For a limited time, save in the Gibson European Demo Shop. This guitar was favored by Lifeson as his primary instrument for soloing - in particular the solo for the band's hit single "Limelight" , and can be seen in the . Wow.and I thought I was a Rush dork!! Lifeson said it had a really nice balance when he played it, and it had everything he looks for in a guitar. Home Guitarists Alex Lifeson Guitars and Gear List (2023 Update). I'm a huge Rush fan and Alex Lifeson was the reason I picked up a guitar. He also has another early 90s PRS in Tobacco Sunburst that has a signature pickup in the bridge positionfrom his old Signature Aurora days. 1 of 2 Go to page. The words Fender, Telecaster, Stratocaster and the associated headstock designs are registered trademarks of the Fender Musical Instruments Corporation. Looking for a bit more lead boost during live performances, Lifeson added the Hughes & Kettner Coreblade to his amp setup for the Time Machine tour in 2011. Lifeson began his musical journey at a young age, playing the viola. Next Last. All his Strats were 1977 models and I believe all had alder bodies. Geddy Lee also has a set of Moog Taurus Bass Pedals on his pedalboard, preset with different sounds. Currency: To reflect our commitment, we updated our terms and conditions. The 3 way Gibson switch is super simple and more intuitive than soldering a 5-way blade selector - the routing to place the switch on the lower horn will be a bit of work of course, but perfectly doable with a hand drill. Theres no guitar player that sounds exactly like Alex Lifeson. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. ), Gibson three way switch on the lower horn, 5 way with that? It looked like a Fender Stratocaster with a few stark differences. You must log in or register to reply here. Alex Lifeson loves to have piezo pickups and dual outputs built into his guitars. Alex Lifeson uses three of his signature Hughes & Kettner amps on stage. When Jeff Jones left the band, he was replaced by Lifesons high school friend Geddy Lee. Its an HSS, two knobs (volume / tone) with a Floyd rose non fine tuner trem (no locking nut). It requires routing a pocket for the switch and two channels for the new wiring location. Signature is the brand not to be confused with a fender signature strat. Handmade by luthier Freddy Gabrsek in Ontario, Canada, this guitar was made for me that took nearly 10 months to complete. This isn't normally my thing, but I wanted to find out what made the mid 80's Alex Lifeson so distinct. England and Wales company registration number 2008885. Ok, got to work on the body today. The Bridgette Bardot reference? To reflect our commitment, we updated our terms and conditions. Some of you may know of the Hentor Sportscaster, a 1973 white Fender strat that Alex Lifeson modded. I mean I know some guys name their guitars, never heard of naming your speakers. What would a lead guitarist be without an awesome wah pedal!? Wtf? Germany, Anyone know the details of that white strat with the black pickguard he used for a while? including the Gibson ES-355TD nicknamed "Whitie" a built-in custom guitar from 1976, and the Hentor Sportscaster guitar, built for him in 1980. Be gentle. While his 76 ES-355 might not be his primary player anymore, its still one of Lifesons favorite guitars and frequently goes on tour with him. According to Rushisaband.com, Niagara On The Lake luthier Freddy Gebrsek has received permission from RUSH guitarist Alex Lifeson to create and sell replicas of his Hentor Sportscaster, which Alex used extensively during the early 1980s. To power his arsenal of guitars, Alex Lifeson needs quite a few amps to project his sound to a stadium filled with thousands of people. This was Lifeson's favorite guitar to use during the recordings . From 1980 to 1986, Lifeson used four identically modified Stratocasters, all of them equipped with the Floyd Rose bridge. I'm a huge Rush fan and Alex Lifeson was the reason I picked up a guitar. All he would do after he got home from school is go to his room and play guitar. ET and 1 p.m. Go. Lifeson prefers to use the Dunlop Cry Baby Wah to help his solo parts stand out. JavaScript is disabled. Success! His bandmates even call him The Musical Scientist because of his sound experimentation. Are you thinking of painting/finishing this thing yourself? Then I found where Freddy G. said the wiring is Bridge/Neck + Middle/Neck, and I can't for the life of me figure out how . In 2010, the sound