
In 1933 Martin created a dreadnought-sized version of the top-of-the-line style 45 instruments, and the D-45 was born. It went on to become the most fabled of the great pre-war Martins. This 1942 specimen (#81578) resides in the
Martin Museum in Nazareth, Pennsylvania.
The 91 D-45s that Martin produced between 1932 and 1942 may be the most coveted flattops ever made. What makes them so special?
In 1933, a singing cowboy from Oklahoma plunked down $200 and ordered a new guitar from the Chicago Musical Instrument Company. A few months later, he had the fanciest dreadnought Martin had ever builtāthe first D-45, serial #53177. Its structural features are familiar to guitar geeks everywhere: scalloped and forward-shifted x-bracing, Brazilian rosewood back and sides, Adirondack (red) spruce top, ebony bridge with ivory saddle, and a 12-fret neck with a slotted headstock.
But that description also applies to Martin's D-28, which was far more numerous in that era and only cost $100. What did the purchaser get for his extra $100? A lot of bling. His guitar had all the style-45 appointmentsābinding with abalone pearl inlays (on the top, back, sides, and neck heel), āboxed" inlay on the end piece, a completely bound fretboard with pearl inlays, a pearl inlaid rosette (as on the style 42), multicolored mosaic back strip, and an elegant torch headstock inlay by George H. Jones (aka āThe Marquetrie Man") of New York. But the guitar also boasted extra pearl binding around the headstock and, inlaid in abalone pearl on the fretboard in script large enough to be seen from the back of the hall, the new owner's name: Gene Autry.
At least one other musician was sufficiently impressed by Autry's new guitar to order one. In 1934, Jackie Moore (called "Kid" because he was only 12) ordered a D-45S (the Srefers to its special feature, a solid headstock). You might think that, with two famous players and all that bling, D-45 sales would have spiked. You would be wrong.
Pre-war D-45 sales were underwhelming. Martin didn't build any D-45s in 1935. In 1936 they built two custom models, #63715 and #64890, both designated as D-45Sāalthough in this instance the S referred to a different special feature: a 16 1/4" body based on the F9 archtop. In 1937, Martin built two regular D-45s and a custom-ordered D-45S (#67460) with 12 frets and a solid headstock, a guitar that guitar dealer/historian George Gruhn remembers as āa particularly great one." The company built nine D-45s in '38, 14 in '39, 19 in '40, 24 in '41, and 19 in '42āthe D-45's last year until its 1968 reintroduction. Total D-45 production from 1933 to 1942 was 91. Meanwhile, Martin built 148 D-28 guitars in 1937 alone.
Today, more than 80 years after Autry's D-45 was built, these 91 guitars are coveted by players and collectors worldwide. I wanted to learn what accounts for the fascination. Is it just their rarity? Are these pre-war D 45s famous only for being famous?
Toby Stroud was best known as a fiddle playerābut he sure looks happy picking his beautiful D-45! Photo courtesy of C.F. Martin Archives.
Encountering a Classic
I pulled into Nazareth to find out. After a day with Martin Museum Director Dick Boak and the museum's 1942 D-45, I called vintage guitar historians, restorers, dealers, and players around the country. The first question I asked was, āWhat makes the pre-war D-45 such an object of desire compared to other vintage guitars, and even other vintage Martins?"
One thing quickly became clear: Martin guitars of the teens through the thirties have profoundly influenced many subsequent steel-string guitars builders. āMy guitars are inspired by early American guitars," says luthier Kim Walker, who crafts rare guitars himselfāhis waiting list is over seven years long. āThe American steel-string guitar has its roots in Martin. Even Gibson flattops are much more like Martins than they are like Orville Gibson's guitars."
Guitar historian John Woodland concurs. āFrom the mid teens through the mid '30s, Martin had their greatest period of innovation. To this day, the guitars designed during that period account for the majority of C.F. Martin's line. Many crucially important events happened during that time.Had they not, I doubt that Martin would have survived the Depression. The origins of the dreadnought can be traced back to 1915. The 45 series, Martin's most ornate style, dates to the beginning of the 20th century. Gene Autry was the first to request that they be joined, creating the first D-45."
Gruhn adds, āMartin guitars of that period are extraordinarily goodāthat's when they had everything just right. The pre-war Martin dreadnought, especially pre-1938, is considered the finest bluegrass guitar ever madeāla crĆØme de la crĆØme."
Fred Oster, owner of Frederick W. Oster Fine Violins & Vintage Instruments in Philadelphia, has been involved with vintage instruments for more than 40 years. āThese guitars were built by craftsmen who had been working for decades," he observes. āThey had the best air-dried woods. They had generation after generation of accumulated knowledge. In the 1930s, the availability of the best in materials and that accumulated knowledge were present at one time and in one place."
