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Later, he heard of the master guitar maker, Candelario Delgado, in Los Angeles, California. He made a number of guitars for Jose over a period of time but Jose remembers fondly that Candelario even lent him a guitar in the early years when he couldn't quite afford it on his own.

The last guitar Candelario ever made, as we're told, has become very special in Jose's collection: The Carved Head, as it is referred, has been photographed extensively and used for recording purposes, but rarely, if ever, taken on tour. It gets its named from the carving on the head of the stock where a bold "JOSE" can be seen. There's a nice picture of it on the Romance in the Night LP.

The sons and nephews still run the shop, Candelas Guitars, in East L.A., and carry on the tradition of the master luthier, Candelario del Gado.

Currently, and for the last 20 years or more, Kirk Sand of The Guitar Shoppe, in Laguna Beach, California, has been custom-building instruments for Jose. Kirk and Jim Mathewson have developed a design with Jose that they call aptly, the Jose Feliciano Model. It has the larger-than-usual dreadnot body but, of course, with nylon strings and a cutaway for easier access up the fret board. It's a lovely instrument with sweet richness that is both deep and clean. You can hear it whenever you see Jose on tour or listen to him on record!

Nail Care:
As an acoustic guitarist of Feliciano's stature, you can imagine that his nails are extremely important to his ability to perform. His left hand, which frets the guitar, has very short nails, except for the thumb nail which is not used for playing. His right hand, however, is the more particular in that it is the one that creates the crisp, clear sound that is necessary against the nylon strings. The nails cannot be too short or long, for that matter, and must have a perfect roundness with absolutely no "corners" at the cuticle. (The corners make him crazy) The right thumb nail is most crucial to his performance. It is a bit longer than the rest on that hand, and again, is perfectly round and very strong. God certainly blessed him there. One supposes the stimulation to his hands has helped his circulation, too, over the years---why, after all, are toenails usually stronger than the nails of the hand???

In honor of the induction of an authentic Feliciano acoustic guitar to the Hard Rock Café in New York City on October 22, 1998, and the inclusion of JoseFeliciano.com to Great Guitar Sites, we are pleased to include this page dedicated to the guitar, its history and Feliciano's contribution to it.