Gretsch has just dropped its latest signature guitar, a limited-edition Electromatic Broadkaster in collaboration with Portugal. The Man’s John Gourley. The Grammy-winning artist has called designing the guitar “a dream”, with a humble price point and a guitar that can “take abuse” key elements in its creation.
Each of the guitar’s hardware and aesthetic features were handpicked by Gourley, and collaborating artist Cleon Peterson, to prioritize the Gretsch sound that his music has become synonymous with.
The guitarist grew up in Alaska on a diet of Motown and The Beatles and the sound of those artists have been paramount in the forming of his own musical identity, which he sees his new guitar as an extension of.
“The first time I heard a Gretsch [in person] was when I walked into a guitar shop in Tennessee and I knew instantly that that was the sound I’ve been looking for,” he explains. “I'd always loved the thumpy guitar tone on Aretha Franklin's Chain of Fools but I never knew what it was.
“It was one of those pivotal moments for me as a guitar player. It's such a special thing when you find that instrument that has those songs and that tone just naturally in there.”
The guitar is made from a double-cutaway maple body, which Gourley has thinned out a little bit to ensure it’s a guitar he can “throw around”. It also features a chambered spruce center block for optimum resonance and tonal richness.
A thin U-shaped maple neck with a 12” radius laurel fretboard accommodates 22 medium jumbo frets. Adding a unique touch, Peterson-designed pearloid cloud inlays dot the fretboard’s skyline.
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“I love the cloud inlays,” Gourley enthuses. “I want kids to be able to play, so I wanted to make an affordable guitar that was really fun for people to pick up and see that it's different.”
The guitar maintains the stock “perfect as they as they are” USA Full’Tron pickups, whilst the addition of a B70 Bigsby vibrato tailpiece, which is supported by a stability-ensuring anchored Adjusto-Matic bridge, stands out.
“The Bigsby is fun for me because the spring in it has it just has this really nice bounce to it,” the guitarist relays. “I love strumming chords and pressing down slightly and letting the chord bounce into tune. It can take a lot of abuse.”
A guitar that can take a beating is important for Gourley, who is known for his high-energy performances; he’s not a player who treats his instruments like ancient artifacts.
“I like a guitar that you can take out to the woods and you can camp with,” he says. “I don't like being too gentle with my guitars.”
Its control layout comprises a master volume with treble bleed circuit, a master tone dial, individual pickup volume controls and a three-way pickup selector switch to help sculpt a variety of tones.
The guitar’s features are rounded out by a Graph Tech NuBone nut, silver sparkle binding, locking tuners, strap locks, and nickel hardware.
Its finish, meanwhile, tips its hat to the ‘90s, an era when Gourley started discovering music that wasn’t played on Alaskan radio stations.
“I really wanted a black rainbow sparkle to it,” he explains. “It's such a cool color – you have to see it in sunlight. It looks incredible!”
“I grew up listening to all ‘60s and ‘70s music up until I started playing hockey as a ‘90s kid,” he shares. “I started hearing bands like Oasis and Nirvana and I went, ‘Oh my God. It's the Beatles. You can still make music today!’
“Wu-Tang was massive in my wanting to play guitar with the way they sample the past to make something new from it. So, thinking about that era, I thought about having an iridescent black guitar.
“I told Cleon, ‘It should be super-colorful but present as a goth kid but that’s secretly happy on the inside.’”
Gourley founded Portugal. The Man in 2004, before relocating the band to Portland, Oregon where they are now based. They've released nine studio albums to date, with 2017's Woodstock putting the afterburners on the band's already impressive trajectory.
From the record, Feel It Still topped the charts in seven countries, has racked up over a billion streams, and claimed the 'Best Pop Performance' Grammy that same year. The band's success has been further cemented with 2023's Chris Black Changed My Life.
Away from music, Gourley helped create the PTM Foundation, which focuses on building community resilience, empathy, and awareness through music and art. He has also set up the Frances Changed My Life initiative, which provides support for other families dealing with rare disease diagnoses.
“John Gourley’s connection-driven passion for making music, combined with his support for empowering artists to find their own musical identities, perfectly aligns with our mission to foster and uplift at Gretsch,” says Jason Barnes, VP of Product at Gretsch.
While Gretsch has a rich heritage of iconic players, from George Harrison and Malcolm Young to The Cult’s Billy Duffy, its signature series hasn’t put as much emphasis on present-day players in recent years.
Now, with boygenius recently being bestowed with a signature Broadkaster Jr. and Gourley presented with his own custom build, Gretsch is beginning to usher in a whole new generation of signature Gretsch artists to inspire a new generation of musicians and songwriters.
“It's beautiful; music is about progress,” Gourley says. “And man, I want to play the boygenius guitar!
“It's so cool being able to be a part of a kid picking up a guitar for the first time, and it's the reason I'm playing music. I cannot believe I got to sit down and make the thing that I've always wanted to play. It’s everything I’ve ever wanted in a guitar and it’s such a dream.”
The limited edition John Gourley Electromatic Broadkaster is available now for $1,199.
For more information, visit Gretsch.
