I have been a Gibson SG enthusiast ever since I started playing in the late '70s. My very first electric guitar was a cheap Japanese copy, but I soon upgraded to a '74 Gibson, later had several others from different periods and had a chance to play some of the very first ones too. In between, I went through lots of other guitars as well, Fenders, Les Pauls, 335s, but for some reason always kept coming back to the SG. After a six-year abstinence, I now finally have one again, built in '91 but looks and feels very much like a late '60s model. I now use it all the time for playing Dead stuff.
I never identified them with AC/DC as many people do. For me instead, the SG was the quintessential guitar of the San Francisco sound. It all started with the incomparable John Cipollina, Barry Melton and Sam Andrew played them too, and of course Jerry, even if only for a relatively brief period. Now, it is well known that he used one on Live/Dead and that was what I call the "Type 2" with the large pickguard, built from '66 to '71, using a term coined by Ian C. Bishop in his Gibson book (the earlier models from '61 to '65 with the small pickguard are referred to as Type 1). That guitar also had a Bigsby vibrato. Over on dozin.com, it is stated that by May 1970, Jerry was back on the same SG again. However, for instance in the Festival Express movie and also on some pictures that I've seen, he can be seen with a different SG, definitely a Type 1 with small pickguard, and a flat stop tailpiece which looks like a later addition. Anybody noticed that too, any other SG lovers here?
I never identified them with AC/DC as many people do. For me instead, the SG was the quintessential guitar of the San Francisco sound. It all started with the incomparable John Cipollina, Barry Melton and Sam Andrew played them too, and of course Jerry, even if only for a relatively brief period. Now, it is well known that he used one on Live/Dead and that was what I call the "Type 2" with the large pickguard, built from '66 to '71, using a term coined by Ian C. Bishop in his Gibson book (the earlier models from '61 to '65 with the small pickguard are referred to as Type 1). That guitar also had a Bigsby vibrato. Over on dozin.com, it is stated that by May 1970, Jerry was back on the same SG again. However, for instance in the Festival Express movie and also on some pictures that I've seen, he can be seen with a different SG, definitely a Type 1 with small pickguard, and a flat stop tailpiece which looks like a later addition. Anybody noticed that too, any other SG lovers here?
, this: 
and this 
while doing this: 
