Marshall Unveils The 1959BJA: Signature Amp for Billie Joe Armstrong with Dookie Mod
Get the Green Day Dookie Tone!
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Marshall Unveils The 1959BJA: Signature Amp for Billie Joe Armstrong with Dookie Mod · Source: Marshall
Here comes the first Marshall signature amp in 14 years! Green Day frontman Billie Joe Armstrong and the British manufacturer have unveiled the Marshall 1959BJA. It’s a 100-watt beast colored after Billie’s first guitar, “Blue.” Tonally, it leans towards the “Basket Case” guitar tone.
Billie Joe Armstrong Signature Amp
There are two constants in Billie Joe Armstrong’s gear history: his beloved Fernandes RST-50 Stratocaster (nicknamed “Blue” for its appearance) and his love for the Marshall tone, alongside a number of Epiphone and Gibson signature models. And it’s with Marshall that the Green Day singer and frontman has now teamed up for his first signature amp.
Before we take a closer look at the Marshall 1959BJA, the first thing that stands out, obviously, is the color. The baby blue is inspired by the color of his beloved Strat. In my opinion, on the one hand, matching that color is a obvious choice. On the other hand: baby blue? Really?! It’s not exactly what you’d call edgy and rock ’n’ roll.
On the other hand, they could have gone for yet another black-and-gold front. As you can see, the look is definitely going to be a talking point. What do you think?
Marshall 1959BJA: “Pete” for everyone!
The Marshall 1959BJA is based on the original Plexi that Billie played during the recording of “Dookie” and “Basket Case” era. It was a hand-wired 1959HW featuring the famous Bob Bradshaw gain mod, also known as the “Dookie mod.”
During the recording of “Dookie,” producer Rob Cavallo let Billie play his modified Plexi. And Armstrong was so smitten by the tone that he took the amp on tour with him from then on; it was later nicknamed “Pete.” That wasn’t enough gain, so Billie had a replica of ‘Pete’ built with even more headroom, which became known as “Meat.”
So here we’ve got the Marshall 1959BJA; it’s “Pete” for everyone. Like the original 1959, it’s an amp head with 100 watts, three ECC83s in the preamp, and four EL34s in the power amp, just like in regular 1959 models. This thing can get pretty loud.
Made in the UK
Every Marshall 1959BJA model is handcrafted in the UK. As is typical for a Plexi, it features two channels, along with controls for Presence, Bass, Middle, Treble, Master, and Gain. Thanks to the “Dookie Mod,” the original four inputs have been cascaded into two, plus the Master control is a new addition compared to the original. So it’s practically a 2203.
Even though we can see a matching cab in the pictures, it seems like we’re only getting the baby-blue head for now.
How much does the Marshall 1959BJA cost?
The Marshall 1959BJA will be available starting July 21, 2026, so the final retail price won’t be available until then. Marshall lists an MSRP of USD 3,999.99 / GBP 3,099.99 / EUR 3,699.
Until then, you can also check out the standard 1959HW head at Thomann*.
More on the new Amp from Marshall
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