Grammy-winning guitarist Peter Frampton’s heavily customized 1954 Les Paul Custom is one of the most recognized guitars in rock history, having been featured on his massive-selling Frampton Comes Alive! album as well as many Humble Pie recordings and other historic albums in which Peter was a session player. Presumed lost when a cargo plane crashed in Venezuela in 1980, the guitar was returned to Peter in 2012, restored, and measured in precise detail.
At the time Peter was notified of the find he said: “I am still in a state of shock, first off, that the guitar even exists let alone, that it has been returned to me. I know I have my guitar back, but I will never forget the lives that were lost in this crash. I am so thankful for the efforts of those who made this possible… and now that it is back I am going insure it for 2 million dollars and it’s never going out of my sight again! It was always my #1 guitar and it will be reinstated there as soon as possible – some minor repairs are needed.’
Peter chats about the guitar in this short video from Gibson