One of Ace Frehley’s legendary “Smoker” guitars, which he used during Kiss’ 2000-2001 Farewell Tour, is headed to auction.
The custom-made sunburst Gibson Les Paul “Smoker” guitar, signed by Frehley, will be sold via GottaHaveRockandRoll.com. The sale starts tomorrow, Nov. 19, and will end Dec. 5.
While Frehley used “Smoker” guitars for much of his career, this one dates back to the turn of the millennium. He used it extensively during Kiss’ Psycho Circus World Tour in 1999, and also on the band’s subsequent Farewell Tour, which was the last Kiss trek Frehley ever played.
A rep for GottaHaveRockandRoll.com says the guitar “comes right from Ace.” The lot also contains several photos of Frehley with the guitar and a signed certificate of authenticity.
Ace Frehley “Smoker” guitar auction lot. Courtesy of GottaHaveRockandRoll.com
Frehley — who died last month at the age of 74 — was renowned for modifying his guitars with special effects equipment, allowing him to accentuate his already explosive solos and riffs with smoke, pyrotechnics, and flashing lights. The “Smoker” guitar was arguably Frehley’s most famous mod, with its earliest appearances coming around 1975.
In an interview last year, Frehley said he first tried to put smoke bombs inside a small cavity in his Les Paul, then ignite them with a cigarette lighter. But unsurprisingly, that “ended up screwing up all the volume and tonal controls,” Frehley said.
Working with an engineer, he came up with a clever solution (via Ultimate Guitar). His guitar’s neck pickup, which Frehley never used, was taken out, and in the cavity he placed smoke bombs and a halogen bulb. Those were connected to a wire that ran back to the soundboard, where a roadie could trigger a phantom power supply, lighting both the bulb and the smoke bombs. He later replaced the smoke bombs with a small fog machine due to fire concerns.
In a 2013 interview with Rolling Stone, Frehley spoke about inspiring a generation of guitarists, not only as players, but also as an innovator. “I get that constantly from guitar players. They say, ‘Ace, if it wasn’t for you I would have never picked up the guitar,’” Frehley said, adding: “I continue to come up with new things. Not only did I come out with some successful [Gibson] Signature Series guitars, but I was such an innovator from the very beginning with special effects on the guitar. First my smoking guitar and then my light guitar and then my rocket guitar. Nobody has ever done that in the history of rock & roll.”
