Les Paul

Though the posts in this blog are about Les Paul guitars, it should be noted that the man himself is still very active, even though he is in his mid 90's. He plays at the Irridium Jazz club in New York City one night a week, and anyone who has the chance should see his live show. It is a small venue and, as you can tell from the photos, audience members can get "up close and personal". I have had the opportunity to go on numerous occasions and have attached a small sample of photos. It should also be noted that Les Paul pioneered the areas of multi-track recording and the use of effects with musical instruments, among other things. These things have had at least as large an impact, if not a larger one, on modern music as the guitars that bear his name.

Gibson Cases

Though not affecting sound in any way, an original case that is correct for the model can enhance a vintage guitar's value and collectibility and are usually preferred to newer, replacements. Shown are: a brown 1959 "alligator" soft-side case, common to smaller or less expensive Gibsons; an early 60's Lifton hardshell case (yellow interior) used for higher-end instruments; an 1980 "Protector" hard plastic case; a tan 1998 Les Paul case with satin/velvet "casket" interior appointments; and a 2005 black "alligator" case (now made in Canada). Also shown is a comparison of 50's "alligator" cases, which came in a variety of thicknesses and styles, specifically for each model instrument.

Speakers

Gibson, like many manufacturers of the time, used Jensen speakers in their amps and shown here are examples of some of the most common types. The Field Coil speaker is likely the earliest and was used in smaller amps or amps of lower wattage, like the Gibsonette shown in an earlier post. The Alnico (which comes from its Aluminum/Nickel/Cobalt magnet) speaker with the large "bell" covering was used on the high-end amps of the 50's, like the Les Paul GA-40, also shown in an earlier post. These are thought to produce a better sound than those with ceramic magnets. The Special Design speaker was first used in the 50's, as shown in the Les Paul Jr. in the first photo, and was later upgraded as shown by the later example from a Kustom cabinet. You can clearly see the speaker code 220843 on the rim. This indicates that it is a Jensen, made in the 43rd week of 1968. This is a very clean example, for its age. Also shown is a lower-end speaker (though still quite good) used by Gibson and others during the 60's. It is a CTS speaker shown in a Gibson "free form" cabinet from the 8th week of '67 (137708 speaker code). Original speakers, in good working order, can significantly increase the value of an amp, and may provide a more vintage tone than newer replacements.

ES-140 vs. Les Paul

Gibson began production of the ES-140, like the one shown here on the left, in 1950, and likely had the design in development for some time before that. It had a 12 3/4" x 17 1/4" body, single cutaway, P-90 pickup, and was eventually made in 1 3/4" thickness. It was billed as a smaller version of the popular ES-175. Then, in 1952, the "radical" design of the Les Paul came onto the market, which consisted of the same 12 3/4" x 17 1/4" x 1 3/4" body, a single cutaway, and P-90 pickups. But for the addition of a second P-90, solid body, and the slight change in the sharpness of the cutaway, the instruments are incredibly similar. The attached picture shows an ES-140 (which appears taller because it is much lighter and doesn't sink into the carpet as far as the LP) and a Les Paul example. I don't have a 52 LP to use in the comparison, but it also had a tailpiece, like the ES-140, not the newer bridge of this example. I have searched a great deal of Gibson literature and can't find any other 50's guitars made in that size and configuration, so it wasn't used for the Les Paul because it was a common size for Gibson. Though thought to be revolutionary, the Les Paul design has always looked to me to be a lot like an upgraded, solid body ES-140. Though a rather obscure model not made in large numbers, the design team at Gibson would have certainly been aware of the ES-140 during design of the Les Paul, since it had been in production for a couple of years. I have not seen this issue discussed in any publications (and there are many) regarding the history of the Les Paul.

Les Paul Bass Project II

The headstock changes are at least as drastic as the body changes in the previous post. Again, it looks like a new guitar, and the ugly, unprofessional headstock repair was redone very nicely. You can hardly see the "scar" now. Cleaning up the rear of the headstock even revealed the serial number, which was previously illegible.

Les Paul Bass Project I

This instrument, described in an earlier post, was a cosmetic "basket case", but structurally sound, when I took on the project. This post shows the dramatic difference in the body "before" and "after". It looks like a different guitar. I hope to post other "before" and "after" projects soon. The next post shows the headstock changes.

Odds and Ends

Here are a few other things that I have accumulated over the years. The first is a Marshall Lead 12. This mini-stack is from the 80's and looks exactly like its larger counterparts, down to the controls and piping. The angled front cabinet has one 10" speaker and it produces 12 solid state watts. It is shown with another mini item, the Epiphone Les Paul Pee Wee. This travel/novelty guitar has a very short scale, but a full width neck. A regular-sized Les Paul is included to show scale. Also shown is a pair of '67 Gibson "free form" speaker cabinets. These 2-10" (each) cabinets were designed to be versatile, they could be stacked as a regular 4-10" cabinet (as in the photo), or used as vertical columns and separated from each other. They have rubber feet on the end as well as one side. This concept never took off, but these do have some redeeming qualities compared to regular cabinets.

