Gibson announce new guitar to celebrate the life of Jeff Beck
On June 24th, it would have marked Jeff Beck‘s 80th birthday. The iconic guitarist sadly passed away in January 2023, aged 78, leaving behind a watertight legacy as the guitarist’s guitarist and one of the finest players in living memory. In celebration of Beck’s extraordinary life and career, Gibson has announced a new custom-built guitar.
The Jeff Beck ‘YardBurst’ 1959 Les Paul Standard will be available in a limited run of 130 units sold worldwide. The model copies one of Beck’s most iconic guitars, which he used during his emphatic rise in the 1960s.
Gibson, who are also celebrating 130 years of instrument manufacture, first announced the guitar on Monday. This limited edition guitar honours Gibson’s milestone with a production run of one unit for each year it has existed, each meticulously crafted by the expert luthiers at the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, Tennessee.
The beautifully handcrafted guitars have been artfully aged to mirror the original by the Murphy Lab, featuring the highly sought-after Dark Cherry Sunburst finish. “Jeff was enormously proud to have owned the original of this guitar,” Sandra Beck said in a new statement.
Beck continued: “He was aware and fully supportive of the amazing job and love that Gibson Custom provided to create this instrument and would have hoped that this guitar will give hours of pleasure to those who play it.”
The ‘YardBurst’ is a faithful recreation of Beck’s classic guitar from the Yardbirds era. Its distinctive features include the classic white bobbin humbuckers and a black single-ply pickguard. Each guitar comes with an aged Lifton™ hardshell case and the usual spread of case candy, also celebrating Jeff Beck’s legacy.
Cesar Gueikian, the CEO of Gibson, has issued a statement conveying his pride in honouring one of the all-time greats. “Jeff was a trailblazer, the guitar hero of our guitar heroes and admired by his contemporaries,” he said. “Jeff played an instrumental role in the cultural significance of the Gibson Les Paul early in his career during the Yardbursts’ era.”
Gueikian continued: “Just like Jeff was influenced by Les Paul, he influenced many iconic musicians to create their art with a Gibson Les Paul. We are proud to pay tribute to Jeff.”
Meanwhile, Lee Bartram, Head of Commercial and Marketing EMEA at Gibson, echoes Gueikian’s sentiments while expressing pride in the product. “Working on this project has been an absolute honour and we are thankful for the trust and support shown by Jeff Beck, as well as his friends and family,” Bartram added.
Touching on the legacy of Beck’s trusted instrument, Bartram added, “The original guitar is very special, full of history and stories from a pivotal era in British music. As always, Gibson Custom has done an exceptional job in capturing the essence of the original, creating a wonderfully accurate tribute to one of the true guitar pioneers.”
In 1965, Beck joined The Yardbirds to replace Eric Clapton. He played with the group for just over a year, overlapping by several months with session-musician-cum-Yardbird Jimmy Page in 1966. During his short time playing with the band, he contributed to classic songs like ‘Heart Full of Soul’ and ‘Shapes of Things’.
Never Miss A Beat
The Far Out Music Newsletter
All the latest music news from the independent voice of culture.
Straight to your inbox.