1973 Jose Ramirez "1a" CD/PF

This guitar was built in the famous Jose Ramirez III workshop, which for over half a century has produced instruments performed on by countless professionals from Sting to Segovia, Chet Atkins to Sabicas and Lee Ritenour to Christopher Parkening. The guitar is especially easy to play, thanks to a replaced (thicker) fingerboard that brings the action down much lower than otherwise, providing a very comfortable setup. The tone is thick yet clear, and has that essential warm, mysterious and moody quality that made Ramirez famous in the great recordings made by Segovia and Parkening from this time. It features lush and dramatic pau ferro for the back and sides – quite a treat for the eyes. Apart from a few well-repaired cracks (three in the back, one in the upper bout of the top) it is in great shape with only some wear in the finish. But it plays wonderfully and has that classic, iconic sound known by several generations of performing guitarists. This also happens to be a particularly powerful guitar, even by Ramirez standards. An excellent example of a fine Ramirez for either collector or concert player.

For more information on Ramirez, be sure to read The Ramirez Family: Masters of the Guitar, or for information on the Ramirez family members, from Amalia Ramirez back to Jose I and for some interesting fact-checking on myths and facts about this legendary workshop.