Les Paul (Copy)

When Jeff was around 13 or 14 years old, he received a Paul guitar as a birthday present from his mother and his stepfather.

Then when he was about 14 (1980), for his birthday, he asked for [this part cuts of during the video, so it’s not positive that these are exact words] a guitar, a real guitar. And that’s when we all chipped in to get him the Les Paul.

Jeff Buckley – Everybody Here Wants You Documentary (5:30)

I got an electric guitar at thirteen – a black Les Paul copy that sounded pretty good. Yes, that’s how it started…

The Oppressive Lightness of Being Crazy, Gitarre & Bass, October, 1995

According to Jeff’s friend, Jason Hamel, who was kind enough to provide some details about the guitar, Jeff had this Les Paul when the two first met, in 1981. Jason also suspects that Jeff got the guitar way before his 14th birthday (1980) since only a year later he could already play some serious stuff. As he points out, it is also possible that Jeff had a guitar prior to this which he used to practice on.

1980s Ovation Viper

This Ovation was used by Jeff sometime in the early to mid-80s. There’s a photo of him with the guitar, which seems to have been taken prior to his college days.

According to Jeff’s friend, Jason Hamel, this guitar was purchased in 1982, as a replacement for Jeff’s old Les Paul knockoff.

The Ovation Viper was purchased at Pete’s Music. My friend Dave Judy says he sold it to him. He used that all through high school and GIT.

Jason Hamel – email

Unknown Guitar

Jeff was first seen using the guitar circa 1985. At that time he was in Los Angeles and playing in a band called Group Therapy. He continued using the guitar until around 1989 when he was seen playing it with The Wild Blue Yonder. [The Wild Blue Yonder 1989-1991]

This guitar is, unfortunately, a mystery. The exact model is currently not identified, and until it is, all further research is on halt. The body does seem to resemble some Ovation models from the 80s, like the Viper, but the headstock is where it gets confusing. 

For any feedback, please be sure to leave a comment below. Images of the guitar are available here: Jeff Buckley with an unknown guitar.

Rickenbacker 360/12 Fireglo

This was Jeff’s second most used guitar, perhaps best known for occasionally being used to play ‘Last Goodbye’ live. There’s some debate on the exact model of this guitar, but the round edges on the body and neck inlays are all the clues you need to figure out it’s a 360 model.

The guitar first appeared in mid to late 1994, or around the time album Grace was released. It is therefore somewhat safe to guess that Jeff bought it in preparation for the tour and that the guitar wasn’t used during the studio session. If you happen to know more please be sure to leave a comment.

As far as the specs, the guitar featured a maple carved body finished in red sunburst (therefore its nickname – Fireglo), a three-ply maple/walnut neck with rosewood fretboard, a pair of Hi-Gain single-coil pickups, and an adjustable bridge. It was one of the earliest 12-string electric guitars and was hugely popularized by George Harrison of The Beatles. Jeff’s guitar for some reason had a black masking tape rolled over the upper horn, possibly to help support a strap-lock.

Series 10 "Flower" Telecaster

According to a post made over at JBCommunity forums, Jeff got this guitar as a gift after a gig played in Lyon, France in October 1994, from a guy called Jean-Marc who worked at the avenue. For the full story please refer to The Story of the “Flower” Guitar.

The guitar was apparently a cheap Korean knock-off that didn’t play too well, but it attracted Jeff’s attention anyways, mostly because of the groovy flower finish on the body. He used the guitar a few times at least, most notably during a gig played at MTV London on March 3, 1995.

1976 Gibson Les Paul Custom

Chronologically looking, this was the second Les Paul that Jeff owned and played. However, it was the first legitimate Gibson model, since the first guitar was according to most sources, a knockoff.

At this point, it is important to establish histories behind the two Les Pauls. For the longest time, people (including us) thought that the Les Paul that Jeff received for his 14th birthday was the same one that he used later on in the 90s.

However, there were some inconsistencies in that version of the story. Most importantly, it didn’t make sense that Jeff would leave a perfect Gibson Les Paul guitar at home and then buy an Ovation Viper (his second electric guitar), and then go on to borrow a Fender Telecaster (the one that he used for the most part of his career). If he had a Gibson, he would certainly use it.

1967 Guild F-50

Jeff used this guitar quite often live for the acoustic bits, most notably during the Live in Chicago concert in 1995. During that gig, the guitar had black tape covering the soundhole, which is basically a cheap way and an alternative to using soundhole covers that serve the purpose of preventing feedback.

The guitar was also most likely used on the studio recording of Lover, You Should’ve Come Over, although that’s just a guess.

As far as how Buckley acquired the guitar in the first place, the recent issue of Guitar World Magazine (June 2016), notes that Steve Addabbo borrowed his own 1967 Guild F-50 to Jeff in 1993. According to the article, the two met at the  Shelter Island Sound Studios in New York in February 1993 and recorded a few songs that became available to the public with the release of the compilation album ‘You and I’, released on March 11, 2016.

Yamaha FG-470S

This guitar was listed on JeffBuckley.com as part of the guitars owned and used by Jeff, but it is most likely that the Yamaha actually belonged to Michael Tighe, who played rhythm guitar for Buckley. However, just to avoid any confusion, it is probably best to list it here – and perhaps someone will even come along and point out something that we don’t know about it.

Fender Vibroverb ’63 Reissue

This was the amp that Jeff used for the most part of his career, seen on photos taken at Sin-e and on the stuff he did later on, most notably the Live in Chicago concert.

Worth noting is that he originally seemed to have used a brownface Reissue made sometime in the 90s, but from around 1994 he was occasionally also seen using a blackface Vibroverb, most likely also a reissue model. During the recording of the album itself, he allegedly used an altogether different amp of the same model, since his own amp wasn’t working properly at the time (source needed).

After the release of the Grace album in 1994, the band seemed to have purchased a new Fender Vibroverb ’63 Reissue and a Mesa Boogie Dual-Rectifier combo for each Jeff and Michael Tighe, so altogether Jeff seemed to have used at least three different Fender Vibroverb ’63 Reissues.

Fender '64 Vibroverb

Jeff was seen using the amp alongside a Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Trem-o-verb combo during the BBC Late Show gig, filmed in London, on January 17, 1995. Him using this amp seemed to have been a rare occurrence because Jeff usually stuck with his Fender Vibroverb ’63 Reissue (Brownface).

Mesa Boogie Dual Rectifier Trem-o-verb Combo

Used most notably during the Live in Chicago, and Live in Glastonbury concerts in 1995, alongside a Fender Vibroverb ’63 Reissue (Jeff’s main amp, even in the earlier years). It is not known for which purpose Jeff used the Mesa Boogie combo, but it was either a dedicated “dirty sound” amp or a backup in case something went wrong with the Vibroverb.

Be that as it may, given that Michael Tighe – Jeff’s guitarist, used not only the exact same model himself but also a Fender Vibroberb identical to Jeff’s, it is likely that the band purchased a pair of these for each guitarist to use during the ‘Grace’ tour.