Martin's D-21 is often mistaken for the "little brother" of the iconic D-28, but in truth it's much more than that. It shares the same Brazilian rosewood back and sides of the D-28, but with the Brazilian rosewood fingerboard and bridge of the D-18. This means the D-21 sounds different than either the D-28 or the D-18, and so delivers a Martin Dreadnought tone all its own. This example is from early 1957, and the D-21 wasn't introduced until 1956, so it's an early example of a Martin Dreadnought model that only lasted for 13 years (it was dropped from the catalog in 1969). This one is possibly the best D-21 Gryphon has had (at least that we can remember) and is in excellent structural and cosmetic condition and sounds like a dream. It's original throughout, the only repair appears to be a reglued bridge, and there are no cracks anywhere (original bridge plate with little string ball wear, too) It has that classic tapered-not-scalloped '50s rosewood Martin Dreadnought tone, plenty of bass but with strong trebles and midrange that cuts through any mix.
