The Signature Guitar Company, A Little Canadian History

[GuitarsCanada]

Signature Guitars were originally made famous by RUSH guitarist Alex Lifeson. Alex helped get the company going in the early days and was heavily involved in the design and development of Signature instruments. Alex used Signatures (most significantly the Aurora model) almost exclusively for the albums "Hold your fire" and "Show of hands". Alex later switched to PRS guitars in the early 1990's when the company was no more.

The Signature Guitar Company was a Canadian Guitar company that made beautifully crafted, high quality electric guitars and basses. They were located in Aurora, Ontario and existed between 1987 and 1990.

A tribute site can be found on the link below.

http://www.geocities.com/signatureguitar/

Signature Oracle
http://www.guitarscanada.com/images/Oracle4.JPG

[FrogRick12]

I used to sell Signatures as well Olivos (made in BC and used by Paul Dean of Loverboy) and Lados (used by all the Canadian big hair bands of the 80's) at the music store I used to work at in Bramalea,ON.

If memory serves, Signatures were distributed by Geo.Heinl the violin company.

Seeing it now, doesn't it remind you of a PRS? I wonder which came first.....

[davetcan]

That is a nice looking guitar. Sad to say I've never heard of them although I didn't start playing until the 90's.

[Accept2]

PRS was around along time before Signature........
My favorite feature of the Signatures were the Evans pickups.....

[guitarzan]

i wouldn't say it looks like a PRS, it is more strat with carved top.
PRS is more LPspecial with long upper horn.
i have never had chance to try one out. but i did see a few Lados in my early years.

[Accept2]

Yes, they are very different from a PRS. Very different..............

[davetcan]

I'd agree with the strat statement. Reminds me a bit of my Carvin C66.

http://www3.sympatico.ca/d.thorburn/c66sig3.JPG

[Accept2]

Its very different from the Carvin too. That Oracle is neckthru. The tops were quite thick..............

[davetcan]

Its very different from the Carvin too. That Oracle is neckthru. The tops were quite thick..............

Well I did say "a bit" :D

[guitarzan]

so i would say very Kramer stagemasterish. the signature that is.

[james on bass]

Yeah I remember Alex playing those, a lot of them IIRC.

[sysexguy]

I have a Signature that I had built from one of the last bodies when they shut down. I followed pretty much the same format (Evans, FR) but put a blade switch for strat sounds and a mini toggle to bypass all that and go Bridge Humbucker. It's a great axe except the neck moves still and I find the lowest notes a bit undefined.

One of the main unique features was the long long scale (25-3/4")

Someone once told me that the neck thrus were built by Larivee so if anyone can confirm, that would be cool.

Andy

[Accept2]

The neckthrus were made by Larrivee, and the boltons were made by Godin. Both of those companies have built lots of guitars for other companies.............

[GuitarsCanada]

I have a Signature that I had built from one of the last bodies when they shut down.

Andy

Which model did you have, or still have?

[sysexguy]

Neckthru.....if I have a sec, I'll post a pic but given that it's deep blue with black hardware and my lack of photographic expertise ;) no guarantees

Electronics are H/S/S Evans with a blade switch setup for the 5 single coil modes and a mini toggle that bypasses all that to go HB (regardless of the blade's setting). Schaller Floyd with a tremsetter and ebony tuner knobs

Andy

[GuitarsCanada]

Hmm, the Odyssey and the Visionary were in the HSS configuration. Might be one of those. According to info, the Visionary was being made right at the end of production.

[Accept2]

The end guitars had Seymours, so it cant be a Visionary. Evans however rule..........

[david henman]

The end guitars had Seymours, so it cant be a Visionary. Evans however rule..........

...does evans still make pickups? jeff healey used them for many years.

an old friend, ron (last name escapes me) used to build signature guitars. haven't seen him for a couple of years, but i think he still works for a musical instrument distributer/wholesaler on king west in toronto.

[Accept2]

Evans is no longer making pickups, but he does come out of retirement from time to time. The story I heard from a CDN builder is that Fender and Lace drove him out of business back in the late 80s, and since then he has lost interest in the music business because of the way people like Fender and Lace act. It doesnt suprise me given that both Fender and Lace have screwed over smaller companies before..............

