It seems that this 1960s Gibson SG Custom guitar was used only once, during a gig at Ungano’s club in New York in January 1970. If you happen to come across any other photos of Hendrix with this guitar, please let us know.
The guitar was allegedly a gift from the club owners, as Jimi was a frequent visitor and often jammed with other musicians there, including Peter Green, B.B. King, and Jimmy Creed. This claim comes from a comment on a blog about The Grateful Dead written by someone who once worked at the club.
Jimi jammed so many other times. We wound up buying him the left-handed white SG that is in some photos out there…Jimi was a regular and he loved the club.
February 12, 1970 Ungano’s, New York, NY 210 West 70th Street The Grateful Dead – LOST LIVE DEAD
The mention of the guitar being a “white SG” is a bit confusing. Based on available information, Jimi didn’t own a left-handed SG finished in white. It’s likely the commenter confused this guitar with the SG Custom Jimi was often seen playing in late 1968 and 1969.
The SG seen in photos from Ungano’s was a Custom model with a walnut finish, three pickups, a white ‘batwing’ pickguard, and possibly a Bigsby tremolo. The exact number of left-handed SG Customs produced in the late 1960s is unclear, but they are likely extremely rare. Even standard right-handed models from 1969 with these specifications typically sell for no less than $10,000.
If a 1968/69 left-handed SG Custom in walnut ever appears for sale, the chance of it being Jimi’s might not be so unlikely.
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It’s been posted on Instagram! Imperial_Vintage posted that they now have this guitar. It is indeed Pelham Blue! Gold Hardware. Unconfirmed if Hendrix ordered it custom or if it was a gift yet.
Hi, as regards the ‘Ungano’s lefty SG, i’m pretty sure the one he’s playing has a Bigsby trem rather than the Vibrola seen on the guitar pictured on this site. By the way, quite frustrating only having black and white photos of this jam, as the guitar always looked metallic to me so I assumed it was probably Pelham Blue.
Regards, Rob.
Yeah, I will have to agree. The handle alone does not look like a vibrola, and I don’t see the vibrola plate on the back. I’ve also been looking at photos of SG Customs from late 60s, and every single one has a vibrola, so someone made the effort to remove the vibrola from Jimi’s and installed a Bigsby – which is interesting.
Could be, but that would make the guitar extremely rare. I did a quick search and couldn’t find a single batwing SG in Pelham blue. I’d imagine if someone appeared with a late 60s SG custom in Pelham blue, fitted with Bigsby, there’s probably 1 in 10 chance it was Jimi’s, lol.
Cheers.
01 janvier 1970 – jam-session au Club Ungano, New York City
With Elvin Bishop – Unganos Club, New York City