Shawn Mendes employs an old-school Silvertone for a raw electric guitar cover of Billie Eilish's Happier Than Ever

Pop superstar Shawn Mendes stopped by the UK's BBC Radio 1 for a Live Lounge performance of a partially stripped-back cover of Billie Eilish's Happier Than Ever.

Remaining faithful to the original's first section, the Stitches singer accompanies his silky vocals with some soft nylon-string classical guitar, before picking up what looks to be a Silvertone 1449 electric guitar and nailing a perfect crunch tone for a more subdued take on the track's closing act.

After delivering a pretty-much-perfect vocal performance throughout, Mendes lets loose with some dynamically more aggressive powerchords and the occasional wailing lead bend during the outro, allowing the tremolo and reverb that's tastefully added to his guitar sound to really shine.

While we're confident the guitar is a 1449 model from the early '60s – at the time it came with a case equipped with a five-watt tube amp – it could well be a Silvertone 1457 from 1967, as the two guitars boast an identical Red Silver Flake Burst finish.

During his appearance at the Live Lounge, Mendes also played Summer of Love, his standalone 2021 single with Puerto Rican producer and songwriter Tainy.

Happier Than Ever is the title track from Billie Eilish's sophomore studio album, which arrived back in July.