This is a 1961 Gretsch from my personal collection: the 6120 Chet Atkins model. This is the Gretsch model which Brian Setzer is best known for (1960), and Pete Townsend used a 1960 Gretsch 6120 (Joe Walsh gifted Pete the guitar in 1970), to record many of The Who’s most popular hits.
This guitar has all of the desirable 1960 features, plus the 59 style Bigsby which Setzer uses. It is 100% original with the white cowboy case and strap. True left thumbnail inlays, 3-piece neck, desirable headstock shape with no “wings.”
As Edward Ball states in his classic book, Gretsch 6120 – The History of a Legendary Guitar: “Townsend’s 1960 Gretsch 6120 appears extensively on the albums Who’s Next (1971) and Quadrophenia (1973). Townsend points to tracks like “Bargain” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again” as examples that reveal the 6120 model’s sound.”
This is one of the cleanest vintage guitars I’ve owned over the years, it looks like a reissue except most of the heel cap binding broke off (it’s in the case but cracked), and the nearby binding piece at the top of the body is showing signs of wear(see photos). Again, typical binding-related wear associated with vintage Gretsch guitars. There is a minor nick on the headstock front by the A tuner. I just put new strings on it, and the guitar would benefit from a new nut, but that’s about it.
It also comes with an original leather-trimmed cowboy case and strap. These cases were sold separately, which means that not every 6120 has one. This is a very nice option to have on a vintage 6120.
1961 was the last year for the single-cutaway 6120 model. It was also the year where the body depth was narrowed to 2 1/4. The slimmer body approached the body depth of the Gibson ES-3xx guitars, which is probably why renowned Gretsch 6120 collector Christopher Guido’s favorite year was the shallow body 1961, which comprise 10 of his 32 vintage Gretsch 6120s (page 134 of Edward Ball’s book noted above).
This is probably one of the finest left handed vintage Gretsch guitars on the planet!
$28K
