Gibson has teamed up with Jimmy Page for a pair of stunning Murphy Lab replicas of the storied 1964 SJ-200 acoustic guitar that he played on Led Zeppelin’s debut album.
Both are nigh-on identical, with light ageing on the Cherry Tea finishes giving them that time machine look that the Murphy Lab specialises in. They ship in custom hard-shell guitar cases with Page’s Zoso logo on the front. Both epitomise high-end acoustic guitar making and will set you back a pretty penny.
The Jimmy Page 1964 SJ-200 Collector’s Edition is limited to 50 units worldwide, comes with Page’s signature on the back of the headstock, and is priced an eye-watering £17,499/$19,999. The “regular” Jimmy Page 1964 SJ-200 is also very much a collector-grade instrument, priced accordingly at £11,299/$12,999.
Each of these instruments has a soundhole label that has been signed by Page, and you can consider that his seal of approval that Gibson got these replicas spot on.
As he reveals in the introduction video, he had a little trepidation when the first prototype turned up for inspection. Would it be a disappointment? He need not have worried.
“The J-200 is such a quality instrument. It really, really is,” says Page. “When I saw the prototype, the case had arrived and I thought, ‘Oh boy, what’s going to happen when I open this?’ We worked really hard on this to get it right, with all the colour matches and all that from the original, and I thought, ‘Wow! They’ve got it!’”
Page had the photos of the original. He had his memories of the original. This would be one of the most important acoustics in his collection. It was the SJ-200 he used on Led Zeppelin’s eponymous debut and the guitar he chose when booked to perform on the Julie Felix Show on 26 April 1970, when he played White Summer/Black Mountain Side for a television audience.
Gibson says Page had “significant input” into the design of these guitars, offering his feedback and counsel “on everything from the sonic character and wear to the playability”. The Cherry Tea sunburst finish was also met with Page’s approval.
“I just took it out and I could see all the flame coming out on the side of it and I went, ‘Oh my goodness gracious.’ It’s just so beautiful,” says Page. “I was just looking at it and admiring every aspect of it because it was so authentic and yet it was so new at the same time. Then I played a little bit on it and I thought, ‘Wow! This is just so much the right thing that has been done here.’”
The SJ-200 is not known as “the king of the flat-tops” for nothing but these take the cake with AAA flame maple on the back and sides of the instrument and a soundboard of AAA Sitka spruce. The neck joins the body with a compound dovetail neck-to-body joint that has been set with hot hide glue.
Flame maple is the recurring theme. You’ll find it again on the three-piece neck, fashioned into a round profile and topped with an Indian rosewood fingerboard inlaid with MOP graduated crowns.
The Moustache bridge is a work of art, too, all rosewood inlaid with mother-of-pearl mother-of-pearl hourglass and teardrop details. And then you have the pickguard, which, again, has been aged to match that finish.
As you would expect, there is multi-ply binding on the top and back of the body, with single-ply binding on the fingerboard and headstock – the headstock is fitted with a set of Kluson Waffleback tuners with keystone buttons in gold.
These guitars have left the Gibson Custom Shop in Bozeman, Montana, with a Tune-O-Matic Bridge with nylon saddles but inside the case there is another Tune-O-Matic unit with gold-plated brass saddles.
The vital statistics read 12” fingerboard radius, 25.5” scale length and a 42.8625mm (1.687”) nut width. The truss rod cover is black with a wide white border and it is engraved with “Custom” lest you forget the instrument’s provenance.
Inside the case there is all manner of ephemera, including a certificate of authenticity, a guitar strap, and in the Collector’s Edition you also get a guitar pick that has been used by Page himself.
The Collector's Edition is limited to 50 units worldwide, with 100 of the regular '64 SJ-200 available now. For more details, head over to Gibson.
