Updated 08/11/2008 Introduction Very little is mentioned about Jedson acoustic guitars on the Internet. This site has become the best place to obtain information that was scattered in bits-and-pieces across the Internet . Since this site went live, many Jedson guitars began to appear on eBay. The majority are two of the three Telecaster-style guitars. Peter Lynch, a fellow Jedson Acoustic owner, contacted a well-known collector in the UK, Paul Brett. Paul responded with the following comments: “I'm afraid I can't add much to your quest for info. I know Jedson guitars, banjos, lap-steels etc. from the 60's and I know they were made in Japan for Dallas Arbiter in theUK. I don't have much further info to add as my expertise lies in earlier eras in the American guitar genres. However Jedson were marketed in the UK by Dallas Arbiter and I suspect the Jedson name came from John E.Dallas & Son, i.e. using the initials JED and adding SON ie: JEDSON. JED were formed in the UK in 1875 and became Dallas Musical Ltd. in the early 60's. In 1965 JED brought Arbiter Electronics and in 1967 Dallas Music merged with Arbiter and thus Dallas Arbiter was born and continued into the 80's.” Paul’s mention of John E. Dallas & Son provided the key I needed to unlock a collection of Internet sources upon which I base my company overview below. References are contained in the references section. Who was John E. Dallas? John E. Dallas (referred to as JED for the remainder of this document), was born in 1856. JED was a master woodworker who had a deep interest in musical instruments. He began to manufacture banjos for a number of different musical instrument companies in London, England [1]  In 1905-6, the company John E. Dallas & Sons was born, although one source claims the company was established in 1875. [3] The brand name “Jedson” is based on the company name, although the guitars were manufactured approximately 114 years after JED was born. JED passed away in 1921 [1] (Note: would like to understand why the name Jedson was used so long after JED passed away and the fact that nobody associated with Dallas Arbiter could explain) The Companies In June 1947, John E. Dallas & Sons became a publicly held company. [1]  The  company continued to manufacture high-quality banjos. In the early 1960s, the company name was changed to Dallas Musical, Ltd and the products manufactured expanded to include electronic devices. Approximately 1969, Dallas Music, Ltd acquired the company Arbiter-Western (aka Arbiter Electronics?) which was in financial touble. [16][20]  Arbiter-Western was established by Ivor Arbiter who became deputy-chairman. Shortly thereafter, the company Dallas Arbiter was formed in 1969. [2][21] A branch of the parent company focused on electronic devices such as sound reinforcement equipment, guitar amps and accessories – the brand was known as Arbiter Sound City. For a short time, Dallas Arbiter produced drums, guitars and basses under the Hayman brand. [13] Early guitars distributed by Dallas Music were branded Dallas. A line of imported guitars under the Shaftesbury label were distributed by Dallas Music sometime between 1960 and 1967. [3]  Other brands of guitars were produced by Dallas Arbiter including Shergold and Hayman. [18][19][20] Dallas-Arbiter also manufactured amplifiers, such as the AC-30 for Vox. [22] Dallas Arbiter is primarily known for it’s guitar effects pedal known as “Fuzz-Face.” The pedal was manufactured in the late 1960s and early 1970s; due to popular demaind, the pedal was re-introduced in the 1980s. It is no longer manufactured. [14] Ivor Arbiter left Dallas Arbiter in the early 1970s, and formed a new company eventually known as Arbiter AT.[13] Dallas-Arbiter went out of business in 1975. [15]  It does not appear that Arbiter AT has any rights to instruments made by Dallas-Arbiter because Dallas-Arbiter was still in business when Ivor Arbiter left the company. Jedson Acoustic Guitars This author, Mark Erlenmeyer, purchased his Jedson model F907 in 1973 at a small music store in Poughkeepsie, NY. until recently It was the only known Jedson acoustic in the United States - three other F907 models appeared on eBay.. Nearly every Jedson is located in Europe, primarily in the UK. The F907 is clearly a copy of the well-known Martin 000-28 which is an auditorium-size guitar -- smaller than the more common dreadnought acoustic. 000-size guitars are favored by guitarists who play using a fingerstyle. The Jedson JW837, is without a doubt a copy of the famous Gibson SJ-200 Jumbo. The JW837 is a detailed replica from the headstock inlays to the engraved pickguard, to the elaborate bridge. The Jedson is unique in that it has a three-piece back. There are at least three dreadnought models, the W-130, 9000, and FW913 All Jedson acoustics have solid top, sides and back. Most have Rosewood (East Indian or possibly Brazilian.) The 12-string models have mahogany backs. The W-130 and 9000 have mahogany backs and sides also. See: list of Jedson acoustic models Jedson Electric Guitars Like the acoustics, the electric Jedson guitars appear to have been produced/distributed during the early 1970s. Jedson is also known as a maker of steel-guitars. The steel guitar was used by David Gilmore of Pink Floyd (a photograph of such a guitar can be seen