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BC Rich are an organization specialising in angular and extreme electric guitar shapes and styles best suited for rock, hard rock and heavy metal bands. Bernardo Chavez Rico was a doubtful person to develop distinct guitars. Bernardo Rico (aka “Bernie”) was an accomplished Flamenco acoustic musician. From the early-to-mid 60s Bernie Rico exclusively built Flamenco guitars in Bernardo’s Guitar Store in LA, Cal. Former executive Vice President, Mal Stich, explains, “When you walked into Bernardo's shop the first thing you noticed was wall to wall guitars hanging from the wall like birthday party balloons. There was a glass counter with strings, picks, guitar components and accessories. Behind the counter was a window and you could watch the guys making electric guitars. And, the coolest thing was there were usually Flamenco and Classical musicians pickin away. I remember the Flamenco musicians firing at each other with riff after riff. Bernie's dad, Bernardo Mason Rico, was always sitting in his chair next to the Coca Cola soda machine while friends and neighbors watched spellbound as they listened to the music.” We're recognizing BC Rich Guitar’s Fortieth Anniversary stamping 1969 as the year Bernie began on his first real attempt to manufacture electric guitars and basses. It has been recorded that ten basses inspired by the Gibson EB-3 electric bass in addition to 10 matching Les Paul influenced guitars were handcrafted. Today few of those musical instruments exist, it's thought that fewer than the number listed above were actually completed. The period around 1972 was exceptionally propitious. The first original guitar design, the Seagull, was handcrafted in Bernardo’s shop. True to future shape, the Seagull guitar was visually unique as well as innovative. Its neck-through design (now a hallmark of BC Rich Guitars) featuring a heel-less design – incredibly rare for that time. Bernie quickly hired several proficient designers to compliment his very proficient builders. Many of the unique shapes and styles that would emerge from this expansion have grown to become iconic shapes associated with guitars. Approximately around 1976 came the Mockingbird, and then the further improvement of the Seagull, the Eagle was born, and around 1978 arrived the Bich was introduced. A number of the most revered guitar players immediately took to the brand new trend of BC Rich. With rising accomplishment, there was a necessity for a cheaper mass-produced BC Rich guitar. Approximately 1978 Bernie developed the BC Rico brand name to designate electric guitars to be imported from Japan. The first try was not successful when the Rico Reed Company sued over the use of the name. Regardless of the final result, the choice was already made to implement the BC Rich mark on imported guitars. Merely a small portion, possibly a hundred or so BC Rico guitars ever made it to the US. When the early 80s arrived, the Warlock was introduced. Almost instantly the hair metal culture of the time took to the Warlock’s edgy and matchless contour. The Warlock, though nowhere close to the newest shape innovated, rounds out the primary 5 legendary BC Rich shapes and styles. The 90s and 2000s saw a new crop of threateningly-named models even pointier than the 1980s models. These included the Zombie, Draco, Ignitor, Beast (brainstormed by Brian Hoffman, guitarists of death metal band Deicide), Warbeast (a mixture of Beast and Warlock). BC Rich guitars are also known for their endorsement deals with a number of celebrated and revered hard rock and metal players including Kerry King of Slayer (whose signature model is diabolic V-shape that has intensive tribal visual work over the guitar's body. He also has a signature model based on the Warlock). The deceased guitarists, Chuck Schuldiner of Death (when Schuldiner died of cancer in 2001 BC Rich launched a tribute model based on his preferred guitar, the BC Rich Stealth). Paul Stanley of KISS, and Paolo Gregoletto (bassist in Trivium) are also endorsed BC Rich players. If you are like me, when you think of hard rock and metal... you think of iconic guitars like BC Rich Guitars. They helped form rock and roll.
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Steve is a passionate music lover and guitarist for over 25 years. One of his favorite guitar websites he uses for his guitar related research and resources is Gear-Vault.com, noted as the best guitar review website on the entire internet. Read the resource to History of B.C. Rich Guitars article.
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