Travis Bean
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
luthier
Luthier
A luthier is someone who makes or repairs lutes and other string instruments. In the United States, the term is used interchangeably with a term for the specialty of each maker, such as violinmaker, guitar maker, lute maker, etc...
and machinist from California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
.
In 1974, he partnered with Marc McElwee and Gary Kramer to start Travis Bean Guitars, which made high-end electric guitars and basses featuring machined aluminum necks. This was an unusual design, departing from more traditional wood necked instruments. The aluminum center section ran through the instrument body, with the pickups directly mounted to the aluminum. The majority of these instruments featured solid koa
Koa
Acacia koa is a species of flowering tree in the pea family, Fabaceae. It is endemic to the Hawaiian Islands, where it is the second most common tree. The highest populations are on Hawaii, Maui and Oahu...
wood bodies and humbucker
Humbucker
A humbucker is a type of electric guitar pickup, first patented by Seth Lover and the Gibson company, that uses two coils, both generating string signal. Humbuckers have higher output than a single coil pickup since both coils are connected in series...
pickups. Though praised for their sound, the use of aluminum necks also made Travis Bean guitars heavier than other electric guitars. Models included the Artist, Standard, Wedge (rare), and TB500 (rare) with single coil
Single coil
A single coil pickup is a type of magnetic transducer, or pickup, for the electric guitar and the electric bass. It electromagnetically converts the vibration of the strings to an electric signal...
pickups.
Kramer and Bean parted ways in 1975, with the former starting Kramer Guitars
Kramer Guitars
Kramer Guitars is an American manufacturer of electric guitars and basses. Kramer produced aluminum-necked electric guitars and basses in the 1970s and wooden-necked guitars catering to hard rock and heavy metal musicians in the 1980s; Kramer is currently a division of Gibson Guitar Corporation...
. The first series of Kramer guitars were redesigned aluminum-necked instruments but utilizing wooden inserts along the back of the neck to cut down on weight and provide a more traditional feel; these modifications also avoided patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
violations on Travis Bean's original neck design.
Around 3,600 guitars and basses were produced between 1974 and 1979.
In the late 1990s, Bean teamed with master machinist/designer B. Kelly Condon and produced a run of 24 high end, custom instruments. These guitars and basses were aluminum-neck instruments, each machined from a 125 pound billet of 7075 aluminum. The pans weighed just over 4 pounds when finished and all were serial numbered and identified inside of the pan.
A documentary called "Sustain" about Travis Bean guitars and the individuals that built these historic instruments and the players that play them (past and present) was reportedly in development in 2009.
Models
- TB500 (Budget Model) - 351 produced
- TB1000S (Standard) - 1422 produced
- TB1000A (Artist) - 755 produced
- TB2000 (Standard Bass) - 1020 produced
- TB3000 (Wedge) - 45 produced
- TB4000 (Wedge Bass) - 36 produced
Guitar Players
- Steve AlbiniSteve AlbiniSteven Frank Albini is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist, audio engineer and music journalist. He was a member of Big Black, Rapeman, and Flour, and is currently a member of Shellac...
of ShellacShellac (band)Shellac is an American group composed of Steve Albini , Bob Weston and Todd Trainer...
- plays TB500 and Wedge - Matthew Bolger of The Redneck ManifestoThe Redneck Manifesto (band)The Redneck Manifesto are an instrumental rock band from Dublin, Ireland. Its members are Mervyn Craig , Richard Egan , Niall Byrne , Matthew Bolger and Neil O'Connor .-History:...
- plays TB1000S & TB1000A - Duane DenisonDuane DenisonDuane Denison is an American guitarist. Denison currently plays for Th' Legendary Shack Shakers, The Jesus Lizard, which he recently re-united with after a 9-year break-up, and Tomahawk. He has played for Firewater. He began his musical career by studying classical guitar. Denison and ex-Ministry...
of The Jesus LizardThe Jesus LizardThe Jesus Lizard was an American alternative rock and noise rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas. They were "a leading noise rock band in the American independent underground…[who] turned out a series of independent records filled with scathing, disembowelling, guitar-driven pseudo-industrial...
- played TB1000S (Sea Foam Green) - Jerry GarciaJerry GarciaJerome John "Jerry" Garcia was an American musician best known for his lead guitar work, singing and songwriting with the band the Grateful Dead...
