The History of Guitar Villa

Guitar Villa was established in Bethlehem, PA. in 1988 by John J. Slog. John played in the high school stage band and also regional rock bands in the mid to late 70's and early 80's.

John always had a passion for classic and vintage instruments as he started playing and collecting examples of them. After leaving the performing music scene to work in a lab environment, John found himself drawn back into the industry with calls from amateur and professional musicians alike with questions about vintage instruments, amplification and how to get specific sounds and tones.

This column chronicled various vintage basses and provided the reader with, not only the historical facts and players that made it famous, but also provided the reader with a valuation of similar models of that instrument.

Vintage Guitar Magazine was also interested in John to author a monthly column for their publication distributed worldwide. That association turned into a 7 year tenure with the "Bottom Line" monthly featured articles in VG. This column not only showcased vintage instruments but also allowed John free reign to nurture his comedic writing style with subjects that strayed from music and entertainment into Imported Beer tasting, fine foods and journaled escapades in the pursuit of personal happiness. John also filled the paged of Vintage Guitar Magazine with various interviews of professional artists that have played with some of most famous rock bands in history. One of his favorite interviews was with Billy Cox, the premier bass player with Jimi Hendrix at that point in time.

After Billy denied interviews with many writers and magazines over the years, John established a deep trust and rapport with him and uncovered an in depth account of the life and times of Billy Cox, Jimi Hendrix, Buddy Miles and all the other characters that formed what many feel to be the foundation of "over the top" guitar inspired electric rock.

After getting treated poorly in various music stores, our founder and working director - owner knew that one of his important life's missions would be to open the "dream store" you are now viewing on the Internet. Guitar Villa's tremendously successful first shop in Bethlehem paved the way for a second location in Quakertown.

This shop is an extension of the Bethlehem store in that it is manned by a team of expert musician / product specialists that have performed both locally, nationally and in some cases internationally with tours of Europe. They all have a passion for instruments and want to make your music store experience a happy one. We are happy to offer our years of experience in this field to help you choose the right products for your particular needs. We will try to find the best suited product at the lowest price to fulfill your requests.

We strive to provide you with EVERY level of product, from high value entry level instrument, amplifier, drums, recording and sound equipment and accessories to the BEST of the BEST high grade dream gear for the discerning player. Our 2 stores are stocked with over 1600 instruments and amps from all the major manufacturers for your shopping pleasure. You won't believe the great selection of products. This web site is a sampling of our in stock inventory. If you don't find what you are searching for, Please call or email us for that product. We either have it in house or can get for you in a short period of time.

Guitar Villa's shop and business practices have a strong ethical backbone and our policies of fairness and honesty have earned this organization a great reputation worldwide. Guitar Villa believes that every item for sale should be discount priced, labeled with the price and that items marked as new should never have been sold previously.

Guitar Villa would like to welcome back previous customers and add new ones to our ever growing family of friends. Let us know what we can do to make your musical purchase experience more satisfying.

Guitar Villa is open 7 days for your convenience and we will be happy to help you with professional, friendly advice and offer Pro restoration and repair or appraisal service. A team of expert teachers are on staff in our Music School instruction program serving students of all ages, levels and on all instruments.

Thank you for visiting Guitar Villa online and please take this as an invitation to ask for quotes or advise online or to take a ride to visit us in person at our Quakertown PA. store and our newest expanded site in Bethlehem, PA.