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My first taste of guitar making came soon after architectural school, while working as an architectural designer in New York City. After three reputed experts couldn't fix the broken headstock on my new first guitar, I suddenly found myself with an opportunity to learn guitar building from Michael Gurian. I figured that if I could learn to make one, I could probably fix mine. That was in 1971.I soon lost interest in architecture & moved from Brooklyn to Grahamsville, NY, where I made acoustic guitars until mid 1975. At that time I co-founded Veillette-Citron Guitars with my friend & fellow architectural student Harvey Citron. The company did well, selling to many notable players. In 1978, John Sebastian asked us to build a baritone guitar, resulting in the VC Shark. That began my fascination with different scale lengths & string tensions, which still marks many of my designs. Veillette-Citron closed in 1983.For the next 8 years I built very few guitars, mostly making a living as a singer/guitarist & leader of The Phantoms, which became one of the most popular bands in New York's Hudson Valley. We performed often around New York City, in clubs from the Bottom Line & Lone Star Cafe to Radio City Music Hall. We also had strange jobs, including a regular spot on Soupy Sales' daily NBC radio show.In 1991, I started Woodstock Music Products with Stuart Spector, making Spector basses & starting a line of Veillette electric & baritone guitars. When we parted company in mid 1995, development began on the current line of hybrid "acoustic/electric" Veillette Guitars. Around that same time, Michael Tobias & I co-designed the Avante acoustic, baritone, and bass guitars for Alvarez Guitars. These instruments are now available from MusicYo.com. I also developed the Deep 6 Baritone neck, a no-modification conversion for Strats or Teles, & the Deep 6 Plus, a 7-String guitar with a longer scale for enhanced tonal balance on all strings, including the usually weak low B. These Deep 6 products are available from WD Music.At present, I still perform regularly with the Phantoms, (band and acapella modes), more frequently with Blind Mice, an acoustic harmony-based original group, and with Prana, a 9-voice acapella group that uses Tibetan and Tuvan overtone techniques.Joe Veillette

I've known Joe Veillette for years and I've always had tremendous respect for his work and particularly for his willingness to push the boundaries and come up with fresh designs that result in serious tools for music. He has probably done as much as any luthier with regard to the development of the wide variety of scale lengths, numbers of strings and unique instrument configurations that are now almost common place. We are very exciting to be offering Joe's guitars including his Gryphon High 12, Baritones, Bari 12s and acoustic electric models.

Woodstock, New York

James Taylor, Dave Matthews, David Lindley, Ani DiFranco, Tom Chapin, Jorma Kaukonen, Kaki King, John Sebastion, Billy Sheehan, Jill Sobule, Jai Utal, Mike Gordon (Phish), John Mayer, John Sebastian, Vince Gill

Gryphon High 12, Baritone 12, Studio Standard, Grand Standard

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