If you’re a fan of Jerry Garcia, like I am, here is a rare opportunity to own a rare lefty replica of Jerry’s Wolf guitar. These builds are getting extremely expensive … a new one can run upwards of $20,000 from the best builders out there. Matt Moriarty, who built this guitar, was the best of the best in his era, although he is no longer building. This guitar is in excellent condition, no Wolf or other stickers applied but a set of correct 1973 era Wolf stickers will be included which can be applied or removed without damage to the nitro finish. There is some finish crazing underneath the top clear coat if you look at the guitar at the right angle in the right lighting but no issues with the finish itself. I would keep this guitar for me — I have played it live and it is all there — but I already have a road worn lefty Tiger that gets the job done.
Jerry Garcia’s Doug Irwin guitars are rock and roll icons; this guitar is known as the Wolf, which Garcia played with the Grateful Dead and various side projects from 1973-1975, 1977-1979 and occasionally thereafter as a backup guitar. The guitar has the typical “hippie sandwich” construction of multiple laminates. The core is purpleheart, the top and back are quilted maple. The construction is neck through, with a flamed maple neck with purpleheart inserts and an ebony fretboard with banjo-style inlays. This particular guitar is a hybrid of the 1973 appointments (chrome pickguard, no body inlays, peacock headstock inlay) with later electronics that Garcia was known for — DiMarzio Super II pickups (DiMarzio SDS-1 at the neck), 5-way Strat style switching, onboard unity gain buffer (Mike Wald) and onboard effects loop that allows you to send the guitar signal from the pickups at full strength out of the guitar to your pedals, then back into the guitar before the master volume, so your effects always see full signal and the guitar volume becomes, essentially, a volume pedal. This is done with a TRS stereo cable. The guitar is hefty, which is one of the secrets to Garcia’s fat tone, it weighs 10 pounds 4 ounces. This is Garcia’s tone in your hands. High quality Ameritage case.
Jerry with Wolf, 1973, no stickers:
Jerry with Wolf, 1973, stickers applied:
Condition: Used, excellent; Body: Quilted maple back/top, purpleheart core; Neck: Flamed maple/purpleheart, ebony fretboard, brass nut, 9.5 radius; Nut: 1.650; Color: natural; Pickups: DiMarzio Super II, DiMarzio SDS-1; Scale: 25.5; Orientation: Lefthanded (of course)
