100. Jim Olson

For episode 100 of the podcast, I talk with the legendary Jim Olson. Jim should need little introduction to most Luthier on Luthier listeners. His guitars have been played and cherished by artists including James Taylor (you can even spot the trademark headstock "O" during Taylor's appearance on the Simpsons), Paul Simon, Phil Keaggy, Zac Brown and Patty Larkin. Though he creates some of the most valuable flattop guitars around, his build process is all about efficiency and quality control. Jim talks about how his tooling and processes have changed over the years, how Bob Taylor talked him into his first CNC, early career challenges ("I couldn't give them away," he says about his first guitars), and about the subjective nature of a "better" guitar. Link: Luthier on Luthier is hosted by Michael Bashkin of Bashkin Guitars and brought to you by the Fretboard Journal . This episode is sponsored by Dream Guitars and StewMac . Want to support Luthier on Luthier? Join our Patreon to get access to exclusive photos and content from Michael and his builds.

You can listen to 100. Jim Olson online on Radio and Podcast. Open the player on this page to stream the available audio.

100. Jim Olson is an episode from Luthier on Luthier with Michael Bashkin by The Fretboard Journal.

This episode is 55:15 long.

This episode was published on Mar 24, 2025.

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