The PRS SE NF3

Paul Reed Smith of PRS Guitars has revealed that the iconic bird inlays featured on its models were never meant to be a permanent detail.

In honour of the brand’s 40th anniversary this year, Reed Smith has been taking a trip down memory lane, and looking back on some of the brand’s early triumphs. The bird inlays are now famously associated with PRS – which was launched in 1985 – with their guitars played by the likes of John Mayer, Mark Tremonti, and more.

Speaking to Guitarist of their early models, Reed Smith says, “We had the PRS and the Custom. What blew me away was that everyone wanted the curly [maple] top and everybody wanted the bird inlays. I thought the birds were like a one-in-eight option that would be taken up. But people were calling, saying, ‘I’ve got to have the birds.’ I was like, what?

“But the Jimmy Wallace [guitar dealer and founder of the Dallas International Guitar Festival] phone call was the one,” he continues. “He said, ‘Now Paul, you go in the back there and pick me a real nice curly maple top.’ I said, ‘You want me to cherry‑pick you a top?’ He said yes, but I said, ‘Well, I’m charging you.’”

The desire for this look was what led the PRS brand to start awarding their best maple tops with its ‘10 Top status’, reserved only for models with the best, clearly defined figure across their entire top, with no ‘dead spots’.

As Reed Smith adds, “That was the day the ‘10 Top’ thing started. I wasn’t going to go back and pick a special top out of a pile of wood for somebody without charging them extra. Initially, I’d wanted it to be ‘you got what you got’, like in the old Les Paul days.”

You can check out the current PRS Guitars product range via its official website.

The post “I thought they were a one-in-eight option that would be taken up”: Paul Reed Smith recalls his surprise at people’s reactions to his bird inlays appeared first on Guitar.com | All Things Guitar.