- played TB1000A and TB500 - John HaughmJohn HaughmJohn Haughm is a heavy metal musician and an artist from the United States. He is most famous for being the vocalist and guitarist of the band Agalloch...
of Agalloch - plays TB1000S (natural koa) and TB1000A (black) - Roger FisherRoger Fisher (guitarist)Roger Fisher is a guitarist primarily known as one of the founding members of the band Heart. His tenure lasted from 1967 until 1980.-Career:...
of HeartHeart (band)Heart is an American rock band who first found success in Canada. Throughout several lineup changes, the only two members remaining constant are sisters Ann and Nancy Wilson. The group rose to fame in the 1970s with their music being influenced by hard rock as well as folk music...
- played TB1000A - Stanley JordanStanley JordanStanley Jordan is an American jazz/jazz fusion guitarist and pianist, best known for his development of the tapping technique for the guitar....
- plays TB1000S - Keith LeveneKeith LeveneKeith Levene is an English songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. He was an early member of The Clash, but is best known as being a founding member of Public Image Limited, along with John Lydon....
of Public Image Ltd - played Wedge and TB1000S - John MacLeanThe Juan MacLeanJohn MacLean, better known by the stage name The Juan MacLean, is an American electronic musician.-History:Maclean was guitarist for the post-hardcore band Six Finger Satellite, based in Providence, Rhode Island. The band was struck by several tragedies, and Maclean eventually moved into production...
of Six Finger SatelliteSix Finger SatelliteSix Finger Satellite are an American synthesizer-based post-hardcore band, based in Providence, Rhode Island.- History :The band formed in 1990 around a line-up of J. Ryan , John MacLean , Peter Phillips , Chris Dixon , and Rick Pelletier... - Stephen MalkmusStephen MalkmusStephen Joseph Malkmus is an indie rock musician and icon, and a member of the band Pavement. He currently performs with Stephen Malkmus and the Jicks.-Early years:...
of PavementPavement (band)Pavement is an American alternative rock band that formed in Stockton, California in 1989. In their career, they achieved a significant cult following, and they were called the best band of the 1990s by prominent music critics Robert Christgau and Stephen Thomas Erlewine...
owns a TB1000A - Kim MitchellKim MitchellJoseph Kim Mitchell is a Canadian guitarist. He was the lead singer and guitarist for the band Max Webster before going on to lead a solo career. He is currently a radio show host for CILQ-FM in Toronto....
- Ceylon Mooney of PezzPezzPezz is a punk band from Memphis, Tennessee, USA. They formed in 1989 and released several LPs, CDs and cassettes with labels 'Truant Records', 'BYO Records', and 'Soul is Cheap'...
- Joe PerryJoe Perry (musician)Anthony Joseph "Joe" Perry is the lead guitarist, backing and occasional lead vocalist, and contributing songwriter for the rock band Aerosmith. He is influenced by many rock artists especially The Rolling Stones and The Beatles...
- played Wedge and TB1000S (black and silver) - Rubberduck Jones, a Finnish punk rockPunk rockPunk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
guitarist, who is most well known as the guitarist of several Pelle MiljoonaPelle MiljoonaPelle Miljoona, real name Petri Samuli Tiili is a Finnish punk rock musician, who assembled his first band in 1977. His biggest hit was in 1980 with Moottoritie on Kuuma . Another well-known song is Tahdon rakastella sinua...
related bands, like Pelle Miljoona & 1980 and the Suspenders. - Yannis PhilippakisYannis PhilippakisYannis Philippakis is a singer of the alternative indie and dance punk band Foals. He is of Greek and South African Jewish descent. He left Greece with his mother when he was five years old. His father taught him to dance the folk traditional songs and sing...
of FoalsFoals (band)Foals are an English indie rock band from Oxford. They are currently signed to Transgressive Records in the UK and Sub Pop in the US. They released their debut album Antidotes on 24 March 2008 in the UK, and 8 April 2008 in the US...
uses a TB1000S (natural and black) and black TB500 - Stephen O'MalleyStephen O'MalleyStephen O'Malley is a musician, predominantly a guitarist, producer and composer from Seattle, Washington who has conceptualized and participated in numerous drone doom, death/doom, and experimental music groups....
of Sunn O)))Sunn O)))Sunn O))) is an American doom metal band known for its synthesis of diverse genres including drone, ambient, noise, and black metal. Supported by a varying cast of collaborators, the band has two core members: Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson .-History:Sunn O))) is named after the Sunn...
plays TB1000S - Lee RanaldoLee RanaldoLee M. Ranaldo is an American singer, guitarist, writer, record producer, and visual artist, best known as a co-founder of the alternative rock band Sonic Youth...
of Sonic YouthSonic YouthSonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
- played TB1000A (several were stolen in July 1999) Also played TB1000S "bullseye" (which was destroyed) and TB1000S - Keith RichardsKeith RichardsKeith Richards is an English musician, songwriter, and founding member of the Rolling Stones. Rolling Stone magazine said Richards had created "rock's greatest single body of riffs", and placed him as the "10th greatest guitarist of all time." Fourteen songs written by Richards and songwriting...
