These are special little basses. We only build them
when the right pieces of Mesquite make themselves available to us... so we don't
take orders for them, we'll just make
one when we can. Just keep your eyes on the inventory page and get 'em as they
come.
The body is smaller but thicker than our Cortobass, with a more defined edge and
more radical belly & forearm contours. The fingerboard is a quarter
inch of Ebony, and the tone is very strong, woody, and growly. There's sure to
be a buzz about them!
All Mesquitos come with Hipshot bridges that can be strung
top-load or string-through, ergonomic strap button locations, 5-bolt dressed
away neck heel, and a carved wood thumbrest at the end of the neck...
The bass shown is a 2-piece body of very clear Mesquite... but this wood can be
absolutely wild too, with fissures and cracks and wormholes and knots... a true
natural work of art! So we secure all of this and sometimes even do artsy things
like fill the cracks with turquoise... working
with what each individual piece opens up for us to work with during the carving and
shaping. Mesquite always holds surprises...
It's a hard, dense wood but in a small, sculpted bass body it's
not nearly as heavy as you'd think... some of the wilder pieces can be
challenging to work with during the build, but a Birdsong Mesquite bass is as much
a beautiful piece of hand made Southwestern art as it is a superb
instrument.
This is a very small bass with an amazingly woody fretless voice, crafted by hand
in extremely
small numbers in a small workshop
deep in the Texas "Hill Country"... built from the highest quality components and Mesquite hand
selected by the builder.
Mesquite is the mystical
tree of the Southwest...
The Comanche prized it for food and medicinal healing properties.
It has been burned like incense and considered good luck.
It fenceposted and campfired the old West, has been used for fine furnishings that pass through
generations, and you can't have a Texas BBQ without a little Mesquite in the fire.
It just won't happen.
Artists have long been drawn to Mesquite; there is a spiritual
quality to it.
By some craftspeople it is considered the most beautiful wood in
existence. My late wood guru Uncle Johnny had a spiritual thing going on
with Mesquite and it bent to his will like nothing I've ever seen...
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Birdsong basses ship in a guitar case!
For a short or small handed person like me, any Birdsong bass is a
revelation...
On a larger person, it hangs & plays about like
a guitar!
Birdsong Guitars
PO Box 1745
Wimberley, TX 78676
info@birdsongguitars.com
We will always find the time to talk
with you.
Call us at the workshop anytime...
512.847.6014
