My Year In Gear

Alex Lynham, TG writer

“As much as I’d love to say the Axe-fx III – and it really is fantastic – I’m not going to pretend that I can justify that kind of expense. As a result, I have to choose my 1989 Gibson Les Paul Standard in Wine Red. I’ll be absolutely honest with you, I’ve never been a fan of Gibsons, much less Les Pauls, but they have been undergoing a reassessment in my eyes after interviewing Billy Howerdel from A Perfect Circle. Having taken the plunge, it’s proved a firm favourite, and the flatter radius when compared to my Fender mainstays often suits my playing style better. Moreover, the guitar I have, which was made at the tail-end of ’89, has 490R and 498T pickups, rather than Bill Lawrences, and I’ve found the bridge humbucker in particular to be an absolute beast for higher-gain playing.”