Gibson Les Paul 101

Rather than keep sending people to Gibson Forums, I figured I'd post this here. Maybe with some luck, this will become a sticky. This post mainly applies to newer Les Pauls. Nowadays, there are two types of Les Pauls - Gibson USA and Gibson Custom Shop.

Gibson USA
Weight-relief started around 1982/1983. Every Gibson USA Les Paul between 1982 - 2007 is weight-relieved. They do not have solid-body construction. Weight-relief is also known as "swiss cheese holes" and refers to the nine holes drilled out of the body in order to reduce the weight of the guitar.

Chambering officially began for 2007 but the late 2006s are also chambered. Any Les Paul made after October 2006 maybe or likely is chambered. Every 2007 and newer Gibson USA Les Paul is chambered, except for the Les Paul Traditional. The Les Paul Traditional has swiss cheese holes. Chambering is essentially hollowing out the body. Again, this is in order to reduce the weight of the guitar.

Gibson Custom Shop
Gibson's Custom Shop makes regular production guitars and historic reissues. The regular production guitars, such as the Les Paul Custom, are also weight-relieved. They do not have not solid-bodies.

The historic reissues are solid. All historic reissues, be it Standards or Customs, are solid. The exception being the chambered reissues. Chambered reissues are often referred to as Cloud 9 guitars. They are identified by their serial number, which begins with CR. chambered-reissue.org

So,

A 2003 Les Paul Classic is weight-relieved
A 2008 '57 reissue is solid
A 1995 Les Paul Standard is weight-relieved
A 2009 Chambered '58 reissue is chambered
A 2008 Les Paul Studio is chambered
A 1987 Les Paul Custom is weight-relieved
etc.

If you put on your x-ray goggles, this is what a chambered Les Paul would look like:


This is what a weight-relieved Les Paul would look like:


Neck tenons


Some Les Pauls have long neck tenon, while others do not.

Short: Standards (before the 2008 "new" Standard), Customs, Studios Classics.
Long: Historic reissues, 2008 Standards.

Norlin
Gibson guitars made between 1968 - 1986. Great info right here. FAQ: Norlin History
Any Norlin related items/questions should be posted here. Norlin Years - My Les Paul Forums

Historic Reissues
R2 = reissue of the 1952 Gibson Les Paul
R9 = reissue of the 1959 Gibson Les Paul
CR8 = chambered reissue of the '58 Gibson Les Paul
There is no R3 or R5.

Historic Customs are often referred to as B4, B7, R4BB or R7BB. BB meaning Black Beauty.

Gibson's VOS - Vintage Original Spec line. The terms VOS, historic, reissue & historic reissue all refer to the same guitar. There is only one difference, VOS refers to the aged finish on the top and hardware. The ones that do not have the VOS finish are referred to as "gloss" or "high gloss" reissues because (obviously) they have a high gloss finish. Websites like Guitar Center list the two guitars as VOS and "reissue." Reissue refers to the high gloss. I think this has caused some confusion with some people but rest assured, they are all the same guitar. Again, one looks brand new and the other does not look brand new - that's the only difference. VOS costs $300 less.

Any historic Les Pauls related items/questions should be posted here. Historics & Reissues - My Les Paul Forums

Historic Customs
Standards have mahogany bodies and maple tops. Historic Customs have mahogany bodies and mahogany tops (while modern/regular Customs have maple tops). The Custom will likely weight around a pound heavier but that's about it for differences.

1968 Reissue
Another reissue that never seems to be on gibson.com is the '68RI. These are the same as the B7s, only difference is they have maple tops and different pickups.

R8 vs. R9
This question gets asked a lot !!
They are the same guitar. All reissues are essentially the same guitar with minor differences. These differences are neck thicknesses, pickups, weight of each individual guitar, finishes & tops. The best way to get an understanding of the neck sizes is to actually play them. Me explaining that R8s have thicker necks than R9s and R7s have thicker necks than R8s doesn't mean jack unless you sit down with the guitar and see for yourself.

R9s list for $1,500 - $2,000 more than R8s. Why? The answer is because R9s have flame maple tops and the R9 should weigh less than the R8. That's it. (mylespaul.com)
Here's a great pic taken from inside Gibson's Custom Shop
Read More.....

Tribute For Les Paul Musicians

Guns N’ Roses star Slash has paid tribute to guitar pioneer Les Paul, who has died aged 94, calling him "vibrant and full of positive energy".

