Few instruments are more widely adored than the Gibson Les Paul. The guitar’s iconic image - an elegantly contoured body, a single cutaway, and a sunburst finish – has come to be a quintessential part of rock n’ roll and blues. In fact, when most people picture their favorite musicians (including Jimmy Page, Eric Clapton, Pete Townshend, and Chuck Berry among many others) they envision them holding a Les Paul. The guitar is a phenomenon that has lasted for over 50 years, and it shows no signs of slowing.
In the early 1950’s, pop artist and inventor Les Paul came to Gibson with an idea. It was for an electrified guitar that Paul had been working on since the 1930’s, which he named the “Log”. Gibson’s president at the time, Ted McCarty, saw the potential and took Paul up on the opportunity. Together, Paul and a team of engineers designed the first Les Paul Standard. It had a gold top, a trapeze-style bridge, and two P90 Humbucker pickups. The body was made of mahogany, and the top was carved maple to ensure high quality looks. It was cut into a curved, minimized acoustic guitar shape, with a single cutaway to allow for high fret access. This basic design concept has remained the same the length of the Les Paul’s history, contributing to its highly recognizable nature.
Gibson, being a company full of perfectionists, has continually offered different versions of the Les Paul with tweaked designs, looks, and sounds. In doing so, they’ve given the Les Paul line a certain versatility that few other guitar brands share. After the original Goldtop in 1952 came the Custom in 1954. Nicknamed the “Black Beauty” for its gorgeous black finish, it offered an extremely high build quality, a new tune-o-matic bridge design, and one of the first Humbuckers ever made as a pickup option. The Custom line was produced until 1960. At the same time, Gibson offered a stripped down version of the Les Paul called the Junior. It was offered at a lower price to beginning musicians on a budget, with looks and a little function as the expense. The finish was stripped down, the binding on the body was removed, and it lacked the original Les Paul’s carved maple top. The Junior also featured only one P90 pickup. The final version offered in the first decade of the Les Paul’s reign was the Special. It had a “TV Yellow” finish and two P-90 pickups, and was designed as an alternative to the original Les Paul in the looks department.
Beginning in 1960, Gibson Guitar Corporation further widened its arsenal of Les Pauls. The first double cutaway Les Paul, now known as the Gibson SG, was made in 1961. It had a thinner, lighter body with sharply pointed cutaways. It didn’t retain the Les Paul moniker because Paul himself didn’t like its design, and requested that his name be removed from that model. The original Les Paul, meanwhile, was given an update in finish. The Goldtop was by then considered old news, so Gibson added a Sunburst finish, and manufactured it as the Les Paul Standard along with the original Goldtop. This finish has since become the classic look for the Les Paul line.
The mid 1960’s saw a hefty increase Gibson’s in popularity, mostly because artists from the British Invasion began playing them. The first to do so was Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones in 1964. He found that the guitar’s thick sound was well suited for the Stones’ brand of aggressive rock n’ roll. From there, blues legend Eric Clapton picked one up in response to the influence of American blues musicians like Freddie King. Other notable artists who used the Les Paul in this era include Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, and Mick Taylor. Millions of people were exposed to the bands that these guitarists were a part of. And, as a result, they were all exposed to the Les Paul as well.
Recognizing their increased popularity, Gibson again experimented on and expanded the Les Paul selection. This was facilitated by new parent company Norlin. In the mid 1960’s, they changed the joint between the neck and body to strengthen it, and changed the body itself to three layers of mahogany as opposed to one. Also introduced was the advanced Les Paul Recording. It had several complex switches, low impedance pickups, and even a special cable. Outside of a few studios, the Recording didn’t gain much traction in the guitar market. On the other hand, the Deluxe Les Paul did. Introduced in 1968, it was designed with mini-humbuckers that fit P90 slots in the guitar’s body. Its popularity was assisted by famous musicians including Pete Townshend and the guitarist of Thin Lizzy
The modern era of the Les Paul has seen more incarnations, many copies, and the introduction of daughter company Epiphone. The first and foremost of the modern Les Paul versions was the Studio, first made in 1983. It was made for musicians who wanted authentic Les Paul playability and sound, but didn’t need the visual flourishes. In terms of high quality guitars, the Studio was a bargain, and it sold like one. With the huge consumer demand for Les Pauls in the last 25 years, Gibson has continued to manufacture Les Pauls with all of the preceding variations, and even some new ones. The new features include alternative body makes and customizable options for hardware, electronics, and finish. In addition, legions of new guitar players have flocked to Gibson’s daughter company Epiphone, which offers many budget versions of the Les Paul. In fact, Epiphone Les Pauls have become more common than Gibsons. But the demand that has allowed for so many types of Les Paul to continue in production has also inspired thousands of overseas copycats. The Les Paul market is saturated with fakes, and it is necessary for consumers to stay sharp in verifying a given guitar’s authenticity.
Today, Gibson and its Les Paul stand as giants in the instrument industry. Other than Fender, no other guitar making company comes close in reputation or popularity. in addition to the original Les Paul in all its forms, Gibson makes Custom Les Pauls for high paying customers, reissues of older Les Paul models that have earned a reputation, and signature models intended to be replicas of the guitars that legends such as Peter Frampton, Gary Moore, Slash, Jimmy Page, and Pete Townshend play. Since the first Gibson Les Paul came off the shelf in the early 1950’s, musicians and their fans recognized that this was a special guitar. Gibson has implemented continuous incarnations and alterations, proving its pursuit of perfection, and coming close on more than one occasion. As many experienced and professional guitarists could tell you, no instrument feels better or more natural than the iconic Les Paul.