What? Jimi Hendrix playing a Gibson? Yup, it happened. While Jimi was partial to Strats, he also played other guitars. And one of the most famous of these was a Gibson 1967 Flying V that he purchased, then used on tour in Europe during ’67 and ’68. To make it his own, Jimi used what appears to be fingernail polish to create fabulous psychedelic swirls that reflected the times. Now, Gibson has gotten access to this near-mythic instrument and darned if their replica doesn’t look like the same exact guitar. Recreating Jimi’s unique artistic statement has been a real labor of love for Gibson’s Custom Shop. This is part of the company’s new “Inspired By” series and it has all the exact specs of the original, like a solid mahogany body and neck, chrome hardware, a late 1960s ABR-1 bridge and Maestro vibrato, 22-fret rosewood fingerboard with pearloid dot inlays and vintage “tulip” tuners.
But while you might be blown away by seeing a spot-on recreation of Jimi’s hand-painted Flying V, playing it is even more fun! It’s equipped with a pair of genuine Gibson ’57 Classic humbuckers (best known as PAFs), so plugged into the right amp, this baby really wails like only a humbucker-equipped guitar can. The controls are exactly like the original, with two volume and one tone control knob and the standard Gibson 3-way toggle switch. Naturally it comes with a plush-lined Custom Shop hardshell case and includes a certificate of authenticity. So all that’s left is for you to plug this incredible guitar into your wah-wah pedal, a Uni-Vibe, and then maybe a retro fuzz of some sort. The last cable is reserved for your amp of choice, but for accuracy, we might suggest a Marshall double stack. Inspiration? This baby’s got tons of it, that will flow directly into your fingers and out to your amp. Grab it now, because there may never be another one like it!