One of the most remarkable things about these pre-war Martins is their structural stability over 80 years. It's impossible to know all the factors that account for this, but one might have to do with how the wood was seasoned. As Boak explains, āOn the third floor and in the attic of the Old North Street Martin factory, there were racks for sets of spruce, mahogany, and rosewood for tops, backs, and sides. The warmth and relative dryness in the ceiling and attic helped season the wood."
Beautiful bling: D-45s boasted some of Martin's finest decorative detail. Photo by Ariel Goldenthal.
From the WLS National Barn Dance to the Fillmore
āThe boom in interest in D-45s among collectors doesn't come from country music directly, or from bluegrass," says Kim Walker. āIt stems from folk-rock musicians, in particular Stephen Stills and Neil Young."
Gruhn agrees. āWhen Stephen Stills and Neil Young went onstage with D-45sāYoung with a 1960s model, and Stills with his vintage pre-warāthat had a great deal to do with the popularity of those instruments."
Richard Johnstonāco-owner of Gryphon Stringed Instruments in Palo Alto, California, and co-author of several books about Martin guitarsāoffers an analogy to some of the most famous (and tragic) rock stars of the 60s: āLike some of the most iconic figures of the 1960s, this model was only around for a few years. Like those rock stars who are most idealized, it died early. If Martin had kept the D-45 in the catalog continuously, instead of letting it disappear for decades, they would still be desirable guitarsābut people would not be referring to them as 'the holy grail.'"
Larry Wexer of New York's Laurence Wexer Fine Fretted Instruments refers to the D-45 as āthe king of flattops" because of its bass, volume, and projectionāall of which made it uniquely suited to driving a band.
But not all of these ākings" have had pampered lives. Gruhn remembers seeing a D-45 with 50 top cracks. āIt didn't sound like what a real vintage D-45 would have sounded like," he says. āIf you want to know what a pre-war D-45 sounds like, you have to listen to one with its original finish and unmolested-thickness top, sides, and back."
Pre-war D-45s have passed through the hands of many famous musicians. One instrument passed from Hank Williams Jr. to Johnny Cash and Marty Stuart. Gruhn fills in the details. āHank Jr. had a pre-war D-45. Some idiot drilled a 3/8" hole for a volume control. We covered the hole with an abalone plaque and engraved 'Hank' on it. When Hank traded it to Johnny Cash, we re-engraved it 'Cash,' and when Marty got it from Johnny Cash, we re-engraved it 'Hank' again."
If all pre-war D-45s are great, are some greater than others? Kim Walker says, āEven though all D-45s were built to the same pattern and used the same material, they aren't all the same. You can build two guitars on benches right next to each other and use pieces of wood that came from the same log, and those two guitars won't be identical."
All 91 prewar D-45s were constructed with scalloped bracing, Brazilian rosewood back and sides, and spruce tops. But there were still differences. The first two D-45s, as well as #67460āa 1937 custom orderāhad 12-fret necks. All others were built with 14-fret necks. In 1933, Martin guitars used bar frets and ebony neck reinforcement, but from 1934 on, they used T frets and steel T-bar neck reinforcements. In 1933, all Martin guitars had forward-shifted X-bracing, with the center of the X being one inch below the lower edge of the sound hole. During 1938, the center of the X-brace was moved 3/4" further from the soundhole to compensate for extra stress from heavy-gauge (.014ā.060) string sets. And in 1939, the neck width at the nut was reduced from 1 3/4" to 1 11/16", and string spacing at the 12th fret was reduced from 2 1/4" to 2 1/8". The unansweredāand maybe unanswerableāquestion is exactly how those changes affected the guitars' sound.
Photo by Ariel Goldenthal.
All in the Braces?
Are guitars with forward-shifted X-braces somehow better? Kim Walker isn't certain. āDuring the 1930s, bracing patterns shifted slightly forward and back, but those changes do not account for all the sonic differences among instrumentsāor for the magical sound. Of course, all the braces were hand-shaped and hand-scalloped by individual craftsmen, so even two guitars with the same bracing pattern aren't really the same."
Oster has his own opinion of the differences between the two bracing approaches. āBoth bracing patterns can be wonderful, but there's a deeper, darker, broader sound with forward-shifted bracing. When the X-braces are shifted rearward, the sound becomes more focused and a bit more centered."
WaitāWhat About the D-28?
The pre-war D-45 is fancier and rarer than the pre-war D-28ābut is it a better guitar? Did the Martin foremen and workers take more care building D-45s? Did they benefit from exceptional materials and craftsmanship?
