Fine Woodworking Magazine is published out of Connecticut and was the only non-music oriented periodical that I subscribed to in the early years. On a lark, I submitted photos of one of my archtop jazz instruments to their annual Design Book series ... and was pleasantly surprised when they contacted me to indicate that they would like to include my work!

    I made archtops right from the start of my career. As a matter of fact, my very first professional guitar sale was a carved top jazz guitar. A young gentleman came in Jean's shop in 1975 and asked him if he accepted orders for archtops, to which Jean replied "no, but he does". Since there were only the two of us building at that point in time, I had to assume he meant me. The next weekend, we drove to International Violin in New York and purchased a cello set of wood, and I started my first commission!

     In 1979 I received a phone call indicating that Joan Baez was about to play a concert at Roy Thompson Hall and needed a guitar since her long-time Martin had been damaged by the airlines. I took an instrument down to the venue, only to discover that a large chain store had already supplied her with a half dozen instruments. My wife and I stayed for the concert anyway, and to our surprise Ms. Baez came on stage with the instrument I had provided. Ultimately I ended up making her an instrument that she tours and records with to this day. What an absolutely lovely person she was to deal with too!

    The "Concert" model reviewed by "Frets" was my bread and butter for over a decade and after building over 190 of this body shape, it has evolved into possibly the most versatile instrument that I fabricate to this day.

    Acoustic Guitar Magazine initiated an article about the resurgence of hand building acoustic guitars in North America. The Larrivee shop history figured prominently in this issue, with quotes from several of us that had apprenticed with Jean ... and a photo of me & the maestro himself from our days on Dwight Ave. in Toronto.

    Bruce Cockburn was my main acoustic guitar hero during my apprenticeship, and from 1978 to 1981 I had the opportunity to build him three different guitars which he toured and recorded with. What a pleasure and an honor it is, to build instruments for musicians at this level ... he really is a unique talent who has enjoyed a long and eclectic career.

(from top left : clockwise)   (1) the tiny shop on Mt. Pleasant where Jean worked with William Laskin and myself as apprentices. Jean and Wendy lived in a small room in the back of this storefront! (2) a young Jean, roping binding in the Dwight Ave. shop (3) a current shot of Jean showing his recent work    (4) a photo of me burning the midnight oil, sanding necks in the Dwight shop.

    The Fretboard Journal is a quarterly publication out of Washington  that has rapidly gained a reputation as the premier acoustic instrument magazine. One of their earliest issues featured a comprehensive article on Jean Larrivee that encompased everything from the early years to the present. The article featured a photo collage pictured above.

    It was pretty surreal when I picked up the phone one day and the voice on the other end is telling me that it is Jackson Browne ... and that he played the instrument I had made for Joan Baez ... and wanted one too. Here is a note he sent me with a sketch of the angel he wanted on the peghead.

    When my buddy Grit Laskin wrote The World of Musical Instrument Makers, I was honored to be included, along with many other luthiers. As we all have come to know, when Grit does something, he does it right. This was a very classy hardcover book on quality paper stock, with a high colour graphics content ... very well written and researched. This was the first of several non-fiction and fiction books that Grit has authored. The photo shows me in my old Oakcrest Ave. shop, holding a burst OM with pyramid bridge.

    I haven't applied my hand to much inlay work in recent years, but back in the day, I spent some time developing and executing custom inlays on my instruments. It was very gratifying when Frets Magazine included one of my pegheads when they featured North American inlay artists!

   In 2005 Robert Everett-Green's article on Canadian guitar builders was published in the Globe and Mail (Canada's largest circulation national newspaper). Myself, Jean Larrivee, William Laskin, Linda Manzer, Sergei de Jonge, Rene Wilhelmy, Shelly Park and Michael Dunn are all quoted and mentioned in this piece. Yep ... there are more than a few folks up here in the frozen north who know one end of a chisel from the other!