Johnny Marr and Fender have reunited to release a new limited edition Jaguar Special guitar with a custom gloss nitrocellulose black lacquer finish – check it out below.
- Read More: Johnny Marr: “Bangers? They’re not to be sniffed at”
The Fender Limited-Edition Johnny Marr Signature Special Jaguar, the latest collaboration between the indie legend and the guitar manufacturer, features custom-wound Kent Armstrong Johnny Marr single-coil lipstick pickups, a Jaguar bridge with Mustang saddles complemented by a vintage-style ‘floating tremolo’ tailpiece, and Marr’s personal wiring scheme.
Its custom neck is inspired by Marr’s own original 1965 Jaguar and boasts a rosewood fingerboard with 22 vintage-style frets and ivory dot inlays.
The former Smiths guitarist released his first signature Jaguar with Fender in 2012, designed with the company’s Custom Shop to reflect his 1965 model, and it went on to become one of Fender’s best-selling signature models. Take a closer look at the new Jaguar here:
“The Jaguar has been central to my sound and style for nearly 15 years,” Marr said of the instrument. “With this new model, I wanted to create an instrument that feels classic but also pushes players to explore new tones and possibilities. Fender has once again brought that vision to life in a way that I didn’t think could be possible until now.
‘From my work with The Cribs playing gritty in your face indie, to the cinematic soundscapes I crafted with Hans Zimmer, the Jaguar has been an incredible asset in helping me expand my sound, no matter the genre or the occasion.”
Max Gutnik, Chief Product Officer at Fender, praised Marr’s legacy as “one of the most inventive guitarists of the last four decades,” and continued: “His distinctive style and tone has inspired generations of players over the years. The new Signature Special Jaguar is a versatile, performance-ready twist on his classic instrument that delivers a captivating tone with great feel. We’re thrilled to share it with guitarists everywhere.”
The guitar is priced at £2,949 and $2,999, and you can take a closer look at it on Fender’s website.
In 2023, Marr spoke to NME about how the guitars he’s used over the years have a spirit. Discussing his book, Marr’s Guitars, he said that revisiting some of the guitars he used with The Smiths took him back to his days in the band, describing it as “like having a high school reunion with myself.”
He went on to talk about New Order using his guitar for ‘Regret’, and the likes of Radiohead and Franz Ferdinand using his guitars too. When asked if he thinks the guitars have a spirit, being given from one musician to another, he said: “It’s a definite, valid thing. It’s in your mind.
“I once asked this acupuncturist, an old guy in Los Angeles years ago, about chi. He was amused by my line of questioning, because I wanted to know if guitars had chi – a life force. He was explaining it and said, ‘When you leave your house to go away on holiday for two weeks, then you walk through the door to come back and the house feels really odd? That’s because it’s got no chi in it.’
He added: “My Les Paul Custom has still got Pretenders chi in it from Glastonbury, without a doubt. My Smiths guitars from certain records have got that kind of chi in it. Bernard Butler’s got what was my 12-strong 335 that I used loads on the last Smiths album and ‘Sheila Take A Bow’. I also used it on the Talking Heads album. Bernard will tell you that the thing is bursting with chi.”
Last month, meanwhile, Marr announced his biggest-ever solo show. He’ll be playing at Manchester amphitheatre Castlefield Bowl for a special homecoming performance on July 9 next year, and it’s said to coincide with “a major year of exciting new activity” from the musician. Tickets are on sale now, and you can buy them here.