Oster thinks it unlikely. āI've not heard that the D-45 was any more carefully built than the D-28. On the contrary, Martin practiced exceptionally consistent and clean work on all models. I would be very surprised if they put in more time on the inside of a D-45 than they did on the inside of a D-28."
āThe difference between a 28 and 45 is primarily a difference of ornamentation," says Gruhn. āThey picked the prettiest woods for the 45s, but there's no particular difference in the quality of construction. They used their very best materials on the 45, but does that always translate into better sound? That's debatable. The forward-shifted bracing is magical, but there are some wonderful guitars made after that."
Rear view of the Martin Museum's 1942 D-45. Martin reserved its finest materialsālike this beautiful Brazilian rosewoodāfor their 45 series instruments. Photo courtesy of C.F. Martin Archives.
Johnston's opinion is equally clear: āIs the D-45 tonally different from the D-28? There's no evidence for that. Nobody has done even the most elementary blindfold test. It would be great, but we will never get to do that kind of test. It would be impossible to find enough D-45 and D-28 models that were created at exactly the same time by the same people to ensure that the differences heard couldn't simply be chalked up to the variations often found between near-identical guitars."
āMartin used what they considered to be their best rosewood on 45 series guitars," says Woodland. āHowever, the grading was based solely on appearance, and that changed with every new batch of wood coming in from their suppliers. The wood was air-dried for four seasons before being used for a guitar, but Martin never tap-tested their tops for tone."
One thing you can count on with experts is some disagreement. Larry Wexer says he's played 20 different prewar D-45s, and he insists the model does have a unique tone: āThe D-45 is slightly less boomy and better balanced than the D-28, and has a set of higher chiming overtones that add further dimension to the tone.
Modifications and Reproductions
In the mid 20th century, the pre-war D-45 was just another used guitar. As collectors and players began to understand its value, so did builders. Since the 1960s, Martin and others have tried to recapture the magic. Have they succeeded?
āThe rebirth of the 45-style dreadnought," says Johnston, ābegan in the 1960s when Mike Longworth, a luthier and bluegrass musician from Tennessee, began '45-izing' D-28s by adding pearl inlay." The next step was a collaboration in which Martin sent a couple of unfinished guitars to Longworth, who inlaid the pearl before returning the guitars to Martin for finishing. A well-known example is the D-45 built for Hank Snow. Soon after that, Martin hired Longworth to develop new pearl-bordered dreadnoughts. Beginning in 1968, the company built 229 D-45s with Brazilian rosewood backs and sides.
Since then there have been several D-45 special editions and limited runs, including Gene Autry, Mike Longworth, and Stephen Stills signature models, and two C.F. Martin, Sr., models, one with Indian rosewood back and sides, and the other (a limited edition) with Brazilian rosewood back and sides. In 1978, Stan Jay and Hap Kuffner, better known as the Mandolin Brothers, custom-ordered 91 D-45s with standard scalloped bracing, non-adjustable T-bar neck reinforcement, square headstocks, a vertical C.F. Martin logo inlaid on a mock tortoiseshell veneer, and simulated-grain ivoroid binding. The first five were built of Brazilian rosewood, and the rest were Indian rosewood. All had Sitka spruce tops. But these guitars were built to honor the prewar D-45, not to copy it.
Martināwhich, in the 1950s, was no more prescient about the future value of pre-war D-45s than anyone elseānow builds twoAuthentic D-45 models, each based on a specific pre-war guitar.TheD-45 Authentic 1942, released in 2011, is modeled on the 1942 D-45 (#81578) that was sold to Martin by Fred Oster and Jim Baggett, and is now in the Martin Museum collection. The second is the just-released D-45S Authentic 1936, modeled on the 1936 D-45S on loan to Martin from collector Sten Juhl. Martin's Dick Boak describes these not as copies, but as ārecreations, identical in every possible way to the originals, including the use of solid abalone pearl rather than Ablam (pearl laminate)." They are beautiful guitars, and they sound amazing. But are they the equal of a pre-war D-45?
āCan a contemporary luthier succeed in recreating the features and appearance of a pre-war guitar?" ponders Johnston. āYes, but we have no way of knowing what that guitar will be like in 50 or 75 years."
Oster, who says he's been impressed by the Martin Authentics, agrees:āWe won't know if it's as special as a pre-war guitar until we've played it for 50 years."
