Japanese guitars are pretty well regarded today, but at the start of the 1960s, manufacturers producing guitars in Japan were pretty much non-existent. The market was dominated by American and European makers, many with decades of experience, and producing very fine instruments. It is, then, a testament to Japanese skill and ingenuity that by the end of the decade these same makers were contracting a large part of their manufacture to companies in Japan, with the majority coming from one place, the Matsumoku factory in the city of Matsumoto, Nagano Prefecture.
Although Matsumoku were relatively new to guitar manufacture, the company were well regarded in cabinet building, for televisions, amplifiers, sewing machines and traditional Japanese furniture. The name Matsumoku derives from "Matsumoto Mokko" - translating to "Matsumoto Woodworking Company". Electric guitar production began in the mid 1960s, and continued through to 1986.
Matsumoku and Aria
Initially, Matsumoku didn't build and market their own guitars - as was the case with their sewing machines, Matsumoku were subcontracted by other companies, the most important being Aria. Aria designed a series of instruments, some quite original, some clearly based on guitars by existing manufacturers; and although available with Aria branding, the same guitars were re-badged for different guitar distributors across the globe. The guitars were effectively identical, using many of the same parts (see Matsumoku guitar parts), but with plastic peghead logos pinned in place.
Re-badged Matsumoku guitars
From around 1966 Merson/Unicord distributed Aria/Matsumoku guitars labelled Univox, with the best known-model, the Mosrite-styled Hi-Flier appearing in 1967/68. David Wexler of Chicago badged them as Conrad, C. Bruno as Ventura, L.D. Heater as Lyle, and Maurice Lipsky as Domino. In the United Kingdom many were imported branded as Eros (Rosetti), Angelica (Boosey & Hawkes), and Commodore. Over the next five or six years there were numerous other examples: Electra, Granada, Tempo (Merson), Toledo, Jedson (Dallas), Arbiter and Shaftesbury (Rose-Morris) to name just a few.
Matsumoku Epiphones
But the best known Matsumoku guitars of the early seventies were those branded Epiphone. Aria struck a deal with Gibson to start production of Epiphone guitars in Japan in late 1970. Whilst functionally the same instruments these guitars were a step up from the previous offerings, having Epiphone-style headstocks, with inlaid logos and branded scratchplates / truss rod covers. Initially the Epiphone models kept the original Aria model designations, but these were soon revised to differentiate these guitars from the numerous similar models out there. Perhaps one of the best known of these early Japanese Epiphones was the ET-270 solid body later wielded by Kurt Cobain of Nirvana
Gretsch and Dorado
But Gibson was not the only Big American company to offer a Matsumoku-made 'entry level' version of its guitars. In 1973 Gretsch attempted the same approach, offering a very nice version of Epiphone's ET-270 solid body as the Dorado 5985.
In 1975 Aria guitars were sold as Aria Pro II. The brand had gained in confidence and there was a distinct move away from copies towards more original designs.
Latest Matsumoku updates
The most recent content posted to this site on vintage Matsumoku guitars:

This example of the
Shaftesbury 3400 was produced by Japanese manufacturer
Matsumoku who made some great quality guitars in the 1970s and 1980s. This is a slightly later example, and has some features not seen on earlier 3400s. Although nice guitars, these are not in the same league as the
Gibson Les Paul it was emulating (no set neck, no carved maple top); but they are far better than many of the entry-level Les Paul copies available in the mid-1970s - for example the Shaftesbury 3400 has gold plated hardware, a solid body bound front and back, Maxon brand humbuckers and nice inlaid neck and headstock.

The Epiphone 1802T was the early name given to the
Epiphone ET-270 and derived from an existing Aria guitar, also the 1802T. This was the first of the 1970s Epiphone solid bodies made in Japan by
Matsumoku.The model evolved somewhat over its short production run: the very earliest examples were very similar to the Aria, sharing the same body shape, hardware, and clear-coated neck with Fender-style headstock with decal logo. By the time it was designated the Epiphone ET-270 it had been upgraded with the classic Epiphone-style headstock, with nice inlaid logo, and Epiphone 'E' motifs on the truss rod cover and scratchplate. This example from 1971 is somewhere in between with the Epiphone-style headstock, but with silk-screened logo, and no 'E's.
Shaftesbury was a brand distributed by
Rose-Morris in the UK - generally imported guitars from Italy or Japan. This guitar, model
3400 was produced by
Matsumoku in Japan, and was one of the earliest Les Paul copy guitars, debuting in the UK in 1969, although the same guitar was also sold as the Univox U1982 'Rhythm and Blues' by Merson in the USA as early as 1968. It was also available in different territories under different marques, most obviously the Aria 5522 (Japan), Jedson Jet 4444 (UK, Dallas Arbiter), with no doubt many more examples worldwide.