Because I live in Austin and I'm an alumni of the University of Texas, when Epiphone came out with a UT Les Paul Junior guitar, it was only a matter of time until I got one. It has correct logos, even on the gig bag, and is actually a decent guitar. Also shown is my only Fender, a Jimmie Vaughan Tex-Mex Strat. I won this "art guitar" in a local musicians assistance foundation fundraising auction. It was pinstriped (at his Hot Rod shop) and signed by Vaughan. The signature and some of the pinstripes are hard to see in the photo, but all show up nicely in person.

Kustom Amplifiers

I do have a few non-Gibson amps. These Kustom amps were made between '68 and '72 and though solid state, are very reliable and have great tone. Many people used Kustom amps in the 70's (some bands still do) and these pieces are really clean for their age. They usually have a lot of tears and scrapes in the somewhat fragile naughahyde tuck-and-roll, but these are almost completely intact. Shown in the photos are: a charcoal K-100 (100 watt) amp head with reverb and a blue 2-12" cabinet; a charcoal K-200 amp with reverb, tremelo, and a 2-15" cabinet; and a blue K-200 (4-channel) with a 3-12" cabinet. Kustom also made K-400 (400 watt) amps and a 3-15" cabinet, which was almost six feet tall.

LP-1 Amplifier

This piece is from about '69-'70, it's hard to tell with amp serial numbers. It is the only solid state amp to carry the Les Paul name and is from a period when multiple, complicated effects were common, which continued throughout the 70's. It has real transistors, in the places where tubes would normally go, not integrated circuits like later solid state products. It has low and high impedance inputs, and built-in Vibrato, Tremolo, Reverb, and Vibrola, as well as an effects "presence" control. All of the effects sound very "canned" and very 60's. It also has a cool backlit, color-coded front panel that I haven't seen on any other amps. It is technically a pre-amp, not an amp, and was usually used with the corresponding heavy and impractical LP-2 powered cabinet. However, it works fairly well with any cabinet of proper impedance.

GA-40 Les Paul Amplifier

This late 50's model is a good example of valve technology of the period and is in excellent original condition (except for the cabinet, of course). These amps were all tube, class A, point-to-point hand wired and are built to last. At this time, the GA-40 had a tube configuration of: a 5Y3 rectifier; 12AX7 inverter; two 5879's (1 per channel) in the pre-amp stage; two 6V6 output (power) tubes; and, a 6SQ7 for the tremolo. It was rated at 40 watts and had one 12" Jensen speaker. "Chickenhead" knobs and a "jeweled" power lamp top off the classic features of these amps.

1950's Amplifiers

Here are several Gibson amps from the 50's, including: A GA-5, Les Paul Jr. (in separate photo); a '53 Gibsonette; a '54 GA-40 Les Paul; and a late 50's GA-40 Les Paul. The late 50's GA-40 was a project because the cabinet was completely gone, so this new one was made. The others are original and all have great vintage tube sound. Some models are made to this day with the same circuits that originated in the 50's. The Gibsonette and older Les Paul have their original grilles, including the bakelite script "LP" on the GA-40. These usually don't last over the years. The GA-5 is missing the front "Gibson" logo, but is otherwise all original.

'04 ES-137 Classic and '05 Les Paul Studio Plus

The ES-137 Classic is a good example of a semi-hollowbody Gibson archtop. With a body style that hasn't changed since the 40's, modern Les Paul Classic electronics (hence the name), and a nice tri-burst finish over flamed maple, it works equally well as either an acoustic or electric.

This relatively new guitar is a Les Paul Studio model, essentially a LP Standard with slightly reduced cosmetics. This very dark instrument, with black plastic and stain, is technically a "Plus" model, which should have a bookmatched AA flamed maple top. However, it's top looks more like a AAA Premium Plus. Either way, this is a good example of a basic Les Paul, solidly built and possessing all of the features Gibson is known for. This one was also a bit of a project, as its headstock was cracked during shipping from the factory, but it's now repaired and the "scar" is virtually invisible.

'98 Les Paul DC Standard

1998 was the first year of issue for the DC (Double Cutaway) LP Standard and, as with many first years, the flamed maple tops on these are some of the best. It's hard to capture the flame on both the bass and treble side at the same time in a photo, and this shot emphasizes only the treble side. However, you can see that the carved, bookmatched top of this example has very tight flame as well as a discernible grain pattern perpendicular to the flame. The double cutaway, simple controls, switch position, and lack of binding make this model very similar to a popular Paul Reed Smith model, which some believe it was designed to compete with. True or not, this reintroduced design (see the '59 model post to see the first use of this shape) is a LP Standard in all respects.