T. J. Thompsonāwho has repaired and restored hundreds, perhaps thousands, of vintage Martins, and has built more than a few vintage-inspired guitarsāoffers an automotive analogy: āThe 1930 Bugatti Type 41 Royale Kellner Coach was the most expensive vehicle made in the 1930s. Martin's 45-style guitar was the 41 Royale Coach of the guitar world. The finest materials were quietly set aside for this highly prized model. This often resulted in better-sounding guitars, and invariably the most beautiful guitars to exit Martin's factory doors. Accurately replicating a Martin-style 45 guitar is nearly impossible. Although I have no proof of this, I'd bet this feature was intentional. It's clear that other luthiers were unabashedly stealing ideas from Martin very early on. I'm guessing Mr. Martin's quiet and effective way of dealing with this frustrating phenomenon was to design a guitar that no one else would attempt to build."
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A rig meant to inspire! Thatās Jerry Garcia with his Doug Irwin-built Tiger guitar, in front of his Twin Reverb + McIntosh + JBL amp rig.
Three decades after the final Grateful Dead performance, Jerry Garciaās sound continues to cast a long shadow. Guitarists Jeff Mattson of Dark Star Orchestra, Tom Hamilton of JRAD, and Bella Rayne explain how they interpret Garciaās legacy musically and with their gear.
āI met Jerry Garcia once, in 1992, at the bar at the Ritz Carlton in New York,ā Dark Star Orchestra guitarist Jeff Mattson tells me over the phone. Nearly sixty-seven years old, Mattson is one of the longest-running members of the Grateful Dead tribute band scene, which encompasses hundreds of groups worldwide. The guitarist is old enough to have lived through most of the arc ofthe actual Grateful Deadās career. As a young teen, he first absorbed their music by borrowing their seminal records, American Beauty and Workingmanās Dead, brand new then, from his local library to spin on his turntable. Around that same moment, he started studying jazz guitar. Between 1973 and 1995, Mattson saw the Dead play live hundreds of times, formed the landmark jam bandZen Tricksters, and later stepped into theJerry Garcia lead guitarist role with the Dark Star Orchestra (DSO), one of the leading Dead tribute acts.
āAt the bar, I didnāt even tellGarcia I was a guitar player,ā Mattson explains. āI had just heard him play the new song āDays Betweenā and I told him how excited I was by it, and he told me he was excited too. It wasnāt that long of a conversation, but I got to shake his hand and tell him how much his music meant to me. Itās a very sweet memory.ā
The Grateful Deadās final studio album was 1989āsBuilt to Last, and that title was prophetic. From 1965 to 1995, the band combined psychedelic rock with folk, blues, country, jazz, and even touches of prog rock and funk, placing a premium on improvisation and pushing into their own unique musical spaces. Along the way, they earned a reputation that placed them among the greatest American bands in rock ānā roll historyāto many, the ultimate. Although no one member was more important than another, the heart and soul of the ensemble was Garcia. After his death in 1995, the surviving members retired the name the Grateful Dead.
āI think Jerry Garcia was the most creative guitarist of the 20th century because he had the widest ears and the sharpest instincts,ā opines historian, author, and official Grateful Dead biographer Dennis McNally, over the phone. āWhat we see after his death are the Deadheads coming to terms with his passing but indicating that itās the music that was most important to them. And who plays the music now becomes simply a matter of taste.ā
Dark Star Orchestra guitarist Jeff Mattson, seen here with Garciaās Alligator Stratocaster (yes, the real one).
Photo by Susana Millman
This year marks 30 years since Garciaās passing and 60 years since the band formed in the San Francisco Bay Area. Today, the guitaristās musical vocabulary and unique, personal tone manifests in new generations of players. Perhaps the most visible of these musicians is John Mayer, anointed as Garciaās āreplacementā in Dead and Co. But dozens of others, like Mattson, Tom Hamilton Jr., and a young new artist named Bella Rayne, strive to keep the Dead alive.
The first few Grateful Dead tribute bands began emerging in local dive bars by the late ā70s. More than mere cover bands, these groups devoted themselves entirely to playing the Dead. A few of these early groups eventually toured the country, playing in college towns, ski resorts, and small theatres across the United States. Mattson started one on Long Island, New York. He tells me, āThe first band I was in that played exclusively Grateful Dead was Wild Oats. It was 1977, and we played local bars. Then, in 1979, I joined a band called the Volunteers. We also played almost exclusively the Grateful Dead, and that was a much more professional outfitāwe had a good PA and lights and a truck, the whole nine yards.ā The Volunteers eventually morphed into the Zen Tricksters.
Garciaās death turbocharged the Dead tribute band landscape. Fanbases grew, and some bands reached the point where big-time agents booked them into blue-chip venues like Red Rocks and the Beacon Theatre. Summer festivals devoted to these bands evolved.
