July 2001 Issue - Gibson Gets Satisfaction With Maestro Fuzz-Tone
By Larry Meiners
One of the first mass-produced guitar effects pedals was Gibson's Fuzz-Tone. It's a wedge shaped metal box with two knobs (Volume, Attack), input jack, output and foot pedal switch. A fairly simple circuit that distorts the instruments output signal and creates a fuzzy sound. However, at the time it was a radical and new sound engine for guitar and bass players.
Gibson marketed the pedal under their Maestro brand for $40.00 retail and introduced it in 1962. The marketing and sales people were optimistic about the prospects of selling a lot of Fuzz-Tone effects and produced over 5000 that first year. Gibson's dealers bought 5458 pedals during 1962 confirming Gibson's sales forecast. Unfortunately, the buying public didn't buy all those pedals from the dealers as expected. Gibson only shipped 3 Fuzz-Tones to dealers in 1963 and none in 1964, suggesting dealers still had an ample supply of inventory in their music stores.
Just as the Fuzz-Tone was joining the ranks of other musical products which failed to live up to end-demand expectations, the rock star Sponsorship Effect was about to pounce on this little metal box and catapult it into the sales stratosphere. The Sponsorship Effect is when a popular musician records a hit song with a piece of gear and everybody wants one, usually all at the same time.
Keith Richards created a great guitar riff and incorporated it into a song for the latest Rolling Stones LP called Out Of Our Heads. The guitar riff needed a new sound and Keith used the Fuzz-Tone. In August 1965, the Stones released (I Can't Get No) Satisfaction and it shot to the number one spot on the UK and US charts. By late 1965, the Gibson dealers sold all their remaining inventory of Fuzz-Tones and received another 3454 to sell by December 31st of that year. The Fuzz-Tone was a major guitar effects box hit.
As the Satisfaction record sold well into 1966, Gibson took advantage of the demand for the Fuzz-Tone and shipped 20943 additional units during 1966. It seemed that every guitar player and recording studio wanted to own the Fuzz-Tone. Sales were still amplified in 1967 as 6625 were shipped from Gibson's factory. Only the GA-5 (Skylark and Les Paul Jr.) combo amp sold more units in the amp/effects category for Gibson through 1967. The Fuzz-Tone was changed several times in appearance and construction during its product life.
Gibson understands the Sponsorship Effect and has used it to increase sales of many of their fine instruments throughout the history of the company. During the 1930s, Nick Lucas promoted Gibson flat top guitars, as did the Everly Brothers in the 1960s. Perhaps the most well known example is Les Paul with his famous and super-selling Gibson solid-body guitar.
Maybe the Fuzz-Tone will become another reissue product and a new hit record will provide even more satisfaction for Gibson. Until that happens, check out the sound of a vintage Fuzz-Tone for yourself for only about $225 in the marketplace. Additional information regarding the more than 1.6 million instruments shipped by Gibson from 1937-1979 is available in the Gibson Shipment Totals book, including the Fuzz-Tone, Les Paul, Everly Brothers, Nick Lucas and other guitars, basses, flat-tops, artist models, banjos, ukes, amps, effects, mandolins and steel guitars.
