What Guitar Does Jimmy Page Use?
Jimmy Page built one of rock history's most celebrated guitar collections — but his tone story is really about two specific instruments: Number One and Number Two, his 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standards. Everything else in his collection is a colour or character device; the Les Paul is his core instrument.
Primary Guitar: 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard ("Number One" and "Number Two")
Year: 1959
Body: Mahogany with figured maple top
Neck: Mahogany, 1959 profile (full, rounded C)
Fingerboard: Rosewood, 22 frets
Pickups: PAF (Patent Applied For) humbuckers — the original late-1950s Gibson pickups
Hardware: Chrome, ABR-1 Tune-O-Matic bridge, stop-tail piece
"Number One" — Sunburst finish, used for most Zeppelin studio recordings and many live performances. This guitar defines the Page tone on Led Zeppelin I, II, III, and IV.
"Number Two" — Sunburst, similar spec, slightly different neck profile. Used as primary touring backup and for specific recording contexts.
Why the 1959 Les Paul?
The 1959 Les Paul has several characteristics that distinguish it from other years:
- PAF humbuckers: Original Patent Applied For humbuckers with scatter-wound coils — each pickup slightly different, unpredictable, but characteristically warm and musical
- Neck profile: Fuller, rounder C profile than the later slim-taper designs — provides different resonance and playing feel
- Maple top construction: Adds brightness to the warm mahogany body — the characteristic "girth with clarity" that the Les Paul is known for
Page acquired his '59 Standard from Joe Walsh in 1969 — Walsh's own instrument, sold because Walsh had multiple 1959 Standards.
1958 Gibson Les Paul Custom ("Black Beauty")
Years used: Late 1960s–1970 (before Number One became primary)
Finish: Black (gold hardware)
Pickups: 3 humbuckers (neck, middle, bridge)
The Black Beauty was Page's primary guitar during his period as a session musician in London (1963–1966) and into his early Zeppelin period. It was stolen from a backstage location in 1970 and has not been recovered.
The Black Beauty's 3-humbucker configuration appears on early Zeppelin photos and in specific studio contexts.
Danelectro 3021
Used for: Slide guitar, open tunings, specific studio textures
Danelectro produces budget semi-hollow electric guitars with lipstick-tube single-coil pickups — a very different character from the Les Paul. Page used a Danelectro 3021 for specific Zeppelin tracks:
- "Kashmir" — the Danelectro in DADGAD tuning, slide-adjacent playing
- "In My Time of Dying" — slide guitar passages
- "White Summer" / "Black Mountain Side" — acoustic-style fingerpicking in DADGAD
The Danelectro's lighter weight and different resonance make it the appropriate tool for these compositions.
Gibson EDS-1275 Double-Neck
Used for: "Stairway to Heaven" live performances
The EDS-1275 is a twin-necked guitar with:
- 12-string neck (upper)
- 6-string neck (lower)
"Stairway to Heaven" has a 12-string acoustic section that transitions to 6-string electric lead — playing them sequentially requires either guitar changes or a double-neck. The EDS-1275 allows Page to play both sections without interruption.
Red finish — one of the most iconic stage images in rock history.
Gibson Les Paul Junior (Early Career)
Before the 1959 Standard, Page used a Gibson Les Paul Junior for early session work — a simpler, single-P90 Les Paul at significantly lower cost.
Bowed Guitar
Page famously used a cello bow on his guitar for certain passages — the bow on the strings creates a sustained, singing tone different from conventional picking. The technique, adapted from classical cello technique, appears in "Dazed and Confused" and other live performances.
Budget Alternatives
- Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard (~$600): Official Gibson-spec replica at budget price
- Gibson Les Paul Standard (current production, ~$2,500): Modern equivalent construction
- Gibson Custom Shop R9 (~$5,000+): Closest authentic replication of 1959 PAF characteristics
Why Page Kept a Whole Collection Instead of One Guitar
Unlike players such as Brian May or Angus Young, whose entire recorded output comes from essentially one guitar type, Page's catalog spans dramatically different sonic textures — the acoustic fingerpicking of "Black Mountain Side," the raw Telecaster grit of the first album, the layered orchestral scale of "Kashmir," the twin-neck necessity of "Stairway to Heaven" live. Each instrument in his collection was matched to a specific compositional need rather than used as a general-purpose tone source, which is why no single guitar (not even the celebrated '59 Les Paul) fully explains "Page's tone" the way a single instrument can for more genre-consistent players.
