A vintage Guild is an American guitar with an American guitar story. The Guild Company has lived the gamut of human experience. It was created, went through a strong but turbulent adolescence, experienced marriage, blended families, loss and rebirth. In the 1950s, Gibson acquired its chief competitor Epiphone, and in many ways Guild emerged as a high-quality alternative to those two companies. Co-founded by a former Epiphone executive, George Mann, and a music store owner, Alfred Dronge, Guild set up shop in 1952 in New York City, amid both session jazz guitarists and the craftsmen from the Gretsch and Epiphone factories. Guild hired from the group of craftsmen and received expert input from the session guitarists on building better instruments. The partnership disintegrated shortly thereafter, leaving Al Dronge to bring the company into its powerful adolescence. Dronge hired the right people from around the world to build the first guitars. By late 1956, the company had outgrown its 1500-square-foot loft in NYC and moved across the Hudson River to a factory in Hoboken, New Jersey. It is here that Guild began to attract the biggest artists of the day, and the company attained a high level of market credibility. English and kiswahili conversations for beginners. There are many ways to use small talk successfully, even when youâre still getting comfortable with English conversation for beginners. Asking and Answering Questions. A conversation is an exchange of ideas, questions and thoughts. The best way to keep a conversation going is to ask questions! Learn to ask simple Swahili (Kiswahili) questions and answer them. This tutorial is meant for everyday conversation especially with the kids. I have also uploaded kids activities like word. So what Conversation topics do we use with beginner level English students? For someone who is just starting to learn English, conversation topics should be simple and offer lots of chances to learn and use basic vocabulary words. Guild moved the factory to Westerly, Rhode Island over a three-year period between 1966 and 1969 after Dronge sold the company to Avnet, an electronics corporation. Since then, the company has changed hands several times. With the exception of a custom shop built in Nashville in 1995, the instruments were still built in the Westerly factory until 2001. There are several things you should know if you are looking to buy a vintage Guild. Aside from the general problems you're likely to find on any vintage acoustic (like finish overspray or re-spray, cracks, and high action), Guilds tend to crack in the tops from shrinking pick guards, so make sure to inspect the top for any evidence of a crack repair and overspray. The body binding and fingerboard binding on high-end models can shrink and crack. Unfortunately, the records of Guild serial numbers prior to 1960 are somewhat sketchy, and so we are unable to assure the accuracy of dating before that time. The following chart, however, details the best information we have for the approximate last serial numbers produced in each given year before 1960. Also, the plastic headstock veneer tends to warp or shrink on guitars from the '60s. This sort of warping is so prevalent that if you have a guitar from that era with a perfect headstock veneer, you should question whether it is original or not. The peg head veneer disappeared on lower model numbers during the 1970s and was replaced with a silkscreen logo. The veneer issue appears to have been mostly fixed by the time production moved to Westerly. Guild built several versions of acoustic flattops. Dreadnoughts were denoted by âDâ or âGâ and showed up in several series: D-25, D-35, G-37, D-40, G-41, D-50, D-55, etc. Additional variations were issued throughout the 1980s and '90s. Orchestra bodies were denoted with âFâ and had a circular lower bout with a thin waist. These showed up in model numbers F-20, F-30, F-40, F-50, etc. The M-20 was a mahogany topped F-20. Incidentally, the M-20 was used on the album cover of Nick Drakeâs Bryter Layter, fueling speculation that it was an M-20 which gave him his deep mellow sound.
