Eko Guitar of Italy

Story of Eko Guitar

      During one in every of accordion maker Oliviero Pigini's visits to America within the late Nineteen Fifties, the rising craze for rock 'n' roll convinced him that the times of the accordion's popularity were numbered.

Clearly, the new "cool" instrument for the young generation was the guitar.

Oliviero Pigini

     Pigini came back to Italy and in 1959 founded Eko and started building guitars in his giant factory within the central Italian town of Recanati.

   For many reasons Eko succeeded terribly quickly in Europe. First, Eko was the continent's initial mass-producer of  guitars. Second, its "made in Italy" image and innovative designs--which ranged from "stylish Italian" to "mod" and quirky--tapped into the first '60s fun-seeking zeitgeist. Meanwhile, America's leading brands--Fender, Gibson, and Martin--had not gained a robust foothold in Europe.

     According to current Eko President Stelvio Lorenzetti, in those years European customs rules were additional restrictive, and importation and also the distribution channel for music merchandise had nevertheless to totally develop. As a result, Eko dominated European and Middle jap markets and for nearly twenty years remained Europe's biggest guitar producer.

Eko guitars were notably widespread in nice Britain.

     The brand's introduction coincided with Beatlemania, and it had been distributed within the U.K.'s prime retailer and distributor, Rose Morris.

Rose Morris conjointly owned the Vox amplifier company, that was closely related to the Fab Four.

     "Rose Morris was a awfully necessary distributor for Eko in those times," says Lorenzetti. "The 'marriage' between Eko and Rose Morris became terribly productive, and our guitars became best sellers in England.

     Overall the Ranger XII and VI acoustics and a few electrical models were the foremost widespread, however our entire catalog was o.k. known by British musicians from then up till the Eighties."

1965

     Between 1965 and 1975 Eko's collaboration with Rose Morris extended to manufacturing guitars and basses for Vox. Years later Eko, Vox, and Thomas Organ entered into a joint venture in Recanati referred to as EME (Elettronica Musicale Europea) to provide a replacement vary of Thomas-branded electronic organs and keyboards.

     In 1962 Eko appointed LoDuca Bros. its distributor within the U.S. Despite a lot of stronger competition from the category's established giants, Eko guitars gained a decent following and sales.

     As happened in Europe, yank musicians were interested in Eko guitars' ultra-slim necks, low action, and particularly their electrical models' innovative body styles.

Among Eko's most identifiable electrics was the Rokes.

     Created in 1965 for the Italian pop band of identical name, it had been sold commercially from 1966 and have become known within the U.S. because the Rocket or Rok. Different distinctive models included the Kadett, the 700, and also the Camaro. Eko's top-selling acoustics were the Ranger VI (six-string) and Ranger XII (12-string).

By 1970 Eko was established on 5 continents, and, at its zenith, created quite 350,000 guitars annually.

     The mark that Eko's heyday created on the worldwide guitar community still resonates--or "echoes"--today. Lorenzetti comments, "Every trip I've remodeled the years I've heard somebody say, 'Eko? That was my initial guitar!'"

     Some of these revelations are additional gratifying than others. He points out that as an adolescent Bob Taylor wished (but could not afford) an Eko Ranger XII that ultimately galvanized him to create his initial guitar in his highschool woodshop category. "During the '60s and '70s Eko represented one in every of the foremost necessary guitar factories within the world beside Fender, Gibson, and Martin," says Lorenzetti. "We are terribly pleased with that."

     Despite Eko's early success, competition from Asian-made brands with dramatically lower labor prices compelled Eko to maneuver its production from Italy to, in turn, Japan, Korea, and Taiwan. However the corporate was too way behind the guitar market's steep deflationary curve, and within the late '80s the Italian factory was closed.

     However, for quite twenty years collectors, vintage guitar aficionados, and musicians nostalgic for the instruments they played in their youth kept the Eko mystique alive.