Gibson 54 Les Paul

Mine is actually a 53. It may be a prototype. Has no serial numbers, no Les Paul logo on the headstock, and the neck is not wide or heavy. It actually feels small and delicate to me. No question that it is original. the wear and aging of the binding are continuous. It is set up for a stop bridge (no trapeze marks and no refinish) but has non-original tuneomatic bridge (front section only mounted on the bridge posts- fits like stop brige anyway). Tuners non-original copies. Pots may not be original. The rest is though, soft warping in the gold top, and P-90s. Not much checking though.

One of a kind sound. Plays jazz beautifully. It's so heavy it's very convincing in rock. Best feature: non-distorted blues improvisation. It truly sings and cries at the top. Incredible. I play it through a Matchless Chieftain, a Hot Rod Deluxe, and a Carvin Legacy. It is very fussy and inflexible for sound. I have to use a volume pedal onstage because it is hard to manage. It really can do anything if you couple it with good amplification. No excuses with this one.

This old girl has worked hard. I have no idea how it came from the factory, and it is a player, not a showcase guitar. It still is lovely to look at, and really better from its playing wear. It has a hand painted eagle (or something) on the pots cover in the back (from the 60's?) The neck has quite a bit of wear, but is still smooth to touch. Lots of buckle wear too. I don't beat my guitars, and hate it when people do. Still I love this old thing.

I've played it live. I always worry about it, and it always comes through. It's odd because it is very different onstage from home. It seems to come alive at higher volume. I always take a backup though, just in case.

I've never dealt with Gibson. I wouldn't touch a new one, but I love my 2 old ones.

33 years of playing. 3 teles, 2 strats (one 58 Mary Kay) Heritage H-575; Gibson Hummingbird; 4 amps; POD2 (which I have managed to merge with tube overdrives in my Legacy). It is irreplacable. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if it ever left me. It cannot be compared with anything but it's equals from 53-55. Stick with older american guitars, and good quality tube amps. These things last and provide tonal possibilities other equipment won't.

1954 Serial no: 4 1738. Purchased as 'all original' except for refret - no problem for me as i prefer the later, wider frets. Usual (primitive but pure) basic appointments of the period. 2 volume & 2 Tone controls with P.90 pickups. A major factor for me is that the original 50's Les Pauls seem to have that uniqueness in that the carve of the tops seem to be different from the re-issues - they seem to have a bigger 'belly' - which makes each one more individual. Original Gold finish now 'greeny gold' and extensive lacquer ageing, all of which part of the vintage vibe - a bit like 'battle scars'of an old warrior. Aluminum Stopbar bridge, big neck, brazilian board, klusons etc., The intonation was a surprise - once properly set, its fine and does not go anywhere. Easy string bending - i play mainly blues style - Freddie King had one of these before the ES series and the picture of him with one got Eric Clapton to buy a Les Paul.

Just fine - superb for blues and doubtless jazz/various other styles. Use with a Fender Reverb Deluxe. A decent amp and cord is all you need with this guitar. Mainly play at fairly low volume so noise buzz not really a problem. I know that these pickups can 'kick ass' however. Neck pickup seems more powerful than the bridge but is closer to the strings. The middle position very versatile whilst the bridge unit has that Fleetwood Mac 'Blues Jam at Chess' sound of Danny Kirwan playing 'World's in a tangle'. Great ! No dislikes whatsoever.

Brought privately. The guitar had been stored, unused (i guess) for years. The stopbar bridge basic intonation/ grubb screw allen key holes had rusted up, so they had to be cleaned to be operable. Once done - fine. Set the guitar up to my own reguirements. Pickups left as they were - have learn't (sometimes the hard way) that 'if its going alright - leave it alone'. Build quality was doubtless excellent in the beginning, for (as of now 49 years old) it has stood the test of time.

The age of this guitar proves its durability - it is rock solid, although i wouldn't want to drop this baby. Common sense dictates that the strap buttons should now have a locking device. The PRS style seems to make sense if using the guitar in active live work. If you did take a backup on a gig, it would be highly unlikely you would need it.

Have dealt with Gibson Customer support on a historic '58 re-issue query. They were polite and helpful but no need on this one as its too old and brought secondhand (several times over).

