Support Us Button Widget

B.B. King to Loretta Lynn: 18 iconic guitars on display in Nashville, TN

One of B.B. King's "Lucille" Gibson guitars is on display at the NMAAM.

One of B.B. King’s “Lucille” Gibson guitars is on display at the NMAAM. | NASHtoday

Table of Contents

What do Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman,” Bob Dylan’s “I Want You,” and Bobby Vinton’s “Blue Velvet” have in common? The songs feature the same 1958 Fender Jazzmaster played by studio musician Wayne Moss, on permanent display at the Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum.

As International Guitar Month comes to an end, we’ve gathered some iconic guitars on display across Nashville that have us asking this: If guitars could talk, what stories would they tell?

B.B. King’s Gibson ES-355 guitar

National Museum of African American Music | The blues legend played this specific guitar on display at the NMAAM until the early ‘80s. As the story goes, King named all his guitars “Lucille” after a near-death experience in the late ‘40s.

Taylor Swift’s Taylor GS6

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | Swift often played this sparkly guitar during live performances on her debut headlining Fearless tour. The guitar’s decorated in Swarovski crystal rhinestones.

Eddie Willis’ Gibson 335 guitar

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum | A member of the Motown studio band the Funk Brothers, Willis played this guitar on Stevie Wonder’s “Signed, Sealed, Delivered (I’m Yours)” and the Supremes’ “You Keep Me Hangin’ On.”

Wayne Moss’ 1958 Fender Jazzmaster

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum | The studio musician played this guitar on Roy Orbison’s “Oh, Pretty Woman,” Bob Dylan’s “I Want You,” Eddy Arnold’s “Make the World Go Away,” Bobby Vinton’s “Blue Velvet,” and more.

Garth Brooks’ Takamine

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum | Brooks used this Takamine with a guitar-shaped hole during his solo performances at the Wynn Hotel in Las Vegas.

Glen Campbell’s 12-string Bluebird Ovation

Glen Campbell Museum | Based on Ovation’s Viper guitar, the Bluebird model was created exclusively for Campbell in the late ‘70s. The guitar company later created a limited run of 6- and 12-string replicas.

Maybelle Carter’s Gibson L-5

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | From the age of 19 until her death in 1978, Carter played this guitar on hundreds of recordings + live appearances.

Tom Petty’s 1963 Gibson SG Junior

Musicians Hall of Fame and Museum | Petty played this Gibson during rehearsals for his 2012 tour.

Johnny Cash’s guitar

Johnny Cash Museum | A note under this guitar belonging to Cash reads: “My first professional guitar, 1955- ’56.”

Hank Williams’ Martin D-28

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | After Williams’ death in 1953, the guitar was passed down to Hank Jr., who preserved the instrument and occasionally played it at live performances.

John Prine’s David Russell Young custom guitar

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | The late singer-songwriter acquired this guitar in 1971, the year he released his self-titled debut album. Prine’s friend Michael “Moses” Scribner later customized the guitar.

Janice Marie Johnson’s Fender bass

National Museum of African American Music | Johnson, a member of disco-era band A Taste of Honey, used this bass to record the hit, “Boogie Oogie Oogie,” which sold 2 million copies

Buck Owens’ red, white, and blue American guitar

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | This colorful guitar belonging to Owens was made famous on the variety show “Hee-Haw.” It was later replicated and sold by Sears, Roebuck, and Co.

Trisha Yearwood’s Yamaha FG-330

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | Yearwood picked out her first guitar at age 14 and replaced the steel strings with nylon. She played it throughout high school and college.

Loretta Lynn’s 1956 Gibson J-50

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | Lynn was gifted this Gibson guitar in 1961 by her husband Oliver and later used it during performances and while writing songs.

Kix Brooks’ Les Paul

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | Now on display at Brooks & Dunn’s “Kings of Neon” exhibit, this custom-made Gibson Les Paul guitar features carvings of alligators on the front and back as well as alligator scales on the sides.

Tom T. Hall’s Gibson

Country Music Hall of Fame and Museum | Hall bought this refurbished guitar from songwriter Merle Kilgore in the 1960s and later used it to write “Harper Valley P.T.A.,” “The Ballad of Forty Dollars,” and more hits.

Various

Gallery of Iconic Guitars at Belmont University | Temporarily closed due to COVID-19, the GIG features hundreds of rare guitars, including a 1939 Martin D-45, a 1887 Martin 0-28, and a 1923 Gibson F-5 Mandolin signed by designer Lloyd Loar.

Question

More from NASHtoday
The team behind Perfectly Fine (1105 51st Ave. N.) plans to keep the doors open “365 days a year” from 11 a.m. to 2 a.m.
With drummer Ringo Starr returning to Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium, we thought we’d highlight a few notable Beatles ties to the area.
MLK Day is commemorated on the third Monday in January. Here’s how you can honor Martin Luther King Jr.'s legacy in Music City.
In honor of the 35th annual Antiques & Garden Show of Nashville, select local businesses are offering floral-inspired cocktails and mocktails beginning in January.
Here we snow again. Below is what to know about navigating closures, snow plow routes, and weather updates.
Nashville drivers lost an average of 63 hours to traffic in 2024, according to a study from INRIX.
Beer not, sober-friendly fun in Music City is possible with these 35 mocktails and alcohol-free sips.
Here we grow again. Nashville’s skyline is adding new hotels, office buildings, and mixed-use spaces in 2025.
According to the Nashville Public Library, you couldn’t get enough of these titles last year. If you weren’t able to get your hands on them, see how they might fit into The Bookshop’s 2025 reading challenge.
The “first-of-its-kind” Super Bowl fan event is taking over NFL stadiums across the country, including Nissan Stadium in Nashville.