D’Angelico NY-DC Japanese Made 2012

We just got in the shop a rare and very cool gem, a Japanese Tarada-made D’Angelico NY-DC that was built in 2012. This is a 335 style guitar, but should not to be confused with the current production D’Angelico-named guitars that are made in Korea. The models built in Japan (originally distributed through The Vestax Corporation) were constructed in the famed Tarada factory, and are truly fine guitars.

Since John D’Angelico’s death in 1964, his name and trademark—which was initially owned by his apprentice Jimmy D’Aquisto and one other person—have gone through a series of different owners, a circuitous path marked by different agendas and varying degrees of truth and falsehood in the stories you can read on the web.

All of which has created a labyrinthian history for the John D’Angelico name, and the production guitars being made now bear little resemblance—other than the name and headstock—to the masterful guitars he himself built. It seems unquestionable that D’Angelico would be pretty unhappy with most of the guitars that are now marked by his name, but I like to think he would have approved of the work done in the Tarada factory in Nagoya Japan.

These Tareda instruments are not available in the US, and they only occasionally show up outside of Japan when ordered directly from a dealer in Japan. I owned a Takeda D’Angelico that I had to order from a dealer friend in Japan, and it was a fantastic guitar.

This particular model has a beautiful and deep black finish, gold appointments and has first quality parts throughout. It plays very well, and the medium C neck feels great in your hands. It's very well balanced across the fretboard, and at 7.2 pounds (making it a very light center tone block 335 style instrument) it is a pleasure to play with a strap.

Tonally it is classic 335, but on the warmer side. It's articulate and very responsive, and has that forward 335 tone that is great in a group setting or solo. And it comes with a very plush custom hard shell case, ready for gigging!

When I see a Tarada D’Angelico I always think of the young maestro Kurt Rosenwinkel, who for some years played a NYSS-3 made at the Tareda factory. While a different model, it has the same feel and tonal footprint, so I think it is worth quoting Rosenwinkel about his instrument:

"I’ve always kept an arsenal of guitars, and have always looked for very specific things from each: the response and character of each note, the clarity of each note within a chord, sustain, frequency range, playability. I’ve often found myself compromising, sacrificing one quality for another.

"Now that I have the NYSS-3, I feel that I’ve found the single guitar I’ve been seeking for more than 15 years. It produces a warm, fat tone, with a lot of front end—the kind of tone I need to carry a band and push the music in different directions without the sound getting in the way. With every note, I can feel the whole instrument resonate under my fingers.

"When I’m absorbed in playing, I don’t want to be distracted by the guitar, and with the D’Angelico, I can trust the workmanship; I can trust it to always stay in tune and always give me the sound I need."

I agree with Kurt here. This is a great playing, great sounding guitar that can cover all the 335 sounds and then some. It is also an exceptional value for a handmade instrument of this quality.

If you'd like to find out more about this item, just call or e-mail me. It would be my pleasure to talk to you about it.