| The Charvel BumblebeeOne of Ed's Kids that "Really Got Around" |
|
So everyone knows about the "Frankenstrat" - in short synopsis, Edward Van-Halen, wanting to cross pollinate a Gibson with a Fender, went to Charvel/Boogie Bodies in San Dimas and bought a $80 neck and a $50 "Factory Second" Stratocaster body, routed the back out with a Chisel, threw a Gibson P.A.F. humbucker back there - angled to align with the strings, a 58' Stratocaster tremolo, and painted it up all "freaked out" white with black stripes and basically created a phenomenon. Then he painted over the original finish in Red and altered it some more to throw off the copycats.
So in 1979, the Sequel came, known as the "bumblebee". A rear-routed Charvel Boogie Bodies guitar with a maple neck, Brass Mighty Mite whammy, Mighty Mite Clear humbucker (at first), gold hardware, and a distinctive yellow on black paintjob in a similiar vein to the first guitar. The Bumblebee became synonymous with Van-Halen II - because Ed's all over the back of that album cover posing with this thing, and it looks cool as heck....cool enough that it became the inspiration behind my first Electric Guitar Build, later reprised when Eddie passed away. |