Vintage Guild Acoustics
Guild built some amazing 12-strings, during a time when other manufacturers hadnât yet figured out how to build a 12-string that could be played like a 6-string. Those from the â60s are particularly coveted by 12-string players. Models included the F-112, F-212, F-412, F-512, and the mythical F-612. Also, the G-212 and G-312. Unfortunately, the F and D series were developed independently of one another, so an F-50 is not always going to have the same trim and features as a D-50. With that being said, generally the 20, 25, 35 and 40 series were mahogany back and sides with a spruce top. The 50 and 55 were rosewood back and sides. Guild used Brazilian Rosewood in the early years for these guitars and had a similar cut-off to the other builders in approximately 1970. Before you get too excited about uncovering a 1969 D-50 for a good price, have an expert evaluate whether itâs Brazilian Rosewood or East Indian Rosewood, as the cut-off is not exact. There are dozens of less common models and variations that Guild created from its foundation until the Westerly plant was closed in 2001. So many, in fact, that weâve chosen to stick to the basics and mention only the models youâre most likely to encounter. What You Should Expect To PayGuilds from all eras are considered high-quality instruments. If you are seeking out the quintessential Guild sound, you can find it in almost any vintage Guild. The company did not have one era that was better than the others, and it did not have an era known for mistakes like the other big players in acoustics. Buy what you like, and you will have made a good choice. The Guilds built in the New York factory are very difficult to find as they were made in small numbers and will thus be more expensive. Asking prices can reach $7,000 for clean and high-end examples of acoustics from that era. The Guilds built in the Hoboken factory will be the next most desirable instruments. Smaller bodied guitars, like the F-20 Troubadour can be purchased for as little as $800 in rougher condition, with clean sunburst examples being in the $1,200+ range. Dreadnoughts from this time rarely dip below $1,000 and can easily break the $3,000 mark for Brazilian Rosewood models. The Guilds built in the Westerly factory are slightly less desirable than the Hoboken models, however, the values and asking prices donât reflect too much of a difference. The primary change is that Westerly-era Guilds had more variation in the product line. As new models were introduced in the 1970s, the instruments maintained a high degree of quality in their design and build. A mid-'70s Guild may dip into the $600 range but will be unlikely to exceed $1,500 for most models. Dating An Old Guild By The LabelGuild kept good records and used a sequential serial number system. Therefore, dating a guitar is quite easy, provided you have a serial number chart. The system became more complicated as the serial numbers were assigned a specific sequence for each model in the late 1960s. If you run into a Guild at a garage sale or pawn shop and want to find the date of manufacture within a couple of years, you can look at the label for an idea of the guitarâs age. Guild had several iterations and small variations in their label, which is inside the sound-hole and will have both the model number and serial number written in pen or pencil. The serial number is often stamped on the back of the headstock, and it should obviously match the number written on the label. 1st Label: 1953 to 1959This is a vertical, rectangular label with a white guitar-shaped silhouette in a black background. All model, serial number and warranty information is written inside the white guitar silhouette. The factory will be New York in labels from 1953-1956 and Hoboken, NJ in labels from 1956-1959. 2nd Label: 1959 to 1960This is the shortest run of labels and arguably the most interesting. Often referred to as the âGhost Labelâ due to the white, ghost-like character with a bow-tie, playing guitar over a fret-board, with the model and serial number to the right. 3rd Label: 1961 to 1972The Oval G-Shield label had small variations which can lead to some confusion. Labels with Hoboken but no USA are from 1961-1964, and labels with Hoboken and USA are from 1965-1969. 1969 to 1972 will have no Hoboken nor Westerly factory listed. Consider these âtransitionâ labels as the move to the Westerly factory was completed by 1969. 4th Label: 1972 to 2001Oval shaped, except with âGuildâ written in a script logo, rather than the G-Shield of the previous version. The label had a âGuaranteeâ until 1974, after which it had no guarantee. It simply noted production in Westerly, RI. Also, most flattops had a date stamp on the back brace from 1973 to the mid-1990s. Guild is one of the best values in vintage guitars today. Plenty of them are available, the asking prices are not sky-high, and you donât need to avoid certain eras or years, since the company was producing high-quality acoustic guitars at every point in its history. Find a Guild that you like, and if its price is equal to that cash burning a hole in your pocket, pick that thing up before I do. Vintage Guild Acoustic Guitars
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The Guild Guitar Company is a United States-based guitar manufacturer founded in 1952 by Alfred Dronge, a guitarist and music-store owner, and George Mann, a former executive with the Epiphone Guitar Company. The brand name currently exists as a brand under Córdoba Music Group.[1] Origin[edit]
Beatle John Lennon's 1966 Guild Starfire XII twelve-string
A 1979 Guild D25M
A-150 Savoy
Richie Havens, who famously played a Guild at Woodstock, performing in 2006 with a D40
