Singer-songwriter John Oates, well known for being one-half of the music duo Hall & Oates, still has the guitar he bought from a Sears catalog when he was a boy. It arrived ready to play. But he did make some minor adjustments, including applying a fresh coat of lacquer.
Oates began learning to play guitar when he was just 6 years old. Now, the 76-year-old, who is still busy touring and writing music, says the inexpensive guitar that helped kickstart his love of the instrument has held up well, and it still plays.
Before the days of Amazon Prime and free two-day shipping, there was the Sears, Roebuck, & Co. catalog. It was nicknamed the “Big Book” because some editions spanned 1,400 pages. It was delivered to the homes of subscribers—about 20 percent of the American population in the early 1900s. Its accessibility and budget-friendly prices made it a catalyst for kids and young people to learn a new instrument. Many of them went on to become well-known and influential musicians.
A Staple for Aspiring Musicians
When speaking with Music Radar in 2015, Oates revealed his mail order guitar has a unique look.“I purchased a simple acoustic from the Sears and Roebuck catalogue, sanded down the finish, then hand-lacquered the top. … I put it out in the garden to dry, then my neighbour decided it was a good time to mow his lawn ... so it dried with little bits of grass and dust settled into the finish! I still have it - and it plays okay!”Oates was among many in the 1950s and 1960s who benefited from the yearly delivery of the sizable Sears, Roebuck, & Co. catalog. The pages featured a multitude of products, including tools, clothing, and even “kit houses” for customers who wanted to build their own homes. But in the mid-20th century, instruments were some of the Big Book’s most popular items.
- Silverstone acoustic guitars from the 1961 Sears, Roebuck and Co. Spring through Summer Chicago catalog. Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
According to an article published at the University of Delaware, “By 1916, Sears was mailing more than 50 million catalogs yearly.”
These catalogs were especially useful for rural communities that didn’t have easy access to brick-and-mortar music stores. Sharecroppers from the south scraped together earnings in order to purchase an acoustic guitar from the catalog for weekend gigs. The mailer’s popularity helped spur the growth of both the country and blues genres.Country artists like Roy Clark and Chet Atkins spent their formative years learning how to play on guitars purchased from Sears. Steel-stringed guitars sold in the catalog were especially useful for Delta blues players like preacher-turned-bluesman Son House.
- Chet Atkins teaching guitar on the album “Play Guitar With Chet Atkins - Guitar Phonics Volume 6,” 1967. Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
Inspired by his older musician-brother Jimmie, young Stevie Ray Vaughan was gifted his first guitar for his 7th birthday in 1961. He went on to become one of the greatest and most influential blues guitarists.
According to the Les Paul Foundation, the guitar innovator and musician was quoted in 1927 as saying, “My first guitar came from Sears & Roebuck and I believe it was $3.95.”Affordability was one of the most appealing features to consumers who flipped through the pages. Shoppers took advantage of Sears & Roebuck’s competitive pricing.
Competitive Pricing Sparks Sales
- A Sears catalog from 1894 featuring the company’s first guitar advertisement. Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
According to Reason Magazine, “Guitars first appeared in the catalog in 1894 for $4.50 (around $112 in today’s money). By 1908, Sears was offering a guitar, outfitted for steel strings, for $1.89 ($45 today), making it the cheapest harmony-generating instrument available.”Folk guitarist Elizabeth “Libba” Cotten faithfully played her 1904 Sears & Roebuck guitar for years. Its estimated cost was about $3.75. Media site Guitar.com points out that even the more cost-effective acoustic models from higher-end brands like Martin were over double the price of Sears’s guitars.
- Elizabeth Cotten on the cover of album “Folksongs and Instrumentals With Guitar.” Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
Vintage guitar and history site My Rare Guitars notes, by the mid-20th century, “probably no single company furnished more of the guitars and amps for young musicians than the Sears & Roebuck Company.”In 1914, Sears introduced Supertone, the company’s own brand of musical instruments. Two years later, they bought the in-demand guitar manufacturer, Harmony Company, later known as Harmony Guitars. Though Sears went on to buy other guitar brands as well, Harmony became one of its biggest suppliers.
Sears’s Silvertone Guitars
- Advertisement for Supertone guitars and mandolins in the 1918 Sears, Roebuck and Co. catalog. Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
As Sears became a fundamental part of an explosion of roots music like acoustic country and traditional blues, it updated its branding to coincide with its growth. By 1941, the company announced it would retire its Supertone brand and sell its instruments under the Silvertone brand.
For the next three decades, the company expanded its partnerships to produce more instruments. It also increased the types of guitars available to buyers. When Sears launched the Silvertone brand, the company also debuted its first model of electric guitar. In the early 1950s, Sears also stood at the helm of another innovation, the solid body electric guitar, which was made available for purchase.
According to the Silvertone Guitars website, “During the ’60s, Silvertone tapped many of America’s guitar makers. Names like … Kay, Danelectro, Supro, Valco and National all made guitars under the Silvertone name.”Though Sears sold Harmony Guitars to an investment group at one point, it eventually resumed working with the guitar manufacturer again due to demand.
- Silverstone electric guitars from the 1961 Sears, Roebuck and Co. Spring through Summer Chicago catalog. Internet Archive. (Public Domain)
By the 1960s, the Sears catalog had transcended its early days of being a vital resource for struggling rural musicians and had worked its way into the fabric of America’s burgeoning suburban communities. The company sold so many guitars throughout this decade, it’s referred to as the “Golden ‘60s” for the Silvertone brand.Sears opened its first physical location in 1925, and went on to become an American retail giant, the biggest of its kind in the country. By 1973, its headquarters, known as “Sears Tower,” was the tallest building in the world—a title it held for nearly 25 years.
An Empowering Resource
- (L) Aerial view of Sears, Roebuck and Company Mail Order Plant (center group of buildings) in Chicago, circa 1950. The Merchandise Building was the largest building and housed the majority of the company’s employees at the Mail Order Plant. (R) The Sears Tower in Chicago, 1974. Library of Congress. (Public Domain)
Signaling a shift in consumer behavior, the retailer retired the Silvertone brand in 1972 but continued to sell musical instruments and accessories.
As more music stores opened in local communities across the nation, Sears ultimately discontinued its catalog. The final Sears catalog was printed and distributed in January 1993, just one year before startup entrepreneur Jeff Bezos founded Amazon.Though Sears no longer has the brand power it once did, with only a select few locations still open, its catalog was one of the 20th century’s most defining innovations. It helped countless budding musicians access affordable instruments like the ukulele and guitar for the first time.
- (L) Richard W. Sears, President of Sears, Roebuck & Co., at his desk between 1900 and 1910. (R) Mail packing section of the shipping department at Sears, Roebuck & Co., in Chicago before 1930. (Public Domain)
While covering the history of Sears and its positive impact on artists nationwide, writer and musician David Buck stated, “the catalog was a very important part of inspiring, creating and helping future amateur and professional musicians create music simply by making it easier for anyone to purchase a guitar through the mail.”
He added, remarking on the mailer’s historic legacy. “It was an unassuming, powerful force for musical good.”
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