In this segment, well uncover the truth about Japanese lawsuit guitars imported to the United States from the mid-1970s on.

Gear hunters and enthusiasts around the world all claim to have seen them, but the true story may shock you.

Guitars and guitar-based rock n roll music had reached a level of popularity that would last well into the early 2000s.

The careful attention to detail, superior parts, and meticulous craftsmanship diminished, while price tags remained high.

Rosenbloom, sensitive to the domestic hostility towards Japanese products still prevalent in the late 60s, used this as the brand name for his imported guitars.

In 1971, Hoshino became profitable enough to purchase Elger Guitars from Rosenbloom and officially changed their name to Ibanez, USA.

While Gibson and Fender guitars declined in quality, Japanese copies were, at least visually, markedly on par with the American originals.

The center image boldly displays the Ibanez brand on the head.

And the guitar on the right features an entirely new design with a new head shape.

Seventies Les Paul lookalikes featured names like Burny, Tokai, and Greco on their headstocks.

Notice that Grecos font is nearly identical to Gibsons.).

The only technical lawsuit guitars are Ibanez models, or other branded guitars manufactured by Hoshino, that look nearly identical to Gibson or Fender guitars, save for the name on the headstock and some technical specifications.

They mostly originated out of the FujiGen Gakki plant in Japan and were imported to the US.

Its not uncommon to see guitars from this period sporting wild body designs, as many as four pickups, and some curiously organized pickup selectors and knobs.

The Greco 950 is one of the coolest non-copied designs to come from Japanese factories.

Most of the instruments sold during this period were old-stock American guitars and imported Japanese guitars, which gave the market time to adjust to the presence of these new, low-cost instruments bearing the Fender name.

Most high-end guitar manufacturers have overseas plants that produce lower cost versions of their instruments for hobbyists, students, and professionals alike.

Gibson bought Epiphone, and Fender created the Squier line, further proof of these lower cost instruments success.

He has had the pleasure of contributing music and production to some of his favorite artists, and graced stages the world over.

His work can be found at elyadeenanbar.com, soundcloud.commrs-walrus, and selfesteemmusic.tumblr.com.

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