History of B.C. Rich Guitars

BC Rich Guitars are an organization specialising in pointed and extreme guitar shapes best suited for rock, hard rock and heavy metal music. Bernardo Chavez Rico was a doubtful character to create distinctive guitars. Bernardo Rico (aka “Bernie”) was an accomplished Flamenco acoustic player. From the early-to-mid 60s Bernie Rico exclusively built Flamenco guitars in Bernardo’s Guitar Store in Los Angeles, Cal. Previous Vice President, Mal Stich, comments, “When you walked into Bernardo's shop the very first thing you noticed was wall to wall guitars hanging from the ceiling like birthday party balloons. There was a glass counter with picks, strings, guitar components and accessories. Behind the counter was a window and you could actually watch the guys building electric guitars. And, the best thing was that there were usually Flamenco and Classical players pickin away. I remember the Flamenco musicians firing at each other with riff-after-riff. Bernie's father, Bernardo Mason Rico, was always sitting in his chair next to the Coca Cola soda machine while friends and neighbors, even the postman, watched spellbound as they listened to the music.”

We are recognizing BC Rich’s Fortieth Anniversary marking 1969 as the year Bernie embarked on his first real try to manufacture electric guitars and basses. It has been recorded that 10 basses influenced by the Gibson EB-3 electric bass as well as 10 matching Les Paul inspired electric guitars were all handcrafted. Today few of these instruments exist, it's rumored that less than the number listed above had been actually completed.

The time around 1972 was very auspicious. The initial guitar design, the Seagull, was handcrafted in Bernardo’s shop. True to future style, the Seagull was visually distinctive as well as revolutionary. Its neck-thru design (now a memento of BC Rich Guitars) featuring a heel-less design – very uncommon for that time.

Bernie soon employed several proficient designers to compliment his incredibly proficient builders. Most of the distinctive shapes and styles that would emerge from this expansion have turn out to be iconic shapes associated with guitars. Around 1976 came the Mockingbird, and then the additional development of the Seagull, the Eagle guitar was born, and around 1978 came the Bich was introduced. A few of the most respected guitar players immediately took to the revolutionary route of BC Rich.

With rising success, there was a desire for a inexpensive mass-produced BC Rich guitar. Nearly around 1978 Bernie set up the BC Rico brand to devise electric guitars that would be imported from Japan. The first try was less than successful when the Rico Reed Company filed a lawsuit over the usage of the brand. Despite the final result, the decision had already been made to use the BC Rich name on imported electric guitars. Merely a small portion, maybe 100 or so BC Rico instruments ever made it to the US.

When the early 80s arrived, the Warlock was born. Almost instantly the hair metal culture of the time took to the Warlock’s edgy and unique sculpt. The Warlock, though nowhere near the newest shape invented, rounds out the primary five traditional BC Rich shapes and styles.

The 1990s and 2000s witnessed a brand new crop of nasty models even pointier than the 1980s designs. These included the Zombie, Draco, Ignitor, Beast (brainstormed by Brian Hoffman, guitarists of death metal band Deicide), Warbeast (a mix of Beast and Warlock).

BC Rich guitars are also known for their endorsement deals with several essential and revered hard rock and metal guitarists including Kerry King of Slayer (whose signature guitar is diabolic V-shape that has extensive tribal visual work over the guitar's body. He also has a signature guitar based mostly on the Warlock). The deceased guitarists, Chuck Schuldiner of Death (when Schuldiner died of cancer in 2001 BC Rich released a tribute guitar 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 recognizable guitars such as BC Rich. They helped form rock and roll.

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Steve is a passionate music lover and guitar player who has been playing guitar for over 25 years. One of his favorite websites he uses for his guitar related resources is Gear-Vault.com, the best guitar review websites on the entire internet. Resource to History of B.C. Rich Guitars

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