I believe this is the Gibson SG that Keith used on Brown Sugar.




htttp://www.last.fm/user/rocknrollcola

OK. Would you care to say why you believe this to be so?

>> Would you care to say why you believe this to be so? <<

i second that, RollingStonesRob - please and thank you kindly!
i know Jimmy Johnson mentions (in that interview about the Muscle Shoals sessions)
that he recalls Keith using a black SG, which has always seemed odd,
since there don't seem to be any photos or footage of Keith (or any other Stone)
with a black SG - so it would be fascinating to hear why you feel this is The One!

here's the thread where we talked about that statement from Johnson: [www.iorr.org]
there's a link to the full interview in the fourth post.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-09-16 13:21 by with sssoul.

ahh okay - a bit of research led me to the page where you found that photo: [www.everythingsg.com]
i gather that what you're saying is that it's this model SG Keith would have been using for Brown Sugar,
if it's right that he was indeed using a black SG (since at the time the only black ones were Customs)

I seem to recall reading somewhere that it was an SG special.

well, if it was a Special, it wasn't black. (i admit i have an aversion to the whole idea it was an SG -
not only because i've never liked the look of 'em, but also because Keith's used them so rarely.
neither of which is a reason to think he didn't use one at Muscle Shoals, of course.)

The reason I believe this is because of this was the only model in black. There were darker colored gibson sg guitars that possibly got mistaken for black. I wouldn't be surprised if he was using a gibson es-345 since it was a dark colored gibson and sometimes gets mixed up with the sg based on the intials.

htttp://www.last.fm/user/rocknrollcola

>> I wouldn't be surprised if he was using a Gibson ES-345 since it was a dark colored Gibson
and sometimes gets mixed up with the SG based on the initials. <<

hm: isn't the white ES-345 that Keith unveiled in Japan last year the only one there are photos/footage of him with?
which doesn't mean he couldn't have had one that we haven't seen, but ...
well, it might be a reason not to be real quick to consider a 345 among the Most Likely Candidates.

Keith of course had that ebony ES-355 on the 69 tour - but in that interview Johnson seems even more sure
about the pointy cutaways on the guitar Keith was using than about the colour.
Mick Taylor's dark-red SG seems like it would also be a plausible candidate, if Johnson's remembering any of it right.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-09-17 10:00 by with sssoul.

Tele, my son.

fiftyamp Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Tele, my son.

Care to elaborate on that? Details please and no conjecture please!

Hmm - I dunno, but I just can't imagine a ES-345 or 55 being mistaken for an SG - it's a different beast by the body, not to mention the sound.

how about my anekdote:
a few months ago I met our former bassplayer who was in the band from 1979 till '81.
after some chit chat he asks me if I still have my Gibson SG.

me: "What SG^^? I've never had one - you probably mean my Les Paul Special - yes, still got it"

he meant this one

he used a white SG in Melbourne '73...

>> I just can't imagine a ES-345 or 55 being mistaken for an SG -
it's a different beast by the body, not to mention the sound. <<

i agree, Open-G honey - sorry my post sounded like i was positing the ebony ES-355 as the Brown Sugar guitar!
all i really meant is that i've never seen any evidence of Keith owning/using a 345 until last year.

a black Special would make more sense ... if there were any evidence of Keith ever owning/using one :E
but Specials don't ever seem to have been among his favoured instruments either.
until further notice i'm sticking with "i think Jimmy Johnson is misremembering something"

>> he used a white SG in Melbourne '73 <<

yes, he sure did - that one's in this thread here: [iorr.org]

The Hard Rock Cafe's vault in London were showing Keith's white SG Custom a while back. It has a heel break which is probably why Keith got rid.

The ES-355 used in the early 70's was a very dark walnut colour not black.

Keith currently has a 1960 black ES-355 mono which is one of his favourite guitars.

>> Keith currently has a 1960 black ES-355 mono which is one of his favourite guitars. <<

he had (at least!) two black ES-355s for a while there -
he presented one of them to Buddy Guy at one of the Beacon shows.
here's a thread about Keith's ES's and other semihollows & archtops: [iorr.org]



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-09-21 14:41 by with sssoul.

over the last 5 years or so I have hung out in Stones guitar world and the '60 Black ES-355 Mono has been a main guitar. There was also a '59 Cherry ES-355 Stereo with the Stereo circuit disconnected. The White ES-345 Stereo was purchased from Lark Street Music last year and it too has had the Stereo circuit removed. Also Keith has a 1960 Black ES-335 Dot neck as a spare for the Black ES-355 and the the only other Black ES-355 is a Reissue that he uses in the backstage rehearsal room where the band have a small set up to rehearse and warm up before shows. You can see Keith play this Reissue in the mini documentary when the band rehearse the Waylon Jennings song on the Biggest Bang. The Black 1960 ES-355 is a seriously rare guitar as Black is a Custom Colour and most were Cherry.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 2007-09-21 14:28 by wesellguitars.

smile: cool - can i repost all that in the thread about Keith's ES's?
and he did give a black ES-355 to Buddy Guy at the Beacon show.
i don't mean it was his Main Black ES-355, but ... he did.

The serial # for Keith's Black ES-355 is A32904

The serial # for Keith's White ES-345 is 181286

The serial # for Keith's Cherry ES-355 is A30828

The serial # for Keith's Les Paul TV Double Cut (Dice) is 8 6441

The serial # for Keith's Les Paul TV Single Cut is 512156

Of course, the official Gibson name for "black" is "antique ebony", which the colour actually is. Ebony has a purple hue to it.

And thanks for the confirmation that Keith's 355 in the mini documentary is a reissue! I was sure it was one, but I couldn't proof it.

Mathijs