{"product_id":"c-f-martin-d-41-owned-and-played-by-bob-neuwirth-gifted-by-bob-dylan-flat-top-acoustic-guitar-1975-1","title":"C. F. Martin D-41 Owned and Played by Bob Neuwirth, Gifted by Bob Dylan Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1975)","description":"C. F. Martin D-41 Owned and Played by Bob Neuwirth, Gifted by Bob Dylan Model Flat Top Acoustic Guitar (1975), made in Nazareth, PA, serial # 360767, sunburst top, natural back and sides finish, Indian rosewood back \u0026amp; sides, spruce top; mahogany neck with ebony fingerboard, brown tolex hard shell case. \u003ciframe width=\"806\" height=\"453\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/SqmTfkf7GRg\" title=\"Bob Dylan - Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You (Live in Montreal - 1975) [4K FOOTAGE]\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen\u003e\u003c\/iframe\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn \"Behind the Shades\" author Clinton Heylin wrote: \"The Rolling Thunder Revue shows remain some of the finest music Dylan ever made with a live band. Gone was the traditionalism of The Band. Instead he found a whole set of textures rarely found in rock. The idea of blending the pedal-steel syncopations of Mansfield, Ronson's glam-rock guitar breaks and Rivera's electric violin made for something as musically layered as Dylan's lyrics.\" This unique tour with a large rotating cast of ancillary performers has long been a touchstone in Dylan's history, the subject of a recent documentary film by Martin Scorsese (\"Rolling Thunder Revue: A Bob Dylan Story by Martin Scorsese\") and live recordings issued in the Dylan \"Bootleg Series\".\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis Martin D-41 was right in the middle of it, in the hands of Bob Neuwirth who was not only one of the top billed performers but instrumental in assembling the touring company and organizing the entire now-legendary escapade. In the recent 2024 Dylan biopic \"A Complete Unknown\" Bobby Neuwirth (as portrayed by Will Harrison) is a major character. In the 1960s and '70s he was often billed as Dylan's \"Road Manager\" but was actually much more; a close confidant, a grounding presence and creative instigator often acting as a wittily sarcastic shield between Dylan and an increasingly intrusive world. This relationship was famously documented in the 1967 cinema verite film \"Don't Look Back\". \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story of this guitar is directly tied to the Rolling Thunder Revue. In 1975 Dylan and Neuwirth ventured to Manny's Music on Manhattan's 48th street and tried out two new D-41s the store had in stock. One had the traditional natural top and the other a sunburst top which Martin had just recently started offering again. The shaded finish dramatically set off the mother of pearl inlay along the top edges and sound hole, giving the guitar a very striking look. When Dylan asked Neuwirth (often seen with sunburst Gibson flat tops) which one he preferred, Bobby immediately advised him to buy the sunburst. Dylan bought both and handed this one to Bobby, saying \"I'd like to give this to you, we'll use it on the Rolling Thunder Tour.\" \u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eNeuwirth did frequently play this guitar on stage during the tour; photos from various dates also show Neuwirth playing an older Gibson J-45, while Dylan himself is often shown with the natural-top D-41 from this pair. It's likely (if undocumented) that Dylan also played this guitar, at least backstage and on the tour bus where there was a constant exchange of instruments between performers, especially Dylan and Neuwirth. According to guitar tech Arthur Rosato, who managed all 36 tour guitars, it is likely that Dylan occasionally played this Martin: \"In those days if a guitar was laying around anyone could pick it up and play. Being that Bob and Bobby were tighter than most they probably swapped guitars on numerous occasions.\" This guitar appears in the original \"Hard Rain\" concert film as well as the more recent Scorsese project. Neuwirth can be clearly seen playing it appear in concert footage recorded at the Montreal Forum on December 4, 1975 for the song \"Tonight I'll Be Staying Here with You\".\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=SqmTfkf7GRg\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eApart from the inevitable Dylan references, Bob Neuwirth was highly respected as an artist, singer, songwriter and provocateur in his own right. He was a close confidant of Janis Joplin, Co-writing her \"Mercedes Benz\" and introducing her to \"Me And Bobby McGee\" which led to a friendship with songwriter Kris Kristofferson. Rooted in the American folk tradition but wide-ranging as an artist, Neuwirth recorded five solo LPs from 1974-1999 and a stunning collaboration with John Cale \"Last Day On Earth\" in 1994. Neuwirth never pursued fame for its own sake and rarely did anything to promote these projects, but they were often critically praised. