Guild Guitar Company

The Guild Guitar Company is a USA-based guitar manufacturer founded in 1952 by Alfred Dronge.

The first Guild workshop was located in New York City, [cite web|title = Owner's Manual and Warranty, p.2|publisher = Guild Guitars|format=PDF|date=2002|url = http://www.guildguitars.com/resources/pdfs/Guild_Guitars_2002.pdf|accessdate = 2006-10-11] but production was later moved to Westerly, Rhode Island. All Guild production was moved to a factory in Corona, California after Guild was purchased by the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation in 1995. In 2004, FMIC acquired the assets of Washington-based Tacoma Guitar Company and all American Guild acoustic production has since been moved to Tacoma, Washington, while production of Guild electric guitars was discontinued.

For a short time reissues of 1960s and 1970s Guild instruments were manufactured in Korea under the DeArmond brand name. Models included the Starfire, Bluesbird and Pilot Bass Series. These instruments display the DeArmond inlay on the headstock while the truss rod cover shows the Guild name and logo. In 2005, Fender introduced the Chinese-built Guild GAD series acoustic guitars.

Guild entered the solid-body fashion in the 1980s with a series of superstrat-style solid bodies including models such as the Flyer, Aviator, Liberator and Detonator, the Tele-style T-200 and T-250 (endorsed by Roy Buchanan) and the Pilot Bass, available in fretted, fretless, 4 and 5-string versions. These guitars were the first Guild instruments to bear slim pointed headstocks, sometimes called "pointy droopy", "duck foot" and "cake knife" for their dinstinctive shape. Pilot basses were revived by DeArmond in the 1990s (including a 6-string through-neck version with fancy exotic woods) and discontinued along with the DeArmond brand in the early 21st century.

Users of Guild Guitars

* Bryan Adams - F-50R
* Ryan Adams - D25
* Joan Baez
* George Benson - [cite book |last= Moust|first= H.|title= The Guild Guitar Book |year= 1995 |publisher= GuitArchives |isbn= 0-634-00966-4 |pages= 82, 137. The photograph of Benson accompanying an interview with him in the Guitar Player Book, published in the 1970s, shows him holding a Guild Artist Award with its strings removed.]
* Brendan Benson
* Creed Bratton - Bluesbird
* Jeremiah Birnbaum F-30, F-20T
* Jerry Cantrell
* Jack Casady - Starfire bass
* Johnny Cash - D-60SB
* Eric Clapton - F-30, GF-60
* Paul Collins
* Sheryl Crow - M-85 bass
* Rick Danko - F-50
* Dave Davies
* Nick Drake - M20
* Bob Dylan
* John Denver - F-50R
* Leslie Feist - Starfire
* Tom Fogerty
* Jerry Garcia - Starfire III
* Kyle Gass
* Barry Gibb - Songbird BG (stands for Barry Gibb)
* Michael Gira - Guild acoustic electric guitars
* Nanci Griffith
* Dave Grohl
* Buddy Guy
* Richie Havens
* Roger Hodgson
* Lightnin' Hopkins - Starfire IV
* Ian Hunter
* Mississippi John Hurt - F-30
* Phil Lesh - Starfire bass
* Brian May
* Barry Maguire - F-212 12-string
* Pat Metheny - D40-C
* Matt "Guitar" Murphy
* Steven Page
* Bruce "Utah" Phillips - F-50
* Bonnie Raitt - F-50R
* Randy Rhoads
* John Rzeznik
* Brian Setzer - Bluesbird
* Kyle Shutt - S-100C
* Paul Simon - F-30, F-212 12-string
* Slash
* Johnny Smith
* Tommy Smothers - D-55
* Bruce Springsteen - D-40SB
* Stephen Stills - X-500
* Kim Thayil - S-100
* Peter Tork - Jetstar bass
* Dave Van Ronk - F-50R
* Stevie Ray Vaughan - S-300
* Stefan Wagner
* Martha Wainwright
* Tom Waits
* Muddy Waters
* Gillian Welch - D-25M
* Jack White
* Zal Yanovsky

References

Hans Moust (1995) The Guild Guitar Book. Hal Leonard Corporation.

External links

* [http://www.guildguitars.com/ Guild Guitars] , official website.
* [http://www.letstalkguild.com/phpBB2/index.php Let's Talk Guild] , Guild enthusiasts.