Gibson Byrdland

[neatomic]

wow..nice looker!!

even hank gar"land" is smiling!



congrats & enjoy

cheers

[Woody Sound]

I always wondered, I'll bet the two pickups together sound really funky being so close together.

[BigMikeinNJ]

Crazy train !!!!

[feet]

welcome to the cool af club, buddy. i have myself a blond epi version and it is something. its the only guitar i've every literally gotten upset with because it sounded good. i picked it up as a lark and perhaps a flipping opportunity, but it was so awesome, it made me go back the next day to buy it.

give it some time. it takes a bit to get used to it. not the scale length so much as the pickups- it responds a lot to where your right hand is and what it does. its fairly acoustic-y in that respect. it can also do a lot more than one would expect. and with all that maple and ebony, they are pretty bright. but you work your knobs and switches right, and there is much to be had.

personally, i tore everything out and replaced the pots, caps, wiring, switches, bridge and pups, but that's because i do that. it has a sort of beguiling chatoyance that you don't really find in other guitars, but it still very much does "jazz". kind of hard to explain, but you'll hear it. and the thinner body makes it pretty comfy.

[BigMikeinNJ]

I went through a Byrdland jag back in 2002-2004. Got a correct scale '77 Ibanez nt that was lovely - of course it was a pressed top and lam back but very flexible, as many have said you can do a LOT with them. Then I got a wine red '84 Gibson Birdie and I didn't bond with it so good. Sold the blonde correct scale Ibby to a ICW buddy in Europe who still has it and bought a regular scale Ibby that I really liked - so much so I let go of the wine red Gibson. The Gibson just didn't have the same life in it.

I was squirting around looking at HJS's and even a custom H576 with Alumintones in it (Marty Grass, sound familiar ???) but at the end of the day I wanted a pet Birdie in my place so got it !!

Now just to wait for the mailman and UPS to do their respective things.

Big




​

[BigMikeinNJ]

Aside from all the very valid comments about the very low level of quality in the past and currently, the Byrdland is just a classic ass kicking guitar. Country, blues, gospel, jazz, rock, hard rock. You can do it all and those long stretch chords, not such a big deal. I gotta thank and blame Joe DeNisco for forcing me to remember why the right Birdie would be just my cup of tea.

Big
President, Illinois Chapter Nut Bags Anonymous

[Greentone]

BigMike,

Here's Hank "Sugarfoot" Garland on his prototype Byrdland (and a few other guitars):

[gcb]

Big Mike, you are having a good time and it is contagious...Play some Blood Ulmer licks on that beauty..congratulations!!

[vinnyv1k]

A big Congrats Mike. I LOVE my Byrdland. Best neck ever. Lightning fast. I'm old. It is my go to axe when my hands hurt.
Plays like butter. The newer ones have a L5 neck profile with the short scale. I bought one new in 77. It had the narrow nut neck. The newer ones have the full 1-11/16 nut. Super easy to play. That blonde is a stunner ! Enjoy !

[helios]

Here's another Byrdland prototype. I believe only one was made:

[cmajor9]

Wow, a Byrdland with a CC! That's even more rare than a Staple (and sounds great).

BigMike,

Here's Hank "Sugarfoot" Garland on his prototype Byrdland (and a few other guitars):

[Marty Grass]

The Byrdland in the hands of a master.

[vinnyv1k]

WOW.....thanks Mark ! Roy's the man.

[BigMikeinNJ]

Wasn't that hot here today and the driver showed up at 2pm, box wasn't even hot. So I got her unpacked and opened. Will wait until Friday morning to tune to pitch. She IS a lovely thing. The neck is a joy, it's not the old style skinny Byrdland neck, it's a slightly fast Gibson neck. Oh this is gonna be a rock & soul machine... Can't wait... Here's some office shots. Too hot to have it outside.

Big

[BigMikeinNJ]

And the full frontal...

[Frank67]

Beautiful! Enjoy!

[vinnyv1k]

I love Byrdlands. Welcome to the Byrd family Mike. She is a beaut. So how many guitars in the stable now ?
We lost count. You move too fast.

[ESCC]

I have never played a Byrdland, strong desire to now. Beautiful enjoy!

[BigMikeinNJ]

Got some quality time tuning her up (TI GB12 flats) and playing it thru the Fuchs 20 ODS... very nice. That neck is a real joy. Remember us talking about arch top necks meeting or floating over the top, here's Birdies, the finishing of the wood and such is smooth and perfect on the end under the fingerboard.

[Bluedawg]

I noticed that Rainbow has now listed all of their Byrdlands as sold ... did you get it from there?

I would like to have a nice thin body archtop myself

[BigMikeinNJ]

Found it on Reverb, Tom Gould the owner was a real gent to work with.

[Greentone]

Gorgeous woods on that Byrdland!

[teleman3726]

Found it on Reverb, Tom Gould the owner was a real gent to work with.

Oh, you got Tom's!
Great. I know his price was very attractive.
Enjoy it!

[feet]

so now that you've had it for a few hours, lets talk mods! what are you thinking? new pups? floyd rose?

welcome to the team, buddy. took mine out for a spin the other day as a result of the uptick in byrdland activity here and yeah, its still pretty cool. mine has started to take on that amber color and its nice. kind of always wanted a wine red one but i'll probably let it ride now.

question for the byrdlanders out there:

-where do you pick? or, where does your picking hand lie?
-do you use the little frets?

the squish forces the neck pup back into where i like my hand to be, so i either try and aim for the spot in between them (which isn't immediately natural for me) or i try not to hit the pup as i pick over it. i sometimes find my hand wandering over the bridge, too. its very responsive to right hand movement, i find. and no, i don't use the little frets, and certainly not the extra ones.

[BigMikeinNJ]

That short scale takes a little concentration playing chords, but when you get used to it it's fun...