by Sterling Ball

When my father and I purchased Music Man back in 1984, I wanted to re-think the process of how guitars were made. Focus first on an uncompromising passion for designing innovative, ergonomic, high-quality tools for artists, with a major differentiator between us and other guitar makers being the approach we take with signature artists.

Annie Clark and Ernie Ball Music Man

I’ve never been interested in tweaking an existing Ernie Ball Music Man model and calling it a “signature guitar.” Our aim is to create a brand new design that becomes the perfect extension of their creative process and supply the instrument they’ve always dreamed of. The first thing I always convey to an artist during the design process is that we won’t quit until they do. The second is that they shouldn’t factor the end customer in the design process, because if we get it right, the customers will follow. The backstory of Annie Clark (St. Vincent) and Ernie Ball Music Man began when our own Jessie Corbin, who was an early fan in 2012, sent Annie a few of our Albert Lee models since she thought they matched her aesthetic.

We discovered that Annie already used Ernie Ball Slinky guitar strings and that her amp of choice was a rare Music Man Bass Combo from 1977. I guess we had that going for us! It was really fun for me to watch Saturday Night Live with Annie playing our guitar along with all the major festivals like Coachella. The Grammy in 2015 for Best Alternative Music Album was icing on the cake. I spent a lot of time digging into Annie’s music and background and I was impressed with her artistry and style, so we sent her a note to explore the concept of designing and creating a signature model guitar. It was great news to hear that the answer was a resounding yes. We met with Annie in Santa Monica and together made the trek to San Luis Obispo to see the factory and explore what was possible.

Chemistry and communication is so critical with artist collaborations. And it didn’t take long to realize that there was a ton of chemistry and synergy. So, we handed her the keys to the factory and opened up our design team to begin the process of her STV guitar. After the factory tour, Annie sat down with Drew Montell (our lead engineer) and me in our showroom, playing different guitars and talking through her influences, ideas and sonic needs. I was not only elated by Annie’s command of the guitar as a player, but also her eye for design, as her comments and observations about our existing instruments were spot on.

Designing the St. Vincent Guitar

When we asked Annie if she had any specific ideas she said, “Let me draw it for you.” I wasn’t expecting what she penciled down, but I instantly loved it. It was completely different, and that excited me. She has terms for it like “memphis,” but I saw disruptive and cool. I also felt at that moment that we were the company for her. We have no problem with making things that are a little different and I’ve never been afraid to color outside the lines… case in point the Ernie Ball Music Man Bongo bass that we designed with BMW.



Annie seemed happy we didn’t try to convince her to play it safe or influence her concepts. Our job was making her two dimensional sketch into an ergonomically sound, balanced, well-playing guitar without sacrificing the integrity of her design. We accomplished so much in one afternoon that we had time to have Annie hand mix and create her custom paint, “Vincent Blue.” Usually you show an artist a color chart and they pick one. With Annie there were no color charts… just paint and mix sticks.

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The St. Vincent Hits The Web

About two weeks later, I delivered the first playing prototype in Hollywood. The guitar looked killer, but was a tad small in the body and it needed balance work. We made about 20 prototypes in all, dialing in all of the adjustments in size and balance, electronics, pickups and most importantly – tone.

After some back and forth and soul searching, Annie signed off on her prototype. It’s Fall 2015 at this point and we’re locked in. We plan to announce the guitar at Winter NAMM 2016 in Anaheim – Plenty of time to create the marketing program and really launch this one right? Wrong!

Taylor Swift was in the middle of her residency at the Staples Center in Los Angeles and each night she was featuring special guests. Annie texted me “I’m going to bring the guitar to the Taylor Swift show I’m doing with Beck and I’m going to play the guitar in public for the first time.” I think that is pretty cool, but don’t think too much about it…. until the next day. Taylor Swift tweeted to her 65 million followers and instagrammed her 45 million followers pictures of Annie and her on stage with the guitar, and another pic of her and Beck checking out the guitar with Annie holding it. It was a proud moment for Annie and the family at Ernie Ball Music Man.

Response to the St. Vincent Guitar

Our website nearly crashed given the attention Annie and Taylor created. Social media lit up and the dealers started calling wanting to know about this guitar. In one day, our marketing team developed a full marketing program and creative and retail pre-order launch plan. It was crazy.

Several months later, with NAMM behind us, and Annie’s guitar hitting guitar shops all over the world to critical acclaim from top media outlets and reviewers, Annie and I recently reflected on the fact that we introduced a crazy retro design on one hand and a modern, highly playable tone monster on the other.

We pushed the boundaries of what players expect out of a guitar, creating a conversation of praise (and criticism), but ultimately introduced an incredible new choice for guitarists. But most importantly for me, we helped Annie realize the guitar that she had in her head and heart, and allowed her to share it with the world.

Turns out, the world seems to love it just as much as we do.

Check out Omar Rodríguez López sporting his custom, one-off lefty @st_vincent guitar on tour with @atdimusic. More pics on the Ernie Ball Music Man blog. (📷: @brooklynvegan) A photo posted by Ernie Ball Music Man (@ernieball) on May 23, 2016 at 12:07pm PDT

#stvincentguitar #musicman #friedmanamps = 😍 A photo posted by Landy Spencer Daly (@landymelei) on May 1, 2016 at 12:22pm PDT

@theclaycook from @zacbrownband takes our new @st_vincent signature guitar for a spin #musicman A photo posted by Ernie Ball Music Man (@ernieball) on Feb 26, 2016 at 1:15pm PST

One of my favorite memories from the 1989 World Tour, sound check with @beck and @st_vincent A photo posted by Taylor Swift (@taylorswift) on Oct 9, 2015 at 10:37am PDT



Just got the new @ernieball @st_vincent guitar in the Store @guitarcenter in Cherry Hill! It plays and sounds like a beast. Come check it out 🙂 #ernieball #musicman #stvincent #guitarcenter #ilovemyjob A photo posted by Burned Out Still Glowing (@bosglowing) on Apr 16, 2016 at 8:18am PDT

🎸 @st_vincent

A photo posted by Calli Grace (@calligracemusic) on Apr 2, 2016 at 6:51pm PDT

Best part of last night was playing my new one-of-a-kind seafoam STV guitar, I see many solos in my future ❤️ Thank you @st_vincent and @ernieball !!!! (📷: @metajeremy ) A photo posted by Basia Bulat (@basiabulat) on May 21, 2016 at 7:59am PDT

TONIGHT! Catch Fabi in the Glenn Branca Symphony at Masonic Hall with 8 other guitarists blowing your eardrums and your minds. #sheshreds #sheshredsmag #RBMA #glennbranca #Repost @redbullmusicacademy ・・・

A photo posted by She Shreds Magazine (@sheshredsmag) on May 16, 2016 at 4:16pm PDT

St. Vincent Guitar Videos

Watch our short film on the making of the St. Vincent guitar, as well as review videos from Guitar World and Premiere Guitar, below. You can also explore the St. Vincent signature guitar and find a dealer to order here: http://musc.mn/1WNb7va

The Making of St. Vincent’s Ernie Ball Music Man Signature Guitar

Guitar World St. Vincent Guitar Review

Premier Guitar St. Vincent Guitar Review