The first Guild workshop was located in Manhattan, New York, where Dronge (who soon took over full ownership) focused on electric and acoustic archtop jazz guitars. Much of the initial workforce consisted of former Epiphone workers who lost their jobs following their 1951 strike and the subsequent relocation of the company from Queens to Philadelphia.[2] Rapid expansion forced the company to move to much larger quarters, on Newark St. in Hoboken, New Jersey, in the old R. Neumann Leathers building.[3] The advent of the folk music craze in the early '60s had shifted the company into production of an important line of acoustic folk and blues guitars, including a dreadnought series (D-40, D-50 and, later, D-55) that competed successfully with Martin's D-18 and D-28 models, and jumbo and Grand Concert 'F' models that were particularly popular with blues guitarists like Dave Van Ronk. Notable also was the Guild 12-string guitar, which used a Jumbo 'F' body and dual truss rods in the neck to produce a workhorse instrument with a deep, rich tone distinctive from the chimier twelve-strings put out by Martin. The company continued to expand, and was sold to the Avnet Corporation, which moved production to Westerly, Rhode Island, in 1966. As the folk scene quieted, a new generation of folk-rockers took Guild guitars on stage. The most notable Guild performance of that era was on the D-40 that Richie Havens played when he opened the Woodstock Festival in 1969. During the 1960s, Guild moved aggressively into the electric guitar market, successfully promoting the Starfire line of semi-acoustic (Starfire I, II & III) and semi-solid (Starfire IV, V & VI) guitars and basses. A number of early West-Coast psychedelic bands used these instruments, notably guitarists Bob Weir and Jerry Garcia and bassist Phil Lesh of the Grateful Dead, as well as Jefferson Airplane's bassist Jack Casady. Instrument maker Alembic started their transition from sound and recording work to instrument building by modifying Lesh & Casady's Starfire basses. The rare S-200 Thunderbird solid body electric was used by Muddy Waters and The Lovin' Spoonful's Zal Yanovsky. Inspired by seeing Muddy Waters, Ross Hannaford acquired a Thunderbird, which he used extensively in the period that he played in popular Australian 1970s band Daddy Cool. Guild also successfully manufactured the first dreadnought acoustic guitar with a 'cut-away' in its lower shoulder to allow better access to the lower frets, the D40-C. In 1972, under Guild's new president Leon Tell, noteworthy guitarist/designer Richard 'Rick' Excellente came up with the design. It is still made, copied by virtually every guitar manufacturer. The decline of the folk and acoustic market in the later '70s and early '80s put severe economic pressure on the company. While instrument specialists generally concede that quality suffered at other American competitors, Guild models from the '70s and '80s are considered still made to the high-quality standards the Westerly plant was known for. In the 1980s, Guild introduced a series of Superstrat solid bodies including models such as the Flyer, Aviator, Liberator and Detonator, the Tele-style T-200 and T-250 (endorsed by Roy Buchanan) and the Pilot Bass, available in fretted, fretless, and 4- and 5-string versions. These guitars were the first Guild instruments to bear slim pointed headstocks, sometimes called 'pointy droopy', 'duck foot' and 'cake knife' for their distinctive shape. Fender era[edit]
Swedish singer Sofia Talvik playing with a Guild in 2010.
2013 Guild hollowbodies.
After several changes in management and ownership, Guild was eventually purchased by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation in 1995. In late 2001, Fender decided to shut down the Westerly, RI factory (citing difficulty in climate control and factory production workflow as primary motives) and moved all Guild production to its factory in Corona, California. To ease the Corona facility (which had only made electric guitars up to this point) into making archtop and acoustic guitars, the Westerly factory artisans and workers prepared guitar 'kits' that they shipped to Corona. These kits were near-complete production guitars that only needed finishing and final assembly before being sent to retailers. Production in Corona was short-lived, however, as Fender acquired the assets of Washington-based Tacoma Guitar Company in 2004, and moved all American Guild acoustic guitar production to Tacoma, Washington and discontinued production of US-made Guild electric guitars completely. In 2008, Fender again moved Guild when it acquired Kaman Music Corporation and its small production facility in New Hartford, Connecticut, where hand production of all US-made Guilds resumed in a manner consistent with other high-end, boutique guitar builders. The New Hartford Guild facility began production in early 2009, starting with the top-end D-55 and F-50 models. Production quickly ramped up to include most of the popular Traditional Series acoustic guitar models. Acoustic-Electric versions of these models were also made available. Starting with 2012 models, all US-built Guild Traditional Series guitars were available in right- and left-handed configurations. In 2011, Traditional Series models' were improved by means of a new DTAR pickup system (DTAR-MS, for 'multi-source'), which allows blending between an internal microphone element and an under-saddle transducer. Previous DTAR configurations only included an under-saddle transducer. Also, hard shell case material was upgraded to a high-end, faux alligator skin material with crushed velvet interior padding, closely resembling the Custom Shop guitar cases that Guild had used when its Custom Shop was open. In late 2010, Guild released its Standard Series acoustic guitars, which were US-built guitars (still manufactured in the New Hartford, Connecticut facility) that were based on models from their top-end Traditional Series. Differences