History Museum at the Castle Guitar Exhibit

There is an exhibit titled "Play it Loud: Instruments of Rock and Roll" at New York's Metropolitan Museum of Art. It features some of the iconic guitars that helped musicians such as Eric Clapton and Eddie Van Halen create their own unique sounds. A trip to the Big Apple is not on my agenda, so I was excited to learn that the History Museum at the Castle in Appleton, Wisconsin was hosting a guitar exhibit this summer.

"Guitar: The Instrument that Rocked the World" is on display from June 2019 through January 2020. This traveling exhibit has something for anyone, of any age, who has an interest in guitars. It features a floor length electric guitar and a multitude of Fender Stratocasters hanging from the ceiling. There are displays explaining the science behind the sounds created by acoustic guitars, electric guitars, and amplifiers.

The best part of the exhibit, however, is the collection of guitars that the exhibit brings together.

Fender Stratocaster

My favorite guitar, and the only electric I own, is the Fender Stratocaster. They had a vintage model in blue with a rosewood fretboard that is an excellent example of a Strat. Players who are associated with the Stratocaster are Buddy Holly, Eric Clapton and the incomparable Jimi Hendrix.

Gibson guitars were also well represented with a Les Paul SG and an ES 355 that B.B. King made famous. He named his guitars Lucille after he had run back into a burning bar to retrieve his guitar when a fire broke out during a gig. The fire had begun over a dispute involving a woman named Lucille and he wanted to remember never to run into a burning building because of a guitar. Gibson began to produce guitars with "Lucille" embossed on the headstock.

Lucille

The curators chose a Martin D 28 as an example of an acoustic guitar that influenced the rock and roll world. Rock musicians as diverse as Paul McCartney, Jimmy Page and Neil Young all played Martin acoustics on some of their most well known songs. The leather bound example on display indicates that it was also a favorite of country and western guitar slingers.

Martin D 28

If you have an interest in guitars, rock and roll or otherwise, I recommend a visit to the History Museum at the Castle.