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis D-41 remained with Neuwirth from 1975 until he passed away in 2022. Apart from its unique provenance it is a standard 1975 D-41 with the rarer \"shaded top\" finish. The back and sides are beautiful straight grained East Indian rosewood with a fine-grain Sitka spruce top. The mahogany neck has a bound ebony fingerboard inlaid with abalone blocks. The classic \"41\" style pearl trim surrounds the top and soundhole. The face of the bound headstock is inlaid with the vertical \"C F MARTIN\" pearl logo and it carries gold Grover Rotomatic tuners.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eReflecting on his longtime friend Bob Dylan wrote in \"Chronicles, Volume One\": \"Right from the start you could tell that Neuwirth had a taste for provocation and that nothing was going to restrict his freedom. He was in a mad revolt against something. You had to brace yourself when you talked to him. Later we'd become pretty tight and travel around together. Like Kerouac had immortalized Neal Cassady in On the Road, somebody should have immortalized Neuwirth. If ever there was a renaissance man leaping in and out of things, he would have to be it\" This D-41 survives as a piece of their shared history, a tangible memento of that enduring friendship especially symbolic of the \"two Bobs\" most well-remembered public collaboration.\u003cbr\u003e \u003cbr\u003eOverall length is 41 in. (104.1 cm.), 15 3\/4 in. (40 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 4 7\/8 in. (12.4 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 25 1\/2 in. (648 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11\/16 in. (43 mm.). \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eAccording to one of Bob Dylan's guitar techs \"Bob Neuwirth really thrashed guitars. So did Dylan. Both in terms of pick, pick, picking and scratching the face.\" Considering that, this tour-used D-41 shows signs of serious play but no really heavy wear. The lacquer finish remains all original and shows natural ageing with minimal checking and some scratches and dings most notably to the top. There is not the heavy pickwear one might expect, only a bit through to the wood on the edge of the lower soundhole rim and two deeper random impact marks, one just off the back edge near the centerline and the other on the lower treble bout well below the bridge. There is scuffing to the pickguard but it shows less shrinkage than many from this period with minimal lifting around the edges. The binding to the top edge below the heel has some small inexplicable dinks. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe top center seam has been resealed from the back edge of the bridge to the rim, without any overfinish. There is also a small sealed grain split behind the high E string pin, and another in the common spot off the top edge of the pickguard. There are no other cracks. The original ebony bridge was shaved down at some point and also reglued; there is a very tight split between the pins that appears to have not moved for decades, the pins appear original or at least the correct style. The neck and frets show only light wear and playability is excellent. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe guitar had an under-saddle Piezo pickup added long ago, which is still fully functional wired to an internal battery pack on the back and a large older style endpin jack. There is a strap button added to the lower side of the heel and a screw hole in the heel cap where another strap button was attached and removed. The nut and gold Grover Rotomatic tuners remain original. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe guitar remains as it came to us, presumably with the strings last fitted by Bob Neuwirth which are somewhat worn; we will of course re-string and\/or clean the instrument as requested, but for now it is as Bob left it. Even so it has a lovely warm sound with considerable volume; there are stories played into this one for sure. It is housed in a later 1980s brown Tolex, pink lined Gibson hard shell case. The case pocket contains a couple of nail files. The exterior is somewhat battered with some period stickers from bob's travels, but it is still fully functional. Overall Excellent - Condition.","brand":"C. F. Martin","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":46853709103244,"sku":"13199","price":25000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0672\/8702\/3756\/files\/01_e798024f-f31b-4d2e-b531-ce5a776f29da.jpg?v=1774344098","url":"https:\/\/retrofret.com\/products\/c-f-martin-d-41-owned-and-played-by-bob-neuwirth-gifted-by-bob-dylan-flat-top-acoustic-guitar-1975-1","provider":"RetroFret","version":"1.0","type":"link"}