December 12, 2003
Fender Custom Shop Surf Guitars
by Tom Watson
Winter, 1964. Somewhere in the Midwest.
I sit in my room on the verge of being a teenager. Outside, a foot of snow on the street. Inside, I'm wearing out my 45 rpm copy of Wipe Out by the Surfaris trying to learn the solo. While Jim Fuller, leader of the Surfaris, plays a Fender Strat, I'm building up callous with a Sears catalog acoustic featuring mile high action and a string gauge that would make SRV weep.
Someday.
I'm a little young to appreciate the idea of sub-culture, counter-culture, or culture in general, but not too young to dream about a world of sunshine and warmth where life revolves around fast music, fast cars, and fast relationships with the opposite sex.
I watch Route 66 and 77 Sunset Strip. No sign of snow or slush in either show. It's not about rock and roll. In the dead of a Midwest winter it's about sunshine and reverb.
The acoustic that's tearing up my fingers is the result of a movie I saw a few months back. Beach Party. Not just the movie, the soundtrack. Dick Dale. Open roads. Big waves. Small bikinis. I know nothing about these things. I have snow on the ground, never seen an ocean, and can't drive. Forget women. In a few weeks I'll still be counting how many Valentine cards I get at school.
Jan and Dean try to help those of us who are land locked. No ocean, no waves? Grab your board (skateboard) and go Sidewalk Surfin'. But with a foot of snow on the ground, no one in the Midwest is becoming an asphalt athlete. There's only one answer.
Southern California.
The ultimate cure for cabin fever. Midwest dreams of the Beach Party lifestyle. Sand, sun, and enough dangerous curves (flesh and asphalt) to challenge any snowbound teenage boy.
But the only thing with dangerous curves even remotely within my reach is a Fender Strat. Good enough. Dick Dale. Jim Fuller. Al Jardine. Strat slingers all.
Fender. Southern California. A cosmic convergence. I walk through foot-high snow for an hour to the closest music store and stare at the dangerous curves of wood hanging on the wall.
Someday.
Winter, 2003. The NAMM Show.
Fender knows its roots. At the 2003, Winter NAMM Show, Fender introduced The "Surf Guitar". They're the creation of Fender Custom Shop Master Builder Dennis Galuszka, a line of instruments that pay tribute to Beach Party, Chevy Impala 409s cruising the Pacific Coast Highway, and lifestyle dreams of those who spend a quarter of the year in a snowbound wasteland.
Master Builder Galuszka grew up in Southern California, but has never been a surfer. In fact, he's never been on a surfboard in his life. That's not to say he wasn't influenced by the West Coast surf scene that surrounded him. He understands. The Surf Guitars were inspired by a close family friend who made miniature boards out of balsa wood that seemed to capture the look and feel of the culture. Galuszka has transferred that look and feel to guitars.
Several variations have been made to-date, including the Surf Bass, Surf Strat, and a couple of hybrid guitars that hang somewhere between Strat and Jaguar. The earlier Surf Guitars incorporated a balsa veneer top, but on more recent models, such as the Surf Guitar with a Statocaster body, Jaguar neck, and Jaguar tremolo system (pictured above, right) that is scheduled to be introduced at the upcoming 2004 Winter NAMM Show, Galuszka has used spruce to give the instrument its board-like look.
And consider this. Have a favorite surfboard? The Surf Guitars are made to order by Master Builder Galuszka, who would be happy to build one based upon the look of your favorite board. Contact a Fender Master Dealer for details.
Dennis Galuszka (left) and Dick Dale with Surf Guitars at the 2003, Winter NAMM Show.
Galuszka did more than rely on his exposure to the Southern California surf culture in creating the Surf Guitars. He did his homework. The 12th fret inlay on the Music Gallery Surf Guitar pictured above, is a recreation of one of the first Hawaiian petroglyphs of a surfer (inlay work by Ron Thorn) dating back hundreds of years. The Fender logo centered on the body of all the Surf Guitars was designed to be reminiscent of the logo presentation styles used by long board manufacturers.
Master Builder Dennis Galuszka and the Fender Custom Shop Surf Guitars continue Fender's legacy association with an American subculture that has helped shaped the sound of the electric guitar.
Postscript
So I sit, almost 40 winters later, still with dreams of sand, surf, and open road, thankful that the dangerous curves of a Fender Strat continue to warm a winter heart.
Someday.
For Further Information about the Surf Guitars:
Contact: Frank Glionna
Company: The Music Gallery, Fender Master Dealer
Address: 2558 Greenbay Road, Highland Park, Illinois
Telephone: (847) 432-6350 or (847) 432-8883
Website: www.musicgalleryinc.com
Email: MusicGlry@aol.com
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