Guitars sold
Martin MC12-41 Richie Sambora
Sold
In 2006, the mother of all acoustic brands, Martin, got together with Richie Sambora in order to design two signature models. The Bon Jovi guitarist and songwriter is just as capable of wide soulful strumming as well as grandiose twelve-string arpeggios, therefore Martin has created both a Sambora six-string OM and a twelve-string 0000.
The latter, dubbed the MC12-41, of which only 200 copies were built, uses a very unusual shape, slightly larger than a 000, close to a jumbo. The fretboard inlays are the same as on a 41 series guitar (hence the 41 at the end of the guitar's model name), but the soundhole is surrounded by multiple bindings straight from the 45 series. That hybrid choice of design is made complete by the sublime inlay on the headstock. The Martin logo is not even on there, but the pre-war torch mixed with the “heart and cross” logo designed by Sambora himself are enough to instantly identity the instrument's pedigree.
The bridge is also a cool reference to Martin's history as it brings together the famed pyramid bridge that could be found on golden era guitars with the Stauffer point, a stinger that alludes to the work of Austrian luthier Stauffer, with whom Christian Friedrich Martin has learnt his trade in the 1820s. The clear sunburst and the cutaway represent more modern attributes, a touch of California in Nazareth.
This guitar is one of the three twelve-string Martins built for Richie Sambora himself, and as such it has been used on stage with Bon Jovi, amplified via the Fishman Aura built-in preamp. The soundboard bears the trace of Sambora's vigorous pick attacks, proof that he really enjoyed that MC12-41. As Martin often does for artists guitars, the body is made from superb Brazilian rosewood instead of the regular Madagascar rosewood used on production models. The haunting Wanted Dead Or Alive arpeggios have never sounded as good as they do on that unique instrument.
Richie Sambora
(1959)
Band : Bon Jovi
Main guitar : Fender Stratocaster signature
Compulsory listening : Livin’ On A Prayer
Such is the history of rock: for every Mick Jagger, there is a Keith Richards. For every Steven Tyler, there is a Joe Perry. For every Robert Plant, a Jimmy Page. For every superstar that gets the crowd going, there is a moody, infinitely cool guitar player that has the singer’s back and only takes the front of stage for quick assaults of thirty seconds.
Richie Sambora joined the New Jersey band Bon Jovi in 1983, a few months after its creation. Right from the start, Sambora’s playing and personality perfectly matched the image of founding singer Jon Bon Jovi. Together, they created a songwriting duo that would come up with hard rock classics that remain mainstays of every radio station playlist. The true explosion happened in 1986 with the Slippery When Wet album, on which Sambora co-wrote nine out of ten songs, including mega-singles Livin’ On A Prayer, You Give Love A Bad Name and Wanted Dead Or Alive. The guitar hero’s virtuosic, precise and energetic playing are in full force on that album. Sambora has integrated Van Halen’s influence to his style like any soloist of the time, but he added his personal twist to it. His talent for arranging can be head on the twelve-string parts of Wanted…, the pitch shifted solo to You Give Love A Bad Name or the talkbox for Livin’ On A Prayer.
After the release of the album, the band gets huge and starts touring around the world for sold-out crowds of entranced fans. Bon Jovi’s genius is that they achieved mainstream success at several points in their career, which makes them relevant to several generations of fans. They once again topped the charts with Always in 1994, then with It’s My Life (co-written by Sambora too) in 2000. That last song earned them a new audience that still follows them to this day.
A victim of his demons, Sambora had to quit the band in 2013 in the middle of one more world tour. Since then, he has launched the RSO band with his ex Orianthi. Over time, he seems more and more interested in the Telecaster and the Esquire, whereas he was the poster boy for superstrats in the glory days of Bon Jovi. Sambora’s musical future probably has a few great surprises in store.
Do you want to contact us or get more information about a particular guitar?
