Old Harmony Sovereign

kramster · #1 01-08-2009, 07:46 PM

Anyone know anything about this critter... my first real guitar I got from my roommie in college back in '74.
Front : http://images.kodakgallery.com/photo...0113_0_ALB.jpg
Head : http://images.kodakgallery.com/photo...0113_0_ALB.jpg
Back : http://images.kodakgallery.com/photo...0113_0_ALB.jpg

rainsong · #2 01-08-2009, 08:57 PM

Didn't Jimmy Page use one to record "Stairway to Heaven"?

alohachris · #3 01-09-2009, 07:46 PM

Aloha,

My first steel string guitar was a '67 Harmony Soverign. I taught myself how to play on it, how to set up and repair guitars on it, and how to play hundreds of songs on it in over 40 countries. Even took it on a raft trip down the Mississippi in '72. And I played it for the three years I played pro hoops in Europe. Plenty mileage!

Also woo-ed many of the greatest lasses of my life on with that thing. And then one day a brand new Guild D-40 was given to me by a female admirer (those were the days). I gave the Sovereign away to a former brother in law who later sold it in France for almost nothing. "Memories, they can't be boughten...." Right?

But Oh, all the memories from that great young time of many changes in my life...... The Harmony Soverign - Legendary Plywood Guitar!

A Hui Hou!
alohachris

PS: I have a 00-sized, all koa guitar that I made in '78. That's the one that holds all the best memories of my last three decades. That's why I simply don't understand the players to whom guitars are mere tools...to fill specific needs, and then be traded later without any feeling at all?!? How can you do that to a friend who's been more loyal to you than all the women in your life??? I know I couldn't. -alohachris-

kramster · #4 01-09-2009, 09:17 PM

Back then my guitar playing "skills" were a bit... ok a lot lacking.... so my wooage was done on piano..

Folkstrum · #5 01-09-2009, 09:34 PM

Every time I clicked on the photo link, I got "FORBIDDEN" as the message.

I know a lot about these; it was my first real, solid wood guitar back in '65. Ladder-braced, great instrument; huge. I traded it back when on a 60's new Guild D-40, which was also a great guitar. Now? If I could go back and retrieve that ol' Sovereign, I would! They show up on Ebay now and then, and will run in the $400. range or more, depending on condition. It's gotta be one of the old ones, though. They came out with some kind of updated one later that just didn't have the old mojo, or quality.

Harmony/Kay built some great, reasonably priced, folk guitars and cheap banjos back when. They were an American institution.

ayavner · #6 01-10-2009, 03:59 PM

Believe Tim Hardin used one in his Woodstock set - search youtube for Tim Hardin If I Were a Carpenter. Sounds nice

Blue in VT · #7 01-10-2009, 04:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by alohachris

The Harmony Soverign - Legendary Plywood Guitar!

Just to clarify here...except for the more recent models...mid 70's on these are all solid wood guitars....in the case of the soveriegn Mahogany and spruce...probably sitka with rosewood bridge and fingerboard. I think for the money these are fantoastic instruments particularly for playin' the blues. I also can't see the photos...I get the smae forbidden msg. mentioned above... but from the discussion I assume it is a jumbo model (1260) I'm partial to the 1203...the OM sized insrument and I have two of them...both need neck resets but I have less than $300 into them...total! where else are you going to get two vintage all soloid wood guitars for that kinda money?

here are a couple of pics of mine:

Cheers,

Blue

kramster · #8 01-10-2009, 04:31 PM

It is a big one,,, no model # just the Serial # I think at one time the worlds largest acoustic Guitar... like 8 or 10 feet tall .... looked a lot like mine

rosewoodsteel · #9 01-10-2009, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rainsong

Didn't Jimmy Page use one to record "Stairway to Heaven"?

Nope.
It was a Tele and one of these..

stratokatsu · #10 01-10-2009, 08:08 PM

I had a Harmony Soverign as my first guitar for about a year before I traded it in for a Gibson B25N.

I don't remember much about it other than it couldn't have been so bad as to make me give up guitar. On the other hand, there are probably a lot of people who wished I had.

opencee · #11 01-12-2009, 09:44 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ayavner

Believe Tim Hardin used one in his Woodstock set - search youtube for Tim Hardin If I Were a Carpenter. Sounds nice

John Sebastian used a Jumbo Harmony Sovereign at Woodstock.

opencee

rainsong · #12 01-12-2009, 06:58 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by rosewoodsteel

Nope.
It was a Tele and one of these..

I meant the acoustic guitar part!

opencee · #13 01-13-2009, 10:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Blue in VT

I'm partial to the 1203...the OM sized insrument...

In the 60's, through the early 80's, I bought jumbos and dreadnaughts. My sister bought a 000 sized Sovereign like the one in the photo in '67. If I'm not mistaken, it cost about $75 or $85. I never thought much of it until she gave it to me in the late 80's. (The pickguard fell off of mine too.)

By then, I had gotten rid of my "best" guitars, and was down to one totally broken down piece of junk, an old '67 EKO 12-string. What a beast! I had really given up guitar in favor of clawhammer banjo which ultimately wasn't that satisfying.

That little Harmony guitar changed my guitar playing life. I found it so easy to sit and pick on a porch swing or sofa while I watched the kids play. I became addicted to the smaller size. All I was doing was fingerpicking, and it had a nice little punchy sound for country blues. It wasn't expensive, nor in great shape, so I never worried about it. The sound and feel were just fun enough to bring me back to guitar playing.

It developed some problems eventually. The top split from the upper bout to the bridge, and some buzzing developed on the treble strings. I searched for years for a replacement in the form of a NEW guitar.

I picked up every guitar I could, in search of that more old-fashioned sound, smaller body size, and overall good feeling/fun factor. In 2003 I picked a Martin 000-15 off a wall. Had never seen one before, but it really hit the spot for me.

That 000-15 is now my go-to guitar. The old Sovereign is set up to play lap slide. I just couldn't get rid of it. Without spending any more than the price of a nut-riser and a slide, it was saved, and works great for that.

I still shop for guitars, mostly smaller and older. I recently passed on a '64 00-18 that sounded great but needed a ton of work, and some very old small body Gibsons, etc., but my shopping is always in the context of what I learned from that "old Harmony Sovereign".

opencee

dustyoldguitars · #14 10-17-2018, 11:39 PM

First I gotta say: HARMONY ACOUSTIC GUITARS NEVER USED PLYWOOD!!
They didn't ever possess the equipment to make laminated tops, backs and sides. They pressed archtops, which were always solid ( albeit birch much of the time, but NEVER plywood.
They used Adirondack spruce, Brazilian rosewood, Honduras Mahogany, nickel-silver frets, nitrocellulose lacquer finishes...amazing for budget guitars.
If you are looking at a guitar that looks like its a Harmony and it has a laminated top...it's likely a Kay. They laminated everything, except tops on their best instruments.

clay frohman · #15 10-23-2018, 10:48 PM

I just recently acquired one of these big bodied Harmony Sovereigns off of a Craigslist ad. Great guitar for an inexpensive price. Pinless bridge. Fat neck.
Very lightweight body. You can tell it's not a Martin or a Gibson, it lacks a kind of depth or dimension in its sound. But a very cool old American acoustic. And yes, Page had the same model and wrote a lot of Zep's songs on it as it was the only acoustic he owned until he got a Gibson.