Mr Paul died from complications of pneumonia in New York, according to Gibson, the firm that sold his guitars.

In a statement Slash said: "He was an exceptionally brilliant man, musician, inventor, mentor & friend."

U2’s The Edge, The Beach Boys’ Brian Wilson and Billy Gibbons of band ZZ Top have also paid tribute to the musician.

‘Genius inventor’

Mr Paul is credited with developing one of the first solid-body electric guitars, which went on sale in 1952 and contributed to the birth of rock.

He also developed other influential recording innovations such as multi-track recording, overdubbing and the eight-track tape recorder.

The Edge, who is closely associated with the Les Paul sound, called him a "legend of the guitar and a true renaissance man".

His legacy as a musician and inventor will live on and his influence on Rock and Roll will never be forgotten

The Edge

Les Paul’s ‘beautiful’ guitar

He added: "Les Paul disproves the cliche that you can only be famous for one thing.

"His legacy as a musician and inventor will live on and his influence on Rock and Roll will never be forgotten."

Fellow guitarist Joe Satriani called Paul "the original guitar hero," saying: "Les Paul set a standard for musicianship and innovation that remains unsurpassed."

Gibbons called him an "innovator, a groundbreaker, a risk taker, a mentor and a friend".

And US rock artist Joan Jett called Mr Paul a "genius inventor, musical innovator, and a wonderful person".

She added: "I and everyone at Blackheart Records, mourn the passing of our dear friend, Les Paul.

"Without the advances he pioneered, the recording sciences and the electric guitar would have been left years behind."

Mr Paul was also a successful performer in his own right, notching up 11 number one singles and 36 gold discs with his wife Mary Ford.

He was inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 1978 and the Rock ‘n’ Roll Hall of Fame in 1988. (alanat.net) Read More.....

Les Paul Has Died at 94

Les Paul, who invented the solid-body electric guitar later wielded by a legion of rock ’n’ roll greats, died Thursday of complications from pneumonia. He was 94.

According to Gibson Guitar, Paul died at White Plains Hospital. His family and friends were by his side.

As an inventor, Paul also helped bring about the rise of rock ’n’ roll with multitrack recording, which enables artists to record different instruments at different times, sing harmony with themselves, and then carefully balance the tracks in the finished recording.

The use of electric guitar gained popularity in the mid-to-late 1940s, and then exploded with the advent of rock in the mid-’50s.

“Suddenly, it was recognized that power was a very important part of music,” Paul once said. “To have the dynamics, to have the way of expressing yourself beyond the normal limits of an unamplified instrument, was incredible. Today a guy wouldn’t think of singing a song on a stage without a microphone and a sound system.”

“Without Les Paul, we would not have rock and roll as we know it,” said Terry Stewart, president of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and Museum. “His inventions created the infrastructure for the music and his playing style will ripple through generations. He was truly an architect of rock and roll.”

A tinkerer and musician since childhood, he experimented with guitar amplification for years before coming up in 1941 with what he called “The Log,” a four-by-four piece of wood strung with steel strings.

“I went into a nightclub and played it. Of course, everybody had me labeled as a nut.” He later put the wooden wings onto the body to give it a traditional guitar shape.

In 1952, Gibson Guitars began production on the Les Paul guitar.

‘The original guitar hero’

Video

Friends honor Les Paul
Aug. 13: Les Paul's band members and his sound technician for more than 40 years remember Paul's life and music

Nightly News
Pete Townshend of the Who, Steve Howe of Yes, jazz great Al DiMeola and Led Zeppelin’s Jimmy Page all made the Gibson Les Paul their trademark six-string.

Over the years, the Les Paul series has become one of the most widely used guitars in the music industry. In 2005, Christie’s auction house sold a 1955 Gibson Les Paul for $45,600.

Guitarist Joe Satriani called Paul “the original guitar hero,” saying: “Les Paul set a standard for musicianship and innovation that remains unsurpassed.”

In the late 1960s, Paul retired from music to concentrate on his inventions. His interest in country music was rekindled in the mid-’70s and he teamed up with Chet Atkins for two albums. The duo were awarded a Grammy for best country instrumental performance of 1976 for their “Chester and Lester” album.

FREE VIDEO

A look at the life and career of guitar icon Les Paul
Archival video: 2004: NBC News profiles the life and career of guitar icon Les Paul.

Today show

With Mary Ford, his wife from 1949 to 1962, he earned 36 gold records for hits including “Vaya Con Dios” and “How High the Moon,” which both hit No. 1. Many of their songs used overdubbing techniques that Paul had helped develop.

