Alex Lifeson has teamed up with Godin Guitars once again to unveil his latest signature model, Grace, a modern reimagining of the iconic Hentor Sportcaster that became synonymous with Rush’s Grace Under Pressure album and tour. Available now as a limited edition of just 200 units, Grace blends the classic elements of Lifeson’s original design with cutting-edge hardware and craftsmanship, creating a guitar built for today’s players and tomorrow’s tone seekers. The Grace guitar is priced at $3,999 MAP.
By 1984, Lifeson had firmly established his unique sound and style, transitioning from the stock guitars of his early career to the more personalized Hentor Sportcaster. This guitar, which combined excellent playability with tonal versatility, became essential for his evolving sound, which relied heavily on delay and modulation effects. During the recording and touring of Grace Under Pressure, Lifeson’s primary instrument was a striking red Hentor Sportcaster with a mirror pickguard—an iconic look that now serves as the foundation for the Grace guitar.
In line with the success of Lifeson’s Limelight model, Grace brings the Sportscaster concept into the 21st century. It incorporates state-of-the-art components and modern craftsmanship, offering players a versatile, high-performance instrument suited for a wide range of musical genres. “Collaborating with Alex to refine these signature instruments has been a fantastic opportunity to push the boundaries of what a modern guitar can do,” said Simon Godin, President and CEO of Godin Guitars. “Grace represents the next step in our collaboration and—true to the album it’s named after—it’s a tribute to the power of creative minds coming together in pursuit of musical excellence.”
The Grace guitar features a contoured swamp ash body, providing excellent comfort for extended playing sessions. Its maple neck, with a 12” radius ebony fretboard and medium stainless-steel frets, allows for fast and intuitive playability. Staying true to the original design, the Grace also retains the HSS pickup configuration, offering maximum tonal flexibility. The pickups are custom-wound by Mojotone to Lifeson’s specifications, ensuring a balanced and dynamic performance across all pickup positions. Players can choose between the classic Floyd Rose tremolo system or a Vega Trem with 18:1 locking tuners, delivering superior tuning stability and tremolo performance.
“We were blown away by the positive response to the Limelight release earlier this year and knew we wanted to follow it up with another model,” Lifeson said. “With Grace, we wanted to celebrate the 40th anniversary of Grace Under Pressure by reimagining my favorite guitar from that period. Like the Limelight, this new guitar evolves the concept to create something that resonates with modern players in terms of both sound and playability.”
Lifeson also shared his personal connection to the guitar’s design: “It’s a beautiful instrument that suits many different styles of playing,” he explained. “And, of course, the mirrored pickguard comes in handy for those late-night sessions when you need to check, uh, your hair or something.”
With Grace, Lifeson and Godin Guitars once again deliver an instrument that honors the past while embracing the future, offering both classic Rush fans and new generations of players an exceptional guitar built for the next era of music.
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