Been playing 35 years - have had vintage/relic strats/nocasters, various PRS's, various old/historic Gibsons etc., you name it - been there. Whilst many of the afore-listed have been excellent - there is some undefinable factor about this guitar which makes it very special. If it were stolen/lost (God forbid/let it not me), I don't think that it could easily be replaced as it is perhaps the culmination of years of playing/research/experience that has got me to this point. No way can i afford an original Sunburst - no problem - this Goldtop is more than O.K.

Mine is a late model '53 which is identical to the '54. Prior to mine, Les Pauls had a trapese tailpiece and shallow neck pitch which made them very difficult to play. Gibson actually made the first Les Pauls incorrectly until this change. My guitar is stock and straight up except for a pro refin. This is a great way to buy a vintage guitar since it reduces the cost substantially. This is a classic guitar so the feature rating is somewhat misleading. It still gets my highest opinion.

P90 pickups can be very noisy, even more so than strat single coils. You have to learn how to deal with it. The sound of these is remarkable. Clean and articulate yet aggresive when pushed hard. I play through Fender combos and use a variety of overdrive pedals to goose the sound.

Very well made. Considering its age, it's remarkable that it plays as well as fine new guitar. Fortunately, those who have enjoyed it through the years took good care of it. The quality of this guitar is repeatable as shown with the historic series. The only thing that isn't is that beautiful old wood which contributes to the sound. That is not repeatable in a new guitar.

This guitar has already stood the test of time. If it falls apart tomorrow, it still wins.

Not appropriate.

As of this review, original excellent condition goldtops have a market price of 8 to $10,000. The price drops as you stray from that benchmark, ie refin, broken neck repair, changed parts, etc. I waited a long time to get this guitar and it was worth it. It is giving me exactly what I hoped for. I own 10 other guitars and waited patiently to buy the best example of each one of them. I've been playing about 30 years and am fortunate to have a nice collection of guitars and amps. This with the others are all my favorites.

This guitar was bought in 1954 by one of my friend's great uncle. Its a Gold Top with soapbar pickups. It has a wrap over bridge on it. It has a rosewood fretboard, I think, with pearl trapezoid inlays, but it could be ebony. I say that because I don't know if ebony maintains its dark quality over nearly 50 years or if they even made 'em with ebony fretboards back then. This guitar was looked up and the serial number revealed that it was made in 1954 and you can tell this baby was anyways. The finish is cracked up a bit, but it isn't really in bad shape. Oh yeah, it still is in its original case. Some cool ass pink velvet stuff which is kick ass.

This guitar sounded like pure heaven when i plugged it up for the first time. We put some DR pure blues .10-.46 strings on it. I plugged it into my Marshall and about nearly had a heart attack. No noise. Just pure tone. The sound was so damn clear. They don't make em like they used to man. I compared it to my only electric guitar at that time, an Ibanez RG570. Those soapbar pickups had the same output of my humbuckers on that Ibanez and was much clearer and had way better tone. It just dripped. This is just the clean channel. When I threw the Overdrive 2 channel on and took a good strum I creamed my pants. It made my Marshall sound like a Mesa/Boogie....NO Lie. It had a rough, in your face, edgey type distortion to it. It stayed clear and precise. My other guitar couldn't do that. Needless to say I went out that next Tuesday and made my first Les Paul purchase.

Everything on it was set up the way it should have been. The only complaint i had on it was the wrap around bridge, but hell what do u expect. It was made in 1954. As this dude in my hometown would say, IT PLAYS LIKE A DREAM, MAN...

There are 2 factors here. 1. Its a Gibson. 2. It was made in '54.
I rest my case.

This guitar was badass..... (Period) !!!!!!!!

Made in 1954 (#4 1827), 100% original
Wrap over Bridge/Tailpiece, P-90's, Gold Top, all mahogany with maple top, Kluson Tuners, small frets

Great Sound!! It sings like no other!! (I own currently 51 guitars).
Warm and nontheless bright sound, no typical single coil sounds, but p-90's

Low action, heavy neck, strong feeling. That guitar shows you the limitations of your fingers as well.

The more vintage it becomes, the better it seems to be!

I don't care about

There are only three guitars (depends of he capacity of my hands)I would take with me if my house would burning down: that Les Paul, a PRS Artist III and an Ibanez PS10LTD