Our Story
One day in 2010 as 8-year old Thalia Bradley was playing guitar, she gazed up at the poster of Taylor Swift on her bedroom wall. Taylor was holding a beautifully inlaid Hawaiian Koa Taylor guitar. As she focused on Taylor's guitar, she had a big idea.
Thalia was using a capo that day, but as she stared at the poster she envisioned a much more beautiful capo for Taylor, one that would perfectly match her Hawaiian Koa Taylor guitar. That was the seed of an idea that would ultimately lead to the invention of the Thalia Capo.
For Thalia's father Chris was an inventor and guitar player and he loved Thalia's idea, but he also thought the capo could be redesigned to make it much easier to use. They went to work and some 70 prototypes and four years later it was ready.
The "reverse action" design of the new Thalia Capo makes it easy to apply with just the fretting hand using the same pinching action as a barre chord. And of course it also features exotic wood and abalone shell inlays, just as Thalia had imagined. As for Thalia, she is quite pleased with her new capo and hopes to someday meet Taylor Swift, so that she can give her a Thalia Capo and thank her for the inspiration.
In October of 2014, we ran a highly successful 22 day Kickstarter for the Thalia Capo. We are very grateful to the 4,252 backers who helped us launch our company! In commemoration of their important contribution, we created our Kickstarter Backer Wall, which we modeled after the wall of inductees found at the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame. Thank you backers! Be sure to check out our story film too!
Thalia Guitar Blog
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Throughout my teenage years, posters of guitar heroes were in regular rotation on my bedroom wall.
Kurt Cobain, Jimi Hendrix, George Harrison and James Hetfield were all given “hall of fame” status by me for a time, coming and going as my tastes and fascinations changed, and then changed back again.
Read MoreWhat Is a Capo?
You might not know what a capo looks like, but you’ve almost certainly heard one being used. They’ve long been the secret weapon of many a guitar hero. Keith Richards, George Harrison, Jimmy Page, Bruce Springsteen and Tom Petty have all kept one in their gig bag at one time or another, and used them on many a classic song.
Peter Frampton’s “Phenix” Les Paul: The Guitar That Rose From the Ashes
Even if you’re not a fan of his music, you’re probably familiar with Peter Frampton’s Gibson Les Paul, “Phenix.” It’s the “Frampton Comes Alive!” guitar; the one that he plays on the album, and the one that he’s photographed with on the cover. Today, we’re going to share the story of the iconic “Phenix” guitar; how Frampton got it, lost it, and finally got it back.
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