āThe first band I was in that played exclusively Grateful Dead was Wild Oats. It was 1977, and we played local bars.ā āJeff Mattson
Dark Star Orchestra launched in 1997, and they do something particular, taking an individual show from somewhere out of Grateful Dead history and recreating that eveningās setlist. Itās musically and sonically challenging. They try to use era-specific gear, so on any given night, they may be playing through recreations of the Grateful Deadās backline from 1971 or 1981, for example. It all depends on the show they choose to present. Mattson joined DSO as its lead guitar player in 2009.
Something else significant happened after Jerry died: The remaining living members of the Grateful Dead and other musicians from Garciaās inner circle embraced the tribute scene, inviting musicians steeped in their music to step up and sit in with them. For Mattson, itās meant playing over the years with all the core members of the band, Phil Lesh, Bob Weir, Bill Kreutzmann, and Mickey Hart, plus former members Donna Jean Godchaux, who sang in the band from 1971 to 1979, and Tom Constanten, who played keyboards with the Dead from 1968 to 1970.
Tom Hamiltonās Lotto custom built had a Doug Irwin-inspired upper horn.
In the newest post-Garcia tribute bands, many guitar players arenāt old enough to have seen Garcia perform liveāor if they did, it was towards the end of his life and career. One of those guys sitting today at the top of the Garcia pyramid, along with Mattson, is Tom Hamilton Jr. Growing up in a musical family in Philadelphia, Hamilton saw Garcia play live only three times. Early on, he was influenced by Stevie Ray Vaughan, but Hamiltonās older brother, who was also a guitar player, loved the Dead and Garcia. āMy brother wanted to play like Jerry,ā he recalls, āso he roped me in because he needed me to play āBob Weirā and be his rhythm guitar sidekick.ā Eventually, Hamilton leaned more into the Jerry role himself. āThen I spent my entire twenties trying to develop my own voice as a songwriter and as a guitar player. And I did,ā Hamilton says. āAnd during that time, I met Joe Russo. He was not so much into the Dead then, but he knew I was.ā
A drummer from Brooklyn, by about 2006, Russo found himself collaborating on projects with members of Phish and Ween. That put him on the radar of Lesh and Weir, who invited Russo to be a part of their post-Dead project Furthur in 2009. (And on guitar, they chose DSO founding member John Kadlecik, opening that role up for Mattson.)
āWhen Joe played in Furthur, he got under the hood of the Grateful Deadās music and started to understand how special it was,ā Hamilton points out. āAfter Furthur wound down, we decided to form JRAD. We werenāt trying to do something academic, not some note-for-note recreation. We were coming at it through the pure joy of the songs, and the fact that the five of us in JRAD were improvisers ourselves.ā
āWe were coming at it through the pure joy of the songs, and the fact that the five of us in JRAD were improvisers ourselves.ā āTom Hamilton Jr.
Today, Joe Russoās Almost Dead (JRAD) is considered to be one of the premier Grateful Dead tribute bands. They formed in 2013, with Hamilton and Scott Metzger as the bandās guitar frontline, with Hamilton handling Garciaās vocal roles. Eventually, Hamilton, too, found himself jamming onstage with the ever-evolving Phil Lesh and Friends. That, of course, further enmeshed him in the scene, and in 2015, he started a band with Dead drummer Bill Kreutzmann calledBilly and the Kids.
Now, thereās a new kid on the block, literally. Bella Rayne recently turned 18 and grew up in Mendocino, California. Her parents were into the Dead, but even they were too young to have really followed the original band around the country. At her age, they were big into Phish. By the pandemic, Bella started embracing the guitar out of boredom, woodshedding while social distancing in quarantine. She explains, āLike any other teen, I was bored out of my mind looking for anything to do.ā Rummaging through her garage, she came across her momās old Strat. āAt the time, I was really into ā90s Seattle grunge. I put new strings on the Strat, and then I tried to teach myself Pearl Jam songs, and I learned how to play them by watching YouTube videos. Then, I started posting videos of my journey online as I became more serious about it. I hit a point where I knew it would be my thing. The next thing I knew, one of the Bay Area Dead bands [China Dolls] reached out to me and asked me to sit in. I thought, āno way.āāMy parents are huge Deadheads,ā she continues. āThatās theirthing. I grew up with the Dead being pushed on me my whole life. But I ended up going, and itās just been this awesome spiral ever since.ā Bella calls her current Dead-related project Bella Rayne and Friends, and she, too, has been recognized not only by the new generation of Garcia players in the Dead tribute bands, but also by Melvin Seals, the Hammond organist who played for years in theJerry Garcia Band. āI was hired to just sit-in for a couple of numbers withMelvin and his JGB band,ā she recalls, āand we were having so much fun he said to me, āWhy donāt you just sit in for the whole second set.ā It was an amazing night.āBella Rayne with her Alligator-inspired Strat, with a JGB Cats Under the Starssticker on the body.