- played a TB1000 on the Rolling StonesThe Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
1975 tour and a custom made 5-string TB1000A during the 1979 New BarbariansThe New Barbarians (band)The New Barbarians were a rock band that played two concerts in Canada and eighteen shows across the United States in April and May 1979; in August 1979, the band also supported Led Zeppelin at the Knebworth Festival 1979....
tour. Used a black TB500 during the Rolling Stones 1978 Saturday Night Live performance. - Brian RobertsonBrian RobertsonBrian "Robbo" David Robertson is a Scottish rock guitarist, best known for his work with Thin Lizzy and Motörhead.-Early life:...
played a TB1000A during his time with Thin LizzyThin LizzyThin Lizzy are an Irish hard rock band formed in Dublin in 1969. Two of the founding members, drummer Brian Downey and bass guitarist/vocalist Phil Lynott met while still in school. Lynott assumed the role of frontman and led them throughout their recording career of thirteen studio albums... - Kelly Ryall played a TB1000 during early High Pass FilterHigh Pass Filter (band)High Pass Filter were a live electro-dub band formed in Melbourne, Australia. The band was active from 1995–2006 and supported many major touring artists such as Beastie Boys, Blues Explosion, Tortoise, Fugazi, Lee 'Scratch' Perry, The Boredoms and Mad Professor.The group began as a live dub outfit...
shows. - Vincent GalloVincent GalloVincent Gallo is an Italian-American film director and actor. Though he has had minor roles in mainstream films such as Goodfellas, he is most associated with independent movies, including Buffalo '66, which he wrote, directed, did the music for and starred in; The Brown Bunny, which he also...
plays a TB1000A and TB3000 Wedge - SlashSlash (musician)Saul Hudson , known by his stage name Slash, is a British-American musician and songwriter. He is best known as the former lead guitarist of the American hard rock band Guns N' Roses, with whom he achieved worldwide success in the late 1980s and early 1990s. During his later years with Guns N'...
- Ron WoodRon WoodRonald David "Ronnie" Wood is an English rock guitarist and bassist best known as a former member of The Jeff Beck Group, Faces, and current member of The Rolling Stones. He also plays lap and pedal steel guitar....
- played a TB2000 on the Rolling Stones 1975 tour, a TB1000A and a white TB500 during the 1979 New Barbarians tour. - Johan Folkesson - of Swedish mammoths SwitchbladeSwitchblade (band)Switchblade were a five-piece metal band from Sydney, Australia, formed in 2001 and ending in 2011. Switchblade were the support act for bands such as Slayer, Machine Head, Exodus, Trivium and Nevermore during their respective Australian tours and released two albums...
from Stockholm as well as former bassplayer Anders Stén are known to play Travis Bean instruments. - Colin NewmanColin NewmanColin Newman is an English musician, record producer and record label owner.-Biography:Newman is a member of the rock band Wire. When the band temporarily split in 1980, Newman pursued a solo career. His first solo LP, A-Z, was released in 1980 on the Beggar's Banquet label...
of WireWire (band)Wire are an English rock band, formed in London in October 1976 by Colin Newman , Graham Lewis , Bruce Gilbert , and Robert Gotobed...
played a TB1000 during the mid-1980s.
Bass Players
- Chosei FunaharaChosei FunaharaOsao Chosei Funahara is a musician and film director and producer. Born in the Hyōgo Prefecture of Japan, Chosei Funahara was educated in both America and Japan. He received his Bachelor of Fine Arts at the Nihon University College of Art's Cinema Department in Tokyo...
of PlasmaticsPlasmaticsThe Plasmatics were an American heavy metal and punk band formed by Yale University art school graduate Rod Swenson with Wendy O. Williams. The band was a controversial group known for wild live shows that broke countless taboos...
