Gibson unveils 2018 Les Paul Junior Billie Joe Armstrong Signature model

Gibson has announced a new signature Les Paul Junior for Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong.

As part of his take on what he reckons is “by far the coolest guitar on the planet”, Billie Joe has spec’d a single ’57 Classic humbucker, as well as a mahogany body, mahogany slim taper neck and rosewood fingerboard.

Vintage Deluxe tuners and a chrome, non-compensated wraparound tailpiece round out the spec, while three finishes are available: Sonic Blue, Maraschino Cherry and Ebony.

“I like to keep things a blank canvas when it comes to guitars,” Billie Joe says, encouraging guitarists to “sticker it, carve it, paint it themselves, put their own identity to it”.

While we’re all for freedom of expression, we’re not sure many players will be comfortable defacing a guitar priced at $1,399.

Intriguingly, the model is listed under Gibson’s 2018 model year, despite the troubled guitar giant’s 2019 range being pretty much ready to go, as CEO Henry Juszkiewicz confirmed last month.

For more info on the Billie Joe Armstrong Les Paul Junior, head on over to Gibson.

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Michael Astley-Brown

Mike has been Editor-in-Chief of GuitarWorld.com since 2019, and an offset fiend and recovering pedal addict for far longer. He has a master's degree in journalism from Cardiff University, and 15 years' experience writing and editing for guitar publications including MusicRadar, Total Guitar and Guitarist, as well as 20 years of recording and live experience in original and function bands. During his career, he has interviewed the likes of John Frusciante, Chris Cornell, Tom Morello, Matt Bellamy, Kirk Hammett, Jerry Cantrell, Joe Satriani, Tom DeLonge, Radiohead's Ed O'Brien, Polyphia, Tosin Abasi, Yvette Young and many more. His writing also appears in the The Cambridge Companion to the Electric Guitar. In his free time, you'll find him making progressive instrumental rock as Maebe.