But Gibson was one of the first to introduce signature guitars; guitars developed in collaboration with a musican and with the name of a musician on it.
1950's Gibson Les Paul goldtop.
As far as I know, this is the earliest signature electric guitar. Gibson made the Les Paul with input from Les Paul. How much input the good Les Paul actually gave is a bit unclear. But at least he was the one that decided on the gold color ("makes it look more expensive"), trapeze bridge (which didn't work very well) and dark fretboard ("makes your fretting look faster"; you hear that Wilhelm?). Even though none of these features are really the essence of a Les Paul, the collaboration was the start of an iconic guitar classic.
1934 Gibson Roy Smeck guitar.
Roy Smeck was one of the more famous musicians at the beginning of the 20th century, but is now forgotten by most people. He was really a ukulele player (an instrument that at some point was more popular then the guitar), and the general decline in interest of ukulele music would explain why he is forgotten. Anyway, this beast got a FAT neck and came set up for lap style (Hawaiian) playing. It's basically a 12 fret dreadnought size guitar.
1928 Gibson Nick Lucas
Actually I don't know who Nick Lucas were, but he was involved in the first Gibson flattop. This is a small bodied size instrument, but with a really deep body compare to the L-00 and such. It's basically an L-2 body shape), but with more ornaments (or the L-2 is a plainer version of the Nick Lucas, since the Nick Lucas came first).
As far as I know, the tradition of signature models is much newer at Martin and Fender, which are Gibson’s main competitors. The above signature models were brand new models, not pimped up versions of already established models. Which more often then not is the case today, especially among the big companies (Fender, Gibson, Martin, etc).
So, these are the few early signature guitars I could think of right now. Anybody got any other then Gibson?
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22 comments:
So you didn't notice what i wrote about only including signature guitars I think are actually playable? ;-)
Good point about the Les paul though - I'm SO not a fan, but I see what you mean.
So do you think it's a coincidence that all my guitars have dark fretboards?
Anyways; the only early signature guitar I can think of besides those already mentioned would be the first twin necks (Hello, Jimmy Page and Gibson) and the Stanley Jordan Casio guitar (exclusively for tapping).
So do you think it's a coincidence that all my guitars have dark fretboards?
Mine have to, but alas, I still haven't noted any of that effect yet. Should I buy more guitars with darker fretboard?
;-)
I guess the Nick Lucas is playable by your definition, since it's actually possible to tune and is not designed for lapstyle... ;-)
Yeah; you need a PRS McCarty Soapbar or a CE24.
...or you could skip the preliminaries and skip straight to a Jackson Kelly or a King V
...or you could skip the preliminaries and skip straight to a Jackson Kelly or a King V
If once you start down the dark path, forever will it dominate your destiny, consume you it will.
Waaait a minute; didn't you give me all kinds of crap because all the default settings of my now defunct Benq-Siemens cell phone were Star Wars-related?
Crap? I said that I hoped you had backup. Nerds Unite!
But you have to admit; metal is the dark side of music...
You don't play hymns in your local church band with a screaming 24 fret, black'n'pointy Jackson Warlock...
You don't play hymns in your local church band with a screaming 24 fret, black'n'pointy Jackson Warlock...
Tru, tru, but mostly because that would mean that you had bought a stolen or counterfeit guitar that had "fallen off the back of a truck", seeing as how Warlocks are made by BC Rich.
I've seen Jacksons put to use by local church bands, though. All that takes is a sense of quality and some skills...
seeing as how Warlocks are made by BC Rich.
Busted! I knew I couldn't fake superior guitar knowledge for very long... :-(
........buy a PRS McCarty Soapbar......you know you want to....
PRS McCarty with buckers...
It's just a question of economics. Were can I sell a kidney or a barely used liver (only used for weekend drinking) for a good price?
...and here I thought you'd go for a CE24 or a Custom 24.
Or anything else with 24 frets. That in itself would be something I'd consider a personal victory.
;-)
I'm (partially) kidding. I have to try the McCarty first, since there is a really big difference between the three (four?) PRS I've tried.
Anyway, what's wrong with 12 fret access? That's where the money is... ;-)
Nothing's wrong with access to the top 12 frets. That's where half your fretboard access should be at.
...that actually reminds me of an old joke: Rhytm is the stuff that separates your guitar solos.
Thank you, thank you very much. I'll be here all week.
The new PRS 513 looks pretty damn terrific, btw.
http://www.prsguitars.com/513/index.html
Also check out this clip of Johnny Hiland and his way fly signature guitar model (demo clip)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iyTNXWsKooE&NR=1
That clip really rednecked the guitar for me. I'm looking for a "country spank"... :-)
Seriously, I thought it sounded very "modern", even with both humbuckers in. Could be the amp, though.
But I really need the help of a dark fretboard... ;-)
The PRS 513 looks sexy, but I don't know if that is the p.u. configuration I'm looking for.
I got to get out and try som PRS. Looks like they have a lot of great guitars.
I gotta admit; PRS have a lot of good stuff for almost any style.
Almost, that is. Seriously though - you didn't like the JH model? I thought it sounded great, especially considering the range it was able to cover.
Well, I wonder if it was the amp. Was that a tube amp? I know jackass about electric git'fiddles, but I know what sounds I like. It was something there that didn't click for me. Not "fat" enough. But it had a really wide range, due to the push-pull controlls. And it looked pretty good, even on that stetson-wearin' lunchbox.
But I'll give you one thing: I'm becoming more and more interested in PRS guitars. Too bad there isn't guitar stores here with a decent selection of PRS. How's Trondheim looking?
But I'll give you one thing: I'm becoming more and more interested in PRS guitars. Too bad there isn't guitar stores here with a decent selection of PRS. How's Trondheim looking?
Pretty good, actually. Between RIFF and "The Other One", there is a good selection of PRS guitars in Trondheim
And it looked pretty good, even on that stetson-wearin' lunchbox.
Actually, some of what makes Johnny Hiland so remarkable is the fact that he's legally blind.
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