in ornamentation and instrument finish options made them more affordable. Standard Series models included the F-30, F-30R, F-50, D-40, D-50, and the return of the F-212XL 12-string model.All Standard Series models featured red spruce bracing, satin mahogany necks, and bone saddles, nuts, and bridge pins, but have lower-grade wood[citation needed] and different ornamentation than their Traditional Series counterparts. In 2011, cutaway acoustic-electric versions of all Standard Series models were released. These guitars featured venetian cutaways and a DTAR 18V under-saddle pickup system. These models can be identified by the 'CE' suffix at the end of the guitar's model number. All Guild guitars come with hard shell cases. The New Hartford facility had also created a new line of specialty, limited edition guitars, referred to as the GSR Series. The GSR designation stands for 'Guild Special Run.' This series was first revealed to Guild dealers at Guild's dealer-only factory tour in mid-2009 called the 'Guild Summit Retreat'. These models featured unique takes on classic Guild Traditional Series models. GSR models include the F-20 (figured Cocbolo), F-30R (master-grade Rosewood), F-40 (figured Cocobolo), F-50 (figured Koa), and D-50 (figured Cocobolo), and Guild's only electric guitar to be produced since 2003, the GSR Starfire VI (only 20 produced). Each of these instruments features unique designs, wood selection, ornamentation, and has extremely limited production numbers. Cordoba era[edit]In the late spring/early summer of 2014, Fender's New Hartford Guild facility closed its doors as FMIC prepared to sell off the Guild brand. Cordoba Music Group (CMG), Based in Santa Monica, California, stepped in and purchased the Guild brand rights and began setting up a new manufacturing facility in Oxnard, California, led by Gibson alum Ren Ferguson as the VP of Manufacturing and R&D.[4] Cordoba started ramping up production in late 2015, releasing its first models (M-20 and D-20) in early 2016. Higher-end models like the D-55 were released in late 2017. Guild Import brands[edit]In the early seventies, Guild began to form import brands for acoustic and electric guitars made in Asia. There was a total of 3 import brands: Madeira, Burnside, and DeArmond. Madeira Acoustic and Electric Guitars were import guitars based on existing Guild designs. They are characterized by their substantially unique pickguard shape and differing headstock. Similarly to Madeira, Burnside Electric Guitars were Guild electric guitar designs (typically of super-Strat delineation) manufactured outside the United States. The headstocks on these guitars read 'Burnside by Guild.' Both brands were discontinued in the early '90s. After Fender purchased Guild in the mid '90s, reissues of some Guild electric guitars were manufactured in Korea under the DeArmond brand name, which Fender also owned the rights to. Import reissue models included the Starfire, X155, T400, M-75 Bluesbird, S-73, and Pilot Bass series. On the front of the headstock, these instruments display the DeArmond logo above a modified version of Guild's Chesterfield logo. On early production versions, the truss rod cover is stenciled with the word 'Guild' stylized and the DeArmond reissue model number, and the back of the headstock is stenciled with 'DeArmond by Guild' above the guitar's serial number. Later production versions drop all references to the Guild brand name except for a modified Chesterfield headstock inlay on most models. The DeArmond line also included other less expensive models similar in design to the Guild reissues and manufactured in Indonesia. The DeArmond brand was discontinued in the early 2000s. While not a discrete brand, in the early 2000s, FMIC created a new line of Guild acoustic guitars called the GAD-series, which stood for 'Guild Acoustic Design.' As with the other import lines, these guitars were based on past and present Guild acoustic guitar designs, but were built in China. All of these models were designated with a 'GAD' as a model prefix. These guitars featured poly finishes (as opposed to traditional nitrocellulose lacquer on US models) and nondescript wood grading. FMIC did not choose to create this line under a different brand name, but left it as a new series of guitars from Guild. This choice caused confusion for buyers, as it marked the first time that an import had actually donned the Guild brand name, which had previously only been used to describe US-made guitars. Because of this, it was no longer immediately clear if a Guild-branded guitar is a US-made model or an import, although the GAD models usually had unique ornamentation. The 2011 GAD models brought new features, looks, and model numbers. These new GAD-series Guild guitars could be identified with a number 1 as the first number in the model number. For example, a US-built F-50R's GAD-level version would be called an F-150R. Similarly, a US-built F-512 would be an F-1512 as a GAD version. With Cordoba taking over as owners of the Guild brand, as of May, 2015, the GAD line-up was discontinued,[5] but 2 newly formed lines, Westerly Collection (acoustics) and Newark Street (electrics) were revealed, which also aimed to pay homage Guild's production history that took place at those locations (with the Newark Street address alluding to a link with the Hoboken factory).[6] The Westerly Collection line-up includes a variety of guitars made with solid wood tops/laminate sides & body; and, solid wood tops/solid wood sides & solid wood backs.[7] Notable users of Guild guitars[edit]
References[edit]
Bibliography[edit]
External links[edit]
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1 Comment
joe riggs
2/17/2020 10:33:22 am
How can I find info on a Burnside Telecaster serial number 854527?
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