For years, Mason Williams has deserved to be honored with a signature guitar line. I don't know why it has taken so long, but as president of Foggy Mountain Guitars, I can't begin to tell you how thankful and proud we are that we are the ones to make it happen.

There are three models that make up the Mason Williams line. The entry-level model is the signature model; it has a solid spruce top, mahogany back and sides, built-in electronics featuring a tuner, and both 'Hi' and 'Lo' Z output jacks. The entry-level model is the only guitar in the line with built-in electronics. The other two models were designed for professional players who will either play through a house system or have their own favorite electronic packages installed.

The Concert model is the 'tuxedo' of the line and has garnered many positive comments from professional players. In fact, Branson, Missouri theater owner and showman Jim Stafford is coming aboard as an endorser of this model. In his entire career, Jim has never endorsed anything, not guitars, strings, or even picks! But he played this model recently at the Chet Atkins Appreciation Society convention in Nashville and fell in love with it.

The Concert model is made entirely of solid woods: solid cedar top, solid rosewood back & sides, ebony fretboard, etc. It has a beautiful single-cutaway body with a stunning abalone-trimmed top and rosette. It also has a unique rosewood armrest to help keep the player's forearm off the soundboard. We have heard more than one comment about the 'sustain' that this model generates. When was the last time you heard that word used in describing the sound of a nylon-string guitar?

The third model in the Mason Williams Signature Series is being produced in a Limited Edition of only 1,968 units to honor the year "Classical Gas" was released. This model is an exact replica of Mason's guitar, the one given to him by Tom Smothers and used to compose "Classical Gas." (See "Fingerstyle" column in this issue of Guitar Sessions.) We measured and photographed Mason's guitar inside and out to replicate every detail as accurately as possible.

I think one of the reasons Mason was so happy with this model is that, to our knowledge, no one has ever made a guitar model commemorating a song; other artists have been paid such a tribute, of course- but never a song. If any reader can remember another similar instance, please let us know.

Warner Brothers gave us permission to reproduce the label from the original 45 rpm release of "Classical Gas" as the interior label on this collector guitar. Each label is numbered as a part of the total series and then personally signed by Mason. The instrument also has a commemorative "Classical Gas" medallion inlaid at the 12th fret.

Mason's original Teller guitar had a laminated back and sides, hard evidence that a solid top is the main ingredient in building a guitar with superb sound. Mason's guitar is now about 45 years old and truly qualifies as a vintage instrument. We wanted the commemorative model to have a better bass response than a new one with a laminated back, so we added a solid back to our model as our only change from the specs of Mason's original guitar.

All models have what we will probably call the 'Mason Williams neck profile'- that is, a very shallow neck profile with just 20 mm from the top of the fretboard to the back of the neck. This is why the guitars feel so comfortable to acoustic players from the very beginning, even with the standard 2" fretboard width at the nut.

All of the guitars in the line have a rectangular, carbolic steel trussrod, and all feature a high-gloss lacquer finish that sounds great and will age properly. In addition, all models come with a hardshell case and a limited lifetime warranty.

The retail prices for the instruments in the Mason Williams line are: $650 for the Signature model, $1200 for the Concert model, and $1300 for the "Classical Gas" Commemorative model. You may order by email: sales@foggymountainguitars.com, or phone (936) 756-2400.

Tony Baldwin

To learn more about Mason Williams and his music please see his website at: http://www.classicalgas.com/home.html

Further details about Foggy Mountain Guitars can be found at: www.foggymountainguitars.com