Slash named his new signature Les Paul after the person who stole his old guitars
“Victoria” might not feel honored by the tribute…
Gibson recently unveiled the first addition to the Slash Collection of guitars since its launch – the Gibson Slash “Victoria” Goldtop electric guitar.
The new model boasts a similar set of specs to that of the collection's four previous Les Paul Standards, including a solid mahogany body with an AAA maple top, C-shaped neck profile with a 22-fret rosewood fingerboard and a pair of Custom BurstBucker Alnico II pickups controlled via two sets of volume and tone knobs and a three-way toggle.
One thing that Gibson didn’t mention upon the guitar’s introduction, however, is where the model got its name.
Now Slash has revealed the story. “Back in the late ’90s, I had a bunch of guitars stolen out of my studio in my house,” he told Consequence of Sound.
“I’ve actually managed to get [just about] all the guitars back, but I never knew exactly who was behind the theft. And one of the guitars I didn’t get back was a Goldtop that was stolen.
“So, I’ve been trying to find another Goldtop to replace it over the years. Then at some point I found out who was responsible for the theft, not long ago, and her name was Victoria, so I decided to name the guitar after her!”
The Victoria’s design features color-coordinated hardware appointments and, as with the other LPs in the collection, Slash’s “Skully” signature drawing on the back of the headstock and signature on the truss rod cover.
Get The Pick Newsletter
All the latest guitar news, interviews, lessons, reviews, deals and more, direct to your inbox!
Other features include hand-wired electronics with Orange Drop capacitors, an ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge, Vintage Keystone tuners and acrylic trapezoid fingerboard inlays.
A hardshell case comes included with a blank truss rod cover, should players wish to do away with the signed cover.
The Slash "Victoria" Les Paul Standard Goldtop is available now for $2,999. For more information, head over to Gibson.
Thank you for reading 5 articles this month**
Join now for unlimited access
US pricing $3.99 per month or $39.00 per year
UK pricing £2.99 per month or £29.00 per year
Europe pricing €3.49 per month or €34.00 per year
*Read 5 free articles per month without a subscription
Rich is the co-author of the best-selling Nöthin' But a Good Time: The Uncensored History of the '80s Hard Rock Explosion. He is also a recording and performing musician, and a former editor of Guitar World magazine and executive editor of Guitar Aficionado magazine. He has authored several additional books, among them Kurt Cobain: Montage of Heck, the companion to the documentary of the same name.
“A new model as limitless as the artist with whom it was created”: Dream Theater keyboardist Jordan Rudess has a new signature guitar – and it’s a stunning Sustainiac-loaded Strandberg
“Of all the rare custom Fenders introduced over the decades, few have inspired the kind of cult following that this has”: The original Mary Kaye Stratocaster – one of Fender’s most iconic builds – has sold at auction for over $220,000