As it celebrates 130 years of music history, Gibson, the iconic global instrument brand, is proud to introduce the Jeff Beck “Yardburst” 1959 Les Paul™ Standard from Gibson Custom. In honour of Gibson’s 130th anniversary, only 130 of these exceptional guitars handmade by the expert luthiers of the Gibson Custom Shop in Nashville, TN, are a part of this remarkable limited run, artfully aged to match the original by the Murphy Lab in the highly coveted Dark Cherry Sunburst finish. For more information, visit gibson.com.
“Jeff was enormously proud to have owned the original of this guitar,” says Sandra Beck. “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.”
Jeff Beck is considered one of the best guitarists in history, capable of playing virtually anything in his own unique, soulful style. Jeff Beck got his start playing in the Yardbirds, making groundbreaking music on a ’59 Les Paul Standard. The “YardBurst” is a faithful recreation of this legendary guitar, complete with its unique and instantly identifiable traits, such as the classic white bobbin humbuckers and black single-ply pickguard. An aged Lifton™ hardshell guitar case and a selection of case candy commemorating the life of the legend that is Jeff Beck are also included. Only 130 of these exceptional recreations were handmade by Gibson Custom and artfully aged to match the original as it appeared during Jeff’s Yardbird days by the Murphy Lab.
“Jeff was a trailblazer, the guitar hero of our guitar heroes and admired by his contemporaries,” says Cesar Gueikian, CEO of Gibson. “Jeff played an instrumental role in the cultural significance of the Gibson Les Paul early in his career during the Yardbursts’ era. 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.”
“Working on this project has been an absolute honor and we are thankful for the trust and support shown by Jeff Beck, as well as his friends and family,” says Lee Bartram, Head of Commercial and Marketing EMEA at Gibson. “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.”
Playing alongside some of the greatest artists in rock, blues, and jazz, over the course of Beck’s distinguished 50-plus-year music career, he earned an incredible eight Grammy® Awards, was ranked by Rolling Stone as one of the “100 Greatest Guitarists of All Time,” and was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, twice – once as a member of the Yardbirds, and again as a solo artist. In the summer of 2016, the guitar virtuoso celebrated his five decades of music with an extraordinary concert at the famous Hollywood Bowl.
Beck famously replaced Eric Clapton as the Yardbirds’ lead guitarist in 1965 and later went on to form The Jeff Beck Group, which featured Rod Stewart on vocals and Ron Wood on bass. Their two albums - Truth (1968) and Beck-Ola (1969) - would become musical touchstones for hard rockers in the years to come. The constantly evolving Beck’s next move -- a power trio with bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice, which released Beck, Bogert and Appice (1973), once again shattered people’s preconceptions of what a rock guitarist was supposed to sound like.
Music has always shared space with Jeff’s love of hot rods. After the success of his groundbreaking 1975 jazz-fusion classics “Blow by Blow” and “Wired,” both produced by Sir George Martin, Beck began devoting more time to his fleet of cars, but 1985’s Flash kept him in the spotlight as he earned the Best Rock Instrumental Grammy for the song “Escape.” A second Grammy came with “Jeff Beck’s Guitar Shop with Terry Bozzio and Tony Hymas,” a third for “Dirty Mind” from the You Had It Coming album in 2001, and a fourth Grammy win for Best Rock Instrumental Performance for “Plan B” in 2004. 2009 saw the release of the platinum-selling Performing This Week… Live at Ronnie Scott’s, which earned him a fifth Grammy for “A Day in the Life.”
In June 2010, Beck paid fitting tribute to his mentor, the great Les Paul, celebrating what would have been the pioneering guitarist’s 95th birthday. But it was Beck’s astonishing 2010 solo album, Emotion & Commotion, that brought about two additional Grammy Awards; Beck was nominated in 5 categories before bringing home three: Best Rock Instrumental Performance for “Hammerhead” and Best Pop Instrumental Performance for “Nessun Dorma,” both from Emotion & Commotion, and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for “Imagine,” his collaboration with Herbie Hancock. His Rock ‘N’ Roll Party Honoring Les Paul album was nominated for a 2012 Grammy Award for Best Rock Album. In 2016, he released Loud Hailer, and in 2017, Jeff Beck: Live At The Hollywood Bowl was released. A new musical collaboration with Johnny Depp, the 13-track album 18, was released on July 15, 2022, and featured a mix of Depp vocals with a wide range of instrumental covers from Celtic and Motown to John Lennon, the Beach Boys, and The Velvet Underground.
A trailblazing guitarist, Jeff Beck recorded with everyone from Stevie Wonder and Buddy Guy to Tina Turner and Mick Jagger, and so many more. Beck will forever be regarded by his peers and worldwide by his multitude of fans as one of the greatest guitarists of all time, thanks to his ability to make impossible sounds effortless.
(Photos - Gibson)
