Scott Baxendale

Scott Baxendale’s legacy of building custom instruments began in 1974, when he arrived in Winfield, Kansas to work for Stuart Mossman, owner and founder of Mossman Guitars. In l978, Scott went on to join Gruhn Guitars in Nashville, Tennessee, where he specialized in the restoration of classic vintage instruments. Gruhn Guitars is one of the most well-known dealers in used, vintage and collectable instruments in the world. During this time he repaired or restored guitars for such professionals as Billy Gibbons, Johnny Cash, Hank Williams, Jr., Steve Howe, Elvis Costello, John Hartford, Marty Stuart, Norman Blake, Roy Acuff and many others. While in Tennessee, Scott and the Gruhn Guitar repair staff were responsible for the care and maintenance of Roy Acuff’s Grand Ole Opry Museum collection. In l985, Scott fulfilled his dream and purchased Mossman Guitars, moving the company to Garland, Texas. He manufactured over 250 acoustic guitars, averaging five instruments per month, some of which are owned and played by: Carl Perkins, Joe Walsh, Willie Nelson, Greg Lake, Jorma Kaukonen, John Cougar Mellencamp, Chris Hillman, James Burton, Travis Tritt, Donavon, B.J. Thomas and Ray Wylie Hubbard. During this time, Scott’s reputation for guitar building earned him a contract from the Hard Rock Café to construct two guitar bars for their Dallas restaurant. These 34-foot bars were conceived, designed and built by him to scale (a 10:1 ratio) to look like Fender Stratocaster and Gibson Les Paul guitars. Scott duplicated the same custom finish that would have been found on an original Strat or Les Paul, both bars being featured in Guitar Player Magazine. At that time Scott also became responsible for the care and restoration of all instruments in the Hard Rock Café’s extensive collection. Some of the priceless guitars he either refurbished, repaired or maintained included Jimi Hendrix’s black Gibson Flying V, Elvis Presley’s sunburst Gibson Super 400, Buddy Holly’s 57 Strat and Gibson J-45 acoustic, and John Lennon’s Rickenbacher. In 1988, Scott Baxendale was commissioned by Danny Davenport, a Warner Brothers executive, to build a one-of-a-kind guitar for use in Travis Tritt’s debut video for the song “Country Club.” This guitar features an elaborate, abalone rose inlay displaying the Warner Brothers’ logo in the head stock. The vine inlay in the finger board is comprised of more than 120 pieces of abalone and mother-of-pearl, featuring Bugs Bunny in the fifth fret. The top of the instrument has a hand-painted pattern replicating tooled leather, with more Warner Brothers’ cartoon characters hidden throughout the design. The ivroid pick guard has a scrimshawed rose and the heel is an elaborate carving with a cap made from a combination of abalone and mother-of-pearl. Also included with the guitar was a custom-made, mink-lined case. It is featured in the book “Acoustic Guitars and Other Fretted Instruments” by George Gruhn and Walter Carter. The Warner Brothers Mossman Superlataive is currently part of a world-famous instrument collection. In 1986, for the Texas sesquicentennial, Scott built 15 custom guitars that featured the Alamo inlaid in the head stock. Owners of those guitars included John Mellencamp, Joe Walsh, Greg Lake, Donovan, Jorma Kaukonen and James Burton. During this time he also built two guitars for Farm Aid III, each having the Farm Aid logo inlaid in the head stock with signatures from all the featured performers on the instruments. After a short break, Scott went on to open the Colfax Guitar Shop in Denver, Colorado, where he continues his long-standing tradition of building world-class, custom guitars and performing expert restorations. He attributes the quality of his instruments to his combination of using the best design features of pre-war Martin and Gibson guitars and his many years of restoration experience, enabling him to create a modern guitar having the sound quality unique to only the finest vintage guitars. To this he has applied his specialized technique in the carving of braces and the use of specific woods to create the tone his guitars are known for. Besides custom orders for guitars, Scott’s clientele includes touring professionals such as: Steve Howe, Henry Rollins, Tito and Tarantula, the Vines, The Blasters, The Drive By Truckers, Jason Isbell, Centromatic, Shooter Jennings, Hank III, Charlie Louvin, Jorma Kaukonen, Butch Walker, My Chemical Romance, Brethren Fast, Mel Brown, Vernon Barbari, Gerald Allbright, as well as many Mossman guitar owners. Scott’s long-standing history of custom work is now being passed from father to son. John Baxendale has become a master craftsman in his own right specializing in amazing vintage restorations, repairs, and contributes to the making of Baxendale & Baxendale fine acoustic guitars.Drive By Truckers Dirt Underneath Photoshoot Daddy's Cup
..Drive By Truckers 5-13-07 Boulder w/Scott Baxendale sitting in.
..Check out this video: Drive By Truckers on Conan with Baxendale Guitars
..
Add to My Profile | More VideosIt's All Over Now, Baby Blue
..