The legendary company behind the iconic Gibson guitars have filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in Delaware after wrestling for years with debt. Gibson’s guitars are part of music’s history and are favored by generations of music legends. 

The company, which also makes Baldwin pianos, has seen struggle in recent years as their guitar sales fell drastically. According to paperwork filed in Delaware, the company behind Gibson has at least $100 million of debt, and perhaps as much as $500 million. On Tuesday, a pre-negotiated reorganization plan was filed that will allow Gibson Brands Inc. to continue operations with $135 million in financing from lenders.

The more than century-old company has instilled products long associated with rock and roll, giving legends a mighty instrument to rock out. One of the legends that favored their Gibson product was Chuck Berry, who loved his cherry-red Gibson guitar so much that it was affixed to the inside of his coffin lid after his death this past year. David Bowie, who passed away back in 2016 was known to favor his 1989 Gibson L4 when he fronted Tin Machine. Jimmy Page once played a double-necked six and twelve stringed Gibson guitar during a Led Zeppelin concert at Earl’s Court, London on May 18th, 1975.

Gibson was founded in 1984 and based in Nashville, Tennessee. It’s favorite Les Paul electric is one of the maker’s bestselling guitars of all time and gave iconic musicians like Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, and Pete Townsend a way to make music. In a year, the company sold a record of more than 170,000 guitars in more than 80 countries including more than 40 percent of all electric guitars that cost more than $2,000, according to a bankruptcy filing.

Whether Gibson will be around for the next generation of musicians or if future artists will have to find a new instrument to play music is still a mystery. Although, it is hard to picture a musician without a Gibson instrument in their hands.