Photo by Sean Reiter
Jerry Garcia played many different guitars. But for those guitarists wanting to emulate Garciaās tone, the focus is on four instruments in particular. One is a1955 Fender Stratocaster known as āAlligator,ā which Garcia had heavily modified and began playing in 1971. The other three guitars were hand built in Northern California by luthier Doug Irwin: Wolf, Tiger, and Rosebud. Garcia introduced them in 1973, 1979, and 1989, respectively. Sometimes, in a jam-band version of being knighted by the Excalibur sword, a chosen member of this next generation of Dead players is handed one of Garciaās personal guitars to play onstage for a few songs or even an entire set.
Although they started their journeys at different times and in separate ways, Mattson, Hamilton, and Rayne all have āknighthoodā in common. Rayne remembers, āIn March of 2024, I was sitting in one night with anall-girl Dead tribute band called the China Dolls, and no one had told me that Jerryās actual 1955 Strat, Alligator, was there that evening. My friend [roots musician] Alex Jordan handed me the guitar unannounced. Itās something Iāll never forget.āWhatās it like to strap on one of Jerry Garciaās iconic instruments? Tom Hamilton recalls, āIt wasRed Rocks in 2017, and I played with Bob Weir, Melvin Seals, and JGB at a tribute show for Jerryās 75th birthday. I got to play both Wolf and Tiger that night. I was in my head with it for about one song, but then you sort of have a job to do. But I do recall that we were playing the song āDeal.ā I have a [DigiTech] Whammy pedal that has a two-octave pitch raise on it, real high gain that gives me a lot of sustain, and itās a trick I use that really peaks a jam. That night, while I am doing it, I had the thought of, āWow, I canāt believe I am doing this trick of mine on Garciaās guitar.ā Jerry would have thought what I was doing was the greatest thing in the world or the absolute worst, but either way, Iām cool with it!ā
āI was sitting in one night with an all-girl Dead tribute band called the China Dolls, and no one had told me that Jerryās actual 1955 Strat, Alligator, was there that evening. My friend [roots musician] Alex Jordan handed me the guitar unannounced. Itās something Iāll never forget.ā āBella Rayne
Jeff Mattson has played Alligator, Wolf, Garciaās Travis Bean 500, and his Martin D-28. He sums it up this way: āI used to have posters up in my childhood bedroom of Garcia playing his Alligator guitar. I would stare at those images all the time. And sowhen I got a chance to play it and plug it in, suddenly there were those distinctive tones. Those guitars of his all have a certain mojo. Itās so great to play those guitars that you have to stop in the moment and remind yourself to take a mental picture, so it doesnāt just fly by. Itās just a tremendous pleasure and an honor. I never imagined I would get to play four of Jerry Garciaās guitars.ā
With young people like Bella Rayne dedicating herself at the tender age of 18 to keeping the Deadās music going, it feels like what the band called their ālong strange tripā will keep rolling down the tracks and far over the horizon. āPeople will be listening to the Grateful Dead in one hundred years the same way they will be listening to John Coltrane, too,ā predicts McNally. āImprovisational music is like jumping off a cliff. Sometimes you fly, and sometimes you land on the rocks. When you take that risk, thereās an opportunity for magic to happen. And that will always appeal to a certain segment of people who donāt want predictability in the music they listen to. The Grateful Dead is for people who want complete craziness in their musicāsometimes leading to disaster and oftentimes leading to something wonderful. Itās music for people who want to be surprised.ā
Taylor Guitars, one of the worldās leading acoustic guitar brands, has teamed up with Sony Pictures Consumer Products and HBOĀ®to unveil a replica of the acoustic guitar featured in the award-winning HBO Original series The Last of Us, which is now streaming its second season on Max. This collaboration brings fans and musicians alike an exact replica of the guitar Joel gives Ellie in the critically acclaimed show.
Taylorās The Last of Us Replica 314c guitar is based on its best-selling 300 Series and features Taylorās most popular body style, the Grand Auditorium. Crafted with Taylorās hallmark playability, pro-level sound and refined workmanship, the guitar showcases a visual aesthetic that matches the guitar featured in the series.
For fans of the show, the guitarās most recognizable design element is a custom moth inlay at the third fret. The guitar also features a Tobacco Sunburst top finish and grained ivoroid accents, along with a satin-finish body and neck, creating a vintage, well-worn aesthetic that fits seamlessly into the gritty post-pandemic world Joel and Ellie inhabit.
