Rick Nielsen’s Top 5 Over The Top Guitars—These Are Ridiculous!

I bet none of these guitars are “Cheap”!

Cheap Trick guitarist and Rock N’ Roll Hall of Famer Rick Nielsen’s has always been known for, his extravagant style and stage presence! He’s always worn the goofiest, yet coolest outfits on stage, and part of his ensemble are his guitars! Not only is his guitar playing loud, his guitar’s appearances are loud as well! He has worked with Hammer guitars to develop the most unique designs of any rocker, and has strutted a wide variety of guitars on stage thought his career!

So, we’ve compiled a list of our favorite guitars Rick has played thought his career! Enjoy!

5. Sgt. Peppers

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Back in 2009, Cheap Trick commemorated the 42nd anniversary of the release of The Beatles’ album Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band by performing the album in its entirety at a concert in Las Vegas. The performance was released on an album and titled Sgt. Pepper Live. After the performance, Rick had this guitar custom made. It’s a yellow, Les Paul style guitar which features the faces of all four Beatles as they appear on the album cover, and the words “Sgt Pepper’s Beatles” in Chrome across the fretboard!

4. The Box Guitar

Rick’s box guitar is modeled after the band’s 2006 album Rockford, which was named after the band’s hometown Rockford, Illinois. The guitar actually has the image of the album cover on the front, and Rick claims that it sounds fantastic! Many people other than Rick have played this guitar, including talkshow host and comedian Conan O’Brien! 

3. The Rick Nielsen Guitar!

It’s every guitarist’s dream to have their own signature axe. A guitar that they specifically design and help manufacture. I think Rick Nielsen is the first to take this idea to the next level and actually design a guitar based off of himself! As you can see, the guitar bears a striking resemblance to its wielder, and is complete with legs and shoes that act as the fretboard and headstock! The head on the guitar actually disconnects, making it easier to cary around and travel with, and the double neck is complete with the Cheap Trick’s band logo!

2. The Checkerboard Explorer!

The classic Hammer checkerboard explorer is arguably Rick’s most well-recognized guitar. The checkerboard pattern has appeared on Rick’s outfits, picks and hats so it’s only appropriate that he wield a checkerboard guitar!

1. The 5 neck

Ah the infamous five neck…. Some may ask “why?”, but Rick Nielsen will always respond, “why not!?” It’s a one of a kind guitar (well, actually Rick has had 3 of these made, but you get the point), and always makes an appearance at a Cheap Trick show. According to Rick the guitar is incredibly heavy, takes a long time to tune and has around 36 strings! The bottom neck is fretless, and after the first model, Rick made a change to have the tuning knobs behind the neck like a banjo, because the original design made it seemingly impossible to get your hand in to tune it!

So there you have it! We’re anxious to see what wacky guitar ideas Rick has for the future!