Gibson 1958 Les Paul Junior Historic Reissue

For me, its main feature is that it is a perfect reproduction of a 1958 Les Paul in every way, and to top it off, thanks to the glossy finish, it looks brand spanking new. The cherry red finish is flawless, deep, and shiny, and the hardware sparkles.

I wanted a top quality double cut Les Paul Junior for a lot of years, but did not want one with a VOS artificially aged finish. I learned to play in the mid-1960s on a cherry red 1958 or '59 Les Paul Junior that my cousin had bought new. It was really a big deal to have an electric guitar back then, and having a Gibson was really special, as really good guitars were rare. Anyway, my cousin had scuffed it up and dinged it up a good bit before I got it, and as a kid, I always wished that he had taken better care of it because I was proud of it, and wanted it to look like new. Now, I'm almost 60, and finally have the brand new looking Les Paul Junior that I wanted for all those years.

As far as the features, it has everything that a real '58 or '59 Les Paul had, and nothing more. It's perfect for guys like me, who buy a guitar for pure nostalgia as much as for its playability and musicality.

It has no inlays, and there is no binding on the neck or on the body. The bridge and pickup are simple, and have no real adjustment, there is no switch, and the tuner buttons are plain. All you get is top quality woods, the finest hardware imaginable, a pickup and a volume and tone knob, and most importantly, all of these things are put together with 1950s workmanship and pride.

The design of this guitar is old hat, but it is good old hat.

It's made here in the United States of America, and for me, this is an important feature.

There is an intangible quality that comes with playing a guitar that's so simple when most of the other players have guitars with multiple pickups, loads of knobs, coil splitters, and so on. It's like wearing a sports coat and tie when all the other men are wearing suits, and yet, its also like wearing a sports coat and tie when all the other men are wearing polo shirts are jeans.

This guitar has a straightforward, unprocessed, raw, unfiltered sound. When played through a really good, low power, no frills tube amp, you'll get the feeling that all those effects and pedals that cost so much were actually robbing you of the tone that you were trying to find for so many years.

Once you accustomed to playing one, you'll begin to wonder if guitars with two or more pickups actually limit tonal possibilities to a greater extent than they create them.

This guitar stays in tune better than any other I???ve played in about 50 years. It brings out the dynamics of your playing more than most guitars. Regardless of whether you sit or stand, you can play this guitar all day and be comfortable every minute.

The finish is brand new looking and letter perfect, and this is exactly how I wanted my cousin's Les Paul Junior to look when I took it over about 44 years ago.

As far as the quality of this guitar, its like Yogi Berra said - - The more you look, the more you see to observe.

My guitar is flawless.

In 1979, I had to sell the real '58 or '59 Les Paul Junior that I had learned to play on, and that I cherished. The money went for tuition. In the 15 years or so that I had it though, it never once failed me, and required no repairs.

I take good care of my guitars (and amps, etc.). I wipe them down after playing, keep them in good cases, check the set up often, and avoid guitar stands. I change strings often, and change them one at a time to help keep the neck tension close to constant.

A good Gibson will outlast most of the people who play it.

I never had a problem with my first Les Paul Junior, and I won't with this one.

For me, this shiny, glossy, brand new looking Les Paul Junior is the exact guitar that I've wanted since I was a kid back in the 1960s. I can't can't give an objective rating to a guitar that took me 44 or 45 years to finally get. I'd rate it a million or a billion or whatever number that you would give as an Overall Rating to a guitar that you've wanted for 40-some-odd years.

If you play one for a while, I'll bet you'll be impressed, especially if you have never played one before. And if you're looking for your dream guitar, I hope that you find it.

Gibson says that this guitar is called the Custom Shop 1958 Les Paul Junior Historic Reissue (Gloss Finish) Double Cutaway model.

It is an accurate replica of a 1958 Les Paul Junior that looks and sounds like the original. I've been playing for 42 years, and no guitar has impressed me more.

Its main feature is that it is a high-quality, unadorned, no-nonsense guitar that is perfect for anyone who admires and appreciates the simplicity and quality of the originals. No glitzy maple cap, fancy inlays, gold hardware, locking tuners, robotics, or coil splitters. No gimmicks, no crapola, and no distractions.

