Gibson Army Navy

Gibson · acoustic guitar

The Gibson Army-Navy, sometimes called the Army-Navy Special, was originally built during World War I as a simple, no-frills acoustic for soldiers to keep on base or in the trenches, essentially a stripped-down version of the Gibson L-1, though most weren't finished until after the war ended. Jack White has used a vintage example on record and tour, including for the Blunderbuss album cycle, and described its neck in a 2012 Uncut interview as feeling like a tree trunk. Built with a figured maple back, sides, and neck paired with a spruce top, and shaped with the era's distinctive teardrop body, it produces a resonant, full-bodied acoustic tone shaped as much by its wartime-utilitarian construction as by any refined design intent.

• modern
• simple
• recording
• full
• resonant
• thick
• chunky
• production