On loan to The Met The Met accepts temporary loans of art both for short-term exhibitions and for long-term display in its galleries.
Melody Maker
Gibson American
Joan Jett American
Not on view
Joan Jett was a founding member of the Runaways and, later, Joan Jett and the Blackhearts. Seeking a lighter instrument than her Les Paul, she bought her first Gibson Melody Maker from Eric Carmen of the Raspberries and used it to record hits such as “I Love Rock ‘n’ Roll” and “Bad Reputation.” This example was Jett’s touring guitar from the 1980s to the present day. It is decorated with stickers celebrating feminism and gay identity, including a lesbian love symbol, a leather pride flag, and one that reads “girls kick ass.”
Technical Description:
Mahogany body and neck, ebony fingerboard; 22¾ in. scale; worn white finish; set neck with dot inlays; inlaid mother-of-pearl Gibson logo on headstock; one humbucking pickup prewired to pickguard, volume and tone controls; nickel tune-o-matic bridge and Grover tuners, one black and clear plastic knob and one white plastic knob, black plastic pickguard; painted over in white, killswitch added, tuners replaced, stickers added
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