Vintage Guitar, Chapter 2:
Gibson Les Paul

Gibson Les Paul

Gibson Les Paul

　It goes without saying that it would be no exaggeration to claim that modern music would not exist without this instrument—the “Gibson Les Paul,” synonymous with the electric guitar.Since its debut in 1952, it has been cherished by countless legendary musicians—including Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Duane Allman, Mike Bloomfield, Gary Moore, Randy Rhoads, Slash, and Takahiro Matsumoto, to name just a few—and continues to enjoy unwavering popularity and admiration even today.

　While each era has its own distinct characteristics due to repeated specification changes and temporary production halts since its release, this time we’ll focus specifically on the rare Gold Top Les Paul from the very beginning. Please take your time to appreciate this masterpiece—one whose sheer presence is overwhelming even just to look at.

Introducing Gibson’s Iconic Electric Guitars

Gibson ES-175


An electric guitar that has reigned as the top jazz guitar for over 50 years. Known for being the instrument of choice for Jim Hall, Wes Montgomery, Joe Pass, and others, it is a best-selling model that has never been discontinued since its release around 1949. Incidentally, “ES” stands for “Electric Spanish.”

Gibson ES-335TD


The ES-335TD was introduced in 1958. Featuring an innovative body design pioneered by Gibson, it incorporates a center block inside the body to deliver the warm, resonant tone of an acoustic guitar along with the tightness and sustain of a solid-body guitar, while also helping to prevent feedback. It is known to be favored by musicians such as Freddie King, Eric Clapton, Ronnie Montrose, and Larry Carlton.

Gibson SG


The SG (short for “Solid Guitar”) was born in 1961 as a result of a major redesign of the Les Paul. Although the model has undergone numerous specification changes over the years, its appeal has never waned. It is one of Gibson’s masterpieces that has captivated countless musicians, including Pete Townshend, Angus Young, Tony Iommi, George Harrison, and Eric Clapton.

Gibson Flying V


The Flying V was designed in 1958 by Ted McCarty, then president of Gibson. Although 81 were manufactured in ’58 and 17 in ’59, its unconventional design was not well-received at the time, and production was temporarily halted two years after its release.In the 1960s, however, it began to be used by renowned artists such as Albert King, Jimi Hendrix, Leslie West, and Ronnie Mack, cementing its popularity. Thanks to its use by Mark Bolan, Michael Schenker, and Lenny Kravitz, among others, it is now renowned as one of Gibson’s classic electric guitars.

Gibson Explorer


Like the Flying V, the Explorer (originally released under the model name “Futura”) was designed by Ted McCarty and released in 1958. Much like the Flying V, its unconventional appearance was not initially well-received; only 19 units were produced in ’58 and 3 in ’59 before production was promptly discontinued.Production resumed around 1976. Notable players include Allen Collins, Matthias Japs, and The Edge. Despite its appearance, it is a highly playable guitar and remains a favorite among musicians from all eras and regions—a Gibson electric guitar brimming with the brand’s traditional originality.

Gibson Firebird


The Firebird was introduced in 1963. Its body shape, which remains popular to this day, was designed by Ray Dietrich, who previously worked for the automaker Chrysler and later contributed to the development of numerous models for Ford and other companies. It is equipped with mini-humbucker pickups, which feature a narrow magnetic field and excellent high-frequency response, delivering a sharp sound with clear, well-defined treble.It is favored by many famous musicians, including Johnny Winter and Joe Perry.

The History of Gibson Leading Up to the Birth of the Gold Top Les Paul


On October 11
, 1902, “The Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company, Limited” was established in Kalamazoo. Although the company was founded with capital from five businessmen, the name of Orville Henry Gibson—after whom the company was named—was not among them.Orville Gibson retained only the rights to use his own name and a few patents related to mandolins; aside from visiting the factory as a consultant to offer advice on manufacturing, he had absolutely no involvement in the company’s management. However, it is an indisputable fact that Gibson was founded based on Orville Gibson’s work in the 1890s, when he opened a small workshop in Kalamazoo and began crafting musical instruments.

May 24, 1904
Incorporated as a corporation.
1906
Changed the company name to “Gibson Guitar and Mandolin Company”
1909
Patents granted for the intonation-adjustable bridge and the elevated pickguard.
April 12, 1915
The company signed a new contract to pay Orville Henry Gibson monthly royalties, but Orville Gibson passed away on August 21, 1918, due to endocarditis.

June
1915 Lester William Polsfas—the man who would become “Les Paul”—was born in Walkash, Wisconsin.

