His other one is pretty fantastic too.
In honor of the Grand Master of Flat-Picking. Clarence White; Martin produced a Limited Edition, Signature Series, "Authentic" Copy of the modified old D-28, that Clarence used as his Workhorse, before his Prominence brought him a few Luthier-Built Guitars, that he played towards the end of his"Cut Tragically Short" Life. Tony Rice, ended up in Possession of the Original HOLY GRAIL"CW"D-28, which needed Extensive Restoration.
As a Lifelong Fan of Clarence White from the "Andy Griffith Show" thru the "original Kentucky Colonels", to his "Inspired Session Work", his experimental groups like "Nashville West" and "Muleskinner", to his rejuvenation of the "Byrds", and the Honest Excellence of Classic Americana as the "White Brothers" AKA "New Kentucky Colonels" showcased their way thru Europe; until that sad final culmination at Bakersfield.
Since I realized on my own, and was then told by some pretty good, somewhat famous players, back in the day, that I am a much better Collector & Musicologist, than I could ever be as a Picker, I came across this Beauty at a Southern Recording Studio in 2005, where an Unknown Musician was planning to use her to make a demo reel; somehow he ended up with an older HD28 and sold me this one, virtually untouched, for a lot more money than I had, but it all worked out.
This fine Guitar has been Treated like a Museum Piece, stored originally in a Humidity Controlled Wooden Glass- fronted Showcase(long since sold), kept de-tuned, except for Once a Year on July 15, I Tune her up, Check the feel of the action, look for signs of string deterioration, check the neck bow, and then struggle thru a heartfelt rendition of "Farther Along". Then I de-tune, replace on display, and only visit from time to time.
For approximately 13 years now, this fantastic guitar has virtually never been played, it looks like a brand new guitar.
There is one strange issue with the original Green Velvet- Lined Martin Hardshell Case; not having used it in a while, I was perplexed to find that there are a few places, about 20% overall, of the Green Velvet,that has what appears to be a pink and purple wine stain scattered around the interior of the case(see photos).
Initially, I thought,"YIKES, is the lacquer de-gassing and causing this strange discoloration? After talks with a restoration specialist and a couple of old time pickers, the consensus was that polish residue somehow transferred to case, or some varlet actually spilled some wine on the case, when it was stored, and it flowed inside the empty unlatched case and dried there.
That is why I am asking $4750 for the package, instead of my intended asking price of $4950. (Original price in 2004 was $5995),the $200 will buy you a new Martin Dreadnought Case, if the weird pink&purple bothers you.
I have used a magnifying glass and a blue tracker's light to look for signs of ANY type of lacquer deterioration or clodiness or haze or signs it has been re-sprayed or touched up, NO SIGN! Any little flash marks you see on the high gloss finish are flash and lighting issues, you may even see my awful reflection in the image.
However, due to the value of this Fine Instrument, I will film about a 5 minute Video of the "Blue-ligthing" all over the finish, post it on You-Tube and link it back to this listing. I would play it too, but I am now a Senior Citizen with Arthritis and a weak left.
Additional Selling Conditions: My plan was to ship de-tuned with critical spots reinforced with crumpled paper and bubble-wrap inside the case; use some 3M clear shippimg tape to extra- secure case lid, take to a professional packaging store, have them professionally package and ship insured -- either next- day or 2nd day, but if you make the buy, it is up to you. Doing as I described, I will split the cost of the shipping, handling, packing, and Insurance with you 50-50. Also if within 7 days from when you sign for this, you wish to return it--no matter the reason, there will be a 10% restocking fee charged and deducted from authorized refund. That is just to cover an incredible amount of time and energy put into trying to do everything correct. if you do not feel completely positive about this Guitar, ask a lot of answerable questions, review the video, and truthfully, you really should not buy this unless you have some experience with a Collectible Guitar Transaction, and even though I am willing to entertain an offer, you will need to catch me in an unusually cheerful mood to discount "the Pride of my Collection", and I only sell this Fabulous Guitar, because It is too nice to sit around waiting for me to die, and maybe, some fantastic flatpicking prodigy will make his/her Bones, playing this nicely aged- but like new Beauty. So we pass along our traditions to the up-n-coming,
Also included is a rare (semi-early) copy of R. Barenburg's definitive Book on "the Guitar Style of Clarence White"- stored in archival clear film bag, and framed, suitable for mounting, a new set of phosphor bronze guitar strings, and if I were sure of who has the official rights to them, other odds and ends that I cannot describe due to complexity of copyright issues.
Look closely at interior of Guitar's enlarged Sound Hole and you will see actual-- not printed signatures on Martin label and Serial number on interior brace. Full specs of guitar are available online, look up "Discontinued Artist Signature Model/ d 28 CW". The back and sides are East Indian Rosewood, and if possible, I will try to show specifications on the Video or Read them aloud.
Guitar is numbered 305, serial # is 1067441, from 2004. I have owned since 2005, as I recall, and it has been cherished.
This is the nicest you can get, unless you Custom Order a "Tony Rice" from the fine folks at C@ll@ngs, at over twice the price.
Open for your questions, I don't live on the internet, but I try to check email a couple times a day...happy to reply.
I like the Random Series of Capitalized Words.
His earlier listings didn't have such detailed descriptions.
