John Walker stood at the birth of Gibson custom shop in Bozeman, Montana in October 1993 along with Ren Ferguson and calls western Montana his home. His models are mostly topographic names in the Missoula area and he calls this "Wise River" his take on the slope-shouldered, short-scale jumbo which he considers his favorite among acoustics. A classic cannon of a guitar, it combines the "singing" quality of a J-45 with some tonal characteristics of the the best-kept secret in the Gibson world, the pre-war Advanced jumbo with its incredibly snappy response, booming sound and an immediate attack that remain unrivaled by other acoustic models to this day.This particular pairing of red spruce with select Honduran mahogany boasts all of the above sonic qualities in a single serving. It also features an ebony bridge with the most beautifully cut bone saddle you have ever seen. The mahogany neck is a chunky, comfortable C with that recognizable wood density only reserved for the very best of instruments and not always present even on custom shop guitars. This particular rendition of Wise River is the modern 14-fret enabling for the widest possible tonal palette. Everything down (or up) to the vintage Waverly tuners is just pure class. Gorgeous guitar case made in USA. SN 86.