The 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard known as “Greeny” is one of the most storied instruments ever made, with a unique sound as recognizable as the guitar itself. Untold millions have heard its tone on stage or on studio recordings, played by a trio of famous owners: Fleetwood Mac founder Peter Green, Thin Lizzy guitarist and solo artist Gary Moore, and now Metallica’s iconic lead guitarist Kirk Hammett.

Peter Green, its eponymous original owner, played “Greeny” during his time with John Mayall’s Bluesbreakers and Fleetwood Mac. While tinkering with the guitar, he accidentally reinstalled the neck pickup backward, but it’s the reverse magnetic polarity of the neck pickup magnet that is, in part, responsible for creating the distinctive, out-of-phase tone in the middle switch position that haunted many of Green’s most famous solos.

Around 1970, Green met Gary Moore, whose band Skid Row was opening for Fleetwood Mac. After loaning Moore his guitar for a few days, Green offered to sell it to him, and the torch was passed. Over the next 35 years, Moore played “Greeny” with Thin Lizzy and on solo albums, including “Blues for Greeny,” a 1995 tribute album to Peter Green.

Gary Moore sold “Greeny” in 2006. It passed through the hands of various collectors until 2014, when a private dealer brought it to the hotel room of Kirk Hammett. The Metallica guitarist sought advice from none other than Jimmy Page, who urged him to buy the legendary Les Paul Standard. Hammett has played “Greeny” ever since.