To understand what makes a folk guitar, you need to understand what folk music is. Most people think of folk music as simply any soft finger-style acoustic guitar accompanied with a few other acoustic style instruments that usually has someone singing along. While this has become the definition today, a true folk musician is actually a musician who plays “traditional” songs and then also plays some of his own music as well.
(Traditional songs are songs that are passed down from generation to generation by memory. Songs like “On Top of Old Smokey” and “This Land is your Land”, these are songs that are meant to be for the working class and simple.)
These traditional songs can vary from country to country depending on their roots, and there are many types of styles of folk music as well. Everything from Folk Rock, Progressive Folk, and Electric Folk to Contemporary, Indie and Freak (yes, that was actually a genre……it became popular in 2004 and was basically a neo-hippie style).
Regardless of what style of Folk you’re into, wether it’s Bob Dylan (My Personal Favorite) or Iron & Wine or absolutely whoever it is……….it’s very easy to find a good folk guitar.
If you’re looking to get a guitar that sounds good for folk music (no matter what style), there are certain qualities you can look for in a guitar. However, folk players in general have played many different types. Some are just more popular than others.
So, what are the qualities that make a good Folk Guitar?
Answering this can be tricky, because actually people argue about this subject all the time, since there have been so many different styles of folk music.
To guitar manufacturers, a folk guitar is basically any small to mid sized guitar, but there are many folk players who play on much larger dreadnought guitars and Jumbo sized instruments. See how this can be confusing?
People consistently argue this, and it can be a headache reading through all the different comments online arguing about who is and isn’t correct. The only thing people can actually agree on is that folk instruments should have steel strings.
Really, since folk music is so versatile….There is simply not one best option to choose.
To make this easy, it’s best to think of a good Folk guitar as different depending on which style you’re interested in.
For instance, if you’re into Joan Baez and Bob Dylan you might want to try the Martin 0-45 (kind of hard to find) which they both played.
Or, if you’re into a more folk rock style you might want to try the a rickenbacker which Roger Mcguinn from the Byrds played.
To figure out what is the best folk guitar for you is, your best bet is to take a look into what the famous folk artists played. This will give you an idea of what you might like, by looking into what qualities their guitars had.
Here are the most popular guitars famous (Folk Artists) played:
Martin 0-45 –
It’s definitely safe to say, that Martin is one of the most popular guitars for folk music. Countless musicians used them. Of course, this is probably because these instruments are incredible in the first place. They feel incredible to play and have a very versatile tone. Not to mention the craftmanship, and some of these guitars were stunning like this 0-45.
Among the musicians who played Martins were: Bob Dylan, Joan Baez, Woody Guthrie, Jerry Garcia, Patty Griffin, Paul Simon, Neil young, and more.
The Martin 0-45 was the favorite of Joan Baez and one Bob Dylan played one as well.
This model is about the size of a parlor guitar, which is basically the smallest size you can get of a guitar before it is considered a mini (half and 3/4 size meant for children).
Parlor guitars have a traditional sound, and have been making a comeback. Downsides of these smaller guitars is that they are quieter than larger models so you really have to use a lot of finger strength to make these loud.
I personally think the 0 style guitars by Martin produce the best sound for folk. Since Martin unfortunately no longer makes this model, I’d definitely suggest checking out the Martin 0-28.
Yamaha Acoustic FG720s-
The FG actually stands for Folk Guitar on this model, and honestly even though there are quite a few folk artists who do like to play Yamahas…..I’m not exactly a fan. I just personally don’t like the way they feel.
They do sound great however, and Paul Simon (From Simon & Garfunkel) played one on the legendary recording of “Sound of Silence” he loved this guitar (Said it was his favorite) even though he did play some other acoustics like the Martin OM-42 and the Martin D-18.
Big plus to this acoustic is how ridiculously inexpensive it is, you can have even get the 700s even cheaper which is a slightly different version.
Listen to how it sounds on the original recording, it has a very mellow and sweet tone. At the same time it is also slightly dark.
Fun Fact: Simon Paul is the only one who plays guitar in Simon & Garfunkel. Garfunkel only sings.
Martin D-18 –
Another very popular model from Martin, the D-18 is probably the most versatile when it comes to a guitar that can play newer folk styles and old.
One of my favorite artists, Townes Van Zandt plays one of these and gets a sweet yet rustic sound out of it. It’s really marvelous how it sounds.
I wanted to include this one in this article, since it is a dreadnought and not as many folk musicians choose to use dreadnoughts. You can definitely tell that the sound is different and is slightly “fuller” this might not be the best choice, but it definitely works. I personally feel that dreadnoughts just create to much of a happy and bright sound.
One of the downsides of these however is that they are pretty expensive. Especially compared to how inexpensive you can get something like the Yamaha listed above.
Taylor 714ce –
It’d probably be a sin not to put a Taylor on here, since so many newer folk artists really enjoy playing on these. Of course, since Taylor hasn’t been around awhile (since 1974) they weren’t as popular with many of the more famous folk artists from the 60s or beforehand, but if they were I’m 100% positive they would’ve been very popular.
The guitarists that play on Taylors today are playing a more contemporary type of folk, for instance the Taylor 714ce played by Iron & Wine’s Sam Beam has a very rich, sweet and dark sound. It’s not exactly what I think of when I think of folk music, but it sounds beautiful and a lot of artist right now seem to be trying to achieve that sound.
This particular 714ce is actually another larger guitar and is very close to the size of a dreadnought, but it is not quite there. Taylor makes their own special sized guitar called the “Grand Auditorium” that is specific to them only. These are actually their most popular size guitar, and it does feel more comfortable than a dreadnought.
Some Taylor guitars can be an absolute steal, they do have a lot of more expensive models (this is one) but Taylor has tons of less expensive options that I think sound as good as the 714ce model. Keep this in mind.
Sam Beam does an incredible acoustic performance you’ll love to hear below. This performance done on KEXP Seattle, shows how great of a guy Sam is as well. The band that performs with him is also extremely talented.
Conclusion:
The best folk guitar, is really the best folk guitar that you choose. With so many different styles of folk it’s nearly impossible to pinpoint down an exact guitar that would be good for every single style out there, and so much is up to personal preference as well.
Exploring every option is definitely the best thing to do if you’re thinking about getting a folk guitar. Getting a good guitar that you’ll love is going to depend on so many things from how it feels when you play it, price, tone, and so many other factors.
Thanks for reading!