Classic Gear

In the mid-1940s, famed guitarist Les Paul began work on his new invention: a radical solidbody electric guitar design nicknamed ‘The Log’. Although his brainchild was initially rejected by Gibson, it was through enduring self-belief (not to mention the successful release of Fender’s solidbody Telecaster forerunners, the Esquire and Broadcaster) that Les was eventually welcomed into the Gibson fold as a consultant in 1950. In 1951, company president Ted McCarty, along with factory manager John Huis, further researched, developed and eventually prototyped this revolutionary guitar with Les, concluding in the release of Gibson’s first solidbody electric, the Les Paul Model, in 1952.

During the illustrious ‘golden era’ of Gibson guitar production in the 1950s, Les Paul Models were, fittingly, finished in gold to begin with and are therefore commonly referred to as ‘Goldtops’ (aside from a few ultra-rare exceptions). In 1952, the Les Paul Model – renamed the Les Paul Standard in 1958 – was fitted with two single-coil P-90 pickups and is easily distinguished by its trapeze ‘strings under the bar’ bridge/tailpiece, which was swiftly replaced in 1953 by a ‘wrapover’ stud bridge/tailpiece, allowing players to palm-mute strings.

Several more technical improvements were to follow: the neck angle was deepened in 1954, giving better all-round playability and sustain, and in 1955 the ‘wrapover’ bridge was in turn replaced with the intonation-friendly Tune-o-matic bridge and ‘stop’ tailpiece.

Perhaps the greatest technical leap forward, however, came in 1957 with the introduction of the humbucking pickup. Designed with noise cancellation in mind, the PAF humbucker (named after the ‘Patent Applied For’ sticker on the bottom of the early pickups) really gave the Les Paul Standard its pre-eminent tone and would make it a firm favourite in the hands of future guitar heroes.

Burst of colour

In 1958, the Gibson Les Paul Standard was given a makeover and the gold finish was replaced with a classic Cherry Red Sunburst over a two-piece bookmatched maple top; these guitars are now known colloquially as ’Bursts. Although deemed a failure at the time by Gibson due to poor sales, the ’Bursts are often considered among today’s players and collectors to be some of the most desirable electric guitars ever made, with prices well into six figures due to their relative scarcity (according to shipping records there were, on average, less than 600 ’Bursts were made in each of the three years of manufacture from 1958 to 1960).

By the end of 1960, the body design was radically overhauled into the doublecutaway SG shape, with Les’s name eventually being removed altogether by 1963, at his request. It wasn’t until 1968 that the original, single-cutaway Les Paul body shape was to re-emerge from the Gibson factory due to a surge in demand, as the guitar was popularised by notable players such as Eric Clapton, Keith Richards and Peter Green throughout the ’60s. Since then, it has become ubiquitous with the blues and rock ‘n’ roll, and to this day the Les Paul Standard endures as arguably Gibson’s most iconic solidbody electric guitar of all time.

It wasn’t until 1968 that the original, single-cutaway Les Paul body shape re-emerged from the Gibson factory