1917
A three-story factory building was constructed at 225 West Parsons Street in Kalamazoo, a site Gibson had acquired in 1909. This became the Kalamazoo factory, which served as Gibson’s headquarters until 1984.
1919
Lloyd Loar, who would become one of Gibson’s most important figures, joined the company as an acoustic engineer. Lloyd Loar was the man behind innovations such as the archtop, F-hole, elevated fingerboard, and tone bar (bracing). He is also credited with laying the foundation for electric instruments; by 1924, the year he left Gibson, he had already built a prototype electric double bass.
February 27, 1923
The patent for the truss rod system was granted. The application was filed in 1921, and the design is said to have been created by Ted McHugh, who had been developing it during Gibson’s very early days. Catalogs from that era claimed, “Gibson is the only company that includes a truss rod in its instruments,” a statement that speaks to the high precision of their instruments.
1922
Gibson introduced the L-5, the company’s first archtop guitar with F-holes.
1926
Flat-top guitars were added to the Gibson lineup. The first models were the L-0 and L-1.
Late 1930s
Gibson introduced two classic guitar models, the GS-85 and GS-35. By the time World War II began, Gibson had taken the lead in the flat-top guitar market, and its position had become unshakable.
1934
Lester William Polsfas, a guitarist active primarily in Chicago, commissioned the Chicago-based guitar maker “Larson Brothers” to build a guitar with a 1/2-inch maple top and no F-holes. He proposed equipping this guitar with two pickups. Thanks to Lester’s idea, two-pickup guitars began to gain popularity.
1935
Gibson introduced its first electric instrument: a steel-bodied Hawaiian guitar. Wooden Hawaiian guitars were also released later, but they were not given official model names at the time.
January 1936
Gibson introduced the EH-150, an electric Hawaiian lap steel guitar featuring a Charlie Christian (the pioneer of jazz guitar)-style single pickup, Recruit solid curly maple body, and volume and tone controls. The more affordable EH-100 followed shortly thereafter.
1937
Gibson introduced its first electric archtop guitar, the ES-150. From the 1930s through the 1950s, the company also began manufacturing bodies and necks for “National” and “Valco” guitars. The ES-150 and ES-250 electric guitars were favored by Charlie Christian.In the early 1940s, musicians such as Lester William Polsfas, George Barnes, Herb Ellis, and Billy Bauer helped popularize the electric guitar, accelerating the shift toward electric instruments. However, when the United States entered World War II at the end of 1941, production of electric instruments was forced to cease.
1941
Lester William Polsfas, who had been researching solid-body guitars since the 1930s, built a guitar by splicing a 4-inch-square piece of wood into the neck and attaching halves of a “Epiphone” hollow-body guitar to either side.There is an anecdote that when he brought this guitar, which he named “The Log,” to Gibson around 1946, it was described as “a broomstick with a pickup.” That same year, Seth Lover, known as the developer of the humbucking pickup, joined Gibson.
1944
“CMI (Chicago Musical Instrument Company)” acquired Gibson. On May 18 of that same year, Maurice H. Berlin, founder and president of “CMI,” became an executive at Gibson.General Manager Guy Hart remained with the company, while John Adams, who had served as president since 1902, left the company. The Kalamazoo factory continued to serve as the production base.
Late 1945
With demand for musical instruments rising in the aftermath of World War II, Gibson was brimming with energy, and more than 40 full-time employees continued to build instruments. A major change in electric archtop guitars was the shift from solid spruce tops and maple backs to laminated maple (plywood made by sandwiching other layers of wood between maple sheets).
1948
Ted McCarty joined Gibson. He became president in 1950, following Guy Hart’s retirement.Ted McCarty left a brilliant legacy, having dramatically expanded Gibson during his tenure—increasing the number of employees tenfold, sales by 12.5 times, and profits by 15 times. Models such as the Les Paul, ES-335, Explorer, and Flying V were all produced during his time at the company.
1950
Following the announcement of the Broadcaster (renamed the Telecaster around 1951), introduced by Leo Fender at Fender in 1948, Ted McCarty began full-scale production of solid-body guitars. A curved-top solid-body guitar, designed by Gibson staff members such as Walter Fuller, was then presented to Lester William Polsfas.Ted McCarty explained that the reason for choosing a curved top was to differentiate the instrument from Fender’s models, as Fender did not have a carving machine at the time. The completed solid-body guitar was equipped with a combination-type bridge (trapeze bridge/tailpiece) designed by Lester. In exchange, Lester agreed not to play any guitars other than Gibson’s in public and signed a consulting contract.
1951
How High The Moon
The duet “How High the Moon” by Lester William Polsfas and singer Mary Ford reached No. 1 on the U.S. charts that year, while “The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise” peaked at No. 2.
1952
The Les Paul Gold Top, Lester William Polsfas’s signature model, was unveiled. The price at the time was $210. The gold finish was a specification based on Lester’s belief that “gold signifies wealth, high value, and the very best.” Thus began the history of the Les Paul, the legendary guitar that would go on to take the world by storm.

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