Edge's Guitars

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The Edge has quite a few guitars. On the tour there is usually a 'show guitar' and a backup for that guitar.

Often the backups are of similar vintage and finish but not always. Case in point, the `65 Pelham Blue Gibson SG seen in the Dallas Schoo on YouTube is the backup to the `66 Heritage Cherry Gibson SG. They are similar in model and vintage but not finish.

On the otherhand, There are are two maple Rickenbacker 330 12-strings. The show guitar is a 1967 and the backup is a 1967. Similarly, the Fireglo Ric 330 12-string is a 1966 as is it's backup.

What did you mean by 'original'?
 
I think he means original as in the original guitar Edge bought versus Edge's backups. For example Edge doesn't play his original 76 Explorer but has a backup for live use instead.


Ah. Well, dating back to the early to mid-1980's"

  • You've mentioned the state of the original Explorer; it's been retired to studio use. Edge has bought up a number over the past few years. I was at Guitar Center Hollywood when he bought # 12.
  • Original "Blackie" Stratocaster seems to be the 1973 being used for Streets now.
  • Original Washburn seems to have gone away after The Joshua Tree tour. Edge did use a Washburn Festival acoustic during ZOOTV but it wasn't the same guitar.
  • Original 1975 Les Paul Custom was auctioned off in 2007 at the Music Rising: Icons of Music Auction. Guitar Center bought it and they tour it from time to time with other star guitars that they've bought at auction.
Any other guitar in particular?
 
Nope not really. Thanks! I was kind of curious to know what ever happened to Edge's Washburn's that he used for all the acoustic songs on elevation? Why did he start to use the gibson's instead?

The Edge used Taylor acoustic guitars, not Washburn, during the Elevation tour.

He began using a Taylor 710 dreadnought during the Popmart tour.

For the Elevation tour, Edge used the following.

TAYLOR - 614ce - auditorium - 200x - tobacco sunburst finish/maple back & sides
TAYLOR - 710 - dreadnought - 199x - natural cedar finish/rosewood back & sides
TAYLOR - 814ce - auditorium - 200x - natural finish/rosewood back & sides
TAYLOR - 914ce - auditorium - 200x - tobacco sunburst finish/rosewood back & sides



It might seem 'odd' that he went from Taylor to Gibson around the time of HTDAAB but one listen to "All Because of You" and it's The Who-like guitar part (Edge has said it was inspired by The Who) will tell why he began using Gibson Pete Townshend J-200's and standard Gibson J-200's.

Fun fact, The Edge is in a The Who DVD. There is a 3 DVD set called "Amazing Journey: The Story of The Who". One of the discs is entitled: "Amazing Journey: Six Quick Ones". There are a few different snippets of interview footage of The Edge talking about Pete Townshend. In the interview he mentions how "All Because of You" was a nod to The Who.

Adam might have gotten Edge to revisit The Who, as he began using the same Ashdown bass amp setup as The Who's John Entwhistle for the Elevation and Vertigo tours and lately has gotten into Warwick bass guitars as Entwhistle used them.
 
The Edge used Taylor acoustic guitars, not Washburn, during the Elevation tour.

He began using a Taylor 710 dreadnought during the Popmart tour.

For the Elevation tour, Edge used the following.

TAYLOR - 614ce - auditorium - 200x - tobacco sunburst finish/maple back & sides
TAYLOR - 710 - dreadnought - 199x - natural cedar finish/rosewood back & sides
TAYLOR - 814ce - auditorium - 200x - natural finish/rosewood back & sides
TAYLOR - 914ce - auditorium - 200x - tobacco sunburst finish/rosewood back & sides


He began using a Taylor 710 dreadnought during the Popmart tour.
TAYLOR - 710 - dreadnought - 199x - natural cedar finish/rosewood back & sides

STARING AT THE SUN - JOHANNESBURG 1998
YouTube - U2 - Staring At The Sun (from POPMart Johannesburg)


STAY (FARAWAY, SO CLOSE!) - BARCELONA 2001
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ARFUDWTKmPo


TAYLOR - 814ce - auditorium - 200x - natural finish/rosewood back & sides
PLEASE - AUSTIN, TX 2001
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cF-nGH2oKbw

IN GODS COUNTRY - MIAMI 2001
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r7F9943w7Qo


TAYLOR - 914ce - auditorium - 200x - tobacco sunburst finish/rosewood back & sides
STAY (FARAWAY, SO CLOSE!) - BOSTON 2001
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9NwpA8CoL-8&feature=related
 
On what songs does Edge use a 12 string?


