Yamaha SG History: From the 1966 SG-2 to the Legendary SG-2000 and Today’s SG1820

When people talk about Yamaha’s legendary guitars, the Yamaha SG usually comes up first, thanks to players like Carlos Santana and Masayoshi Takanaka. But the first Yamaha SGs from 1966 looked nothing like the guitar you picture today. This guide follows the full Yamaha SG history, from the offset SG-2 to the SG-2000, SG-3000 and today’s SG1820. For the brand as a whole, see our Yamaha Brand Guide.

Prefer to watch? This article is based on my own video below.

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SG Means “Solid Guitar”, Not a Shape

As with Gibson, Yamaha used SG to mean Solid Guitar. It never referred to one body shape, which is why the Yamaha SG name has covered offsets, single-cuts and double-cuts over the years.

1966: SG-2 and SG-3, Yamaha’s First Electric Guitars

The story begins in April 1966, when Yamaha released the S-201 and S-302, its first electric guitars. Just a month later they were renamed SG-3 and SG-2. Yamaha marketed them as guitars designed around Japanese players, including their body and hand size.

They looked more like a Fender Jazzmaster than a Les Paul, with an unusual switch layout and two separate circuits. Yamaha also used its own tremolo, neck joint and pickups, so the very first SG was already an original design. Around the same time Yamaha released the SB-2, its first electric bass.

1966: SG-5 and SG-7, the “Blue Jeans Custom”

Only three months later, in August 1966, Yamaha added the SG-5 and SG-7: simplified versions of the SG-2 and SG-3 with a more straightforward control layout. The SG-7 had gold hardware and the SG-5 chrome, which seems to have been the main difference.

The SG-7 became known in Japan as the “Blue Jeans Custom”, after Takeshi Terauchi and the Blue Jeans, one of the top Japanese guitar bands of the era. It even appeared in Japanese films, and became one of the defining Japanese electric guitars of the 1960s boom.

1969-1973: Yamaha Searches for a New SG Shape

In 1969 Yamaha released the SG-3C and SG-2C, with a fully asymmetric body and a horn on the bass side only. Simpler controls and a simpler tremolo brought the price down, but Japan’s electric guitar boom was already cooling, and they did not sell well.

In 1972 came the SG-85, three years in development and now a single-cut with a Les Paul-like look, plus the cheaper SG-65 and SG-45. They did not take off either.

In 1973 the SG-35 switched to a double-cutaway, the first step toward the Yamaha SG we know today. Single-cut models like the SG80T and SG60T still carried a tremolo and pickup layout reminiscent of the original SG-2 and SG-3.

1974: SG-175, the Yamaha SG Shape We Know Today

The SG-175 of 1974 was a completely new flagship. Its symmetrical double-cut body and arrow position markers became the symbols of the Yamaha SG, and Yamaha calls it the forerunner of the current SG series.

It also started the Santana story. Yamaha showed the SG-175 to Carlos Santana in Japan in 1974; he asked for more sustain, a thicker low-mid punch and 24 frets. About a year later Yamaha delivered the SG-175 Buddha, with a T-Cross one-piece neck, a sustain plate under the bridge and OPG-1 pickups. You can hear that sustain in Santana’s 1976 London performance of “Europa”. The full story is in our Yamaha SG2000 article.

1976: SG-2000 and the SG-1000

Requests for a production version of Santana’s guitar poured in, and in 1976 Yamaha released the SG-2000, widely seen as the completed form of the Yamaha SG. About half a year later the series grew with the SG-500, SG-700 and SG-1000.

1982: SG-3000, the Custom Flagship

In 1982 Yamaha released the SG-3000, the highest-end SG and a flagship carrying the Custom name. Heavy metal was rising and rigs were getting louder, so Yamaha built it for the new era.

Neck-Through Meets Arched Top: Why the SG-2000 Is So Unusual

The SG-2000 and SG-3000 used Yamaha’s T-Cross neck-through construction: the neck runs the length of the body, with wings on each side. Doing that on an arched-top body takes a lot of extra work.

Yet these were not short-lived specials. Both stayed in Yamaha’s catalog for around 30 years, and few guitars from other makers combined neck-through construction with an arched top in the same way.

2010-Today: SG1820 and the Modern Yamaha SG

In 2010 Yamaha released the SG1820. It still looks like a Yamaha SG, but the T-Cross neck-through and the sustain block are gone in favor of a handmade set neck, and the SG-2000 and SG-3000 left the catalog around the same time.

In my view, the SG1820 is best seen as a modern SG-1000 rather than a cut-down SG-2000. The SG-2000 chased extreme sustain and became heavy enough that some players joke it hurts your shoulder. For a practical, stage-friendly SG, the SG1820 makes a lot of sense.

Yamaha SG Timeline at a Glance

Which Yamaha SG Should You Look For?

Final Thoughts

The Yamaha SG was never a simple copy. The T-Cross neck, the sustain plate, Yamaha’s own pickups, the Bi-Sound circuit and the Direct Circuit all show a company trying to build something with its own identity.

So if you ever see a Yamaha SG in a guitar shop, pick it up. Feel the weight, feel the sustain, and feel more than half a century of Yamaha’s design in one guitar.

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