Fall Martin Models Announced – Woodstock D-45




D-45 Woodstock 50th Anniversary Model Among New Martin Line Up

Hawaiian Koa Showcased in Road Series and X Series

Whatever the reason, C. F. Martin & Co. decided to announce their autumn additions early this year, to coincide with the release of the third and final Woodstock 50th Anniversary guitar.

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Extra Fancy D-45

The Martin D-45 Woodstock 50th model is built from top-grade Indian rosewood and Sitka spruce, European flamed maple binding on the body, the Genuine Mahogany neck with its High Performance ebony fretboard, and around the front of the headstock. It also has the forward-shifted scalloped braces and Modified Low Oval neck profile of the  Standard Series D-45.

The headstock features an inlay of the iconic Woodstock dove, sitting atop Martin’s ornate Alternate Torch inlay, made of high color abalone pearl, as are the 1930s style Snowflake fretboard markers, and of course the purfling inlaid around the sound hole, and every edge of the top, sides, and back, including the edge where the neck meets the body.

This completes a set of Woodstock 50th models that includes a DX and D-35 released at Winter NAMM 2019.

Koa, Koa, Koa

Martin’s affordable Road Series has gained two new models, the short-scale 000-12E Koa and the full-size dreadnought D-12E Koa. Each is made from African Mahogany ( Khaya ivoresnsis) for the back and sides, which has a fine veneer of great-looking koa bonded to the outside. Although these  guitars are designated as Style 12, they have the mother-of-pearl pattern rosette used on all the modernized Road Series guitars, except for the normal D-12, which has a rosette that looks more like a traditional Martin from the Standard Series. Go figure.

And speaking of figure, the koa does look very nice indeed. The use of veneer over less visually attractive wood is as old as the C. F. Martin business itself. But today it is a new technique, designed to make these acoustic-electric models more environmentally friendly, just like use of Forest Stewardship Council certified Richlite for their fretboards and bridges.

Martin-D-12E_GLAM 20 new Martin-000-12E_GLAM 20 new

In the X Series there are now two dreadnought models, the D-X1E and D-X2E that have been upgraded by the use of real wood for the neck, and truly gorgeous looking koa was used to create the photographic image that makes the High Pressure Laminate look like top-shelf tonewood.

The D-X1E has a fretboard and bridge made of Richlite, while the D-X2E gets a wooden board and bridge made from katalox to go along with its solid Sitka spruce top.

The X and Road Series guitars come with Fishman MX electronics, with the Road Series guitars also having an onboard tuner included, placed just inside the sound hole.

You can learn more about these new Martin models HERE.

And coming soon! The new X Series Johnny Cash model!!

Johnny Cash: The Life, by Robert Hilburn – Book Review

More than just another Johnny Cash biography, Robert Hilburn’s latest volume reexamines the rags to riches details of this unique example of the American Dream with its extremes of peaks and pitfalls, as lived by one the nation’s most iconic musical artists.

The result is an insightful yet sympathetic analysis that conjures up the late Man in Black in living color, and argues that his was a life worth recounting, just as his art will be worth revisiting long after his era has passed.

“…While he makes a point to credit each and every source, it is Hilburn’s ability to include the many quoted snap-shots within the smooth emulsion of his own smart prose that keeps the focus on events as they happen, present and alive. And his insistence on allowing others to speak with emotion and opinion, while he sticks to the facts and resists any temptation at grand conclusions that provides a sense of authenticity to the story, and keeps the pages turning….”

Read the Full Review

https://onemanz.com/arts-and-culture/johnny-cash-the-life-book-review/