Malcolm Young was one of the greatest guitarists ever – a true warrior of rhythm guitar and the writer of most of AC/DC's timeless riffs. He also stuck with Gretsch through tick and thin and the company are recognising his icon status with a new limited edition signature guitar based on his own '63 Firebird Jet dubbed the 'Red Beast'.
Gretsch worked with the man now tasked with playing Malcolm's parts in AC/DC, his nephew Stevie Young, on a guitar that is based on the earliest iteration of the Red Beast. It would later be modded extensively as it continued to be Malcolm's workhorse on stage, studio and in videos - including the red finish being stripped from the top. The guitar would eventually lose two of its three pickups too as Malcolm streamlined down to necessities.
You can get a look on how the Beast looked in its red glory in the video for It's a Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll) below.
The recreation features a Vintage Firebird Red finish with black pickguard and aged gold hardware, a 2-inch deep double cutaway chambered mahogany body, ebony fingerboard with maple top and harmonica-style Adjusto-Matic bridge and pinned ebony base.
Pickups are TV Jones Ray Butts Ful-Fidelity bridge, TV Jones Starwood humbucker middle and a TV Jones Ray Butts Ful-Fidelity neck. It's going to sound like a beast alright!
The Beast can be tamed with individual pickup volume controls, master volume, three-position pickup toggle switch, three-position tone switch and a three-position standby switch.
The G6131G-MY-RB Limited Edition Malcolm Young Signature is $2,799.99 USD, £3,179.00 GBP, €3,699.00 EUR, $5,699.00 AUD, ¥638,000 JPY
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