Adrian, Janick and Dave's guitars and Steve's basses

It's crazy to me how hard Janick is on his guitars. At least all the wear and tear is earned haha.

To me, his black strat is probably the second most iconic guitar in Maiden history (third if you include Steve's bass).

Also, do we know why he switched back to a Hot Rails pickup in the black strat?
 
Iron Brody said:
It's crazy to me how hard Janick is on his guitars. At least all the wear and tear is earned haha.

To me, his black strat is probably the second most iconic guitar in Maiden history (third if you include Steve's bass).

Also, do we know why he switched back to a Hot Rails pickup in the black strat?
Click to expand...
I'd go 4th or 5th with that one.

For me, Dave's Kossoff Strat, Dave's California Series Strat and Adrian's Goldtop are in front.
 
Meliegree said:
I can get Kossoff and California but why goldtop?
Click to expand...
It's THE Adrian Smith guitar for me. As simple as that, Appeared throughut IM career from Killers until Maiden England tour and is on most albums,

Also, there are 2 Janick black Strats. One is a true 64 and one is a custom shop from 1998 or so. I'd argue that the Custom Shop is more iconic.
 
matic22 said:
It's THE Adrian Smith guitar for me. As simple as that, Appeared throughut IM career from Killers until Maiden England tour and is on most albums,

Also, there are 2 Janick black Strats. One is a true 64 and one is a custom shop from 1998 or so. I'd argue that the Custom Shop is more iconic.
Click to expand...
That was my brainfart, sorry for that - when you said gold top I was thinking about Jackson for some reason. That makes more sense now :-)

For me top 3 iconic Maiden guitars are:
1) Steve West Ham bass,
2) Adrian gold top,
3) Janick black strat but with VERY close Kossoff strat here.
 
Meliegree said:
That was my brainfart, sorry for that - when you said gold top I was thinking about Jackson for some reason. That makes more sense now :-)

For me top 3 iconic Maiden guitars are:
1) Steve West Ham bass,
2) Adrian gold top,
3) Janick black strat but with VERY close Kossoff strat here.
Click to expand...
I know he doesn't play it any more but the Adrian Lado Earth has to be on the list. Hugely prized by Maidenhead guitar players.

Also, I know it's supposedly the same instrument but the Blue Sparkle bass is just as iconic.

Basically all the Live After Death guitars.
 
Strings74 said:
I know he doesn't play it any more but the Adrian Lado Earth has to be on the list. Hugely prized by Maidenhead guitar players.

Also, I know it's supposedly the same instrument but the Blue Sparkle bass is just as iconic.

Basically all the Live After Death guitars.
Click to expand...
Lado was there for just 1 tour, so not for me.
 
matic22 said:
I'd go 4th or 5th with that one.

For me, Dave's Kossoff Strat, Dave's California Series Strat and Adrian's Goldtop are in front.
Click to expand...
That's fair! I forgot about the Goldtop

My personal rankings look something like this:
1. Steve's Bass (blue and West Ham)
2. Dave's Kossoff Strat
3. Janick's Black Custom Shop Strat (thanks for the reminder on that fact)
4. H's Green Jackson & the assorted White Jacksons
5. The Goldtop
6. Dave's Sunburst
7. Janick's white strats

I know how important H's Goldtop is (and I do love it), BUT I've never seen him play it in person like I have with his Jacksons. Plus the Green burst is pretty unique to him

matic22 said:
It's THE Adrian Smith guitar for me. As simple as that, Appeared throughut IM career from Killers until Maiden England tour and is on most albums,

Also, there are 2 Janick black Strats. One is a true 64 and one is a custom shop from 1998 or so. I'd argue that the Custom Shop is more iconic.
Click to expand...
What's the current status on his original 64? Is it just forever locked away?
 
Iron Brody said:
That's fair! I forgot about the Goldtop

My personal rankings look something like this:
1. Steve's Bass (blue and West Ham)
2. Dave's Kossoff Strat
3. Janick's Black Custom Shop Strat (thanks for the reminder on that fact)
4. H's Green Jackson & the assorted White Jacksons
5. The Goldtop
6. Dave's Sunburst
7. Janick's white strats

I know how important H's Goldtop is (and I do love it), BUT I've never seen him play it in person like I have with his Jacksons. Plus the Green burst is pretty unique to him


What's the current status on his original 64? Is it just forever locked away?
Click to expand...
Multiple guitars in one spot don't count.

AFAIK, the original 64 is at Janick's house and has been retired since X Factour. Sometimes it pops up for an occasional photoshoot and it appeared on Top Of The Pops.

This is the original 64, it still has Hot Rails and not JB Jnr's:
1725914055511.png

Speaking of 64 Strats...
1725914171503.png
 
matic22 said:
Multiple guitars in one spot don't count.
Click to expand...
Okay fine :D I was just trying to simplify haha

Here's the order of the guitars I grouped:
Adrian's guitars:
1. Original 80's White Jackson
2. Green Jackson
3. Prototype Jackson, Black PG + Maple fretboard
4. Prototype Jackson, White PG + Ebony fretboard

Janick's:
1. White Spirit Strat
2. White 60s reissue
3. White CS Strat
 
Iron Brody said:
Okay fine :D I was just trying to simplify haha

Here's the order of the guitars I grouped:
Adrian's guitars:
1. Original 80's White Jackson
2. Green Jackson
3. Prototype Jackson, Black PG + Maple fretboard
4. Prototype Jackson, White PG + Ebony fretboard

Janick's:
1. White Spirit Strat
2. White 60s reissue
3. White CS Strat
Click to expand...
There are 2. This year's main Green Jackson is a different one (he swapped the 2 around this year). The prototype is now the backup and the production backup is now the main guitar.
 
