1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard

Christopher Cross used a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard to record the Ride Like the Wind guitar solo — plugged directly into his Dumble Overdrive Special amplifier, recorded in a single take. The 1959 Les Paul Standard is the most valuable production electric guitar ever made, with original examples selling for $300,000 to $500,000 at auction. The combination of a one-piece mahogany neck, mahogany body with maple cap, and PAF humbuckers in a 1959 instrument produces a warmth and resonance that later production could not consistently replicate.