Brawley Guitars
Encyclopedia
Brawley Guitars was a range of electric guitars produced under the Brawley name. Keith Brawley had previously been an executive for Fender/Squier
from 1989-2001.
The guitar models were named the 'Threat' in press releases, suggesting competitive ambitions, although this did not appear on the guitar headstock. The guitar
s were produced in South Korea
between 2000 and 2002. All featured a contour top, bolt-on neck
, self locking winders and a wider 'fat fret' neck
. Though available in several configurations, including double humbucker models, typical models featured 2 single coil Alnico
pickups and one bridge mounted humbucker
with either Wilkinson and Floyd Rose vibrato bars, although a twin humbucker and hard tail model was also made. The fit, finish, and feature of Brawley's fretted instruments represented a very strong value-for-money at the time. Keith Brawley likened his guitars to Lexus cars in press interviews.
Brawley also produced a range of bass guitars in four-string, five-string and six-string versions. The top-of-the-line models featured neck-through body construction and all of them had a 35-inch scale length, as opposed to the standard 34-inch scale developed by Leo Fender on the first electric basses. These were known as the Artemis series and featured humbucking pickups on all models and active electronics on all but the entry-level model.
Mars music stores
was a large dealer of Brawley guitars, but the music store chain failed amidst overheated expansion, taking down Brawley guitars with it. Keith Brawley subsequently worked for Guitar Center
where, after five years as the vice president of guitar merchandising, he was promoted to the position of vice president of merchandising and creative at the company's direct-response division, Musician's Friend, where he oversaw both the purchasing and creative teams producing the company's catalog and Internet efforts. -Musical Merchandise Review Magazine (MMR)
Keith sold his guitar designs to Guitar Center to be used as the Laguna
brand, currently sold as an in-store brand. The Laguna guitars are modeled after Keith's designs, right down to the headstock, although the production of Laguna is in Indonesia, rather than South Korea. Today, Keith Brawley is the president of North America for Gibson Guitars.
Some Southern California stores such as Johnny Thompson Music in Monterey Park showed great success with Brawley instruments, including Costa Mesa's "Cobra Music". There are many bands that can be seen using Brawley Guitars including Charles Jirkovsky of San Diego band "All in Favor" and Brian Sun of "Residual FX."
Squier
Squier is a musical instrument brand name owned by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation.-History:Fender, under the ownership of CBS, acquired the Squier brand name in 1965 when it bought a USA based string making firm , but it lay dormant for many years...
from 1989-2001.
The guitar models were named the 'Threat' in press releases, suggesting competitive ambitions, although this did not appear on the guitar headstock. The guitar
Guitar
The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s were produced in South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
between 2000 and 2002. All featured a contour top, bolt-on neck
Bolt-on neck
Bolt-on neck is a method of guitar construction that involves joining a guitar neck and body using screws as opposed to glue as with set-in neck joints. The term is a misnomer, introduced mostly by Fender whose guitars traditionally had "bolt-on necks". Real bolted joints are uncommon in guitar...
, self locking winders and a wider 'fat fret' neck
Neck (music)
The neck is the part of certain string instruments that projects from the main body and is the base of the fingerboard, where the fingers are placed to stop the strings at different pitches. Guitars, lutes, the violin family, and the mandolin family are examples of instruments which have necks.The...
. Though available in several configurations, including double humbucker models, typical models featured 2 single coil Alnico
Alnico
Alnico is an acronym referring to iron alloys which in addition to iron are composed primarily of aluminium , nickel and cobalt , hence al-ni-co, with the addition of copper, and sometimes titanium. Alnico alloys are ferromagnetic, with a high coercivity and are used to make permanent magnets...
pickups and one bridge mounted humbucker
Humbucker
A humbucker is a type of electric guitar pickup, first patented by Seth Lover and the Gibson company, that uses two coils, both generating string signal. Humbuckers have higher output than a single coil pickup since both coils are connected in series...
with either Wilkinson and Floyd Rose vibrato bars, although a twin humbucker and hard tail model was also made. The fit, finish, and feature of Brawley's fretted instruments represented a very strong value-for-money at the time. Keith Brawley likened his guitars to Lexus cars in press interviews.
Brawley also produced a range of bass guitars in four-string, five-string and six-string versions. The top-of-the-line models featured neck-through body construction and all of them had a 35-inch scale length, as opposed to the standard 34-inch scale developed by Leo Fender on the first electric basses. These were known as the Artemis series and featured humbucking pickups on all models and active electronics on all but the entry-level model.
Mars music stores
Mars Music
Mars Music, Inc. is a now defunct chain of music stores headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The company was founded in 1996 by guitarist and former Office Depot president Mark Begelman, who created the superstore store chain after experiencing dissatisfaction with his own music store...
was a large dealer of Brawley guitars, but the music store chain failed amidst overheated expansion, taking down Brawley guitars with it. Keith Brawley subsequently worked for Guitar Center
Guitar Center
Guitar Center is the largest chain of musical instrument retailers in the world with 223 locations throughout the United States. Its headquarters is in Westlake Village, California....
where, after five years as the vice president of guitar merchandising, he was promoted to the position of vice president of merchandising and creative at the company's direct-response division, Musician's Friend, where he oversaw both the purchasing and creative teams producing the company's catalog and Internet efforts. -Musical Merchandise Review Magazine (MMR)
Keith sold his guitar designs to Guitar Center to be used as the Laguna
Laguna
Laguna may refer to:* Laguna Pueblo, a Native American people of the southwestern United States- Asia :* Laguna , Philippines, a province of the Philippines found in the CALABARZON region in Luzon...
brand, currently sold as an in-store brand. The Laguna guitars are modeled after Keith's designs, right down to the headstock, although the production of Laguna is in Indonesia, rather than South Korea. Today, Keith Brawley is the president of North America for Gibson Guitars.
Some Southern California stores such as Johnny Thompson Music in Monterey Park showed great success with Brawley instruments, including Costa Mesa's "Cobra Music". There are many bands that can be seen using Brawley Guitars including Charles Jirkovsky of San Diego band "All in Favor" and Brian Sun of "Residual FX."