Steve Earle - The Latest Martin Signature Guitar
Jun 23rd, 2008 by Mike
When I read that Steve Earle had worked with Matt Umanov, the owner of a guitar shop in Greenwich Village, to design a signature Martin acoustic guitar I was a little suprised. I always think of Steve Earl as a mandolin player and in particular think of Copperhead Road. Of course that is an old track, so I did a bit of searching around and found this much more recent video of him playing Tennesee Blues on acoustic guitar:
The Martin M-21 Steve Earle Custom Edition Signature Model will be signed by both designers. Naturally the M-21 is crafted from superb solid tonewoods. Respected for its clear rich tone, the top is Italian alpine spruce. Add to this 5/16” forward-shifted scalloped top bracing to enhance balance and responsiveness. The back and sides are East Indian rosewood for projection, and warmth. The neck is crafted from mahogany, has a low profile and is 1 11/16” at the nut. The headplate, fingerboard and bridge are also made from East Indian rosewood.
Like Martin Style 21s of the past, the M-21 Steve Earle Custom Edition tkaes from Style 18 and Style 28 appointments, and adds a few unique to Style 21. The Old Style gold C.F. Martin logo decal and butterbean buttons on the nickel Waverly tunering machines lend the headstock a classic look.
Understated top and back purfling and tortoise-color binding blend kindly with the rosette and checkerboard backstrip.
The fingerboard features Style 28 position markers that become smaller from the 5th to the 17th frets, and the “black with white dots” bridge pins and end pin also are classic Style 21.
For readers in the USA check out Steve Earle's website for details of his North American tour, which continues in Tucson, Arizona on June 27 and includes guest performances with Allison Moorer.