“I could take my Mary and make her three, six, nine, 12, as many voices as I wished,” he recalled. “This is quite an asset.” The overdubbing technique was highly influential on later recording artists such as the Carpenters.

Released in 2005, “Les Paul & Friends: American Made, World Played” was his first album of new material since those 1970s recordings. Among those playing with him: Peter Frampton, Jeff Beck, Eric Clapton and Richie Sambora.

“They’re not only my friends, but they’re great players,” Paul told The Associated Press. “I never stop being amazed by all the different ways of playing the guitar and making it deliver a message.” (msnbc.msn.com) Read More.....

Video the Les Paul and Nigel Tufnel Playing Together

My favoriOne of punk rock's most enduring anthems is "Sonic Reducer" by the Dead Boys, who, next to the Ramones are my favorite American punk rockers. Cheetah Chrome, a dear friend, is also one of the best guitarists you could hope to hear. He does great things with noise, as a good punk should. You could say that I like the Gibson Les Paul for the dirty growl it lends to punk rock - but its really what the guitar enables the player to do. I love the part in Rob Reiner's This Is Spinal Tap where Christopher Guest's marvelous character, Nigel Tufnel describes the sustain. In a postmodern case of life imitating art, in character as "Nigel Tufnel," comedian Christopher Guest appeared on comedian-turned-pundit Dennis Miller's now defunct talk show with Les Paul and they jammed! Another YouTube clip - watch it now since I have no idea if this is a clip that's here to stay... (punkturns30.blogspot.com) Read More.....

All About Les Paul

Les Paul, virtuoso guitarist and inventor, passed away Thursday at age 94. Between his legendary guitar design and the numerous studio advances he pioneered, Paul arguably had more influence on popular music than any other figure of the post-World War II era.

Lester William Polsfuss was born on June 9, 1915 in Waukesha, Wisconsin. He started playing harmonica at age eight, and by his early teens had picked up the guitar and banjo as well. He also became a tinkerer at an early age. When he was 10, he made a harmonica rack from a coat hanger. Shortly after, he opened up the back of a Sears acoustic guitar, inserted the pickup from an old Victrola behind the strings, and turned the record player on to create his first amplified guitar.

By age 13 Paul was performing regularly around home as a country guitarist. He dropped out of high school and began landing gigs throughout the Midwest, including radio jobs with Wolverton's House Band on KMOX in St. Louis and on the WLS Barn Dance in Chicago, and also releasing a couple of country recordings under the name Rhubarb Red. By this time, though, Paul had discovered the work of jazz guitarist Django Rheinhart, and became bored with country music. He formed the jazz-oriented Les Paul Trio, moved to New York, and landed a featured slot on Fred Waring's radio program. During this period, Paul continued his experimenting. In 1941, looking for a way to electronically sustain musical notes, he attached strings and two pickups to a wooden board with a guitar neck. "The Log", as it became known, was one of the first solid-bodied electric guitars. When he was ribbed by his fellow musicians for playing such a ridiculous-looking instrument, he hid his Log inside the workings of an Epiphone hollow-body guitar.

Paul was drafted in 1942, which took him out to California to work with the Armed Forces Radio Service, where he worked with Rudy Vallee and Kate Smith. After his discharge, he formed a new trio, backing The Andrews Sisters, Nat King Cole, and Bing Crosby, who recorded the hit "It's Been A Long, Long Time" with the trio. Crosby also encouraged the guitarist's experimentation; he often visited Paul's makeshift garage studio, and eventually provided financial backing for Paul to build a full-fledged recording facility.

In California, Paul continued the sonic experimentation that built the foundation for the modern recording industry. He altered the speed of recordings to change their pitch and timbre. He experimented with microphone positioning and was one of the first to use reverberation. He found that by playing along with previous recordings, he could literally become a one-man band. In 1947, Paul recorded an instrumental version of "Lover" using eight separate guitar parts recorded on two acetate disc machines. Working with acetate discs required Paul to record each layer of music as a single take. He also built an acetate disc cutter from the flywheel of a Cadillac. Capitol released "Lover" as a single, and it became a major hit. Around this time he met a country singer named Colleen Summers; he changed her name to Mary Ford, a name he picked from the telephone book. But in 1948, tragedy would strike. Paul's car skidded off an icy bridge, severely injuring his right arm and shattering his elbow. His elbow would be immobile for life, so Paul had the doctors set it at an angle that would allow him to play guitar.

