The story of this rare Marco Polo guitar started as a
production design under the direction of Guyatone
House-Brands in 1958. It was built at the Suzuki Musical
Instrument Manufacturing plant... in one of two
factories located in Kiso and Hamamatsu, Japan.
Around 1958, Jack Westheimer, a pioneer of global guitar
making, began to see enough improvement in Japanese guitar
quality and figured... it was the right time to begin importing
them. One of those early model brought to the U.S. was this
Marco Polo "TL-59" six-string.
The first signs that... 'The Times They Were A-Changin' began
to appear with the debut of the Teisco T-60, EB-1 and those
mid-1950's Guyatones. This rare Marco Polo "TL-59",
named for the year it was manufactured, stood-out alongside
of all those other mid to late '50's guitars... as a very unique
instrument.
The Marco Polo was styled, more-or-less, after the Fender
Jazzmaster-shape with its offset guitars waist. The Jazzmaster
was first introduced at the 1958 NAMM Show, a full year before
the Marco Polo debut. The Fender Jazzmaster influence on the
Marco Polo design didn't stop there with the TL-59's extended
upper horn and backward sloped lower cut-way.
During that mid to late 1950's time period Guyatone was also particularly known for their "Gold Screen" pickups. Featuring a Rosewood Fingerboard with Side-Block Fret Markers & retro Radio-style volume/tone knobs added to the classic styling of the Marco Polo.
An attractive little guitar that's apart of the birth of...
"GUITAR" Rock 'N Roll History.