Canadian guitar company Sparrow is currently on a mission. The soaring price of some high-end guitars, especially from the US, has led many guitar players to seek a more affordable alternative and Sparrow believes that its guitars - which are hand assembled in Canada - provide the answer.

In common with the other guitars in the Sparrow flock, the Primitive starts life in the Far East before receiving a thorough makeover in Sparrow’s Vancouver-based workshops. Once there, it is stripped, retrofitted with new hardware and treated to a complete re-spray, the idea being that Sparrow proves that an affordable electric guitar can still offer the same level of attention to detail and decent build- quality normally associated with far more expensive instruments. The semi-hollow Primitive range is split between three models: the entry level Pro is complimented by the Boss and top of the range Ace model, which is reviewed here. All three are constructed using a classic hybrid design with a solid central body block flanked by a pair of hollow acoustic chambers; the theory being that the solid element has the stability and feedback resistance of a solid electric while the acoustic pockets offer the mellow responsiveness of a traditional hollow body guitar. The chunky glued-in maple neck and rosewood fingerboard are also found on all of the Primitive series along with good quality Grover tuning machines and proper bone nuts. The main factors separating each model are hardware and a choice of custom paint jobs, which is in fact one of Sparrow’s biggest selling points. For an extra few quid you can order pin stripes (hand painted with a squirrel - tail brush, just like our review guitar on the right) or hand painted flames, which also look equally as stunning.

Aces High…
Our review Ace Primitive boasts a full house of impressive specs, not the least of which is the Bigsby vibrato system and a pair of chrome covered Kent Armstrong Sky humbucking pickups. To all intents and purposes this is a thinline semi based on Gibson’s ES series and so you’ll find many typical features associated with this design, most of which work well alongside one or two others that share the original ES 335’s somewhat agricultural feel. Let’s make one thing clear; the neck is the one area that will decide whether the Ace is for you or not. If you like your necks beefy and robust with plenty to hang on to, you’ll instantly fall for the Ace in a big way. This neck pattern is often described as a ‘50s profile due to its apparent similarity to the thick rounded necks that were standard on many electric guitars during the mid-to-late 1950s but don’t confuse a big neck with something uncomfortable and difficult to play. In fact, the Ace feels very easy to play; it’s just that if you were bought up on something slimmer the Ace will definitely require a change of approach. Sound-wise, the Kent Armstrong pickups do a good job of translating the Ace’s natural acoustic resonance into a strong clear tone that is also remarkably versatile for such an old-school design. The main reason that the thinline is so successful is that it adapts to an amazingly diverse range of different musical styles, usually requiring little more than a change of pick attack or a quick twist of a volume knob to set the required dynamic range. This guitar is capable of virtually anything from a silky clean jangle (both pickups on), or the neck pickup’s soft jazzy purr to a biting bluesy treble with the bridge humbucker engaged. It’s no slouch when it comes to more aggressive styles either; taking even fairly stratospheric gain levels in its capable stride. Yes, high gain distortion will result in some feedback but the beauty of the thinline design means that the feedback is always controllable and with a bit of practice the Ace can be manipulated to help deliver almost infinite sustain at will. The Bigsby vibrato has an endearingly gentle undulation compared to a modern vibrato system but it still adds an authentic shimmer to chords and sustaining single notes.

Overall, the Ace is a really good example of the thinline’s charm and impressive versatility and just like a proper vintage thinline you have to take it by the scruff of the neck and own it; it won’t do the job for you. If you think that you can handle it, then this Ace is definitely one to keep up your sleeve.

For more information, visit http://www.playmusicpickup.co.uk.