Angel Of Harlem (Love Town tour)
Played on the 1967 Fireglo finish 330 12-string.
YouTube - U2 - Angel of Harlem HQ (live 1988)

Even Better Than The Real Thing (Every tour, Zoo to present)
Originally played on the 1967 Fireglo finish 330 12-string, it is now played on the 1966 Fireglo finish 330 12-string, as the 1967 was damaged/destroyed in the flood in U2's storage room at Hanover Quay in 2002.
YouTube - U2 La Plata 2011-03-30 Intro / Even Better Than The Real Thing - U2gigs.com

Mysterious Ways (Every tour, Zoo to present)
Originally played on the 1967 Fireglo finish 330 12-string, it is now played on the 1967 Mapleglo finish 330 12-string; and has since the Vertigo tour. As mentioned, the previously used 1967 was damaged/destroyed in the flood in U2's storage room at Hanover Quay in 2002.
YouTube - U2 360 - Mysterious Ways live at the Rose Bowl (HD)

Gone (Every tour played: Popmart and Elevation tours)
Played on the 1967 Fireglo 330 12-string. If you check the Boston DVD, you will see two different guitars as it is compiled from a couple of nights. The 1967 Fireglo 330 12-string and a black Rickenbacker 360 12-string. The black was used the night after Edge threw the Fireglo 330 12-string to the floor and kicked it. The Fireglo was damaged but quickly repaired, only to perish in the flood in 2002.
YouTube - U2 - Gone (Live From Mexico City)

Sometimes You Can't Make It On Your Own (Vertigo tour 2006)
Played on the 1966 Firglo finish 330 12-string.
YouTube - U2 Sometimes you can't make it on your own Live form Mlian

Window In The Skies (Vertigo tour 2006)
Played on the 1966 Firglo finish 330 12-string.
YouTube - U2 - Window In The Skies - Live Hawaii (2006/12/09)

As for 12-string acoustic... The Edge has to Martin 12 string acoustic guitars on the tour, or at least they were travelling on the tour in 2009. The main being a Martin 1972 Natural D12-28 Acoustic/Electric and the backup a Martin 2009 Natural D12-28 Acoustic/Electric. They were used at the Barcelona rehearsals for "Drowning Man" which thus far, has not seen the light of day in a show.

Rehearsal footage, not the best audio quality, of the band running through "Drowning Man". Taken from outside the stadium.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72G-_9prRSI
Martin 2009 Natural D12-28 Acoustic/Electric
 
Lest I forget... "Love Rescue Me" was the Fireglo 1967 Rickenbacker 12-string.

I think that Edge/Dallas bought the 1967 Rickenbacker 12-string during The Joshua Tree tour. It seems that Edge was quite keen to use it, hence it showing up on "Love Rescue Me" and "Angel of Harlem" on the following record, and again on two songs on the following album, Achtung Baby ("...Real Thing" and "Mysterious Ways")

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TodnbwT6FPs
 
Just the story of how he bought it. Like the Explorer story.

I've not heard a story of when he bought it.

I know that he mentioned that he had a Stratocaster that he didn't like. That was the one that you can see in the youtube footage of "Street Mission".

YouTube - ‪U2 Street Mission extended version 1978‬‏

Two stories emerged about what was to have been bought next, when he eventually bought the Explorer. Some stated that he was looking for a Rickenbacker. Probably as he'd seen The Jam and wanted one as Paul Weller played them in The Jam. Later stories have him saying that he was looking for a Les Paul. Maybe that is revisionist? Maybe he was looking for one of either.

So there was the sunburst Stratocaster. Then he bought the Explorer in New York when he came to the U.S. on vacation with his family. black Stratocaster seems to have been next. I am guessing that the 1973 "Blackie" Fender Stratocaster might have been bought with record company advance money? (Unconfirmed).

You can see it in footage from 1980.

YouTube - ‪U2 I will Follow - Get it Together ITV 1980‬‏

Edge has told a funny story about when they went into the studio to record "Boy". Steve Lillywhite (Producer) asked "what other guitars do you have? Edge said: That is it. We've one guitar! So it might have been then that a Stratocaster was borrowed for the studio or the 1973 Stratocaster could have been bought during or just after the sessions.

So for most U2 fans, it was the Explorer that we saw first. Then the black Stratocaster. Third was the Black Sonex. Quickly followed by the (auctioned) 1975 Gibson Les Paul Custom and the Washburn Woodstock Festival acoustic.
 
isn't that a Fender Lead II in the video above? I think Bono usually played that guitar live in the old days...

