Gene
Baker and
Premier
Builders
Guild
Master builder and chief engineer
Gene Baker has been around and then
some—from studying at GIT to working
for Gibson and the Fender Custom Shop
to having his own prestigious shop
torpedoed by unscrupulous lenders to
heading up one of the guitar industry’s
most intriguing gear onsortiums.
BY LINDSAY TUCKER
Gene Baker has been obsessed with guitars for a long time—he built his first guitar when he was still in middle school. He
eventually ended up as a senior master’s apprentice at Gibson, and
then a Fender Custom Shop senior master builder before branching
out on his own. Over the last decade or so, he built a reputation
for building impeccable-playing double-cutaways with gorgeous
figured-maple tops stained in a huge array of colors. Most recently,
he’s gotten even more attention as the master builder and chief
engineer for Premier Builders Guild, where he oversees production
of a limited selection of designs from six boutique brands—his own
b3 line, as well as popular models from Dennis Fano, Roger Giffin,
Saul Koll, Johan Gustavsson, and Jason Schroeder. [Ed. note: PBG
is not affiliated with Premier Guitar or any of its subsidiary brands.]
Considering what’s happened to him over the years, Baker
considers himself lucky to be in the business at all. Despite his
