A 2012 Gibson Custom Shop Super 400 RB, serial #10202001 in natural finish. Owned and played by Randy Bachman, who has sold 40 million records worldwide as a member of The Guess Who, Bachman-Turner Overdrive, and as a solo artist. Custom made for Randy by Gibson and delivered to Randy at that year’s Summer NAMM show.

Randy’s love affair with the Super 400 model began by way of Merle Travis, the country music super star that Randy was fortunate enough to play with as part of a televised performance on the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation aired in the late 1970s. As Bachman and Travis rehearsed for the show, along with Canadian jazz and swing guitarist Ed Bickert, Travis took a liking to Bachman, calling him “My Guitar Buddy.” Randy helped carry Travis’ twin, identical Gibson Super 400 guitars –– one a spare in the event of a broken string –– and as a token of thanks, Travis gifted the spare to Randy at the end of their time together.

"After the show I have my picture taken with him, with the guitar, I take the guitars back to the four seasons, the show’s over, and when I get to my room he says, ‘You’re my little guitar buddy, I want to give you my spare guitar.’ He gives it to me, and I sit in my room at the Four Seasons just looking at this guitar. I take it out and play it. It’s phenomenal.”

Unfortunately, Randy wasn’t able to keep the guitar once Merle’s wife came looking for it. “Oh, darn it,” she signed. “He’s always giving that thing away to anyone who helps him.” Bachman did the right thing and relinquished the Gibson, but the seeds of desire had already been planted.

Years later, Randy’s personal friend Chet Atkins had Gibson fashion two Super 4000s –– a Super 400 model, but with a much thinner body to save wear and tear on the shoulder from reaching your strumming arm across a deep jazz box guitar. A short while later, Gibson invited Randy to Summer NAMM and offered to make him whatever he wanted, and his request was a thin-bodied Super 4000 just like Chet’s. Sure enough, upon arrival this guitar was waiting for him courtesy of Gibson’s famous and now defunct Memphis factory.

A 25.5 inch scale length five piece flame maple neck with stinger, a bound 20 fret ebony fretboard with split block inlays, mother of pearl split diamond and Gibson logo inlays on the headstock, and “RB” for Randy Bachman on the truss rod cover. The body has an arched spruce top, flame maple back and sides, and multi-ply binding throughout. Gold hardware includes a Bigsby B6 vibrato, an no-wire ABR-1 bridge, and humbucker pickups. Three-way toggle switch, volume and tone controls for each pickup. Bound plastic tortoise shell pickguard.

Includes original black hardshell case with green crushed velvet interior.

PROVENANCE From The Collection of Randy Bachman

Guitars & Instruments, Randy Bachman