Guild AAA Bluesbird

This is a new 1999 Bluesbird with Tobacco burst finish. See the other reviews for more details.

The sound is the story with this guitar. It does jazz, it does blues, and it plays classic to alternative rock beatifully. Notes sustain forever - I've seen other reviewers mentions this - it really is amazing. You can coax whatever sound you want out of this guitar, which is the primary reason I bought it - I wanted a high end versatile guitar. Awesome sound.

Beautiful finish - it was ready to play off the floor - the factory presets were all I needed.

Rock solid - there's not much that can go wrong - it is a fairly simple guitar by design

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This is the guitar I've been waiting for. I can't stress enough how impressive the sound is. The workmanship is top notch, and the AAA flame top is immaculate. If you're in the Les Paul market, do yourself a favor and try this guitar.

"Melanie", the dubbed name of my Bluesbird, was just recently purchased two months ago off the showroom floor. It was actually supposed to be a temporary substitution for a another Bluesbird that I had ordered, but I fell in love with this particular model so I kept her instead. She features a flawless AAA tobacco sunburst top that is absolutely stunning. She could easily hang on a wall as art work. She has the standard Les Paul look and controls (2 volume and 2 tone controls) with a 3-way selector switch. She features two Seymour Duncan SH-1 humbucker pickups (passive). The price I paid included a suberb hard case with an interior that I could be laid to rest in. Hey, Guitar Center even threw in a very classy suede strap! (through oversight) And, I have to admit that I like the fact that the Bluesbird is made right here in the good ole' USA. They have a great web site detailing their operation at www.guildguitars.com. (no, I am not a sales rep!)

I have been playing the guitar for the last 21 years on and off (don't ask). I have had a number of similar guitars and none have captured me the way the Bluesbird has for it's unparralled range of tone and endless sustain (sounds like a advirtisment for Guild, doesn't it?). Well, I'm sure you have heard all of this drivel from just about every guitar manufacturer - I know I have. Hey, it sounds great for just about any style that I play - blues and rock mostly, with some alternative thrown in for good measure. I play it with a variety of amps and even with the cool Pandora PX-3 personal amp. It sounds great with whatever I plug it in to.

When I first picked her up I was getting string buzz from even an open low E when played with any gusto. Raising the action just a bit solved that problem and actually appeared to improve the intonation. Thinking back, I'll bet some potential buyer at Guitar Center had tweaked the bridge settings before I picked it up. I doubt that it came from the factory that way. The joinery of this guitar is incredible. There are no indications that there are seperate materials being joined together anywhere on this guitar. Its all one smooth piece, even where the neck joins the body. Okay, I have to admit that I was a bit put off by the tiniest bit of oxidation on the pickups, but that came squeaky clean with a bit of never-dull tarnish remover. This guitar must be played with medium action strings .10 - .46 for the best sound. Ultra light strings just don't work well with it.
She is a heavy guitar for her size and chambered semi-hollow design.

No doubt about it - this is a solidly built guitar. But because it is so gorgeous I treat it with kid gloves anyway. It may resist scratches just fine, but I don't plan on testing the theory. I hauled it from Seattle to Florida in it's case as carry-on luggage (boy did that ever take a lot of fancy talking to the airlines) and back again without any changes in the way it sounded - so that was good news. I haven't tried the hammer and chisel approach yet, so stay tuned.

Prior to purchasing the AAA Bluesbird I conducted some research and sent an e-mail to Guild asking some technical questions. The response from one of their luthers was immediate and personnel. And he had a good sense of humor to boot!
You can't beat their lifetime warranty anywhere and since they are made and serviced in the U.S., its a great deal for those of us that live here.

If this guitar were stolen, I would hunt the creep down and ... well, you know. If I lost it, I would cry. But I would definately purchase another one immediately, same style and everything. If there is one thing I have to harp on about this guitar, and any Les Paul design, is that it is not as comfortable to rest on my thigh (in the sitting position) for a long period of time as my Fender Strat is. It is heavier and its lower edge cuts/indents into my flesh over time, and the upper edge cuts/indents into my inner arm over time. If I use a strap, I can relieve the pressure of my thigh but my arm still gets a bit of the edge. In the standing position neither edge is an issue at all. But the extra wood in the body accounts for the great sound, I am told - so I guess I will put up with a bit of body-edge (I just coined that phrase)

I got this 1999 Bluesbird new 3 months ago. USA made, it has a chambered mahogany single cutaway body that's like a Les Paul but larger in shape, a carved maple top, Grover rotomatic tuners, rosewood fretboard on a 1-piece mahogany neck, Guild "adjust-o-matic" bridge with a stop tailpiece, and 2 Seymour Duncan SH-1 pickups. There are 2 volume and 2 tone controls and a 3-way pick-up selector switch. There are 16 frets clear and 22 total.
The features are simple, basic and entirely functional, with nothing I don't need, and that's what I like. I give it a 9 here because it has only the features I need, nothing else (not "tons" of features). It comes with a nice hardshell Guild case.
This is a "AAA" model with a stunningly gorgeous "amber" quilted figured top.
A previous reviewer with a 1997 model didn't like the rear strap button because it was fitted (in the old fashioned way), instead of screwed in. He had to fill the hole and redrill a screwhole. That's a valid and understandable complaint. Guild has since changed that with a screwed-in rear strap button.

What really sold me on the Bluesbird is its excellent tone. I play a wide range of music from blues and hard rock to folk and country styles. A remarkably broad range of tone, from very crisp and bright to very full and mellow is easily obtained with the guitar's controls. And it all sounds good. Very clean and solid tone. This guitar sustains forever; it wails!
I play both with and without a pick, often using blues and classical guitar finger-picking styles. I find the Bluesbird perfect for my range of tastes not only because of its wide and full range of tone, but also because the action is raised enough above the top to easily accomodate finger-picking styles for blues, folk, etc. And, there's no pickguard; you don't need one even when hammering/stumming hard with a pick because the action is far enough above the top to easily avoid pick scratches.
I'm playing it now through a Fender Princeton Chorus. I rarely ever play gigs or outside my home studio any more, so this amp is adequate. I keep the amp's tone controls in the middle, perhaps add a little reverb and chorus, and control the tone from the guitar. Huge range of tone available here!

Played off the store's rack, the set-up and intonation appeared flawless to me. The action is low but not too low. The finish is flawless and beautiful, and the top is truly gorgeous.

Don't know yet, but since the electronics and other features are simple and basic, and since Guild has an excellent reputation, my hunch is that it will be reliable.

Haven't yet had to deal with the company. The warranty is for as long as I own it, so that should be enough!

I've been playing guitar for 35 years. Before I came upon the Bluesbird I was hooked on Fender Telecasters. I have a 1970 Martin D-18 and also play classical guitar.
We compared the Bluesbird with many others, including several Fender top of the line teles and strats, several DeArmonds (like the M70 which is a very good value), and several Hamers.
The Fenders and DeArmonds were limited in tone compared to the Bluesbird. The only thing that was really "in the running" was a Hamer, Studio model (double cutaway), which was the same price with a thinner, faster neck than the Bluesbird, but it didn't quite match the Bluesbird's tone, particularly its fullness and range of tone.
If this guitar were lost or stolen, I would definitely get another one right away!