Iron Maiden guitarist Adrian Smith recently shared a fascinating story about his private encounter with one of rock history’s most mythical instruments. In a brand new interview with Eonmusic to promote the upcoming Smith/Kotzen tour, Smith detailed the time he spent with “Greeny,” the 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard currently owned by Metallica‘s Kirk Hammett.
The guitar, previously owned by Fleetwood Mac founder Peter Green and Irish blues-rock legend Gary Moore, is famous for its unique out-of-phase sound and storied lineage. According to Smith, the instrument lives up to the hype.
“Well, there’s no doubt about it, that is a special guitar,” Smith told Eonmusic‘s Eamon O’Neill. “The mojo is off the charts. Peter Green and Gary Moore, you know? And the classic middle position, the out-of-phase neck pickup; [you flick it over], and there it is, the sound!”
Smith explained that the opportunity arose purely by chance when he ran into Hammett at a hotel in Canada.
“Kirk‘s a great guy. He’s a lovely guy, and I bumped into him in a hotel in Canada. We were just waiting for the lift… and Metallica were there,” Smith recalled. “And the first thing I said to him, I said, ‘Oh, you bought Greeny.’ He goes, ‘Yeah.’ He says, ‘I’ve got it. You want to play?’ I said, ‘Yeah.'”
Smith then accompanied Hammett and rock photographer Ross Halfin to Hammett‘s room. Naturally, Smith knew exactly what riff to bust out first.
“He gave me the guitar and a little practice amp, and of course, I did ‘Oh Well‘ [Fleetwood Mac song], you know, of course,” Smith said.
In a surprising display of trust involving an instrument valued at nearly $2 million, Hammett actually left the guitar in Smith‘s custody for the afternoon while he went to work.
“[Kirk] says, ‘Look, I’ve got to go out.’ Him and Ross were doing photos, so he said, ‘Take the guitar,'” Smith revealed. “So I took it to my hotel room and I had a little practice amp in there, and I just played it all afternoon. It plays great. It’s the intonation, the feel, the sound. I mean, it’s just a wonderful, it’s a great guitar.”
Smith concluded by expressing his respect for Hammett‘s decision to keep the guitar on the road rather than behind glass.
“I’m glad somebody’s using it, and it’s not on a wall in somebody’s air controlled, climate-controlled guitar locker. It’s out there being played, as it should be.”