experts at Hughes & Kettner gave Alex Lifeson his very own signature model amp. JULIEN'S AUCTIONS BEVERLY HILLS PUBLIC EXHIBITIONLOCATIONJulien's Auctions Beverly Hills257 N. Canon DriveBeverly Hills, CA 90210, Exhibition: Monday, April 11th, 2022 Friday, April 15th, 2022Daily: 11:00 a.m. 5:00 p.m. Pacific TimeFree to the Public, JULIEN'S AUCTIONS NEW YORK PUBLIC EXHIBITION& LIVE AUCTION LOCATIONHard Rock Cafe New York1501 Broadway-Times SquareNew York, NY 10036, Exhibition: Monday, May 16th, 2022 Friday, May 20th, 2022Daily: 11:00 a.m. 9:00 p.m. Eastern Time dailyFree to the Public, PROPERTY FROM THE ARCHIVES OF ALEX LIFESONFriday, May 20th, 2022Session I (Lots 1-466): 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time, MUSIC ICONSSaturday, May 21st, 2022Session II (Lots 467-856): 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time, MUSIC ICONSSunday, May 22nd, 2022Session III (Lots 857-1357): 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time, Phone: (310) 836-1818 | Fax: (310) 742-0155Email:info@juliensauctions.com. For a better experience, please enable JavaScript in your browser before proceeding. Special exhibitions will be held in Los Angeles and New York for the public to view highlighted items from the auction the week commencing April 11. It was created specifically for Rush's 40th Anniversary tour. Alex Lifeson Hentor Sportscaster Miniature Guitar Model Officially Licensed. That way, his sound engineer can manage the chorus instead of him having to worry about switching the pedal on and off while hes rocking the house on stage. I'm getting ready to tackle one of these as well - it's more of an "homage" than an exact copy of any particular instrument. It doesnt matter how skilled you are, if youre holding a double-neck, you look like a guitar hero! The Les Paul and the ES-335 became his two primary players through the rest of the 1970s and cemented his love for Gibson guitars, hollow-bodies, and Les Pauls. Thats what gives him that special Life-O-Sound that blends acoustic and electric sounds. Lifeson has been back and forth with his main guitars over the years, but ever since he landed a deal with Gibson for his signature Les Paul Axcess, the model became his undisputed favorite six-string for both stage and studio. Opens in a new window or tab. Although Alex Lifeson prefers (loves) Gibson guitars, he does dabble with some other manufacturers as well. Some of you may know of the Hentor Sportscaster, a 1973 white Fender strat that Alex Lifeson modded. each Greenback speaker says RUSH RH3 and Brigette Bardot 007 (spelled wrong I know). There is no back plate on the guitar, consistent with the original model. Aleksandar Zivojinovic, otherwise known by his stage name Alex Lifeson, is the lead guitarist for the legendary virtuosic rock trio, Rush. You must log in or register to reply here. I'll . Alex Lifeson Hentor Sportscaster Miniature Guitar Model Officially Licensed; Neil Peart: Drum God . The sound engineer also blends the amps together to get the perfect sound from backstage. "Julien's Auctions is proud to present this magnificent collection of coveted artifacts of rock history directly . Alex Lifeson: "I purchased this guitar in 1976, it was custom-built in Kalamazoo just for me. In the rock and roll world, theres hardly anything cooler than a double-necked guitar. It has the same pickups, bridge, and hardware that youd find on any 52 reissue. Phone: 310-836-1818 | Hard Prog Rock Geddy Lee Alex Lifeson Neil Peart. LOL. Lifesons Fender Super Reverb would stick with him for a few albums, including Fly by Night and Caress of Steel. A 1980 custom Hentor Sportscaster played by Lifeson on most Rush albums since "Moving Pictures," and was the main guitar used on the recording of the album "Grace Under . Learn More, We understand the importance of online privacy and are committed to complying with the EU General Data Protection Regulation. The pickups were Alnico II replicas of the legendary 1950s PAF humbuckers that made Lifesons original 355 sound so good. Some reference if you can stand the 80'sness of the videos. What is giving Ronnie Wood his tone in this song? Rush - Spirits of the Radio - Grace Under Pressure 1984 720 [HD] - YouTube, Rush Alex Lifeson Killerwatt Magazine Photo Mini Poster Pin Up | eBay. Gardena, Hey! Of course, seeing such an unknown guitar rocking stages all over the world, guitar players everywhere were trying to figure out what the heck a Hentor Sportscaster was! (Image