After announcing their unexpected partnership early last year, Gibson and Brian May have unveiled their first collaborative signature guitar creation – and it’s not a Murphy Lab Red Special.
Instead, the legendary Queen guitarist has been honored with a 12-string SJ-200 acoustic guitar, GuitarWorld report.
When May and Gibson first confirmed they would be working together, many speculated that the partnership would lead to Custom Shop (and maybe even Epiphone) recreations of the iconic Red Special.
Hype was further fanned when May himself revealed to Guitar World that reissues of the DIY guitar he made with his father were indeed on the cards, but it seems we’ll have to wait a little longer for a Gibson Red Special.
For their first drop, the pair have instead prioritized a 12-string SJ-200, which was designed specifically for May after he required one for tour. However, it’s quite unlike your standard 12-string – not only are 12-string SJ-200s exceptionally uncommon, this particular example has also been altered to suit May’s personal strumming style.
As May explains in a press release, his signature SJ-200 flips the 12-string script on its head by reversing the order of the octave and regular acoustic guitar strings.
“The idea for this guitar came when I needed a 12-String on tour, and the one I was accustomed to wasn’t performing right on stage,” May explains. “The guys at Gibson very kindly said, ‘We’ll make you something special that you can use on the tours.’
