C. F. Martin 000-28 Owned and used by Tommy Thrasher Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1954)
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C. F. Martin 000-28 Owned and used by Tommy Thrasher Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1954), made in Nazareth, PA, serial # 137310, natural lacquer finish, Brazilian rosewood back and sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, black tolex hard shell case.
Behold a vintage Martin with some way cool if obscure history behind it -- a1954 000-28 customized with the name "Tommy Thrasher" inlaid in pearl script on the fingerboard! Thrasher was a singer/songwriter active in the late 1950s and early 60's in the Country/Rockabilly vein, who never became a star but had a couple of commercial releases. Despite the dramatic moniker, these very rare records include the fairly tame country/rockabilly meets Doo-Wop side "Teenage Queen" backed with "My Baby Knows", a 1961 release on Tom-Tom records #102. The A-side is typical "teen fare" for the time, set to that old reliable I-VI-IV-V chord progression with a female chorus and string backing. The B-side is a bit wilder with a prominent saxophone and a LOT of echo. Tommy also cut a straighter 4/4 country 45 "Endless Hours" backed with "One More Heartache" on Toppa 45-1081 around 1962; this was a better known label but Tommy still did not score that elusive hit. There IS a fairly prominent acoustic guitar backing on these, which may well be this guitar!
Aside from its unique artist-related history this is simply a wonderful guitar. Brazilian rosewood 000's from this period are considered a Martin classic but are surprisingly rare. Only 75 000-28's were produced this year and a grand total of less than 900 examples shipped from Nazareth in all of the 1950's, making them very much a connoisseur's model even then. By comparison more than 804 D-28's shipped out in 1954 alone! At $185 new this was a fairly expensive guitar, and fell "between the cracks" a bit between the inexpensive student Martins and the top-end Dreadnoughts. We don't know if Tommy bought this guitar new or used but it seems to have been customized fairly early on.
Apart from the special fingerboard this 000 has the classic early-1950's appointments: multi-layer celluloid binding back and top, long-saddle bridge, dot-inlaid ebony fingerboard and individual Kluson Deluxe tuners. The beautiful book-matched Brazilian rosewood on the back and sides has some lovey figuring, matched to a very tight even-grained spruce top. The ebony fingerboard with the custom inlay was likely installed after the guitar was completed at Martin. The pearlwork is very well done, neatly cut and inlaid with minimal filler. The frets appear to be Martin spec. for the period; it does appear that a Martin fingerboard blank was used. We are always fond of the personalized "Hillbilly" guitars of this era; this one has one of the coolest names we have encountered on one and is a superb instrument all around, as well as a great piece of musical history.
Overall length is 39 3/4 in. (101 cm.), 15 1/8 in. (38.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a great playing --and well played-- example overall, we would assume it was Tommy's performance guitar in the early 1960s. Overall it shows typical play wear, most heavily to the top. You could say that Tommy did "Thrash" it a bit, but no serious harm was done! The top finish shows typical checking, with a collection of dings, scrapes and dents overall. The top has pick scratches into the wood in front of the pickguard and above the strings, with deeper areas of pickwear well into the wood off the back edge of the pickguard and on the lower soundhole edge. The pickguard itself has areas worn down from pick action. These are the places that (presumably) Tommy did his thrashin'. The back of the neck has numerous small dings, dents and checking but no deep gouges, the headstock is similar and the back has some noticeable buckle wear.
The top center seam has been resealed behind the bridge, solidly but visibly. There is a typical upper-edge pickguard crack running from the bridge to the soundhole, also sealed but not as neatly and a tiny repaired split on the forward soundhole edge. The original ebony bridge appears to have been neatly lowered long ago and likely reglued though it is a very neat job. The small maple bridgeplate is original. Tommy Thrasher's fretted legacy remains a very fine playing guitar with a rich and powerful sound, a wonderful if uniquely appointed example of one of Martin's finest 1950s instruments. Overall Very Good + Condition.
Behold a vintage Martin with some way cool if obscure history behind it -- a1954 000-28 customized with the name "Tommy Thrasher" inlaid in pearl script on the fingerboard! Thrasher was a singer/songwriter active in the late 1950s and early 60's in the Country/Rockabilly vein, who never became a star but had a couple of commercial releases. Despite the dramatic moniker, these very rare records include the fairly tame country/rockabilly meets Doo-Wop side "Teenage Queen" backed with "My Baby Knows", a 1961 release on Tom-Tom records #102. The A-side is typical "teen fare" for the time, set to that old reliable I-VI-IV-V chord progression with a female chorus and string backing. The B-side is a bit wilder with a prominent saxophone and a LOT of echo. Tommy also cut a straighter 4/4 country 45 "Endless Hours" backed with "One More Heartache" on Toppa 45-1081 around 1962; this was a better known label but Tommy still did not score that elusive hit. There IS a fairly prominent acoustic guitar backing on these, which may well be this guitar!
Aside from its unique artist-related history this is simply a wonderful guitar. Brazilian rosewood 000's from this period are considered a Martin classic but are surprisingly rare. Only 75 000-28's were produced this year and a grand total of less than 900 examples shipped from Nazareth in all of the 1950's, making them very much a connoisseur's model even then. By comparison more than 804 D-28's shipped out in 1954 alone! At $185 new this was a fairly expensive guitar, and fell "between the cracks" a bit between the inexpensive student Martins and the top-end Dreadnoughts. We don't know if Tommy bought this guitar new or used but it seems to have been customized fairly early on.
Apart from the special fingerboard this 000 has the classic early-1950's appointments: multi-layer celluloid binding back and top, long-saddle bridge, dot-inlaid ebony fingerboard and individual Kluson Deluxe tuners. The beautiful book-matched Brazilian rosewood on the back and sides has some lovey figuring, matched to a very tight even-grained spruce top. The ebony fingerboard with the custom inlay was likely installed after the guitar was completed at Martin. The pearlwork is very well done, neatly cut and inlaid with minimal filler. The frets appear to be Martin spec. for the period; it does appear that a Martin fingerboard blank was used. We are always fond of the personalized "Hillbilly" guitars of this era; this one has one of the coolest names we have encountered on one and is a superb instrument all around, as well as a great piece of musical history.
Overall length is 39 3/4 in. (101 cm.), 15 1/8 in. (38.4 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 1/8 in. (10.5 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a great playing --and well played-- example overall, we would assume it was Tommy's performance guitar in the early 1960s. Overall it shows typical play wear, most heavily to the top. You could say that Tommy did "Thrash" it a bit, but no serious harm was done! The top finish shows typical checking, with a collection of dings, scrapes and dents overall. The top has pick scratches into the wood in front of the pickguard and above the strings, with deeper areas of pickwear well into the wood off the back edge of the pickguard and on the lower soundhole edge. The pickguard itself has areas worn down from pick action. These are the places that (presumably) Tommy did his thrashin'. The back of the neck has numerous small dings, dents and checking but no deep gouges, the headstock is similar and the back has some noticeable buckle wear.
The top center seam has been resealed behind the bridge, solidly but visibly. There is a typical upper-edge pickguard crack running from the bridge to the soundhole, also sealed but not as neatly and a tiny repaired split on the forward soundhole edge. The original ebony bridge appears to have been neatly lowered long ago and likely reglued though it is a very neat job. The small maple bridgeplate is original. Tommy Thrasher's fretted legacy remains a very fine playing guitar with a rich and powerful sound, a wonderful if uniquely appointed example of one of Martin's finest 1950s instruments. Overall Very Good + Condition.