1966 Hagstrom/Cromwell (A Functioning Piece Of Art Deco) The Fastest Neck In The World
a bass rocked by scandal or...
An Affair To Remember
In 1962 there was a "NEW" Hagstrom model introduced to the
guitar-playing public. The Hagstrom-Cromwell model had a very
"STRAT-LIKE" shape with its two cut-aways and 4 or 6 in-a-line
headstock. During this same time period... less then 200 hundred
2-pick-up Cromwell Guitar & Bass models were ever produced.
Today, there aren't many of these "Rare Birds" left in existence.
The Hagstrom advertising campaign touted that these Cromwell
Guitar & Bass necks were... "the fastest in the world." These
"NEW" Hagstrom-Cromwell models were exported from Sweden
to Guild and Kent at various times during the early to mid-60's and
only carried the Cromwell name. The "NEW"... referred to the fact
that these Cromwell Guitar & Bass models had a striking difference
between the main Hagstrom instrument line.
Importers in the U.S., during this time period, wanted another
model to sell so they chose the Cromwell Brand. These Hagstrom/Cromwell instruments were distributed
by Guild between 1962 & 1963 and distributed by Kent from
1964-1966.
A great example is this 1966 Hagstrom/Cromwell Bass. This Bass
features a beautiful body-style using alternating Maple & Walnut
wood, a double-horn cutaway with 2 pick-ups that are very
reminiscent to a vintage '52 P-Bass coil system. It also shipped
with those highly sought after covered tuners and Hagstrom's
unique volume and tone switch controls.
An interesting legal sidebar concerning the Cromwell name... the
name itself was already taken by Gibson. This fact partly explains the
very limited production of Cromwell instruments and ultimately helped to contribute to
the short lived-life of this now extinct... "Rare Bird."