American Showster

American Showster guitars began in 1984 in Maplewood, New Jersey, where Rick Excellente started building tailfin-shaped guitars modeled on the 1957 Chevy Bel Air. The company debuted at NAMM in 1986 and was subsequently acquired by Bill Meeker and David Haines, who continued production in Bayville, NJ through 2004. These are genuinely unusual instruments — part guitar, part automotive artifact — and they've earned a quiet collectibility that reflects both their scarcity and their commitment to the concept.

The AS-57 is the centerpiece: an alder body shaped after the '57 Chevy tailfin, with a maple neck, rosewood fingerboard, six-bolt neck joint, and a chrome taillight assembly that illuminates when the tone knob is pulled. Early US-built examples carry "EU" serial numbers; stamped neck plates were introduced partway through production, around the mid-EU-00200 range. Pickups varied across production runs, with EMG-81s common on early models, Floyd Rose ERs on others, and Joe Barden replacements appearing later.

In 1997, Meeker and Haines introduced a Standard Series produced in Czechoslovakia — more affordable models including the Biker (motorcycle gas-tank body), the Peace, and the Icepick (an S-style shape). These are identifiable by their "ECIB" serial numbers and four-bolt neck joints without plates.

Total production across all models was limited, and the US-built AS-57s in particular surface infrequently on the resale market.