Danelectro is a guitar and Guitar effects manufacturer, Founded in 1947 by Nathan Daniel. The company produced amplifiers for Sears, Roebuck and Company and Montgomery Ward throughout the late forties. In 1954, Danelectro started producing the Danelectro lines of solidbody electric guitars and amplifiers, and also working as a "jobber", that is producing guitars and amps by contract, that were branded not with the Danelectro name, but with the names of various store brands, such as Silvertone and Airline. Later hollow-bodied guitars (constructed out of Masonite and plywood to save costs and increase production speed,) distinguished by Silvertones' maroon vinyl covering, Danelectros' light tweed covering, the concentric stacked tone/volume knobs used on the two-pickup models of both series, and the "lipstick-tube" pickups--invented by placing the entire mechanism into spare lipstick tubes--these lines aimed to produce no-frills guitars of reasonably good tone at low cost. In 1956, Danelectro introduced the six-string electric bass, which would be adopted by other companies such as Fender with the Fender VI. The six string bass never proved especially popular but found an enduring niche in Nashville as the instrument of choice for "tick-tack" bass lines. In 1966, Danelectro was sold to MCA. A year later, the Coral line was introduced, known for its hollow-bodies and electric sitars. In 1969, the Danelectro plant was closed, due to MCA's attempt to market Danelectros to small guitar shops, rather than large department stores.
In the late 1990s, the Evets Corporation started selling primarily copies of old Silvertone and Danelectro guitars and newly designed effects pedals, and small amplifiers. After initially selling well, guitar sales slowed down to the point where Danelectro stopped selling guitars after 2001, opting to concentrate on effects pedals. In 2006, the new owners of Evets decided on a new marketing model for the guitars, selling a limited number of guitars each year.
One Noteable Guitar made by Danelecrto was the 59-DC guitar.
59-DC guitars were manufactured by Danelectro (the "DC" stands for 'double cutaway'). This guitar made a comeback in the late 1990s with the 59-DC reissue and later with the 59-DC PRO. The 59-DC has two pickups and has the "Coke Bottle Style" classic headstock, hollowed body cavity, and a seal shaped pick guard with two double stacked concentric knobs.
Syd Barrett from the early Pink Floyd usually played this guitar before switching to Fender Telecasters, and also Jimmy Page from Led Zeppelin used this model of guitar on live performances of "Kashmir", "In My Time of Dying", "Black Mountain Side", and "White Summer". When Eric Clapton was with Blind Faith he used this model with a psychedelic paint job.
The 59-DC Pro is the same guitar but with a natural wood colored neck and headstock and a fully adjustable/intonable chrome bridge instead of the classic one with the rosewood saddle.