'90 Les Paul Classic "cut-out"

I received this guitar as a body and neck only, with no hardware. It was a "cut-out", that is, the body was cut so as not to be sold normally. Remember "cut-out" records, cassettes, and CD's that had a notch taken out of the case and not sold for full price? That is what this was. It was given to a large case manufacturer to be used for sizing their products for Les Pauls. The burn marks in the photo show that the cut was very rough, and that this was never really intended to be used as a guitar. The second photo shows a "sound chamber" partially exposed by the cut. These were drilled into the mahogany body (and hidden by the maple top) to lessen the weight of hefty LP's that could easily top 9 pounds. There were production notes written on the body by the case manufacturer and finish wear in a couple of areas from repeatedly being placed in and out of cases, but it was in overall excellent condition. The guitar bore a '90 serial number and cherryburst finish, so I outfitted it with the year-correct hardware and electronics of a '60 Classic, which had begun production that year. The guitar had been unstrung for its first 10+ years of existence, so there was no guarantee that the neck would be straight or that it would be playable at all, but it turned out to be one of the easiest playing guitars I have.

The 1990's and Later

The above instruments are: a '90 Les Paul Classic; '98 LP Standard DC; and a '05 LP Studio Plus. Not shown in this photo is an '04 ES-137 Classic. By the 90's, the Gibson name had been restored to its previous status by the new owners and these are several good examples of the current time period.

The 1980's

You will note that I currently have no instruments in this category, and show this previously sold one only as a reference. The 80's were not a great decade for Gibson and most instruments made were trendy and short-lived. The above is an XR-1, and though a good guitar, was only made for a couple of years. It may be the precursor to the Studio (which came out the next year) as it is basically a Standard with dot markers, a decal logo, and no binding. The XR-1 had a factory coil tap switch, a popular item in the 80's, which fortunately was not continued on the Studio model.

'79 Les Paul Deluxe Goldtop

The last 70's guitar of the bunch is a Les Paul Deluxe. This was the workhorse of the LP's during the 70's and is essentially a Standard with mini-humbuckers. You could also get it with P-90's like this one. My first real electric guitar was Goldtop Deluxe, in the early 70's. By the time this one was made, production had shifted from Kalamazoo to Nashville, which became the "modern" home of Gibson. All instruments presented after this one were made in Nashville.

'74 Les Paul Custom - Twentieth Anniversary

This first of the Anniversary Models, this was made in '74 to commemorate the anniversary of the '54 Les Paul Custom. This is a true "project", and is in the first stages of being restored. It was slightly damaged by fire and I am working on cleaning up the finish and obtaining correct vintage electronics and hardware for those parts that were replaced. I will post before-and-after photos when the project is completed. Nearly all 20th Anniversary models were made in Ebony or White, and some reference works state that those were the only colors made. Very few were made in Tobacco Sunburst like this one and I do not plan to alter the finish in any way other than to clean it and do some "touch up". Despite the cosmetics issues, it plays very well and has the fast "fretless wonder" neck that only LP Customs have.

'75 Les Paul Signature Goldtop

This unusual guitar was the first, and only, production hollowbody LP and features an ES-335 cutaway on the bass side and a traditional Les Paul cutaway on the treble side. This half-and-half style didn't take off, and no other models were produced. LP Signatures were only made from the mid to late 70's and then went the way of other low-impedance instruments. This one has had the original low-z pickups replaced with regular humbuckers and the low-z input is not being used (see the hole in the top). The regular high-z input on the side is the working one. Because of this, I still consider this a "project" and hope to restore the original electronics. Otherwise, it has a nice feel and great hollowbody sound.

'55 ES-140, '59 ES-125T, '60 LG-2

The ES (for Electric Spanish) line had been around for some time, and had included these 3/4 scale models for a number of years by the end of the 50's. The ES-140 is the version with the full depth body and is discussed in further detail in the "ES-140 vs Les Paul" post. This one had a factory cherry burst refinish on the arched top in '63 and the black pickup cover was replaced with chrome at the same time. Otherwise, it is original and had one previous owner. The ES-125T (for "thin") is a good example of a 50's Gibson non-cutaway electric archtop. This one is all original, including the case, and is a great player. The LG-2 was the only 3/4 scale acoustic made during the period and this one is all original, including the case. It is sometimes referred to as the "Woody Guthrie" model and Gibson recently began to reissue the guitar as the "Arlo Guthrie" model .