While My Guitar Gently Sleeps

WHILE MY GUITAR GENTLY SLEEPS

The story of Nemo’s handbuilt 1971 Gurian S3M steel string acoustic guitar

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Late 1971 found me working at Bivouac used clothing store in Ann Arbor, Michigan, in a dumpy second floor location. When my hourly wage went up to $2.50, I somehow managed to purchase a new guitar from the folk music shop down the hall in an equally inauspicious spot.

Who had heard of Gurian handbuilt guitars, from New Hampshire? Not me. Mine cost around $400, including deluxe lined hard case. Model S3M refers to the guitar’s size and choice of wood. You can read more about Gurian guitars by doing a web search for any combination of the terms “Gurian guitar S3M.”

My guitar has an explosive sound that is especially good for strumming. I’m a rhythm guitarist, not a soloist. This beautiful S3M delivers a consistent, loud chorus of notes that can fill an auditorium or drown out conversation at a party.

I play the Gurian for fun, not profit. I stopped performing live (for money) around the time I acquired it.

S3M and I stayed together as I moved from Michigan to England to Illinois to Arizona, where my musical ashes will be strewn in a few decades. It’s hot and dry here in sunny Tucson. During my seventeen years in AZ, the guitar has held up well, but it eventually needed minor adjustments.

Jim Hilbert repaired the guitar’s bridge, nut, and action while I was on vacation. He delivered the Gurian to me yesterday. It sounds splendid, plays great, and remains in excellent physical condition — not quite mint, but darn close.

Thirty-six years since 1971 is a long time. My fingers are nearly sixty years old now. What was easy to play during my twenties and thirties is not as easy today. The S3M has a medium-high action, meaning the strings do not lie really close over the frets on the fingerboard. There is a bit of a gap, so the strings resonate magnificently.

Higher string action translates into more finger pressure required to play chords and notes. I use a modest Washburn guitar for teaching music, because it’s much easier to play. Whenever stellar sound is important, or when I want a superior instrument, I take the Gurian out of its case and blast off.

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Thirty-six years from now I’ll be long gone. I doubt my petite daughter will be interested in a steel string guitar with great sound and a medium action, as she collects her Social Security checks and wrestles with Medicare reimbursement (if either of these plans still exist then).

What to do with Gurian S3M #A1469? Its current cash value is $1,000 to $2,000, depending upon the buyer’s passion. Its musical value to me is whatever it costs to replace it with an instrument of equivalent quality having a slightly lower action. The emotional value of this guitar is beyond description, as is its glorious sound.

Jim Hilbert did a beautiful job restoring my guitar’s intonation and lowering the action a bit. I played the Gurian until late last night, enjoying every strum and pluck. I’ll keep playing it daily until I decide its future. This guitar needs to be played, and to be heard.