Keith Richards, like many huge artists, has a rather vast collection of guitars. In fact, he’s not even sure of the exact number he has, and some of them he’s never even seen.
Richards’ impact on guitar culture led to him earning his own Gibson ES-355 signature model earlier this year. Two super-limited Collector’s Edition models were released in January and were developed in close collaboration with Richards. Just 150 were made available in total, each based on his own treasured 1960 ES-355, which has accompanied him on every Rolling Stones tour since 1997.
These guitars were made using 3D scanning technology to replicate the true character of his original guitar, with 50 models signed both on the instrument and label, and 100 with only a signed label.
Speaking to Guitar World for the latest edition of its print magazine, he says, “What a surprise, and what a fuckin’ honour. I tell you, when they came at me with this one, I was like, ‘How can I refuse?’ It was a shock to me at first, because when I started, the idea of even owning a Gibson was pretty much out of the picture.
Richards was then asked how many of them he’ll get to keep: “Oh look, I have enough guitars already,” he says. Asked if 3000 guitars is an accurate figure for the number in his collection, he continues, “It’s something like that. You can call my guitar man, Pierre de Beauport, if you want the exact number, but it’s around there. But it’s not like I go around buying them or anything; a lot of these guitars have been given to me. I’ve never seen them all.
“I actually only use about… Well, the working number is about 15 guitars in the rack, for different sounds and whatever. But the other 2,900, I don’t know. They’re taken care of, though. I mean, this is a prime collection.”
The Collector’s Edition ES-355 models are now sold out online – view more at Gibson.
Rachel began writing for Guitar.com in 2021 while finishing up her degree. A proud DIY guitarist, she has been playing for over 10 years and has written for the likes of Kerrang!, The Forty-Five, and MusicTech. An enjoyer of all things heavy, you’ll find her at a festival or downtuning her guitars when away from her desk.