Kramer Baretta
Encyclopedia
The Kramer Baretta was a guitar manufactured by the Kramer guitar company originally located in New Jersey. The guitar was introduced in 1984. The Baretta featured a Floyd Rose locking tremolo system and one Seymour Duncan JB humbucking pick-up. The Baretta was discontinued in 1990 when the company went bankrupt until Gibson bought them in the late 90s. The most notable player of the Kramer Baretta is Van Halen
guitarist Eddie Van Halen
. the model was originally styled to be Van Halen's signature model, although he never endorsed it on stage. The banana headstock was copied from his "custom shark" Ibanez Destroyer
. The single diagonal pickup was taken from his "frankenstrat
" guitar and was set diagonal to calibrate for the narrower string spacing. A reissue of the Baretta is currently available.
Van Halen
Van Halen is an American hard rock band formed in Pasadena, California, in 1972. The band has enjoyed success since the release of its debut album, Van Halen, . As of 2007 Van Halen has sold 80 million albums worldwide and has had the most #1 hits on the Billboard Mainstream Rock chart...
guitarist Eddie Van Halen
Eddie Van Halen
Edward Lodewijk "Eddie" Van Halen is a Dutch-American guitarist, keyboardist, songwriter and producer, best known as the lead guitarist and co-founder of the hard rock band Van Halen, inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame...
. the model was originally styled to be Van Halen's signature model, although he never endorsed it on stage. The banana headstock was copied from his "custom shark" Ibanez Destroyer
Ibanez Destroyer
The Destroyer is an Ibanez brand electric guitar model manufactured at the FujiGen-Gakki musical instrument factory for the Hoshino-Gakki Company. The Destroyer model was first introduced by Hoshino-Gakki in 1975 and was based on the Gibson Musical Instruments' Explorer design...
. The single diagonal pickup was taken from his "frankenstrat
Frankenstrat
Frankenstrat is a guitar created by Eddie Van Halen.-Overview of the Frankenstrat:The Frankenstrat represented Van Halen's attempt to combine the sound of a classic Gibson guitar with the physical attributes of a Fender. It was originally made from an ash Stratocaster body, with pickup routing that...
" guitar and was set diagonal to calibrate for the narrower string spacing. A reissue of the Baretta is currently available.