Arguably one of the finest ever extractors of tone from a Fender Stratocaster, David Gilmour finally gets his own signature Strat this year, courtesy of Fender's Custom Shop — in fact, he gets two, the David Gilmour Signature Stratocaster NOS (New Old Stock) and the DGSS Relic.
class="bodyf">Available this month, both models are based on Gilmour's famous black Strat, which was used to devastating effect on Pink Floyd's The Dark Side Of The Moon, Wish You Were Here, Animals, The Wall and his 2006 solo effort, On An Island. The Fender Custom Shop worked with Gilmour and his long-time guitar technician, Phil Taylor, to create this signature model.
Gilmour bought the original instrument in May 1970 from Manny's Music in New York. The guitar's first Pink Floyd recorded appearance came on the group's fifth album, Atom Heart Mother. It subsequently became Gilmour's main guitar for live performances and studio work.
The new reproduction features an alder body, black over three-colour sunburst finish, a black pickguard, a one-piece, straight-grain maple neck, custom pickups with Gilmour's electronics and shortened vintage tremolo arm.
The David Gilmour Signature Series Stratocaster guitar comes with a custom case, an Evidence high-end guitar cable, Gilmour's three-disc Live In Gdansk CD/DVD set and Taylor's 2007 book about the guitar's history, The Black Strat. The first 500 guitars sold in either finish option will include a limited edition, signed copy of the book, autographed by Phil Taylor.
The NOS model carries a suggested price of £2699, while if you've just won the lottery or are the world's most devoted Gilmourite, you can have the Relic version for a mere £3199.
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