Childhood Dream Unlocked: John Mayer Shreds Van Halen with Dave Grohl on His Iconic Custom Music Man Axis!
Save for special songs or unique occasions, John Mayer is rarely seen without a PRS Silver Sky in his hands. That rule was tossed out the window over the weekend as he grabbed a classic Music Man Axis to shred some heavy Eddie Van Halen riffs.
John Mayer shared the stage with Dave Grohl at the annual Soundstage of Hope benefit concert at Chaplin Studios in Los Angeles on October 10. They were two of the massive main-event artists getting in on the action, and their rare guitar pairing completely stole the show.
With Chad Smith pounding the drums and Dave Grohl wielding an all-black Gibson RD offset, John Mayer tipped his hat to one of his earliest guitar heroes. Specifically, he played Eddie Van Halen's 1990s Music Man signature model, featuring a striking purple finish, a flamed maple top, and a personalized «JCM» Monogram headstock.
This exact instrument is a Custom Shop replica of the legendary guitar Eddie Van Halen was pictured with on the iconic cover of Guitar World magazine in September 1991. John Mayer, who originally fell in love with the guitar because of that historic magazine cover, once famously dubbed this custom build «the dream machine.»
At Chaplin Studios, John Mayer more than put the instrument through its paces during a high-octane cover of Van Halen's most famous remake: The Kinks' «You Really Got Me.» Throughout the track, he unfurled screaming lead lines and supple volume swells, making full use of the Floyd Rose locking tremolo and whammy bar. Plus, in true EVH style, there were oodles of rich phaser modulation warping his tone.
The guitar holds deep sentimental value for John Mayer, so it came as no surprise that he was thrilled to bring it out onto the live stage.
Posting on Instagram back in 2014, he wrote: «Throwback Thursday, with a twist. Back in 1991, at the age of 13, I bought a Guitar World with Eddie Van Halen on the cover and fell in love with his Music Man signature model (and his playing.)»
«23 years later I reached out to Ernie Ball/Music Man and asked if they could make my childhood dream come to life by building one more of these long-discontinued guitars,» he continued. «Here it is, made from original parts stored away since 1991. The dream machine. I can't begin to describe the joy.»
It's been an extraordinarily busy couple of weeks for John Mayer. He recently traded fiery solos with Derek Trucks at Eric Clapton's Crossroads festival, unveiled two Land Rover-inspired PRS Silver Sky signature models—which turned out not to be a dig at Fender after all—and announced his big return to the Las Vegas Sphere.
It's also far from the first time he has paid tribute to Eddie Van Halen. Back in 2008, John Mayer famously covered «Panama» live using a replica Frankenstein guitar.