Sorry to bring up an older thread but I've always been curious about the black strat... isn't his original black strat from 1979? at least from '76 or later? In old photos of the guitar you can see that there's a serial# on the headstock. Fender started putting the serial# on the headstock in 1976.

I thought the black strat with the white pickguard was from 1973..

Check this early photo... you can see that there's a serial# on the headstock... barely but it is there just below 'Fender'

What do you guys think?

U2s-The-Edge-very-early-promo-photo.jpg

 
OffYourFace said:
isn't that a Fender Lead II in the video above? I think Bono usually played that guitar live in the old days...

Sorry to bring up an older thread but I've always been curious about the black strat... isn't his original black strat from 1979? at least from '76 or later? In old photos of the guitar you can see that there's a serial# on the headstock. Fender started putting the serial# on the headstock in 1976.

I thought the black strat with the white pickguard was from 1973..

Check this early photo... you can see that there's a serial# on the headstock... barely but it is there just below 'Fender'

What do you guys think?

E_O has disappeared on us so ill try to answer. Bono did use the fender lead as his main guitar and i think only guitar on the boy to war tour. I'm pretty sure Dallas has said the original blackie is a 76 I'm not home right now to confirm. Another Rumor is that the original blackie was changed during the baby sessions to have a white pick guard. Not sure about the serial #.
Edge has 2 black with white pick guards pretty sure one is a 73 and the other a 76.
 
The 2009 Music Radar online interview, Dallas referred to the 1973 as being the original 'Blackie'. But I am not 100% sure that is the case.

You are correct about the serial number. Also, the black pickups/black pickguard wasn't an option until 1976.

So at best, if the 1973 IS the original 'Blackie', then it was altered to begin with.

What is also possible, is that the neck was changed at some point. I remember seeing a pic of a few spare necks hanging in the studio.

So... it could have been a 1979. It could have had the neck swapped at some point. And Dallas could have read the serial number on the replacement neck and thought it was the original?

More to learn on this one...


Edge did have two black Strats with white pickguards on the 360 tour but they were 1974 and 1976. The 1973 was the all black Strat. (Again, I am not 100% convinced that was the original blackie).

Original blackie had brass saddles installed. The 1976 seems to have brass saddles. So it is possible that the 1976 is the original 'Blackie'.
 
cool, thanks for the info! I think the '76 is the original one.. maybe one day we'll learn the facts. Glad I found this site :)

One thing I noticed on the '76 in the recent years, other than the white guard replacement and the removal of the graphite nut (thank god), there seems to be modified/replaced string retainers. I can never get a clear view of them.. maybe they're the Graphtec ones?

I've got a set of those old Charvel brass saddles like his on my Strat, i love the 'warmer' sustain.
 
Hi, I remember reading an interview with the Edge back in the late 90's where he mentiond the famed original black 70's Strat & he said that it was a 79.
He aslo said that he had quite a few replacements for the guitar now & that the original was actually destined to be given to the Hard Rock Cafe as they had asked him for a signed guitar.
On the night that Bono & the Edge were to go to the Hard Rock with the guitar the Edge came down with Flu & couldn't make it so Bono went on his own with the guitar! Edge had actually forgotten to sign it & when the Hard Rock management pointed out that it wasn't signed Bono grabbed a red marker pen from someone & signed it! To Bono's amazement the Hard Rock Cafe then seemed to be not happy that the guitar was signed by Bono & not its actual owner the Edge!!! In disgust at there attitude towards this Bono took the guitar back & said forget it then! Edge was joking that he now still had the guitar but that it had Bono's signature on it but luckely it was not very readable as red marker doesn't show up on black to well & that it was now fadeing.

The original Strat that we see in all the video's up until Rattle Hum is definately a post 76 Strat as it does have a serial number on the headstock & is also lacking the Comfort Countour decal from the ball end of the headstock which also dissapeared around 1976 when Fender moved the serial number from the neck plate to the headstock.
 
very interesting, thanks for sharing. I wish i knew where to find that article. I just bought a super clean all-original 1977 black strat from guitar center hollywood. It's super light and was too good of a deal to pass up on. :doh:
 
The only two guitars i really want are the black strat and the explorer
They are sooo beautiful
 
Unusual to see the trem back plate on a Gigging/touring Strat! Usually they get left off by the techs for the regular string changes & adjustments as those plate string access holes never truley line up with the bridge block string holes!
 
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