New Session King Gzouki
It’s fun applying the Session King idea of “heavy body/light top” to the different instruments in the range. Last year, whilst still in Newcastle I made this – a Session King guitar bouzouki. Initially it was supposed to have a relic finish, but when most folk who ordered Session Kings ask “do I have to have it relic’d” it made sense to try out a satin finish – the finish you’ll find on a lot of small factory guitars like Avalon or the old Lowden guitars. It looks really smart, nicer than I imagined, and it helps keep the cost down – win-win! Anyway, I got round to finishing it recently and I’m very happy with how it’s turned out.
The top is cedrella, which is nice stuff – it’s tough enough not to need binding around the edge and light enough to make a good, string, open sounding top. The back, sides and neck are khaya, the best of the African mahoganies. The fretboard is Indian rosewood.
It’s fitted with a K&K pickup which is surprisingly decent. I tried fitting one years ago and hated it, so either they have got better or I’m fitting them better than before. Or both.
You can see the new gzouki in action on YouTube
If you’d like to order this new model, or something similar, let me know through the contact page.