From Planet Rock.
When the world was first introduced to Led Zeppelin with two echoing chords in ‘Good Times Bad Times’ back in 1969 few people, let alone Jimmy Page himself. would have been able to predict the effect the band would have on rock music.
And the sound of that album was all largely down to one guitar, as Jimmy explains in a new video shared by Fender, who have recreated the mirrored / dragon Tele (one guitar, two incarnations, in case you’re confused) as an extremely limited edition, available only in runs of 50.
Jimmy Page’s custom mirrored & dragon guitar ⓒ Fender
The film tells of how Jimmy was gifted the plain white Telecaster by Jeff Beck after Page had recommended him for the position of lead guitarist in The Yardbirds.
The extravagant animations, partnered with Jimmy Page’s narration, go on to recount how Jimmy began customising the Tele, first with mirrors to catch stage lights, and then later by stripping it and putting his art school skills to good use, painting the vibrant dragon design, and adding a reflective pick guard.
Fancy snaring yourself one? Well, you’ll have to do some hunting to find the dragon issue for sale, listed as it currently is with no price. But the mirrored version is yours for a snip at $2,500.
And whatever happened to the original dragon Tele? Well, that’s actually a bit of a sad story, as Jimmy told Guitar World in 1998: “I still have it, but it’s a tragic story. I went on tour with (a) ’59 Les Paul that I bought from Joe Walsh, and when I got back, a friend of mine had kindly painted over my paint job. He said, ‘I’ve got a present for you.’ He thought he had done me a real favour.
As you can guess, I wasn’t real happy about that. His paint job totally screwed up the sound and the wiring, so only the neck pickup worked. I salvaged the neck and put it on my brown Tele string bender that I used in the Firm (in 1985 and 1986). As for the body, it will never be seen again!”
Lucky for Jimmy, and for us, there are now faithful replicas ready to take its place for generations to come.
Watch the behind-the-scenes making of the custom guitars below:
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- Led Zeppelin - Led Zeppelin III - 80s - German - vinyl LP - £20.00, $25.20, €23.40 (New Item) (arrived 06-May-2024 12:19)on May 7, 2024 at 9:58 am
LED ZEPPELIN Led Zeppelin III (80s German issue of the 1970 10-track LP on the orange & green Atlantic label with 'GEMA/BIEM' box logo to the left of the spindle, housed in a glossy gatefold sleeve with die-cut rotating wheel design & 'Atlantic Deluxe' in light blue. The sleeve shows minimal wear & the vinyl looks barely played ATL50002)
- Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti - 1st - EX - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £295.00, $371.70, €345.15 (New Item) (arrived 02-May-2024 11:11)on May 7, 2024 at 9:58 am
LED ZEPPELIN Physical Graffiti (1975 UK first issue 15-track double vinyl LP, with NO Warner logo on the perimeter label text, wonderful die-cut picture sleeve with thick card inners & card tracklisting insert SSK89400) See 'More Info' .. #Top 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time
- Led Zeppelin - The Song Remains The Same - 1st - EX - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £50.00, $63.00, €58.50 (New Item) (arrived 24-Apr-2024 11:50)on May 7, 2024 at 9:58 am
LED ZEPPELIN The Song Remains The Same (1976 UK first issue 9-track double live LP, on the Swan Song label printed with the publishing credits below the catalogue number & stereo on the left all in small text. Comes housed in the first press textured & embossed gatefold picture sleeve with integral booklet & plain black inners which display light wear to the opening edges. The packaging is Excellent with some minor cosmetic ageing & a little edge wear scuffing, with the booklet intact. The vinyl is Excellent with light signs of play SSK89402)
- Led Zeppelin - Physical Graffiti - 1st - VG - UK - 2-LP vinyl set - £125.00, $157.50, €146.25 (New Item) (arrived 24-Apr-2024 11:54)on May 7, 2024 at 9:58 am
LED ZEPPELIN Physical Graffiti (Rare 1975 UK first press 15-track double LP, one of the band's most diverse & challenging records, featuring household classics like Kashmir & lesser played gems such as The Wanton Song, complete with card inners & thick card tracklisting insert, die-cut picture sleeve with red spine text SSK89400)See 'more info' for condition details... #Top 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time
- Led Zeppelin - Houses Of The Holy - German - vinyl LP - £25.00, $31.50, €29.25 (New Item) (arrived 24-Apr-2024 13:46)on May 7, 2024 at 9:58 am
LED ZEPPELIN Houses Of The Holy (1980s German issue of the 1973 8-track vinyl LP on the green & orange Atlantic label, glossy gatefold picture sleeve with textured thick card lyric inner. The labels and inner both have the catalogue number printed as 'ATL 50 014', whilst the sleeve has nothing printed. The sleeve displays only a little light general ageing, with some edge/spinewear, whilst the inner shows little signs of age with some light foxing but no splits or rips. The labels remains very clean and the vinyl shows a few light cosmetic scuffs not affecting play, an Excellent example ATL50014) #Top 500 Greatest Albums Of All Time
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