Scan of 1970 Epiphone guitar catalogue produced by
Rosetti for the UK market. Undated but most likely from mid-late 1970, this was the first UK catalogue to show the new range of Japanese (
Matsumoku) Epiphone guitars. Interestingly, these pages show the Epiphone solid bodies with a single-sided Fender-style headstock layout - a feature quickly replaced with a typical two-sided Epiphone headstock almost immediately. Epiphone electric guitars: 9520, 9525; bass guitars: 9521, 9526; acoustic guitars: 6730, 6830, 6834

Scan of 1971 Rosetti catalogue (UK) featuring guitars from from numerous manufacturers worldwide: guitars by Epiphone, Hagstrom, Levin, Hoyer, Egmond, Eros, Moridaira, Kiso-Suzuki, Schaller, and Tatra.

Commodore was a brand applied to a series of guitars produced in Japan at the well-respected
Matsumoku plant from the late 1960s to the mid 1970s - and sold primarily (perhaps exclusively?) in the United Kingdom. The models bearing the Commodore name were all guitars available from different distributors with different branding. Although there may have been some minor changes in appointments (specifically headstock branding) most had the same basic bodies, hardware and construction. Equivalent models to the Commodore N25 (and this is by no means an exhaustive list) include the Aria 5102T, Conrad 5102T(?), Electra 2221, Lyle 5102T, Ventura V-1001, Univox Coily - and most famously the Epiphone 5102T / Epiphone EA-250.

By the end of the 1960s, a decision had been made to move Epiphone guitar production from the USA (at the Kalamazoo plant where Gibson guitars were made), to Matsumoto in Japan, creating a line of guitars and basses significantly less expensive than the USA-built models (actually less than half the price). The
Matsumoku factory had been producing guitars for export for some time, but the
1820 bass (alongside a number of guitar models and the 5120 electric acoustic bass) were the first Epiphone models to be made there. These new Epiphones were based on existing Matsumoku guitars, sharing body shapes, and hardware, but the Epiphone line was somewhat upgraded, with inlaid logos and a 2x2 peghead configuration. Over the course of the 70s, the Japanese output improved dramatically, and in many ways these early 70s models are a low point for the brand. Having said this, there are a lot worse guitars out there, and as well as being historically important, the 1820 bass can certainly provide the goods when required.

When Epiphone production moved from Kalamazoo to the Matsumoku plant in Japan, a whole new range of electric, flattop and classic acoustic guitars was launched. Between late 1970 and 1972 the new models were launched and refined. This 'folder' catalog contains various inserts released over these years detailing four electric six-strings (ET-270, ET-275, ET-278, and thinline EA-250), three bass guitars (ET-280, ET-285, and thinline EA-260), three folk/steel acoustics, four jumbo flattop acoustics, two 12-string jumbos, four classic acoustics, and a banjo.

1970 Rose-Morris catalog, dated April 1970. It featured 6 electric guitars, 32 acoustic guitars, 3 basses and 1 steel guitar. It contains the following instruments, over 20 pages: Electric guitars: Shaftesbury 3261, 3262, 3264, 3265, 3400; Top Twenty 1970; Bass: Shaftesbury 3263, 3266; Top Twenty 1971; Acoustic guitars: Eko Rio Bravo, Rio Bravo 12, Ranchero, Ranchero 12, Colorado, Ranger, Ranger Folk, Ranger 12; Aria 1674, 1675, 1676, 1679, 1680, 1695, 'John Pearse' Jumbo, 'John Pearse' Folk; Rose-Morris 15-11, Kansas, Georgian, Florida; Suzuki 1663, 1664, 1665, 3054, 3055, 3060; Tatay 1713, 1714, 1715; Peerless 3052; Steel guitar: Aria 3425

The sixteen-page 1971 Rose-Morris catalog featured electric guitars by Rose-Morris' own brand, Shaftesbury, and budget brand Top Twenty; aswell as acoustics by Eko, Aria, and for the first time Ovation. The catalog contains the following instruments: Electric guitars: Shaftesbury 3261, 3264, 3265, 3400, 3402; Top Twenty 1970; Bass: Shaftesbury 3263, 3266; Top Twenty 1971; Acoustic guitars: Ovation: Balladeer, 12 String, Glen Campbell, Glen Campbell 12 string; Eko Rio Bravo, Rio Bravo 12, Ranger, Ranger Folk, Ranger 12, Colorado, Ranchero, Ranchero 12, Studio 'L'; Rose-Morris Florida; Aria 'John Pearse' Jumbo, 'John Pearse' Folk
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