My buddy "Hurricane" Andy Barth at Willow Guitars way up there in Canada is a mad man. When looking at his art work you are captivated by his astounding ability to look into a hunk of wood and pull out sculptures that you didn't know where there. His masterful eye and skilled hands work to intertwine carved lines, natural imperfections, inlays and wood gains into works that are so at home in an art gallery that it's sometimes easy to forget that these are fully playable guitars. When most luthiers build a guitar thay call a trusted wood suppler and place an order for dried and properly dimensioned wood but not Andy. He is in the heart of Rock Maple territory so he picks, cuts, dries, and dimensions much of his own stock. His eye can pick a board that will render a neck that will sustain for days. His ears know the sound of a body blank that will have a singing soul. When it comes to hardware he uses only the best parts and in some cases custom orders the parts to his exact specs. That's how he and I came to work together. I sent him a big pile of humbuckers a little while back for some of his new guitars. He winds his own single coils so he knows what he's talking about when he places an order. I was only too proud to know that my pickups would be a parts of some of Andy's master creations.
If you are looking for a rare work or art or a tone monster get a hold of Hurricane Andreas Barth at Willow Guitars
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