greglawrence - I remember that guitar from the MF catalog. That is one of the reasons I have a CS356... that is a BEAUTIFUL guitar!!! You know, if ya' ever want to sell it... hmmm LOL
Anyway, it is great to run into some other 356 lovers in these parts.
Clayville - I KNEW I'd find you here!
Here's a few pics of my baby. I named her Audrey after my late grandmother. She is one of 40 made for Wildwood Guitars in CO back in 2004 with a honeyburst finish. I got her off of eBay from a fellow Les Paul Forum member. I've bought and sold a lot of guitars over the years but this one will be the one I keep even after ALL of the others are gone (including my Les Paul(s), which is saying something). The Classic 57 pickups have just the right amount of warmth and I can get everything from a "woody" sound (close to an ES335) over the the "growl" of a Les Paul. I can even get an almost Tele-like sound on the bridge pickup if you pick just a little closer to the bridge and set your amp up right. All in all the 356 is just a great guitar and it never fails to get lots of compliments every time I pull her out of the case.
Oh, as somebody else said in an earlier post... if you're looking for one of these beauties then you should really call Bruce at Wildwood. I got a Taylor T5 from him and he was a pleasure to deal with (and they also always seem to get some great looking guitars). Another recommendation is Saul at Centre City Music in San Diego. If you've ever seen Tommy Shaw of Styx playing a blue CS356 then you're looking a guitar that came from Saul.