Strings74 said:
Saw this on reddit. Adrian's Jackson with the 2 Minutes to Midnight artwork.

View attachment 38787View attachment 38788
Click to expand...
Adrian fully embracing his mid-life crisis. Other people buy fast cars, black Aviators and leather jackets, he had a guitar with one of his songs's artworks on the body.

matic22 said:
Lado was there for just 1 tour, so not for me.
Click to expand...
He used it during the Seventh Tour for The Clairvoyant (it appears in the official video from the Donington '88 show). And if I'm not mistaken he had it during the Somewhere on Tour as well, maybe as a backup.

Iron Brody said:
What's the current status on his original 64? Is it just forever locked away?
Click to expand...
Retired just like Dave's Kossoff. Guess he keeps it at home, after all it's a '64 Stratocaster, which makes it a prized guitar in itself.

matic22 said:
It's THE Adrian Smith guitar for me. As simple as that, Appeared throughut IM career from Killers until Maiden England tour and is on most albums,

Also, there are 2 Janick black Strats. One is a true 64 and one is a custom shop from 1998 or so. I'd argue that the Custom Shop is more iconic.
Click to expand...
Honestly the replica was so well done I'd feel fair to say almost nobody noticed the difference.

BTW my personal top 5 would be:
  1. Dave's Kossoff Stratocaster. To me it's THE Iron Maiden guitar. It was there from the beginning to the end of the golden years, it appears in their most famous videos and on their live and bootlegs from the '80s, it was the base for his next guitars, Fender made a signature model out of it, plus there's its background and the fact that it was a Superstrat, but with a more classic and elegant look given it originally was a Stratocaster. And the silvery crowns around the humbuckers were splendid. It's like a black E-Type made guitar. No wonder Dave got away with being such a womanizer before marrying, he got a Jaaag.
  2. Adrian's Goldtop. Agree, he used it extensively throughout his all career, he debuted it on Killers and 30+ years later he was still using it. Also a very solid guitar, with a great sound, it was his main axe during most of the Final Frontier tour actually.
  3. Janick's Black Stratocaster. As I hinted above, regardlessly if it's the original or the CS replica, in the end they're almost identical. Love the worn finish and the setup.
  4. Adrian's Destroyer. He didn't use it that much actually, only Beast on the Road and World Piece Tour I think (maybe World Slavery too?), but my jaw literally dropped when he took it out during Maiden England's first night.
  5. Fifth, I don't know... probably either Jan's Chet Atkins or Dave's old faithful, the sunburnst Strat which became his second signature model.
I would also mention the HSH Strat Dave used in 2015-2016. A trip down memory lane for sure.
 
Murder of Rue Morgue said:
He used it during the Seventh Tour for The Clairvoyant (it appears in the official video from the Donington '88 show). And if I'm not mistaken he had it during the Somewhere on Tour as well, maybe as a backup.
Click to expand...
Not the same guitar. World Slavery Tour was 2 Earths and Seventh Tour was a Laser equipped with a Roland system. It indeed was one of the backups for the white Roland Jackson (the other backup was the Jackson that ended up in Matt's Guitar Shop)
Murder of Rue Morgue said:
  1. Adrian's Destroyer. He didn't use it that much actually, only Beast on the Road and World Piece Tour I think (maybe World Slavery too?), but my jaw literally dropped when he took it out during Maiden England's first night.
Click to expand...
Again, not the same guitar. The original Number Of The Beast Destroyer (used on 80% of TNOTB, with the exception of COTD and the title track) is a rare set-neck Japanese Destroyer II, aka DT300, purchased on the Killers tour. It has been in a warehouse flood in mid 2000's and is unplayable according to Adrian (mentioned in an Eddie Trunk interview, one of the callers asked, either during TFF or TBOS press sessions). It hangs in H's home studio, paint is bubbled and the white stripe is half gone.

The red Destroyer on ME tour was a newer DT420 with block inlays.

1725918503928.png
Destroyer II aka DT300

1725918560455.png
2002 Destroyer aka DT420
 
My personal ranking of the guitars would be:

  • Steve's West Ham bass (his blue bass is also a contender)
  • Janick's black Strat
  • Adrian's Goldtop
  • Dave's black and white Strat (or his signature sunburst Strat)
  • Adrian's red Destroyer
  • Adrian's Jacksons
  • Janick's white Strat
  • Adrian's Lado
...

Adrian's green Jackson is so cool.
 
Kalata said:
  • Steve's West Ham bass (his blue bass is also a contender)
Click to expand...
Same bass, but repainted in early 90's. Was originally white and then black around the time of Iron Maiden, the album.

Used on almost all of the Iron Maiden discography, with the exception of some Piece Of Mind tracks (The Trooper and Die With Your Boots On being two of them) and Run To The Hills, which were the Ibanez bass with an additional Jazz pickup (PJ configuration).
 
Last edited:
FOR ME the most iconic Maiden guitars are:

1). Steve's West Ham bass
2). Adrian's Goldtop
3). Dave's Kossoff Strats
4). Janick's black Strat (custom shop)
5). Adrian's White Jackson Super-Strat (SIT and SSOASS Tours)
6). Dave's CAR Jackson (NPFTD and FOTD Tours mainly)
7). Adrian's Lado Earth (gray)
8). Janick's white Strat
9). Dave's California Series Strat
10). IDK, probably Adrian's green Jackson, Janick's Chet Atkins or Adrian's DT300
 
Last edited:
1726020429044.jpeg

The sunburst strat has become a bit forgotten after he switched back to Jackson in 2008, but a very nice guitar. It also started the Rock in Rio show in 2001, that alone makes it iconic to me!
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top