Gibson Custom Shop Limited Johnny Cash SJ-200 – Only 100 Pieces Worldwide

The Man in Black

Among the pantheon of America's greatest musicians, few can come close to the impact the legendary Man in Black has had on not just music but the world at large. Over his nearly five-decade-long career, he popularized country music while it was in its infancy with the Tennessee Two, became a legacy act with his own TV show, started a supergroup, and then re-popularized country in the nineties with his American recordings produced by Rick Rubin.

Through it all, he never failed to speak up for those who could not speak for themselves, and his rebel spirit and unwillingness to compromise his integrity became the founding principles of outlaw country. Over the course of his long career, he got inducted into just about every musical Hall of Fame that exists (Rock, Country, Gospel, Rockabilly, Nashville Songwriters, and Memphis!), plus honors from the Grammys, the Country Music Awards the Kennedy Center, and even received the National Medal of Arts!

Despite all of his accolades, Johnny Cash was always a guitar player and singer at heart. From the CD insert for the first American Recordings, Cash writes:

"All that matters is that the guitar and I are one. I have to feel that the sound of [the] instrument comes out of me with the song, from inside, from the gut. And it doesn't matter to me that I only know three or four chords. With the left fingers on the frets, the heel of my right hand hugging the body of the guitar, letting just my right thumb lead and drive the rhythm, sometimes it's magic, and I just believe that when it all comes together it's the right way for me to do it...like Mama did it."

The Custom Shop Johnny Cash SJ-200 is an extremely limited tribute to Johnny Cash and his love for all things guitar, and one can't help but feel the same magic Johnny mentioned in the quote above when you sit down with it. Let's dive deeper and see what makes this model so special!

A Big Break

Naturally, once young Johnny had some success early in his career, he did what all young guitar maniacs dreamt of in the singing cowboy era: he wanted a custom Gibson with his name inlaid on the fretboard in cursive script and a custom pickguard he designed. Well, the only thing better than one custom guitar is two, so Johnny asked for a pair of SJ-200s, and they immediately became his workhorses. This Custom Shop guitar is a recreation of one of those legendary SJ-200s. It's hard not to feel the magic when you pick one up.

Imagine you're twenty-four years old, you've just gotten a couple of royalty checks from Sun Records, you're about to go on stage, and you're strapping a guitar with your name on the fretboard, and the future feels limitless with possibility. That's the feeling that this guitar represents. The best signature guitars tell a story and take you someplace, and this serial definitely takes you on a magic carpet ride.

Of course, the stylish cosmetic appointments take the vibe even further. The AAA spruce top and AAA flamed maple back and sides look lovely, the gold tuners with keystone buttons give it regal style, and the Cash-designed pickguard and inlay complete the package.

Sonic Evaluation

The Johnny Cash SJ-200 may be a collector's item, but it also sounds absolutely incredible to the point that it has threatened my productivity and unraveled my day. I could sit and strum chords on it all day! It has a sweet, sunny sound with unimpeachable clarity, balance, and articulation--not to mention, oodles of projecting power and headroom. In a way, it sounds like the Man in Black himself: big, bold, and larger than life, but not overpowering. It fills the room with crisp, clean, cavernous sound, but it has a fast decay time, so it sounds like...well, whatever the opposite of muddy is! It's also uber-responsive, which makes for a dynamic playing experience. This serial is worthy of the name on its fretboard, and I have no doubt it will compel you to walk the line!