credit: Julien's Auctions) Another highlight of the auction is a 1980 custom-built Hentor Sportscaster electric guitar, used during the recording of several Rush albums, in particular on 1984's Grace Under Pressure, where it was Lifeson's main recording guitar.. This splendid guitar was part of Rushs most explosive era of creativity. Its essentially an oversized hollow-body Les Paul. With his Carnoa in hand, Alex Lifeson started learning solos from his favorite players. Hopefully by this time next week I'll be able to show you th finished product. A few months ago I figured out, thanks to posts on forums like this, that I pretty much had the basic components needed to build my very own Hentor Sportscaster and have it be fairly period-correct. Replica Pat Martino 2015 - Honeyburst . So I have a few builds going on, but with some spare alder, tomorrow I will embark on a Hentor Sportcaster inspired strat. Early estimates suggest that "Whitey" will bring in $200,000 - $300,000 at auction. You are using an out of date browser. The Gibson HRF looks like Gibson took a Les Paul and threw some ES-335 into it. is it the Signature guitar he was using? In 2008, Freddy Gabrsek, a luthier based in Niagra-on-the-Lake, Ontario, requested permission to replicate and sell Alex Lifeson's white Sportscaster. Both are expected to fetch between $100,000 and $200,000. What are you waiting for. In 2010, the band wanted to go for a steampunk vibe. It was a real workhorse and I loved it.. In 2007 for the Snakes & Arrows tour, Lifeson added the Garrison OM-20 octave mandolin to his guitar arsenal. As a joke, he called these Hentor Sportscasters - a made-up name inspired by Peter Henderson's name, who was the producer of Grace Under Pressure. After the demise of his prized ES-335, Alex Lifeson swapped to using some of his Les Pauls and a few Fender Stratocasters, but there was still a semi-hollow hole left in his heart that those solid-body guitars just couldnt fill. These two upgrades as well as others are listed in my OPTIONS category. The body is from a 2014 Fender Japan ST62-FR. Lifeson picked up one of their mandolins to use for a handful of songs, and sometimes, for only part of a song. I don't know if helps that one is emulating tape the other emulating . A 1980 custom Hentor Sportscaster played by Lifeson on most Rush albums since Moving Pictures, and was the main guitar used on the recording of the album Grace Under Pressure. This guitar was favored by Lifeson as his primary instrument for soloing in particular the solo for the bands hit single Limelight, and can be seen in the music videos for Vital Signs, Countdown, and Enemy Within. The Sportscasters heavy yet versatile sound embodies Rushs bold sonic explorations of the 1980s and Lifesons growth as a soloist during this time. PRODUCER. Another guitar up for bids, Lifeson's 1980 custom-built Hentor Sportscaster electric guitar. Best regards! Alex Lifeson Hentor Sportscaster replica - Electric Guitars - Harmony Central. Surprisingly, Alex Lifeson is mostly self-taught. three way switch, large brass sustain block, Hentor Sportscaster logo on peghead face, Freddy Gabrsek logo and serial number on peghead back. Unfortunately, the Alex Lifeson Memphis ES-355 is no longer in production, but if youre lucky, you can still find a few for sale floating around the internet. Hentor Sportscaster; Gibson EDS-1275 Double-Neck; Epiphone Alex Lifeson Les Paul Standard Axcess; Gibson Les Paul Goldtop; Alex Has Also Used The Following . JavaScript is disabled. Although he doesnt play his signatures anymore, he did install a signature pickup into one of his primary PRSs he still brings on tour. Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Very nice build and glad to hear that previous posts and discussion helped with your build. Although Lifeson helped propel Signature to new heights by showing off its capabilities on stage, the Signature Guitar Company ultimately closed its doors in 1990, and Lifeson switched back to Gibsons and PRSs. GOLFER. Alexs only stipulation was that for every guitar sold, a portion of the profit goes to his charity Grapes Under Pressure. The cheapest option is to buy an old body with the right routing for the pickups and start there, though you will have to compromise on something whether its having a Floyd recess, the color, etc. In 2008, Alex Lifeson teamed up with his favorite guitar-makers to create a signature Gibson ES-355 thats (almost) as good as his original 1976 model.