Ned Steinberger did not invent the minimalist guitar – the ’60s La Baye 2x4 and the skeletal Gittler introduced during the ’70s both precede his design.
Nor was Steinberger the first to make a headless instrument – Les Paul invented a headless guitar with an aluminum body in the ’40s, Dave Bunker patented his headless “touch guitar” in the mid-’60s, and numerous Northern California luthiers built custom headless instruments during the late ’60s and ’70s. This writer vividly recalls seeing a few headless guitars and basses at Stars Guitars in San Francisco during the mid-’70s.
