“Dick Boak called him and said Martin wanted to do a signature guitar for him. He paused and said, ‘I’ve been waiting for this phone call my whole life’”: The emotional moment Johnny Cash was offered his one-of-a-kind signature acoustic

Johnny Cash performing on stage with his all-black guitar .

Johnny Cash is inextricably linked with Martin acoustic guitars, and most often spotted with dreadnoughts – primarily his D-28 and D-35.

As the story goes, in the early '70s, Martin was commissioned to craft an all-black lacquered D-35 for Cash. While the guitar brand had never considered designing a guitar with the star's requested finish, Cash eventually did get his all-black “Man in Black” Martin, which became a staple of his performances for the next two decades.