This acoustic-only model features a solid Sitka spruce top and solid sapele back and sides, delivering a clear, warm, balanced voice with appealing midrange presence ā an ideal sonic tool for storytelling through song. Additional appointments include grained ivoroid body binding, grained ivoroid fretboard inlays that include the moth and large dot position markers, and a custom double-ring rosette also in grained ivoroid. The Grand Auditorium body features a Venetian cutaway for easy access to upper-register notes. Each guitar comes with a Taylor-built deluxe hardshell case to ensure safe transport, whether across the country or across the quarantine zone.
Built for the Journey Ahead
āThe Last of Us is a story of resilience, connection and finding beauty amid harsh realities ā themes that resonate with the emotional expression a Taylor guitar offers players,ā says Tim OāBrien, Vice President of Marketing at Taylor Guitars. āWeāre honored to collaborate with HBO and Sony Pictures Consumer Products to bring this iconic instrument to fans and players alike.ā
Availability and Ordering
The Taylor x The Last of Us Replica guitar is available for purchase now via TaylorGuitars.comand select authorized Taylor dealers. Orders are built on demand in Taylorās Southern California factory, with an expected delivery time of 6ā10 weeks. Due to the nature of this release, quantities are limited.
Whether youāre a musician, collector or a devoted fan of the series, this guitar offers a one-of-a kind connection to the legacy of Joel, Ellie and the enduring spirit of survival.
At its core is GTRSā upgraded G151 intelligent system, offering 128 onboard effects, MNRS amp and cab sims, and even 17 guitar emulationsāexclusive to this model. Everything is controlled via the eye-catching Super Knob, which changes color to match your preset, as well as through the Bluetooth-connectible GTRS app.
GTRSā W902 features select tonewoods and construction: an alder body, poplar burl top, and a sleek bolt-on 5-piece neck made from roasted flame maple and rosewood, with satin natural finish and a rosewood fingerboard. The fanned fret design features 24 white copper frets and a stainless zero fret. A pair of GTRS Alnico V pickups and an HL-II bridge deliver a resonant tone, made particularly versatile thanks to the 5-way tone switch and tone knob.
The W902 offers a truly innovative choice for tech-savvy guitarists. Its features include a wireless transmitter, OTG recording, an 80-second looper, metronomes, and a drum machine, the app-supported guitar boasts up to 12 hours of playtime on a single charge (9 hours with the wireless transmitter in use).
The W902 is an upgraded version of the original W900 Intelligent Guitar, and the W902 most notably features an upgraded GTRS Intelligent Processor System, the G151, which even offers upgrades over the GTRS SL810's recently announced G150 system. The G151 system comes with a staggering 128 effects pre-installed, along with 10 of both MOOER's in-house MNRS amp and cabinet simulation profiles. Exclusive to the W902, the G151 system even includes 17 guitar simulation effects, allowing guitarists to emulate the tonal resonance of some of their favorite guitars.
To activate and browse through presets within the G151 system, which can be connected via Bluetooth 5.0, guitarists can use the guitar's Super Knob, which lights up in different LED colors depending on which preset is activated. Of course, users are able to get stuck into and edit the effects chains of presets through the GTRS app, enabling them to craft their own favorites through their mobile device. The guitar still functions without the G151 system; the Super Knob just needs to be turned off, and the W902 is usable as a regular electric guitar.
Within the GTRS app, there is even an 80-second looper, 10 metronomes, and 40 drum machine grooves built in, providing users with an all-in-one suite for guitar practice and composition. This is especially the case when combined with the W902's OTG-recording support, enabling on-the-go recording without the need for a hardware recording setup.
The W902 comes bundled with a GTRS Deluxe gig bag, three guitar wrenches, a USB 3.0 cable for charging, and a user manual. The guitar even contains a wireless transmitter and an integrated 4000mAh Li-ion battery, providing up to 12 hours of continuous use (9 hours with the transmitter in use), allowing users to enjoy the G151 system through headphones or an amplifier.
Guitarists who want to experiment further with the W902ās technology can connect the intelligent system to the GTRS GWF4 wireless footswitch, which is ideal for switching between presets in live scenarios when control through a mobile device isn't practical.
