Guitars
Bill Mendello retired as president of Fender Musical Instrument Corp in the fall of 2010 after a long career in the industry. He was hired in the accounting department of CBS Musical Instrument Division in 1978. Bill soon began working with Bill Schultz who was hired by the president of the musical...
Billy Grammer formed his own guitar company after years of playing country music in and around Nashville. Billy recorded several hit records on his own as well as playing behind some of the biggest names in country music. In 1958 he recorded “Done Laid Around” and the chart topper “Gotta Travel On...
Millie Detgen was one of the very few female manufacturers reps in the music products industry in the 1970’s and 80’s. She began working with her husband Gene Detgen after they were married in 1971. Gene was the Sales Manager at Pacific Music Supply in Los Angeles at that time. His main product...
Gary Hoey is a fantastically gifted guitar player who continues to inspire fans around the world. Honing and perfecting his chops on the East Coast, Gary’s talent was recognized early on by Ozzy Osbourne who invited him out to California to audition. That introduction was the springboard that...
Jack Tempchin remembers buying his first harmonica at Ozzie’s Music in San Diego at the height of Bob Dylan’s influence as a performer and songwriter. Along with other influences, Jack found himself writing his own songs, including several that have become standards in popular music during the...
Paul Chandler discovered a specialized market within the music industry as a result of being a rock and roll performer and loving vintage guitars. Over the years, Paul found that he had to replace vintage-style pickguards due to the composition of the materials used back in the 1930s and 40s. As a...
Wayne Charvel is the electric guitar designer and luthier who placed colorful and innovative instruments in the hands of heavy rockers in the 1980s and 90s--ushering in a new era of music and a new era for electric guitar sales. Wayne started making guitars in his Azusa, California, home before...
Wade Stewart entered the pro audio industry in the late 1960s when he worked along side Bob Crooks, the founder of Standel Amplifiers. In the early 1970s he formed Wade Electronics and focused on repairing Standel products, as well as most other brands of amplifiers of the day. When he created and...
Gary Wineroth is the president of the Guitar Showcase in San Jose, California, one of the best loved music retailers in the music products industry. With a historic past, the store has created a special position within the industry and for its generations of customers. Gary takes great pride in the...
Robert Scott is known throughout the music industry as Doc Scott, the inventor of the Doc Pro Plug ear products. After running a family clinic in the Santa Cruz area of California for years, Doc continued to encounter hearing issues occurring in musicians and surfers alike. He developed an earplug...