“Can you imagine Kramer being more successful than Fender and Gibson? It sounds crazy, but Eddie made that happen”: H.E.A.T guitarist recalls Eddie Van Halen’s influence on the gear market
Dave Dalone of Swedish rock outfit H.E.A.T has shared his thoughts on Eddie Van Halen’s impact on the desirability of guitar gear.
When Van Halen were at their peak in the 1980s, Eddie made one guitar brand in particular boom in popularity – Kramer. It was the best-selling brand of 1985 and 1986, but was later purchased out of bankruptcy by Gibson in 1997. The brand went on to reissue some of its classic models, but it was fully relaunched in 2020 by Gibson’s new owners and management team.
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Dalone currently uses a number of Kramer models, and in fact, he says the band’s most recent album, Welcome To The Future, is “90 percent Kramer”.
Speaking to Guitarist in its new print issue, he says, “I think Kramers are the peak of ‘80s innovation. It’s the pinnacle of guitar building from that period, at least in my eyes. That’s what caught my interest. I’m in love with the brand and the whole history behind it. So around six years ago, I stopped playing Les Pauls and started collecting vintage Kramers.”
Of Eddie’s effect on the brand, he adds, “I guess he was the one who helped turn them into such a global brand. At one point they were the biggest guitar company in the world. Can you imagine Kramer being more successful than Fender and Gibson? It sounds crazy, but Eddie made that happen.
“It’s quite an interesting story, I think, how a company can go from nothing to on top of the world and then just fade out. I think Eddie had the same kind of effect on Peavey amps. Whatever he touched became valid; people realised it was good gear because he made it sound phenomenal.
“Now Gibson owns Kramer, but in my eyes it’s not really the same thing. I have one Kramer from the Gibson factory, but it’s a 1985 reissue from 2005 that’s American-made. It’s solid maple, so it’s too heavy for me to use live,” he explains.
H.E.A.T’s new album, Welcome To The Future, is out now. Find out where they’ll be playing live this year via their official website.
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Source: www.guitar-bass.net
