Joni playing a Guild??

davismanLV

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Now I realize this is video pieced together from concerts and not actual concert footage (because I know these songs too well) but I love Marcie and I saw a youtube that looked live. Realized it wasn't but.... then as I sang and watched, is that a Guild she's playing?? At the end, I'd swear I saw the rooftop logo!!! HELP!!

Why does this make me so happy? Maybe I'm just crazy, but y'all already know that....... :encouragement:

 

idealassets

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Could be a Guild D50 since it has top and back binding. Joni was the master of alternate tunings. I liked her music so much that I was threatened to be booted out of a well paid hard rock band at my suggestion of doing a few of her songs. That was in the 70's, but doesn't seem that long ago.
 

Cougar

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Joni was the master of alternate tunings.

On piano, too, sort of. She played Woodstock using all black keys. E-flat minor in six flats! Actually makes it pretty easy to play.

Don't know about that guitar she's playing....
 

AcornHouse

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Definitely a Guild; it’s got the pickguard and bridge, and, yes, Guild logo at the end. I’ll let the dread experts argue over the model.
 

chazmo

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Tom, thanks for posting that. Joni is so amazing!

That's either a D-40 or a D-50. I can't be sure about the mahogany vs. rosewood from the footage, but I'm leaning toward rosewood (D-50, that is).
 

adorshki

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Tom, thanks for posting that. Joni is so amazing!

That's either a D-40 or a D-50. I can't be sure about the mahogany vs. rosewood from the footage, but I'm leaning toward rosewood (D-50, that is).

I think D50's always had Chesterfields while D40's lost 'em for a while, so I'm going with D40.
Also it would fit in with Havens preferring 'em for open tunings, too.

EDIT: Just did some searching and realized D50s' also lacked chesterfields in the very early days so that's not a good litmus test for this case.
 
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chazmo

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Could be either, guys. Watching the Little Green video that Walrus pointed to, it looks like rosewood to me (D-50) as it's very dark. That said, it's not clear enough to be sure, and of course they dyed mahogany dark in those days too.

Al, what did you mean about your open tuning comment re: Richie Havens? Were he and Joni close or something?
 

adorshki

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Here she is playing (perhaps) the same guitar, looks like a D40. Much better view of the guitar! Starts at 1:30:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QPZ6P7D3BIw

walrus

And never paid much attention to what kinds of buttons the machines on D50's had, but those definitely look like buttons we've seen on '40's, too.

Could be either, guys. Watching the Little Green video that Walrus pointed to, it looks like rosewood to me (D-50) as it's very dark. That said, it's not clear enough to be sure, and of course they dyed mahogany dark in those days too.
Yes in that light anything's going to look dark, except blonde maple.

Al, what did you mean about your open tuning comment re: Richie Havens? Were he and Joni close or something?
They were both known for using open tunings extensively, and Havens liked the fact that his D40's always had excellent string-to string balance even in open tunings. I suspect they inevitably crossed paths while doing tours and had a chance to exchange views, if she didn't hear about it on the grapevine, that's all.
And Havens' first album Mixed Bag was released in '66, about a year and a half before Joni's, although granted it didn't do all that well until his second one pulled it back into the charts in '68.
So there was plenty of opportunity for Joni to have "checked him out" for what he used, that's all I meant.
HOWEVER:
A quick image search just now came back with a '67 D50 with no chesterfield.....which was my primary reason for thinking it was a '40.
 
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walrus

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IIRC, Havens used an open D tuning almost exclusively. Joni Mitchell used several different tunings, as gjmalcyon's link shows.

walrus
 

SFIV1967

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The tuner buttons look like Grover tuners and the early D-50 had the Grover milk bottle tuners so that would match.

Ralf
 
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