Michael Millard outdoes himself yet again: this 1995 B12 is a cannon with strings. The classic combination of Brazilian Rosewood and Adirondack Spruce works its usual magic here, giving the voice expansive depth and a fiery projection–but with a 12-fret neck, this B12 has a sweet little warm patch in the mids that balance out the tone. If you’re looking for a Froggy Bottom that is quick and responsive like a teenager on their third cup of coffee in the morning, this Froggy is practically calling your name.
Fingertips or flatpicks, the projection remains impressive, the voice vigorous and expressive. We put this Froggy through the ringer of altered tunings, and it handled each like the champion that it is. Decked out with some gorgeous Abalone across the fretboard, rosette, and back strip, this B12 also has a Mammoth Ivory heelcap scrimshawed with an owl in flight; when you add that to the Flamed Maple bindings, you’re looking at a tall glass of water on a hot summer’s day, if the glass was Adirondack and the water was Brazilian.