This matters practically: a player trying to replicate a specific Led Zeppelin song should match the guitar to that song's era and character first, rather than assuming the Les Paul-into-cranked-Marshall formula covers the whole catalog — it covers a large and important part of it, but genuinely not all of it.
Common Mistakes
Assuming the 1959 Les Paul is the answer for every Led Zeppelin song. As explained above, tracks like "Kashmir" and "Black Mountain Side" specifically use the Danelectro or acoustic instruments — a Les Paul-only approach to replicating the catalog misses a meaningful share of Page's actual guitar choices.
Overlooking why the Danelectro was chosen for specific tracks rather than treating it as a lesser instrument. As the Danelectro section explains, its lighter weight and distinct lipstick-pickup character were deliberately suited to open-tuning and slide work — it's a different tool for a different job, not a budget compromise standing in for the Les Paul.
Buying an EDS-1275 double-neck assuming it's necessary for studio recreation. As the guide notes, the double-neck was specifically a live-performance solution to avoid a guitar change mid-song — the actual studio recording of "Stairway to Heaven" used a Telecaster or Les Paul, making the double-neck unnecessary for anyone recreating the studio tone rather than the live show.
Underestimating how much the '59 Les Paul's specific PAF pickups and neck profile matter. As the "Why the 1959 Les Paul" section explains, the scatter-wound PAFs and fuller neck profile of this specific year produce a genuinely different feel and tone than later Les Paul reissues with more modern, consistent pickup winding — a detail worth knowing even for players not chasing exact vintage authenticity.
ToneStakr's Take
For players focused on the core, most recognizable Led Zeppelin II-through-IV tone, a quality Les Paul (an Epiphone 1959 Standard replica is a sensible budget entry point) into a cranked Marshall-style amp covers the majority of the catalog. Reserve the Telecaster, Danelectro, or double-neck purchases for players specifically chasing the first album, "Kashmir," or live "Stairway to Heaven" recreation — these are genuinely different tools for different songs, not upgrades on the path to a single unified Page tone.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is "Number One"?
Page's primary 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard, purchased from Joe Walsh in 1969, in a sunburst finish. It's the guitar behind the majority of Led Zeppelin's studio recordings and a large share of live performances throughout the band's career.
What guitar is on "Kashmir"?
A Danelectro 3021 in DADGAD tuning, not the Les Paul — the Danelectro's lighter body and distinct lipstick-tube single-coil pickups suited the track's textural, open-tuning requirements better than the warmer, heavier Les Paul.
What is the Gibson EDS-1275, and do I need one to replicate "Stairway to Heaven"?
A twin-necked guitar combining a 12-string neck and a 6-string neck in one instrument, used by Page live specifically to move between the song's 12-string intro and 6-string electric solo without a guitar change. It's not necessary for studio recreation, since the original recording used a Telecaster or Les Paul separately.
What happened to the Black Beauty Les Paul Custom?
It was stolen from a backstage location in 1970 and has never been recovered, making it one of the significant lost instruments in rock history and one of the defining guitars of Page's early career and session-musician period.
Is the Epiphone 1959 Les Paul Standard replica a legitimate way to get close to Page's tone?
Yes, for most practical purposes — it replicates the general spec (mahogany body, humbucker configuration, similar neck profile) at a fraction of the price of a genuine vintage instrument or Gibson Custom Shop reissue, closing much of the tonal gap for players not chasing exact vintage PAF authenticity.
Did Page use different guitars for studio recording versus live performance of the same songs?
Sometimes, yes — "Stairway to Heaven" is the clearest example, with a Telecaster or Les Paul used in the studio and the EDS-1275 double-neck used live for practical performance reasons, meaning the "correct" guitar depends on whether you're targeting the record or a live recreation.