- played two of black TB4000 Wedges - Mick KarnMick KarnAndonis Michaelides , better known as Mick Karn, was an English multi-instrumentalist musician and songwriter, who came to fame as the bassist for the art rock band Japan, from 1974 to 1982....
of JapanJapan (band)Japan were a British New Wave group, formed in 1974 in Catford, South London. The band achieved success in the late 1970s and early 1980s, when they were often associated with the burgeoning New Romantic fashion movement .- History :The band began as a group of friends... - Tim Midgett of Bottomless PitBottomless Pit (band)Bottomless Pit is an indie rock band from Chicago. Guitarist Andy Cohen and baritone guitarist Tim Midgett, both formerly of Silkworm, formed the band with drummer Chris Manfrin of Seam and bassist Brian Orchard of .22 in 2005. Since inception the group has issued two critically acclaimed records...
and SilkwormSilkworm (band)Silkworm was an indie rock band active from 1987 to 2005.The members were Tim Midgett, Joel RL Phelps, Andy Cohen, and Michael Dahlquist. Phelps left the band in 1994. Matt Kadane of Bedhead and The New Year played keyboards on Italian Platinum and It'll Be Cool...
- plays TB4000 Wedge. During Silkworm, Tim played a TB1000S modified to baritone and TB2000. - Bob WestonBob WestonBob Weston is an American musician, producer, recording engineer, and record mastering engineer. Critic Jason Ankeny declares that "Weston's name and fingerprints are all over the American underground rock of the post-punk era, producing and engineering dates for a seemingly endless number of...
of ShellacShellacShellac is a resin secreted by the female lac bug, on trees in the forests of India and Thailand. It is processed and sold as dry flakes , which are dissolved in ethyl alcohol to make liquid shellac, which is used as a brush-on colorant, food glaze and wood finish...
and the Volcano SunsVolcano SunsVolcano Suns was an American alternative rock band from Boston, Massachusetts formed by Mission of Burma drummer Peter Prescott in 1984.-History:... - Bill WymanBill WymanBill Wyman is an English musician best known as the bass guitarist for the English rock and roll band the Rolling Stones from 1962 until 1992. Since 1997, he has recorded and toured with his own band, Bill Wyman's Rhythm Kings...
of the Rolling Stones -Wyman used a custom made short-scale TB2000 from 1977 until 1986. A total of 4 short-scale TB2000 bases were made for Wyman. - Peggy FosterPeggy FosterPeggy Foster is an American bass player.Peggy Foster played bass in The Runaways for a short time. She then played fretless bass on 2 of Steve Vai's albums, was sponsored by Travis Bean Guitars, did studio work and tours with numerous groups, and appeared in videos and several movies...
, The RunawaysThe RunawaysThe Runaways were an American all-girl rock band that recorded and performed in the second half of the 1970s. The band released four studio albums and one live set during its run. Among its best known songs: "Cherry Bomb", "Queens of Noise", "Neon Angels On the Road to Ruin", "California Paradise"...
, Steve VaiSteve VaiSteven Siro "Steve" Vai is a three time Grammy Award-winning American guitarist, songwriter and producer who has sold over 15 million albums. Steve Vai is widely known as a flamboyant guitar virtuoso....
, TB4000 Wedge Bass #25, TB2000 Fretless #248 - Matt Gentling of Archers of LoafArchers of LoafArchers of Loaf is an American indie-rock band originally from Chapel Hill, North Carolina, formed in 1990. The group toured extensively and released a total of four studio albums, a collection album, numerous singles and EPs, and a live album which was released after the band broke up in...
plays a TB2000. - Liam Andrews of My DiscoMy DiscoMy Disco is an Australian rock band.-Background:Formed in Melbourne, Australia in 2003, their first public appearance was performed at The Good Morning Captain, a cafe in Collingwood, a suburb of Melbourne...
plays a TB2000.
See also
- Frying pan (guitar)Frying pan (guitar)The "frying pan" was the first electric lap steel guitar ever produced. George Beauchamp created the instrument in 1931, and it was subsequently manufactured by Rickenbacker Electro...
- The first aluminum neck guitar, 1930s - Veleno (guitar)Veleno (guitar)The Veleno guitar is a highly-regarded series of aluminum guitars built by metal craftsman John Veleno. The first guitars were built in 1972. Veleno guitars are known for their unique sound quality. Public Image Ltd...
- another maker of aluminum neck guitars
External links
- Travis Bean Guitars - an unofficial site for enthusiasts of the 1970s guitars.