Gibson 1954 Les Paul Electric Guitar

About Gibson 1954 Les Paul Electric Guitar

Gibson 1954 Les Paul Electric Guitar by Sam Ash - Custom exclusive, elite, unparalleled. When guitar star Les Paul sat down with Gibson in the early 1950s to devise the revolutionary instrument that would carry his name, he envisioned two versions of the Les Paul Model a standard version with gold top finish and nickel plated hardware, and a Custom model that would be the crme de la crme. This Les Paul Custom would be dressed in formal wear, like the tux a jazz artist might pull on for a major performance, with a high gloss Ebony black finish, multi ply binding on body and headstock, an ebony fingerboard with pearl block markers, a larger headstock with mother of pearl split diamond inlay, and gold plated hardware throughout. As busy as Gibson was getting its debut solidbody electric guitar into production, the Goldtop was the first model out of the box in 1952, with the Custom on the back burner for further development. With the Goldtop off and running and gathering fans fast, Gibson turned its attention to designing the Les Paul Custom in 1953, planning for a release the following year, and prepared to make it something special. In addition to Pauls desired Custom appointments, it gave this high end electric the best of its new developments in hardware and electronics.Though not a guitarist himself, Gibson president Ted McCarty had seen the need for a more efficient, more adjustable bridge, and had personally designed the Tune o matic ABR 1, which had individual string saddles for precise intonation adjustment, and easy height adjustment via a pair of thumb wheels on its body mounted bolts. The Les Paul Custom of 1954 was the first to receive this revolutionary piece of hardware, which was partnered with a stopbar tailpiece or optional Bigsby vibrato, and its inclusion marked a major step forward in the evolution of the Les Paul in general. Also new that year, at McCartys behest Seth Lover, who would soon contribute to the design of the legendary PAF humbucker, developed a new single coil pickup based on th
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