Guild Songbird

I've never owned or played one of these. A player buddy of mine back in Wisconsin raves about his. I thought I read somewhere before on this forum several comments that said something like it's fine when plugged in but played acoustically is a bit thin.

I assume there are LTGers out there that own this model. I'd be interested in your input.

Richard your memory's correct, I recall similar comments,
What makes Songbirds unique is that the bodies're routed from a solid piece of mahogany with a spruce top.
Almost like an acoustic Bluesbird if you will, even uses a similar body outline.
I'm pretty sure Jane (GuildFS4612CE) once mentioned they changed body depth (deeper) in later models, so there's another variable.
Also it's a shortscale 24-3/4 so there's naturally a little less tension driving the top.
None of which should prevent your friend from raving about his if he loves it for other reasons. :friendly_wink:

When I first played out in Philadelphia in the early '90s, the guy who hosted the open mic at the Sam Adams Brewpub (and who then invited me to play his breaks during a different weekly gig) played a black Songbird. He let me try it out a few times, and it was a blast to play. Very easy and comfortable. It sounded like most plugged-in acoustics of the day, which is to say quacky, but he definitely made it sing.

I bought my own on this forum a few years ago. I mostly use it for late-night practice, as it's quiet when not plugged in, but I do take it to open mics a couple of times per year.

This was also the model that was chosen for the "Barry Gibb" signature model. Every now and then you will come across a Used Barry Gibb Songbird. Most of the Barry Gibb models I have seen have been finished completely in a light Blue Metallic but I think other color options were available for that line as well. I think there is a clip or two on Youtube that will give you an idea of how it sounds acoustically and plugged in. I remember Jay from New Hope Guitar Traders posting a video of one he had for sale in the last year or two. It is a bit tinny sounding unplugged but they really come to life when played through an amp or PA. I believe these were made as some of the earliest acoustics that would not feedback or feed back a lot less when playing it in a high volume venue. Also I believe they used the neck from these to make the blues 90 Electric, or so I remember reading here.

TX

I don't think we're allowed to discuss the Songbird without someone posting this clip:

txbumper57 said:

... Also I believe they used the neck from these to make the blues 90 Electric, or so I remember reading here.

TX

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I know there was variation from neck to neck during this era, but the neck on my Blues 90 is substantially chunkier than the neck on my Songbird.

IIRC, Eva Cassidy played a Songbird for her "acoustic" pieces.

Maggie Roche of The Roche Sisters play a Songbird on some live youtube from 1990. Losing True is particularly wonderful.

Yes, she did, Dave!! And very well, too. :encouragement:

richardp69 said:

..... comments that said something like it's fine when plugged in but played acoustically is a bit thin.

I assume there are LTGers out there that own this model. I'd be interested in your input.

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A good assessment on both counts. Makes a great "couch guitar" for quiet playing. When I bought mine I especially liked that the neck joined the body at the 16th fret.
A very solid little guitar that is comfortable to play. I am always surprised at the weight of the case & guitar when I pull it out to play.

MLBob said:

A very solid little guitar that is comfortable to play. I am always surprised at the weight of the case & guitar when I pull it out to play.

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Beautiful example of Westerley's sitka spruce selection process there, Bob.
It's supposed to be a Natural, right? (Not sure if they even offered Amber on that model)
Looks wonderfully aged, or maybe it's the lighting, or both?

They play like an electric...nicest Guild neck ever...the first version is quite heavy with the hog carved out body...but it's very well balanced and hangs nicely on a strap...the smaller body is great for me...fret access with the cutaway is nice...acoustically they sound like a thin bodied instrument...which they are...plugged in, as meant to be, they are a lot better...the quacky goes with the territory...the UST's are plus 20 years old...everything from that era sounds like that...they came in two versions, not counting the namesake, which seemed to be more of a color designation...Hans would know better than I...the early version had the control knobs in a location on the lower bout, let's just say, 'what were they thinking?' or maybe it was Pepsi Friday...I have seen a few pics of one's that had it on the upper bout...both likely Fishman AGP 2...the later versions had the body depth increased to accommodate new Fishman electronics with the rectangular control panel...all electronics would benefit from a modern update...and, yes, the tops on the natural ones mellow with age beautifully...I have seen white and black ones as well as the blue, green, and maybe it was red...this should be Eva playing hers:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2rd8VktT8xY

txbumper57 said:

Most of the Barry Gibb models I have seen have been finished completely in a light Blue Metallic but I think other color options were available for that line as well.

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I thought for the longest time the BG's only came in the Blue until somebody was looking for a red one recently and sure enough they did offer red too.

Frankie Hannon FTW!

There was also one black one with a high end fretboard, maybe ebony, with the MOP/abalone inlays and the railroad tracks...think it might have belonged to Clapton, that sold at auction not too long ago.

Here's Barry with a red one:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KRolc0dPcP4

The blue one is clearly his favorite, though, you can find that in lots of concert footage. Then there's the X-350 (I think):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F2SDf42guB4

walrus

GuildFS4612CE said:

There was also one black one with a high end fretboard, maybe ebony, with the MOP/abalone inlays and the railroad tracks...think it might have belonged to Clapton, that sold at auction not too long ago.

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I got a sneaking suspicion that wasn't a Barry Gibb signature model, though. :biggrin-new:
More likely a special made for EC, if it was actually his.

Eric Clapton's 2011 Bonhams Guitar Auction...1992 Songbird Custom Serial #KK001422...pic and full description...yes it had an ebony board...here: http://equipboard.com/pros/eric-clapton/1992-guild-songbird-custom

GuildFS4612CE said:

Eric Clapton's 2011 Bonhams Guitar Auction...1992 Songbird Custom Serial #KK001422...pic and full description...yes it had an ebony board...here: http://equipboard.com/pros/eric-clapton/1992-guild-songbird-custom

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Oh I trusted your memory I just wasn't sure if you caught that we were focusing on available colors of the Barry Gibb signature model specifically for a couple of posts and responding to that.
And I was right: with those appointments Clapton's was a custom but not a BG signature model, but yikes! It's got those lower bout control knobs!

adorshki said:

Oh I trusted your memory I just wasn't sure if you caught that we were focusing on available colors of the Barry Gibb signature model specifically for a couple of posts and responding to that.
And I was right: with those appointments Clapton's was a custom but not a BG signature model, but yikes! It's got those lower bout control knobs!

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In fairness to GuildFS54612CE, this relatively short thread started out about the Songbird generally and turned to artists who had played the model; only a few of the posts were about Barry Gibb specifically.

It says something about the Songbird's quality that Clapton, after playing a natural-topped version for a bit (see the clip I posted on the first page), thought highly enough of the Songbird to get a custom one. In its day, the Songbird was excellent for what it was: a small, thin-bodied acoustic electric that played easily and sounded reasonably good by the standards of the time. There's no question, though, that methods for amplifying acoustic guitars have made enormous strides in the intervening decades. After doing most of my plugged-in playing on guitars equipped with K&K Pure Minis over the last couple of years, I took my trusty 1990 D25 (which I believe has the same factory pickup as the Songbird of the era) to the open mic tonight, and I was immediately struck by how artificial and quacky it sounded.