Sears just loved
having a groovy 'painted' guitar in the catalog.. Harmony had the
'Patrician,' the 'Monterey,' even the Silvertone 616
came in Flamingo/Tennessee Red. But the Kentucky Blue was different; subtle, but still pretty
wild.
Why the unusual color scheme?
The initial catalog listing for the 653 gives us a clue, and I never saw it
justified again; 'Keyed to the latest in automobile design.' At least it didn't
have tail fins.
Click for full view
The 653 or
'Kentucky Blue,' was introduced in 1955, with the
catalog proclaiming 'color styling has come to arched guitars.' Well, styling
certainly came to THIS Kay-made guitar, lending a distinctive, unusual, and apparently very
popular look, as this guitar would be offered for the next dozen major catalogs
or so, until 1962.
All in all, the 'Kentucky Blue' gave you a distinctive look, a good player, a
sturdy machine, and a great value... pretty much the epitome of Silvertone, yes?
Introduced:
Fall/Winter 1955 at $18.95
as the 57D0653L
Retired:
Fall/Winter 1962 at $24.95
as the 57H0653L
Click for full view
