How a Legendary Nocaster Linked a Glam Rock Icon from Cinderella to Keith Urban

“I’m incredibly grateful to have it and to be its current caretaker”: the unexpected journey of a vintage Nocaster with glam metal roots

Keith Urban owns one of the most enviable collections of instruments in modern music. Over the years, countless iconic models have passed through his hands, but one electric guitar stands out as truly special — a rare vintage Fender Nocaster with a surprising connection to the world of glam metal.

In a recent print edition of Guitar World, Urban was asked to name his best value gear purchase. He joked that answering such a question could easily drag him into “Joe Bonamassa territory,” but quickly focused on one instrument that clearly means a great deal to him: his treasured Nocaster.

“Well, Tom Keifer from the hard rock and glam band Cinderella decided to sell his Nocaster for some reason,” Urban recalls. “Many years ago, I was at Gruhn’s in Nashville. I picked it up, played it, instantly fell in love with it, and bought it.”

As for the price, Urban keeps it vague: “I honestly don’t remember what I paid for it,” he says. “But it definitely wasn’t cheap.”

That comes as no surprise. Nocasters — the immediate predecessors to the Telecaster — were built in the early 1950s and are extremely rare today. Add a former glam metal owner into the mix, and you have the recipe for a truly coveted instrument.

For Urban, the cost was entirely justified. “I absolutely love that guitar,” he explains. “It was worth every single cent.”

He goes on to praise its sound in particular: “It’s just an unusually great instrument, with the most ferocious and dynamic pickups I’ve ever heard in a Tele-style guitar. Almost everything on it is original — maybe not the frets — but the electronics, the hardware, the overall vibe… it’s incredible.”

As for why Keifer sold it, Urban can only speculate: “I don’t know why Tom let it go. Maybe it had fulfilled its role in his life, as instruments often do, and it was time for someone else to own it. I’m very grateful to have it and to be its current custodian.”

While Urban has long been associated with Fender single-cuts, he’s currently deep into a collaboration with PRS on a signature model that blends the best elements of his favorite designs. Earlier this year, he offered fans a sneak peek at the build, fueling hopes of an official production release.

Speaking about that new guitar and its carefully voiced pickups, Urban says: “They’re humbuckers, but they have this incredible harmonic range — almost Dumble-like. I can get squeals, squawks, and textures out of them that I don’t get from any other instrument I own. And the playability is just beautiful.”