Leo Kottke - studio used 1942 D'Angelico New Yorker archtop ...

Hammer

£15,000

Leo Kottke - studio used 1942 D'Angelico New Yorker archtop guitar, made in USA; Body: two-tone sunburst finished maple back and sides, refinished; Top: sunburst finish spruce, refinished following restoration of minor cracks around tailpiece area, hairline within waste (stable); Neck: maple; Fretboard: ebony; Frets: good, professional refret; Hardware: generally good, slight tarnishing to original tailpiece, tarnishing to original Grover tuners; Case: period hard case; Overall condition: good for age

*This guitar was commissioned by jazz guitarist Connie Wainwright and collected from the John D'Angelico workshop on the 26th December, 1942. Subsequently, the guitar was owned by renowned US guitarist Leo Kottke, who has provided a handwritten note outlining the guitar's use in the studio and in which he says, "This is the best sounding New Yorker I've personally played...".

A letter of appraisal from George Gruhn of Gruhn Guitars, Nashville, dated November 18, 2019 states the following: "... the fingerboard of this guitar has been professionally re-fretted by Gruhn Guitars. Upon examination this guitar appears structurally to be in excellent condition.... The neck and body have been professionally re-finished. In other respects this instrument conforms to the typical specifications for the model of this period...". This Gruhn letter is included in the sale. 

The vendor acquired the guitar from a collector in the Netherlands who had arranged for a repair and re-finish of the soundboard carried out by Frans Elferink, the eminent Dutch luthier. The repair to the guitar was aesthetic rather than structural and corrected some small cracks near the tail piece. and surrounding the strap button.

At the time Connie Wainwright acquired the New Yorker, he was playing with the Earl Hines Big Band. Cliff Smalls (piano, trombone) describes joining the band in the summer of 1942 and meeting Connie who he described as, ".. a little, short fellow was the guitar player...". (pp266 "The World of Earl Hines"). Connie Wainwright worked with a number of big bands and has recorded with many leading jazz artists of the 1940s and 50s including Billy Eckstine, Sarah Vaughn, Miles Davis, Art Blakey and Hoagy Carmichael amongst many others. A CD of Miles Davis' 1946 recording of "Boppin' The Blues" is provided with the guitar in which Connie wainwright is listed as the guitarist on this recording. (While it is extremely probable, it is not known if he used the New Yorker for this recording)

Leo Kottke has an international reputation as an acoustic guitarist and is renowned for his fingerpicking style drawing on jazz, blues and folk influences. In his note, Leo states that he bought this guitar in the early 1970s and attests that he used it on his ground breaking album, "Chewing Pine" in 1975. (A vinyl copy of the album is provided with the guitar). As of late 2024, Leo is still recording and touring in the United States.