Gibson Les Paul 1957 Reissue
My first “nice” guitar was a 1975 Wine Red Les Paul Custom, purchased new. It was a beautiful guitar that was a joy to play. It accompanied me to many gigs. Eventually I had to sell it for a loss during a particularly slow cash flow period. It was a pretty depressing moment that I hope never to experience again.
Since that time, I did manage to acquire a couple of other Les Pauls – one a ’75 Goldtop, and the other a ’73. They were both nice guitars, but I have to admit that I got pretty tired of hearing about the many ways they were inferior to the older models. I sold the ’75 when I needed some quick cash (again). The ’73 ended up as part of the trade for my 335.
As time passed, I really missed not owning a Les Paul. A vintage Goldtop or Burst would have been a nice addition to my collection, but if I had that kind of cash on hand, I would probably have spent it on a new car – or house. Thankfully, Gibson has produced a number of really nice reissues.
I finally purchased this ’57 Custom Shop Reissue built in 2000. I am very impressed by the sound of this guitar… unplugged! You strum a chord and it seems to ring forever. I guess all of that talk about hide glue and tenon length really wasn’t as crazy as it sounded after all. Needless to say, it also sounds pretty nice when you plug it in.
According to Gibson:
The 1957 Standard Historic 1957 “Goldtop” Les Paul from Gibson Custom delivers the tone, looks and feel of the original ’57 Goldtop with hand-crafted beauty and historic appointments. From historically accurate paint formulation, to a hot hide glue set neck, to the renown sound transference that comes with its long neck tenon, the most important details that made the original a legend are artfully revived for a convincing vintage playing experience.
This guitar does have a really fat neck! The term “baseball bat” definitely applies in this case. When I first picked it up, I was a little spooked, but after playing for only a couple of minutes it really felt just right.
Cosmetically, this guitar is in very nice shape. There is the slightest hint of buckle rash on the back, but the finish is intact. You have to work pretty hard to actually see it. The pickup switch tip was broken during shipping, but I replaced it with a vintage style tip from Switchcraft which set me back only a couple of dollars. The headstock has a very small ding on one edge, and some of the metal parts show the slightest bit of age, but otherwise it’s pretty much mint!
The original frets are in great shape, and I really like how it plays.
The original case is in great shape. Unfortunately, the COA is MIA, but the rest of the “case candy” survives.
I feel really lucky to have found this guitar. I will (hopefully) enjoy playing it for years to come.
Ironically, I’ve begun to notice that some of the mid-’70s Les Pauls are selling for more now than some of the Reissues. I’m sure this is entirely due to the fact that I used to own several of them.
