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DickSteve lr Dick and Steve Miller

Dick Boak- Martin Guitars

Eric Clapton and C.F. Martin, III

In Part One with Dick Boak, we discussed how he got his start at Martin Guitars in 1976. Before Dick began at Martin, he had been going through their dumpsters looking for scrap wood to make his own guitars. After some time, the folks at Martin saw his work and eventually, owner C. F. Martin, III, saw his work, and was so impressed, he told one of his employees to have him apply for a job.
We chatted with Dick about when he pursued Eric Clapton when the guitar he used for the MTV Unplugged show was in demand, and making a signature guitar in his name.  Dick has worked with Eric on several models over the years. He was so grateful to Eric for the attention he brought to acoustic guitars and Martin, that he wrote a personal letter about him, and it was published in Acoustic Guitar magazine.

Steve Miller and Mario Andretti

In Part Two, we discuss Dick’s various roles at Martin and the craze for acoustic guitars that started, including the guitar Kurt Cobain used for the MTV unplugged series. We tell the story when Johnny Depp saw the personal guitar collection Dick was selling and Johnny bought several.
After 42 years with the company, Dick retired in 2018, and he went out in style.  His retirement party (Boak’s Bash, see the video below), was at the State Theater in Easton PA.  Steve Miller, John Mayer, Jorma Kaukonen, and many others attended to say their thank you to him in person. Dick spends his time now working on his illustrations and music. He was also asked by neighbor, Mario Andretti, if he could assist putting his racing archive together.

Video interview with Dick Boak (Part Two)

Dick Boak’s Retirement Party with Steve Miller

Here are other links related to Dick

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