It's rare that an NJ-16 Model is available these days ... they're mostly made to order. Every once in a while, Douglas saves a build spot to try out a few new ideas that have been percolating. This particular beauty features an attractive and as it turns out, very efficient side port design that directs more of the instrument's sound up to the player while maintaining powerful forward projection. Douglas has also deployed a new bridge configuration that has the base inside the guitar so that the intonation points never "float" as per a traditional archtop bridge. Add to this the Bartolini 5J pickup with a stealth mounted Series/Parallel switch and the Laskin armrest ... and you have a perfect blend of versatile sound and effortless playablility!

Here are a few tracks of this instrument recorded, arranged and performed by renowned studio musician Michael Francis. Mike is a studio guitarist, writer and record producer with over 40 years experience. He has played on literally countless corporate jingles … dozens of TV shows (everything from Austin City Limits to Beverly Hills 90210) … hundreds of recordings (everyone from Gordon Lightfoot to Nelly Furtado). Michael has pursued an active live performance role over the years, playing stages with everyone from Chet Atkins to Rosanne Cash.

Douglas Harrison's Model GB continues to be one of the most popular models in his catalogue. This extremely versatile instrument features a stunning Blister-figured carved maple top that has been custom hand shaded before a pristine gloss lacquer finish was applied. The body is Tropical mahogany with a hand carved rib contour for maximum player comfort. The Seymour Duncan '59 humbucker provides a warm foundation for the tone, but with clarity, precision and plenty of sparkle in the high end. This is the ultimate working musician's jazz guitar that will keep you satified for decades to come!

The Harrison GB Model is designed to perform in any live or recording jazz environment. With excellent feedback rejection, ergonomic design elements and a wide variety of electronic options ... not to mention an extremely attractive stage presence ... this instrument is more than ready to gig!

Here is yet another one-of-a-kind custom Model GB that combines a very unique assemblage of features ... including a custom fully hollow body with hand-carved and braced spruce top, proprietary Macassar ebony tailpiece and bridge, a Bartolini 5J pickup with push/pull activated series/parallel option ... and an absolutely stunning flamed maple body shining through the custom transparent black stain!

   This NJ-16 is the 16" version of the ground breaking Neo-Jazz model. The Neo-Jazz was designed to include some structural and visual changes that I had been wanting to incorporate. To achieve a fuller sound from the top I moved the position of the sound holes away from the center. This allows for the central section of the top to be wider and more directly effected by the bridge vibration.

    The side port acts as a monitor to the player without reducing the forward sound projection. The top on this particular instrument is Sitka spruce, the back and sides are Big Leaf maple, the neck is hard maple and the fretboard, bridge, tailpiece and pickguard are African ebony. The pickup is a Bartolini 5J with a volume mounted to the pickguard, frets are 6150(medium jumbo) stainless steel.

Here is yet another example of how the Harrison GB model can be customized with just about any wood combination. This new instrument features an absolutely stunning hand carved Sapele top with some of the deepest Pomelle quilt figure that I've seen. The deep brown hue of this rare African tonewood goes well with the sculpted tropical mahogany body and the ultra stable 3-piece mahogany neck. The Macassar ebony fingerboard and bridge are bound in grained ivoroid and a hand carved ebony tailpiece completes the elegant look of this exceptional jazz guitar!

   The GB Model continues to be one of Douglas Harrison's most popular models, in part because of its many custom options. This new example features two handmade Lindy Fralin humbucking pickups with a series-parallel option, Mun ebony fingerboard and tailpiece, Mun ebony pickup trim rings ... hand carved top from a fine-grained 300 year old Douglas Fir ... and an absolutely stunning deeply flamed hollow body.

  This beautiful piece from luthier Doug Harrison features a wonderful spalted flame maple top which has a subtle amber tint producing a stunning visual impact. The clean lines, high quality components and finish work speaks volumes of the care and craftsmanship that goes into every Harrison guitar. The Seymour Duncan Jazz humbucker has a series/parallel switch and can be combined with the piezo bridge pickup via a blend control for lots of tonal variety!  Top it all off with a neck profile and body shape that are so comfortable to play you won’t want to put this guitar down!

    The Harrison NeoJazz Model blends old-school craftsmanship with a contemporary design sensibility and in the process creates a musical tool that maximizes the potential of the instrument Loyd Loar invented over 80 years ago. This particular instrument features an absolutely stunning highly flamed maple back as well as a flawless Master Grade Sitka spruce top ... both hand graduated to enhance the power and nuance of this magnificent jazz guitar.

Because of the popularity of the first Model GB "Blister Top", Douglas Harrison has decided to fabricate another ... with an equally spectacular figured carved top. I've rarely seen a piece of maple with the deeply figured blister quilt of this particular instrument, and the custom hand tinted sunburst figure just serves to enhance this dramatic looking tonewood!

   Once again, I can't emphasize enough how ergonimically perfect this GB Model is. It really does feel to me that it just fits the player's body perfectly ... the physical balance ... the way everything from the first position to the highest registers of the fingerboard feels in the perfect position ... the neck contour ... it is in my opinion the perfect gigging jazz guitar!

   This new Model GB Harrison features an absolutely stunning "blister" figured carved maple top that is nothing short of breathtaking. This rare piece of tonewood is further enhanced by a custom amber patina that is hand rubbed directly into the wood before a pristine layer of gloss nitrocellolose lacquer is applied. Don't let the striking appearance of this instrument fool you though, once you plug it in, it is all business. The light weight and perfect physical balance of this guitar coupled with a fast neck profile and highly polished stainless steel frets makes this guitar a joy to play. The resonant chamber of the GB really adds depth and articulation to the Seymour Duncan humbucker to create that classic jazz guitar tone.

New Neo Jazz 17"

   Completed in June 2010, this prototype "Neo Jazz 17" (or NJ 17) was designed to include some structural and visual changes that I had been wanting to incorporate. To achieve a fuller sound from the top I moved the position of the sound holes away from the center. This allows for the central section of the top to be wider and more directly effected by the bridge vibration.

    The side port acts as a monitor to the player without reducing the forward sound projection. The top is Engleman spruce, the back and sides are Big Leaf maple, the neck is hard maple and the fretboard, bridge, tailpiece and pickguard are African ebony. The pickup is a Bartolini 5J with a volume mounted to the pickguard, frets are 6150(medium jumbo) stainless steel.

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