here.) A related guitar sold under the "Dallas" brand is the Tuxedo. See here for a nice photograph of the Tuxedo. The following electric guitar models have been identified and sample photographs are available on this site. Jedson Telecaster (true Fender copyy) Jedson "Tele-style" - three versions. A single pickup with no tremolo and two variations of a double pickup model Jedson Tele-bass (Fender copy) Jedson Les-Paul Standard (Gibson copy) Jedson Les-Paul Custom? (Gibson copy) Jedson Les-Paul bass (Gibson copy) Jedson SG (Gibson copy) Jedson SG bass (Gibson copy) Jedson L5 archtop (Gibson copy) --- Three samples identified Jedson thin-line archtop - several samples located Jedson semi-hollow (A little like the Gibson ES335, but not close enough to get anyone excited) By far the most common Jedson electric is the Telecaster copy. Nearly every sample is located in Europe, primarily in the UK. It seems that there is a "flood" of Jedson Telecaster copies on eBay in the past 12 months. All except one are located Western Europe. "Flood" is defined as 10 - 20 individual guitars :-) Who Manufactured Jedson guitars ? This question is complicated because there is little knowledge or concrete evidence. Many opinions and assumptions have been expressed -- mostly based on the appearance of the guitars and their resemblance with other brands, but nobody seems to know for certain. It seems unlikely that one manufacturer could have been used to manufacture all these types of instruments. It does seem clear that the Jedson electric guitars were made by Teisco. A comparison of Jedson and Teisco electrics can be found here. The full-body archtop is virtually identical to the Greco, also made by Teisco * Some believe the Gibson Les Paul copies resemble those made by Tokai. They certainly were made in Japan during the same time-frame as other Tokai build Les Pauls Another source stated that Teisco made a SG model was sold under the Jedson and Kay brands. A vintage guitar reseller who regularly lists guitars on eBay writes in nearly every listing: "Teisco guitars sold in the United States were badged "Teisco Del Rey" beginning in 1964. Teisco guitars were also imported in the U.S. under several brand names including Silvertone, Jedson, Kent, Norma, Kingston, Kimberly, Tulio, Heit Deluxe and World Teisco. Likewise, they were imported in the U.K under such labels as Arbiter, Audition, Kay and Top Twenty. While guitars manufactured by Teisco were ubiquitous in their day, they are now very collectable. In fact, highly sought after models are now being reproduced. "The vast amount of controls; typically an individual switch for each pickup, plus a tone or phase-cancellation switch, along with as many as five tone and volume knobs gave a wide variety of sounds yet were easily switched while playing. After Kawai bought Teisco in 1967, they started to produce all the Teisco guitars, as well as their own brand, " As for the acoustics, the author believes Yamaki may have been involved in manufacturing the Jedson line of acoustics. Additional information will be added as is obtained and will make corrections if/when they are necessary. References Some of the references below are no longer available. Sites have been taken down in some cases 1. The Dallas Banjo Ukulele ... http://freespace.virgin.net/dennis.taylor/Page_26_dallas_banjo_ukulele.htm 2. History, Soundcity subdivision of Arbiter ... http://www.soundcitysite.com/sc_webpages/history.htm 3. Best of the rest,Vintage Hofner ... http://www.vintagehofner.co.uk/britamps/restof.html 4. Guitar Site ... http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/1209/wwwboard/messages/117.shtml 5. Guitar Site ... http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/1209/wwwboard/messages/118.shtml 6. Guitar Site ... http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/1209/wwwboard/messages/59.shtml 7. Guitar Site ... http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/1209/wwwboard/messages/144.shtml 8. Blue Book Publications Inc... https://store.bluebookinc.com/download/Category.aspx?product=ELECTRIC&id=487 9. Harmony Central ... https://store.bluebookinc.com/download/Category.aspx?product=ELECTRIC&id=487 10. Harmony Central ... http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/product/Jedson/Les+Paul+Deluxe/10/1 11. Harmony Central ... http://reviews.harmony-central.com/reviews/Guitar/product/Jedson/Unknown/10/1 12. Guitar Site... http://www.guitarsite.com/database/Guitars/rec/2906/wwwboard/messages/173.shtml 13. Arbiter... http://www.arbiter.co.uk/flats/flats_history.htm 14. Fuzz-Face... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fuzz_Face 15. Mike Pinder... http://www.mikepinder.com/mellotron.shtml 16. Fetish Guitars...  http://www.fetishguitars.com/html/general/dallas.html 17. answers.com... http://www.answers.com/topic/ivor-arbiter?cat=entertainment 18. The Burns Book - Shergold ... http://www.shergold.co.uk/burnsbook.html 19. Hayman Connection... http://www.shergold.co.uk/hayman.html 20. answers.com : Shergold ... http://www.answers.com/topic/shergold 21. Independent Online ... http://news.independent.co.uk/people/obituaries/article314771.ece 22. Vox Amplifiers ... http://www.voxamps.co.uk/thevoxstory/voxstory2.asp 23. Vintage Guitar ... http://www.vintageguitar.com/default.asp