One piece mahogany body. One piece mahogany, long tenon neck. Rounded 1958 neck profile, 0.95 at the nut, 1 1/8 at the 12 fret. 12" radius. Brazilian rosewood fingerboard with dot inlays. 24 3/4" scale length. 22 frets. Aluminum wraparound bridge/tailpiece. No binding. Closed back Klusons with white buttons. Black, single layer pickguard.

It has a glossy, translucent cherry nitrocellulose lacquer finish, and shiny hardware so that it looks like a brand new guitar. No artificial aging. It is not a VOS model.

And last but not least, a bridge mounted, dog eared, P 90 pickup with a black plastic cover. 1 volume and 1 tone knob.

It sounds so good that it is hard to describe. The P90 has the richness and string-to-string balance of humbuckers, but with the clarity and cutting power of single coils. The wraparound bridge, one piece body, and everything else contributes to the magic, so that the overall resonance, touch responsiveness, and richness is amazing.

The P90 is super sensitive and picks up every nuance of your playing technique, which makes technique the main tone control. Varying the right hand position and the intensity of the string attack allows you to go from clean, balanced chords to edgy, overdriven notes. The range of tones increases when the volume and tone controls are factored in, but even still, your playing technique is the most important tone control.

The bottom line is that the range of really great tones is limited only by the player talent, and having only one pickup has made me a better guitar player. This guitar will not hold anyone back. Try one, even if you don???t plan to buy one.

I play rock and roll from the 50s to 70s, blues, homemade jams, and Christian music. No effects. No guitar picks. No pedals, reverb, amp tone stacks, etc. Just a high quality guitar, pure nickel strings, a short cable, and a tube rectified, 6V6 amp (usually with a "volume knob only," like a tweed Fender Champ, or a 1950s Gibson GA-5 Skylark). The house PA when necessary. That's it.

It can deliver the full range of tones and can go from warm, mellow, jazzy cleans to screaming like a scalded banshee.

Materials and Workmanship - The quality of the wood, especially the one piece body, the glossy nitrocellulose cherry finish, and the sleekness of the rosewood is obvious. The neck-to-body body joint is huge, neat and solid, as there is no neck pickup rout. The fretwork, nut, hardware, etc. is perfect. This guitar is really well made, and the closer you look, the more you see it.

Playability and Design - The dimensions and proportions make this guitar super comfortable to play. The chunky neck profile eliminates pressure on the thumb joint, and increases leverage, so that it takes minimal effort to press or bend the strings. The lower bout keeps the right arm in a natural, relaxed position, and yet, it is easy to adjust the right hand position between the neck and bridge. The guitar is lightweight and balances well, regardless of whether on a strap or on the knee. Overall, the design makes this guitar virtually effortless to play.

This is a really good P90, and the bridge position mounting puts it where the string tension is the highest, which makes the strings less vulnerable to its magnetic pull. Very touch responsive and resonant.

The quality and simplicity of this guitar will make it last a long, long time. I take excellent care of it too, and foresee no problems.

Although Gibson strap buttons get a lot of criticism, I trust them. I've never known anyone to drop a Gibson because of a strap button problem.

I don't gig in the normal sense, but play about once a month at a mega church (with a PA and several huge video screens), and am sometimes the only guitar player. I never use a backup guitar.

In my view, if you need a backup, it means that you don't know your guitar well enough to trust it. Watch the old Beatle or Stones clips, or the Superbowl halftime show, and you won't see any backup guitars. Besides, if you can't play for 10 or 15 minutes with a broken string and sound decent, you might need practice more than a backup guitar.

The best kind of customer service is a thoughtful design, top notch materials, and top notch workmanship. I won't call on the warranty even if a problem arises. I have a local guy who does excellent work on all of my guitars.

I am glad that this guitar is available without the VOS artificial aging, as I prefer that a new guitar look and feel like a new guitar.

I have several guitars and was not in the market for another when I purchased this one. I had accompanied a friend to a music shop, and accidently fell head over heels in love with this guitar.

You either really love the simplicity and quality of this guitar and appreciate the complexity of its tone and harmonics, or you don???t. If you do, then even if you have other guitars that you have bonded for life with, no guitar will surpass this one. It will increase your awareness of the strengths and weaknesses of your playing technique.

If you've never played one for 5 or 10 minutes or so, you are missing something, just as I was. A very unique guitar.