Mastodon’s love for Silverburst electric guitars is well-known – and it first began when one of Bill Kelliher’s guitars got stolen.
Every player has their favorite finish. Some like sunburst, others are partial to Butterscotch Blonde. For Kelliher and bandmate Troy Sanders, Silverburst is their go-to colorway.
The finish has dominated their stage and studio guitars, with Kelliher famously donning a Silverburst Les Paul and an ultra-heavy ESP signature guitar kitted out in the same color.
As Kelliher explains in the new issue of Guitar World, the colorway’s rarity was partly the reason for his fascination with it. But only partly.
“They were so rare in the wild,” he notes of his fondness of the finish. “But I found one when I was a kid. I remember going to [Geneseo, New York’s] Big B Buzzo’s Music and putting $50 down on a Les Paul Custom Silverburst.
“This was 40 years ago, and it was probably $500. I never went back to get it. I always felt so shitty that I never did.”
Fortunately, Kelliher would run into another single-cut Silverburst when one of his other six-strings got stolen while on the road.
“One time I had a guitar stolen when we were in Houston,” he reveals. “We pulled over to a Sam Ash or a Guitar Center and there was a used Silverburst Les Paul Custom on the wall, an ’82. It’s my favorite guitar. I still have it.
“That one has tons of mojo. Brent [Hinds] also had a Flying V Silverburst, so we both loved them. They just look fucking cool as hell!”
As far as reasons for liking a finish go, ‘They just look cool as hell’ is probably the most on-the-nose answer you could get.
That chance visit to the guitar store cemented Kelliher’s affection for Silverburst guitars, and the rest was history. Along with the likes of Adam Jones, the Mastodon riffer is one of the most notable Silverburst champions in the guitar world.
To read the full interview with Bill Kelliher, alongside features with Jake Kiszka and Anthrax, pick up the latest issue of Guitar World at Magazines Direct.
