“I got up on stage and my guitar tech goes, ‘Slash wanted me to give you this.’ It was the ’59. It was dead silent in the room”: Joe Perry on the painful memory of selling his ’Burst – and why he’ll never forget the moment it came back to him

Joe Perry performing live onstage, playing Gibson Les Paul guitar, using Talk Box guitar effect pipe.

Throughout his multi-decade career, Joe Perry of Aerosmith has also developed quite a reputation as a guitar collector. His arsenal includes everything from highly sought-after ’59 ’bursts to a Gibson B.B. King Lucille Custom (featuring his wife Billie’s face), the Guild X-100 Blade Runner made famous by the Walk This Way music video, and even a couple of guitars he’s built himself.

The jewel of his collection, however, is a storied 1959 Gibson Les Paul that was Perry's main guitar in the ’70s, before it famously ended up in Slash's hands. Now, in the new issue of Guitar World, Perry discusses his collection, and details the guitar’s journey.