GTRS W902 Guitar construction features:
- Alder Body, 5-Piece Selected Roasted Flame Maple and Rosewood Neck with Satin Natural Finish (C-Shape)
- Bolt-on neck, 25-1/2" scale length, with dual action steel truss rod
- Rosewood fingerboard, 12ā radius, 24 white copper (0 fret stainless) fanned frets
- Built-in wireless transmitter
- Super Knob, Volume Control Knob, and Tone Knob, 3-way tone-selection switch
- GLB-P1 Li-ion Battery (4000mAh, up to 12 hours of continuous use, 9 hours with the wireless transmitter in use)
- USB port for charging and OTG recording
- GTRS Deluxe gig bag, 3 guitar wrenches
GTRS G151 Intelligent Guitar System features:
- GTRS G151 Intelligent Processing System (and GTRS App)
- 128 effects, 10 MNRS amp (GNR) and cabinet (GIR) simulation models
- 17 guitar simulations
- 80-second looper, 40 drum machine grooves, 10 metronomes
- Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity
- GTRS GWF4 wireless footswitch support (sold separately)
The GTRS W902 is now available worldwide. For more information visit www.gtrs.tech.
Detail of Tedās 1997 National resonator tricone.
What instruments should you bring to an acoustic performance? These days, with sonic innovations and the shifting definition of just what an acoustic performance is, anything goes.
I believe it was Shakespeare who wrote: āTo unplug, or not to unplug, that is the question. Whether ātis nobler in the mind to suffer the slings and arrows of acoustic purists, or to take thy electric guitar in hand to navigate the sea of solo performing.ā
Four-hundred-and-twenty-four years later, many of us still sometimes face the dilemma of good William when it comes to playing solo gigs. In a stripped-down setting, where itās just us and our songs, do we opt to play an acoustic instrument, which might seem more fittingāor at least more common, in the folksinger/troubadour traditionāor do we bring a comfy electric for accompaniment?
For me, and likely many of you, it depends. If Iām playing one or two songs in a coffeehouse-like atmosphere, Iām likely to bring an acoustic. But if Iām doing a quick solo pop up, say, as a buffer between bands in a rock room, Iām bringing my electric. And when Iām doing a solo concert, where Iāll be stretching out for at least an hour, itās a hybrid rig. Iāll bring my battered old Guild D25C, a National tricone resonator, and my faithful Zuzu electric with coil-splitting, and likely my gig pedalboard, or at least a digital delay. And each guitar is in a different tuning. Be prepared, as the Boy Scouts motto states. (For the record, I never made it past Webelos.)
My point is, the definition of the āacousticā or ācoffeehouseā performance has changed. Sure, there are still a few Alan Lomax types out there who will complain that an electric guitar or band is too loud, but they are the last vestiges of the folk police. And, well, acoustic guitar amplification is so good these days that Iāve been at shows where each strum of a flattop box has threatened to take my head off. My band Coyote Motel even plays Nashvilleās hallowed songwriter room the Bluebird CafĆ© as a fully electric five-piece. Whatās key, besides a smart, flexible sound engineer, is controlling volume, and with a Cali76 compressor or an MXR Duke of Tone, I can get the drive and sustain I need at a low level.
āMy point is, the definition of the āacousticā or ācoffeehouseā performance has changed.ā
So, today I think the instruments that are right for āacousticā gigs are whatever makes you happiest. Left to my own devices, I like my Guild for songs that have a strong basis in folk or country writing, my National for blues and slide, and my electric for whenever I feel like adding a little sonic sauce or showing off a bit, since I have a fluid fingerpicking hand that can add some flash to accompaniment and solos. Itās really a matter of what instrument or instruments make you most comfortable because we should all be happy and comfortable onstageāwhether that stage is in an arena or theater, a club or coffeehouse, or a church basement.
At this point, with instruments like Fenderās Acoustasonic line, or piezo-equipped models from Godin, PRS, and others, and the innovative L.R. Baggs AEG-1, itās worth considering just what exactly makes a guitar acoustic. Is it sound? In which case thereās a wide-open playing field. Or is it a variation on the classic open-bodied instrument that uses a soundhole to move air? And if we arrive at the same end, do the means matter? There is excellent craftsmanship available today throughout the entire guitar spectrum, including foreign-built models, so maybe we can finally put the concerns of Shakespeare to rest and accept that āacousticā has simply come to mean ālow volume.ā
Another reason Iām thinking out loud about this is because this is our annual acoustic issue. And so weāre featuring Jason Isbell, on the heels of his solo acoustic album, a piece on how acoustic guitars do their work authored by none other than Lloyd Baggs, and Andy Fairweather Low, whose new solo albumāand illustrious careerāincludes exceptional acoustic performances. If youāre not familiar with his work, and you are, even if you donāt know it, he was the gent sitting next to Clapton for the historic 1992 Unplugged concertāand lots more. There are also reviews of new instruments from Taylor, Martin, and Godin that fit the classic acoustic profile, so dig in, and to heck with the slings and arrows!