[sysexguy]

not to mention the dimarzio vs kinman story....

[Accept2]

Larry DiMarzio is a thorn in all pickup builders sides............

[FrogRick12]

PRS was around along time before Signature........
My favorite feature of the Signatures were the Evans pickups.....


I don't think so.
I was selling Signatures in 1978. The earliest I ever recall being aware of PRS was 1985.

[GuitarsCanada]

Are you sure about that? According to information the company was not even formed until 1987

[FrogRick12]

I looked at those dates on the website too and it doesn't make sense -

I would almost swear that we had Signatures in the late '70's.
I can remember going to Heinl at Sheppard and Vic Park with my boss to pick some up - white, black and navy sparkle and I was working at this store during the time I was first married which was 1979!

Maybe I've killed too many brain cells with loud music....:rockon:

[GuitarsCanada]

You would know better than me, I am just going off that info on the website too. But I thnk Russ made guitars long before this company was formed so you may have gotten some of those?

[FrogRick12]

Quite possible. It's going back a few years isn't it?

[Accept2]

PRS was around even before that. Ted Nugent got his first PRS guitar in 1973, Santana got his first in 1974. According to the stories, Heinl made the first Signature for Lifeson in 86. Maybe he made other guitars back then...........

[crankmy5150]

Update!
Thanks to the administrator for pointing me in the right direction on how to post pictures. Here is my Odyssey, built approx 1989-1990 or so.
http://i114.photobucket.com/albums/n274/crankmy5150/PICT0004.jpg
It has a factory Floyd, and is neck through body. I run 10-52ga strings, and use a Peavey 5150 (hence my handle) and oh baby, it's beefy!


Hi Everyone.
Recently I was informed of this website by a friend of mine who lives in Finland, who like me is a fan of Signature guitars. He and I started chatting recently over e-mail, as he just won a Signature Guitar auctioned on E-Bay.
I haven't much to add, as the geocities website is probably the best source to find information on these wonderful guitars.
I am the proud owner of a wonderful Signature Odyssey.
Truly an amazing guitar, that never had a long enough chance in the competitive market.
I would love to post a picture of it so you can check it out, however I am new to the site and do not have the privlage to do so.
This baby came with Seymour Duncans, has a three way toggle, and push-pull volume and tone knobs. The humbucker is a rail type and splits when the tone knob is pulled out. Cool!
I am trying to track down a Signature Guitar case for it. If anyone has any suggestions, please let me know.
System Amin: Please advise if I can some how post a picture.
Oh, another thing, I have heard a rumour that someone in the Niagara Ontario region has 2 of these hidden under a bed somewhere. Ever here of this legend?

[GuitarsCanada]

Interestingly, that is where my Signature Oracle went. You are OK to post pics at any time, there is no post count requirement to do that. Follow the instructions that can be found in the Admin Announcement forum.

[GuitarsCanada]

Nice photo, the case is going to be real tough to come by. Can't offer any help on that. The guitars are hard enough to find.

[Alp22]

Hi all! I stumbled across this discussion while i was searching around the net regarding a beautiful Signature Oracle i have. I am looking to sell it but i really wanted to make sure this goes to someone that wants it and knows what it really is! I dont want to sell it but i havent had time to learn to play and i am in a bit of a pinch. Anyone have any suggestions on how i should go about it? I was considering ebay but it just seems so informal. I would rather find someone that specifically wants it. I tried emailing the owner of the tribute page floating around but that email seems to be non-functioning. All suggestions would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

edit: i guess i could start by making 5 posts and utilizing your for sale section...duh!! :D

[GuitarsCanada]

That would be a start. Get it posted here and see what happens. I was an Oracle owner myself at one time. Maybe I will buy it. :wave:

[Alp22]

May i ask as to why you are no longer an Oracle owner?

[GuitarsCanada]

Same old story. Someone wanted it, offered enough cash, I was in the selling mode so now it's gone. One of those that I wish I had not sold, but you know how it goes.

[Alp22]

Yep i do. I'm in the same boat. Need cash...cant play. Wish i had the time to learn. 4 kids and my own business dont leave much leisure time. My brother plays and he just makes this guitar rock. I figure i'll regret it someday and i hope everything i have going on here gets resolved before i have to sell this thing. Time will tell.

