John Decker

John Decker had the idea of building a guitar without wood, no wood at all. In the era of limited wood supply and growing technology, John experimented with a host of materials before deciding that a very good sounding guitar could be made from graphite. John formed the Rain Song Guitar Company in Hawaii and later moved the manufacturing to Oregon. The guitar met some resistance at first but became a big hit at the NAMM show and was seen on a TV episode of Ellen. That appearance helped gain the awareness of many who wanted to support the effort of saving trees while at the same time getting to play a finely crafted instrument. During the 2003 NAMM Show in Anaheim, John presented the NAMM Foundation’s  Museum of Making Music with a black Rain Song Guitar, which is still in the collection today.