Paul and Ford married in 1949, and the duo commenced a string of hits that continued through the mid-50's, including "How High the Moon", "Bye Bye Blues", "The World Is Waiting for the Sunrise", and "Vaya Con Dios". By this time, Paul had mastered the art of multitracking, combining Ford's vocals with his guitars and other effects to produce a sound years ahead of its time. Paul was now recording on magnetic tape. His friend Bing Crosby had invested in the Ampex Corporation, which developed the first commercial open-reel recorder. Crosby gave Paul the second Ampex Model 200 built, which Paul modified with a second playback head to create a crude form of multitracking using mono tape. This inspired Ampex to build two and three-track recorders, and in 1954 Paul commissioned Ampex to build the first eight-track recorder. Ampex completed this project in 1957, which Paul lamented was too late for him to use on his hits, but by the mid-60's the machine was established as the backbone of modern recording.

In 1952, Paul came up with his most famous innovation. As early as 1945, Paul had approached the Gibson Guitar Corporation with ideas for mass-producing "The Log", but was rejected. But in 1950, competitors Fender unveiled the Telecaster, which became the first popular solid-body electric guitar model. Gibson offered Paul an opportunity to become a consultant, which led to the creation of the legendary Les Paul electric guitar. Les Pauls quickly were noted for their excellent sustain - the reason Paul began experimenting with guitars in the first place. The other key innovation came in 1954 with the introduction of the humbucking pickup on Les Paul models, producing a clarity of tone then unattainable on other guitars.

The Les Paul was slow to catch on at first with guitarists, though. The solid-body design made it heavier than most competing models - a musician friend once remarked to me, "Those damn things feel like they weigh a ton!" A lot of pop guitarists preferred to stick with their hollow-bodied models, and many country and rockabilly artists preferred the twangier Telecaster. Carl Perkins was one of the few early rockers to play a Les Paul. In the 50's and early 60's, Les Pauls were favored most by jazz and blues guitarists who prized their sustain and its clean, thick tone. Bluesmen Freddie King and John Lee Hooker, among others, put their Les Pauls to good use during that era.

More than anything, the rise of British rock in the mid-60's caused the Les Paul's popularity to soar. Keith Richards was the first British rocker to use a Les Paul extensively, and his peers quickly recognized that the guitar provided the perfect sound for the blues-derived rock they were creating. Soon, Les Pauls were in the hands of Eric Clapton, Jeff Beck, Jimmy Page, Pete Townshend, Peter Green, and just about every other notable British guitarist of the time. The Les Paul established the sound that would become the signature of the 60's-70's guitar rock era. By then, though, Les Paul himself had a falling-out with the Gibson company, which stopped producing electric guitars with his name in 1963. But the demand for Les Pauls was so great that Gibson resumed their production in 1968. The latter-day Les Pauls were considered inferior by many guitarists. Those who could afford to do so continued to seek out vintage Les Pauls; every once in a while you'd hear a story that Eric Clapton or some other famous guitarist would find a classic Les Paul in mint condition in a pawnshop in some podunk town. Today, late-50's Les Pauls in good condition bring many thousands of dollars.

During the 60's Les Paul began to recede from the spotlight. Paul and Ford would have no major hits after 1955; ironically, the guitar that he helped create became a chief factor in pushing the style of music he specialized in playing off the pop charts. The couple divorced in 1962. Paul recorded infrequently in his later years, although one of his most notable achievements came in 1976, collaborating with ace Nashville guitarist Chet Atkins to make Chester And Lester, winning a Grammy for Best Country Instrumental Performance. The two masters created an impressive blend of jazz and country styles, much of it recorded live in the studio without overdubbing. Paul had quintuple-bypass surgery in 1981. Until his last days, Paul appeared regularly in live performance. He began a Monday night residency at Manhattan jazz club Fat Tuesday's in 1983; when that venue closed in 1995, he moved to Iridium, where he continued to appear each Monday until weeks before his death, often joined by a host of celebrity musicians coming to pay their respects to the master. Although arthritis had robbed Paul of much of his speed, he remained a fluid, tasteful guitarist to the end.

Due to his inventiveness and innovative ability, Les Paul may well have been the most important popular music figure of the 20th Century. Although many artists sold more records, none could match Paul for his ingenuity. His ideas created the foundation that the entire modern music recording industry was built upon.

Readers with a further interest in Les Paul must read this 1975 Rolling Stone interview. (steveaudio.blogspot.com) Read More.....