Though mostly known for his pivotal guitar work in The Smiths and throughout his solo career, Johnny Marr has made no secret his opinion that the clothes you wear are pretty much as important as the instrument you play.

After recently parting with a number of his most iconic Smiths-era guitars – in an auction which netted £3.6 million – the guitarist went on record saying he’s, in fact, more sentimental about his clothes than he is his guitars. “I’d actually find it harder to get rid of some of my jackets,” he said.

So perhaps his latest collaboration with clothing brand Maharishi isn’t all that surprising…

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The new partnership is headlined by a limited-edition Advisors Shirt – which takes its name and silhouette from the utility shirts worn by US military advisors during the Vietnam War – and features a hand-machine embroidered Dragon on the back, a detachable “Marrharishi” nametape, and unique collaboration patches on the sleeve.

Perhaps more interestingly for you guitar folk, the partnership has also yielded a new Johnny Marr x Maharishi Stratocaster, but don’t get your hopes up too high, as it’s not for sale. Only four have been made in total, with one going to Johnny – to help replenish his collection after the recent Marr’s Guitars auction at Christie’s gutted it – one going to Maharishi founder Hardy Blechman, and the other two on display at Maharishi’s flagship stores in London and New York.

So you won’t be able to get your hands on it, but you can admire it from afar: it has a Custom HH 73 body and heirloomed hardware and the classic Maharishi Original Dragon artwork.

But that’s not all; Fender has also created a new Tone Master Deluxe Reverb amplifier, wrapped in Maharishi’s signature military-inspired Disruptive Pattern Material (DPM).

“I’ve been going into Maharishi for many years, and I wanted to pay tribute to the ethos of the company and its designs,” Marr says. “So what better way to do that than by designing a guitar inspired by the same philosophy? I knew it had to be a customised Fender Stratocaster with the Maharishi aesthetic.”

“The design process for this project flowed easily as Johnny has a deep, long-standing understanding of Maharishi and its inspirations,” adds Maharishi Creative Director Hardy Blechman. “It was satisfying to witness him develop a guitar that reflected the Maha Tailor Shop ethos and spirit so well.”

“The collaboration reflects a shared design language across all three parties: Maharishi’s commitment to functional, story-driven military reproduction; Marr’s status as one of the most influential songwriters and guitarists of his generation and a longtime Fender artist and signature collaborator, and Fender’s own legacy of iconic instrument design,” says Fender. 

The Marrharishi Advisors Shirt is available from the Maharishi website, and from its stores in London and New York, priced at £320.

Sam is the Associate News Editor for Guitar.com and MusicTech. Thoroughly immersed in music culture for the majority of his life, Sam has played guitar for 20 years, studied music technology and production at university, and also written for the likes of Guitar World, Total Guitar, Metal Hammer and MusicRadar.