Flying V
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- This article is about the Gibson guitar; a Flying V can also refer to a now illegal American football maneuver similar to the Flying wedge), or to a characteristic flying formation of migratory birds.
Image:JACK1.jpg The Flying V is an unusually shaped, solid body electric guitar that was initially produced in small numbers by Gibson in the late 1950s and again (with minor differences) from 1966 to the early 1970s before entering full production from the mid-1970s onwards. The body of the guitar is shaped like an inverted letter V. The model gained some popularity in the 1960s partly due to the usage of the Gibson Flying V by famous electric guitarist Jimi Hendrix. However, it actually didn't gain huge popularity because its shape was too futuristic at the time. Jimi´s Flying V was hand painted. It was also used by legendary guitarists Lonnie Mack and Albert King.
Despite their awkward appearance, Flying Vs are very well adapted to playing onstage, with the guitar held by a strap. The bottom leg of the V rests against the player’s thigh, holding the guitar’s position stably--preventing the guitar from rolling along the neck’s axis while playing. (One of the constant actions of playing a “solo” is to push one of the strings across the neck surface to raise its pitch in a smooth glisand, an action called a “bend.” This imparts a force to the neck that tries to rotate the guitar about the axis of the neck.) The top leg, where the strap is attached locates the point the guitar is suspended from much farther above the guitar’s center of gravity than is the case when the strap is attached to the center of the right side of the guitar--as is most common. However, the Flying V is not a guitar which is meant to be played sitting down, and is in fact very difficult to play when sitting. This is due to the lack of the curve at the bottom of most guitars, which gives a stable place for the guitar to rest. With a Flying V, the guitar slips down the leg due to the shape.
Additionally, there being no body to speak of where the neck attaches, there is completely unfettered access to the higher frets.
More recent users of such shaped guitars include Rudolf Schenker of Scorpions, K.K. Downing of Judas Priest, Michael Schenker Bob Mould of Hüsker Dü, Noel Gallagher of Oasis, Dave Mustaine of Megadeth, Randy Rhoads of both Ozzy Osbourne and Quiet Riot, Greg Tribbett of Mudvayne, Kirk Hammett and James Hetfield of Metallica, Lenny Kravitz, Cameron Muncey of Jet, Andy Powell of Wishbone Ash, Murdoc Niccals of Gorillaz, and Buckethead. In the anime FLCL, Naota uses a Flying V as a baseball bat to hit a UFO.
Randy Rhoads had a custom V made by Karl Sandoval that was black with white polka dots and had a "harpoon" headstock. The fretboard inlays were made to be bowties.
Although it was first created by Gibson, many other guitar makers have imitated the Flying V design. Among these other Vs are:
- the Jackson Rhoads model which was the first Jackson guitar custom built for Randy Rhoads in 1981, it features an assymetrical cut and is colloquially known as the "Shark Fin",
- the Dean V often referred to as "the best deal in V guitars",
- the B.C. Rich endorsed by Kerry King,
- the Ibanez RocketRoll which nearly replicated the original Gibson Flying V.
- Samick also makes a replica Flying V.
The Flying V, along with the "Super Strat" is an icon of Heavy Metal (mainly in the 80s era). Many Heavy Metal guitarists such as Michael and Rudolf Schenker from UFO and Scorpions, Kerry King from Slayer, the early Kirk Hammet from Metallica, K.K. Downing from Judas Priest played and still play the Flying V. Its aggressive design and humbucker pickups sometimes combined with a Floyd Rose bridge make it perfecty suitable for the Heavy Metal genre.