A few more years ago than I care to remember, when I was nobbut a young filly, I marched into a certain music shop and boldly demanded to try a Martin acoustic that was hanging on the wall. The manager took one look at this vision of feminine adolescence standing before him and threw me out of the shop, on the grounds that (a) I couldn't afford it, and (b) at my age I couldn't possibly be a good enough player to warrant ownership of this doyen of acoustic guitars anyway.

Times have moved on since then, but one thing has remained constant and that's my unwavering desire to get my paws on a Martin that I can really get to grips with. Over the years I've had any number of tantalising glimpses of what it's like to be a Martin owner through begging or borrowing 'gos' on other players' pride and joy — Martin Carthy was kind enough (or mad enough!) to lend me his magnificent vintage 000 on a gig, and I've often ogled Rory Gallagher's beautiful Dreadnought (if you see what I mean... !) But when Editor Cooper together with Philip York, Martin's UK distributor, dropped a brand new 0045 into my lap and said, 'Okay, creep — get on with it!', I had this sudden momentary vision that I'd died and gone to heaven. Nineteen eighty-three is the 150th anniversary of the C F Martin Guitar Co — an impressive record by any standards you care to name — and I'll be eternally grateful to the Editor-May-He-Live-Forever (as I've now dubbed him — grovel, grovel!) for letting me loose on an instrument that I think I can say without overstating the case is a living legend. Just about any guitarist, whether they play folk, hard rock or reggae, knows that Martin is (are?) the name in acoustic guitars, and that their plant in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, has a long-held and well-justified reputation for producing craftsman instruments of a quality that is second to none. And I mean none.

Our review sample was a real special — in fact, it's absolutely unique. To celebrate their anniversary, Martin have produced a limited edition of 150 samples of various models; but this was more special still. In 1981 Philip York Suggested that Martin might make a one-off commemorative guitar with the year inlaid into the fingerboard in abalone pearl. They did — a second instrument followed in 1982, and this was the 1983 model. Although following the standard 0045 format in most respects, it had some very special features that were designed into it by Philip himself — such as an ebony bridge flanked by two small 'pyramids' in the same wood, a design that harks back to the 1920s.

On opening the high-quality hardshell moulded case (inclusive in the price — if only more manufacturers would follow this example!) I did a double-take, then sort of fell over. This guitar is just beautiful. At first glance it looks vaguely like a classical with its very small body and slotted head-stock. The top is solid spruce (stained with an ageing toner which makes it look quite superb) and it's a thin top too, giving extra vibration and therefore projection. Back and sides are rosewood, with rosewood headplate and ebony fingerboard, and the headstock, body-binding, soundhole — even the bridgepins! — are all exquisitely inlaid with abalone pearl. Binding, endpiece and heel-cap are ivoroid (a synthetic ivory) and the nut is bone. The fingerboard bears the distinctive '45-style' hexagon outlines in abalone pearl, and at the 12th fret the legend '1983' appears, with '150th ANNIVERSARY' inlaid at the 15th. This is a guitar destined to become a real collector's item!

But aside of such aesthetic considerations, the Martin is very much a working guitar. No one, unless they're nauseatingly wealthy, is going to fork out this kind of money for something just to hang on the wall, and that's the way it should be — a good guitar is made to be played. So how does the 0045 fare in that department?

"BACK AND SIDES ARE ROSEWOOD, WITH ROSEWOOD HEADPLATE AND EBONY FINGERBOARD..."

Immediate impressions were that it's a very comfortable guitar to hold; the small body proportions allow plenty of room for manoeuvre and don't get in the way of your right arm. Also it felt very solid and sturdy; there's real meat here and that's obvious from the moment you pick it up. Fretting, needless to say, was perfect and the neck dimensions too felt sturdy — or perhaps 'powerful' is more accurate. That's something which could be a little disconcerting at first to anyone used to a slim, fast neck, but more of that later — how about the sound?

One piece of advice I'd give to anyone who hasn't heard this particular beast before and is basing their expectations on the body size — stand back! The sound from this damn' near diminutive guitar is phenomenal! Projection like you've never heard it before, resonance that just fires out across the room, and a sustain that could send you to sleep while you wait for it to stop. I honestly don't think I'm exaggerating when I say that the 0045 has one of the strongest 'voices' I've ever heard in an acoustic guitar. Let me hasten to add, however, that there's nothing unsubtle about its sound; it's sweet, warm, totally alive... if there's such a thing as a sentient musical instrument (and there is, isn't there??) then this is one of 'em — it has character in the truest sense of the word. Sobering down a little, I must say that the 0045 — like any Martin — can be a bit disconcerting when you first try it. One critic of the range said to me recently that Martins are very rigid guitars. Personally I don't agree with that assessment, but they do take some getting used to. The 0045's neck felt slightly hard to handle at first, as I've said earlier, but I soon discovered that acclimatisation is simply a matter of time — around 15 minutes on average. The Martin talks back, almost fights, challenging the player to give of their best and seeming downright unwilling to accept anything less. It makes you put more into your playing, and rewards the effort by giving back a voice, a feel and a sensitivity that leave most other acoustics in the world at the starting line. This guitar can sound sweet and warm as a classical one moment, then snap like a tiger the next, and you find yourself developing an almost symbiotic relationship with it as familiarity grows.

"...IMPRESSIONS WERE THAT IT'S A VERY COMFORTABLE GUITAR TO HOLD"

Now okay, I know I've gone well over the top about this instrument, and you'll be saying 'Yes, that's all very well, but how on earth can a price tag of £3,000 be justified, even for this?' Fair comment, maybe... but think a moment. Martins are the Rolls Royce of acoustic guitars, and what you're paying for is a century and a half of skilled craftsmanship and dedication to the luthier's art. And if that's a bit too laced with hyperbole, consider this — if a player of, say, twenty-five buys one of these guitars, chances are they'll still be playing it when they're sixty-five, during which time it'll have gone on maturing, sounding better and better, while securing for itself a vintage value that makes its original price-look downright daft. Now divide those forty years by your initial outlay... see what I mean? There's no doubt in my mind that the Martin 0045 would be worth every last penny to a serious player who wants a guitar to live with, to grow with, and to form a lifelong and fulfilling relationship with. And besides... what's wrong with a bit of the stuff that dreams are made of here amid the hallowed pages of MUSIC U.K., just once in a while... ?

MARTIN 0045 Anniversary Model GUIDE PRICE: £2,500 (Standard Model) £3,000 (Anniversary Model)

Further details on this and other Martin models from the Dreadnought Guitar Co, (Contact Details).