Billy Gibbons’ Pearly Gates is one of the most iconic Les Pauls of all time. Now it’s receiving a Collector’s Edition run from the Gibson Custom Shop – but getting one won’t be straightforward.
The Gibson Custom Billy Gibbons “Pearly Gates” 1959 Les Paul Standard Collector’s Edition is a faithful recreation of the ZZ Top legend’s 1959 LP.
Gibson leaned into “in-depth examination, cutting-edge 3D scans, and precise measurements” to reproduce a guitar that Gibbons hasn’t found a rival to, despite decades of searching.
That also means its body has been aged and relic’d by the Murphy Lab, and it features painstaking replicas of its original P.A.F.-style humbuckers.
Recalling in an interview how he got his hands on the original, Gibbons remembers, “[A friend] said, 'I know you were looking for another one of those Gibson guitars.
“'There’s a cowboy who’s got a ranch outside of town. He may have what you were looking for.'
“We had a girlfriend named Renee Thomas,” he continues. “She said, ‘I’ve got an invitation to go audition for a part in a movie, but I have to get back to California.’ We decided that she should have this 1936 Packard automobile.
“Next thing you know, the phone rang, and she said, ‘I got the part. I blame it on Pearly Gates,’” he continues. He asked the inevitable question: What’s Pearly Gates?
“She goes, ‘Oh, that’s the name I gave the car. That do you want me to do with the car?’”
On Gibbons’ advice, they sold the car for $250. The money, he says, landed in his pocket the very day he was heading off to the ranch to check out the Gibson.
Gibbons says, “He opened the case and said, ‘Can you give me $250?’ I whipped out the check then and there. The word got back to Renee, and she goes, ‘It’s going to make divine music.’”
The name transferred from car to guitar, and the rest, as they say, is history.
As for this Collector's Edition reissue, there is a slight catch for those who want to get their mitts on the guitar.
It’s available exclusively as part of an event package, which includes an invitation to attend an exclusive evening with Billy Gibbons at the Gibson Garage Nashville.
The evening is being described as “the ultimate fan experience” and includes a private Q&A with Gibbons, an intimate live performance, a personal meet-and-greet, and a photo opportunity.
There are only 30 spots available, and interested readers are encouraged to call the Gibson Garage Nashville at (615) 933-6000 to reserve a place. A price hasn't been listed.
Visit Gibson to see the guitar in more detail.
