JERRY CANTRELL's Original G&L Rampage Guitar Wasn't Stolen After All; It Had Just Been Misplaced

A day after announcing that his original G&L guitar had gone missing, Jerry Cantrell says that it turns out that the instrument was actually just misplaced.

Late Wednesday (April 10),Cantrell shared a video update on his Instagram, with the ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist/vocalist speaking while standing next to the newly recovered legendary electric guitar.

Jerry said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We found the damn thing. There it is. God, what a relief. It was misplaced over the weekend during transit between photo shoots and the studio. I'm working on a record right now, and I really thought this thing had gone missing. So, thankfully it was just misplaced.

"It's so amazing to me, everybody's outreach and support and a willingness to get the word out," he continued. "I've been through a stolen guitar thing before with an EVH and it took me 18 years to get it back. So many of my brothers like Zakk [Wylde] and [Tom] Morello and [Billy] Corgan and et cetera have similar stories, and I was worried to death that this thing was gone over the weekend. So, I think the headline here is how important this guitar is not only to me, but to everybody else. And it just makes me feel fucking very fucking special to have so many great people in my life and so many people care.

"So happy to cry wolf," he added. "It was misplaced. I hope you understand my concern. The thing is okay. There it is. And we will be rocking together very shortly for you. And, thanks again. Bye."

Cantrell's aforementioned EVH guitar, which had been gifted to him by Eddie Van Halen, went missing around 2002 and wasn’t returned to him until nearly two decades later.

"A couple of AIC fans and collectors tracked it down and tried to do a sting on this kid who had it and was trying to sell it," Cantrell later told Guitar World. "He went dark on the first guy, who was from Florida. The second guy was a separate collector from San Diego. Between the two of them, it took about two weeks for me to get that guitar back… after 19 years!"

While the G&L guitar was recently on display at Seattle's MoPOP Museum, Cantrell discussed the importance of his Blue Dress Rampage, saying: "I bought that in 1985. That guitar has been on everything I've ever recorded, pretty much — 98.9% of every song, that guitar's on there somewhere. I tried for decades to wreck it and it still exists. I've surfed it across the stage, jumped in the audience with it, fans running up and getting their hair caught in the keys, and then trying to jump back in the audience pulling me with them…"

"It's nothing fancy. There's plenty of fancier, cooler guitars, but it’s just a meat and potatoes guitar," Cantrell told Total Guitar in 2014, "and that's always felt comfortable for me to play from the get-go."

Beyond the instantly identifiable riffs and equally recognizable vocals, Cantrell will always be known as a songwriter, first and foremost. Those songs comprise his influential catalog as co-founder, vocalist, and lead guitarist of the iconic ALICE IN CHAINS and as a solo artist whose music resounds across culture. He penned three acclaimed solo albums — "Boggy Depot" (1998),"Degradation Trip Volumes 1 & 2" (2002) and "Brighten" (2021) — and appeared on chart-topping records by everyone from METALLICA and DEFTONES to Ozzy Osbourne.

His music can be heard in the films of Academy Award winner Cameron Crowe and Judd Apatow in addition to blockbuster franchises such as "John Wick" and "Spider-Man". Throughout his career, he’s garnered eleven Grammy Award nominations, logged multiple No. 1 hits at radio, sold north of 30 million records, and received the 2020 Museum of Pop Culture Founders Award as part of ALICE IN CHAINS. Not to mention, Guitar World cited him as one of the "100 Greatest Guitar Players Of All Time." He has also received the Stevie Ray Vaughan Award from MusiCares in addition to supporting numerous charities over the years.