[elindso]

I almost bought an Odssey in 1978. It looke like aa PRS though not strat like.

It was a good deal. I bought a 68 Tele instead. I love the Tele but sort of sorry the Odssey was really nice.

[sysexguy]

2 for sale here (no affiliation):

http://www.lespac.com/search/detail.php?infst=&cp=92&region=&gr=8&majalerte=&a=4919930&o=%2Fsearch%2Findex.php&r=1651&liste_ville=&listcmp=&parindex=0&page=4&total=82&nbrpages=11&visite_recherche=&categorie_titre=%5BLoisirs+-+Musique-Instruments%5D&fes=&tpay=0&zc=92&zg=8&orderby=distance&mots=&tr=4&distancemax=0&agemax=1DAY&liste_region=&catgr=c92-8&yf=0&yt=0&prixfrom=De...&prixto=%C0...&offre=t&etatb=t

[Zeusse]

http://img152.imageshack.us/img152/2310/img1656kl9.jpg

Here's a pic of me and Steve..aka.Zane72 when I visited him in Montreal this summer the Signature was very nice to play first time I ever played one I got dibbs on it if he ever had to sell it....somehow I don't think that will happen its his baby..LOL

[zane72]

Hey, I just saw this thread...Yes I'm a Signature Oracle owner..hehe.
Zeusse is right..it is my baby.It as been my favorite guitar for 18 years now.It has the evens pickup which are very clean and quite under high gain. The Oracle I have is the 22 second one to be built by Signature. There is about 500 of them including all models.

[bobb]

As a loyal Evans user since day one, it saddens me to find out that Rod is out of the pickup business yet again. Evans Pickups (http://www.synapticsystems.com/studios/evans/evans.htm)

[greenwood_woo]

VERY, very nice axe :D

[axpro]

I wanted a signature SOOO bad when i was in high school lol

Of course I have found very few of them over the years, but the ones i find are always in terrible condition. :(

[rippinglickfest]

In a fit of G.A.S I sold my Signature Oracle to a drummer friend of mine for 400 bucks CDN two years ago. BIG MISTAKE.
And now the &%$ker wont sell it back to me.................
I miss those Evans pickups.......they cut through any mix without the noise.

[zane72]

In a fit of G.A.S I sold my Signature Oracle to a drummer friend of mine for 400 bucks CDN two years ago. BIG MISTAKE.
And now the &%$ker wont sell it back to me.................
I miss those Evans pickups.......they cut through any mix without the noise.
I saw one on Ebay for $5000...Jeez I paid $1200 new for my Oracle

You should epnotize your friend and get it back...or give him a special drink that will make him dream a bit :food-smiley-004:

[tomBeze]

Hi there, own one of theses guitars. Bought it in the early 90ies. It´s neck-through, Evan pickups SSH, golden Schaller hardware and Floyd. I´ll post some pics?!

[xbolt]

I have managed to snag a few of these...
Great guitars :smilie_flagge17:

http://solarwinds.ca/tunz/87Sign10.jpg

http://solarwinds.ca/tunz/89Sign41.jpg

http://www.autonobot.com/temp/V2.JPG

[Alp22]

i'm glad i kept mine...had it on the block quite some time ago.

[ron2112]

great looking guitars. i have been looking to buy one for a while. any help in finding one would be greatly appreciated.

[Drazden]

Wow. Those are ALL gorgeous. But xbolt's white one takes the cake. Daaaamn!

[Archer]

http://www.autonobot.com/temp/V2.JPG

I remember these guitars...they were excellent. BUT the front trem route was TERRIBLE. To big...made them look like the company was a cost cutting giant.

[xbolt]

The route is a bit different but looking at the woods, build sheet and playing them usually dispells any doubt in terms of quality...
To each his own though :food-smiley-004:

http://www.autonobot.com/temp/V5.JPGhttp://www.autonobot.com/temp/V1.JPG

[Accept2]

The route is made that way to have the non-receessed Floyd with extra pull like on a recessed one. In those days the debate raged over recessed and non-recessed. Its a great example of having the best of both worlds..........

[KHINGPYNN]

SRV played one... saw him play a white model with three single coils.

Craig