Tempo Unknown Guitar

Built in Japan, no serial number but tempo guitars were made in the late sixties and early seventies. Two gold foil single coil pickups, small thin body shaped like a muted mini-tele, headstock like a gibson firebird, body a solid piece of mahogany, rosewood neck with micro-frets which are not original, junior length neck, high note only a "B." The action is medium and the guitar, outfitted with 10's, is suprisingly easy to play. Rocker switches for the pickups, one volume and one tone knob.

Boy this thing really has tone. The strings really sound like they are a part of the guitar, rather than that unispiring tone of strings just sitting on top of wood. The treble pickup can get a bit trashy, the neck pickup is clear and responsive to touch. The switches all work, thanks to a bang up job by the folks at New York Music and Repair who breathed life back into this old guitar. Through a somewhat cranked jtm45 reissue, this axe had all sorts of swampy voodoo coming out of her.

The action is medium in hieght, but the guitar still plays very easily. Not super low action or super fast, but definitely a great feeling guitar with lots of character, push and pull. Kind of forces you to say something with your notes in a way that a super easy playing guitar does not. You gotta work the guitar a bit, it's percussive and responds well to an aggresive attack.

haven't had it long enough to know

tempo long gone

For the money, this is a cool little guitar.