Trini Lopez Gibson and the double-cutaway has the flavor of a mix between Gibson SG and British Burns.
There were basses too…but this is another story…
Greco “The Shrike” Bass
Gibson Flying V2 by Tim Shaw
