bobouz

Trying to guess BRW vs IRW based on the color & grain pattern in photos is risky business. The one sure-fire method is to assess the pores of the wood, as Dave mentioned. Solid BRW cannot be ruled out if this is truly a first-version Heritage (with a modified bridge). Interesting guitar, for sure.

Something doesn't jive with this guitar. It's appearance seems to conform to the first version specs for a '65 to '67 Heritage - except for the bridge, which should be belly-up and adjustable. A stock belly-down bridge from the late '60s would date it to '68 or '69 - but it too would also have been adjustable, which it is not on this guitar. Does the label say it's a Heritage? If so, it could possibly be the early version (with solid Brazilian back & sides), but with a replacement belly-down bridge. Only problem with that, is that you'd expect to see some obvious remnants of an outline of the original belly-up bridge, which are not clearly identifiable via the photos. So essentially, there are issues here that warrant further investigation.

It appears to be the same as the orange 4oz bottle, but with a new label. The rear label says it is safe for all lacquer & poly finishes.

Django Reinhardt - acoustic Michael Bloomfield - electric

You seem to be basing this on Les Paul's contribution to the electric guitar, but in reality, his contribution was simply one of many. Charlie Christian did more than anyone to initially bring the electric guitar to the forefront of the musical world (in terms of actually playing the instrument in a big band setting) in the late '30s and early '40s. At the time, Les Paul was a darn good guitar player who was trying to develop his own unique sound, and later built his "log" guitar on the Epiphone premisis, and then recorded with it. Paul Bigsby built a guitar for Merle Travis that looked like a solid-body LP with a Fender-ish headstock (but it actually had hollow wings). Leo Fender saw that (but said he didn't) & then built his first solid body. Gibson then jumped on the bandwagon & wanted Les Paul as an endorser, so they struck a deal, but Les actually contributed very little to the design of the Gibson LP. It's somewhat of a long & winding road, and while Les Paul played a significant part, he was just one of many who made important and lasting contributions during this period of major development. The Greatest Guitarist question is somewhat similar. There's a very long line of contributors to guitar playing that have made a lasting impact, and from which others have learned or been infuenced. I don't believe anyone's yet mentioned Chet Atkins (inspired by Merle Travis), Michael Bloomfield, Lightnin' Hopkins, and so many others. Trying to say one, or even a handful, is the "greatest" is rather pointless when you consider different playing styles, genres, and periods in history along the guitar continuum. But if I were indeed forced to name one person, the one guitarist whose contribution I value over all the others, and who I listen to today more than anyone else, it's the guy Les Paul spent years trying to emulate: Django Reinhardt.

Don't know if I've ever seen a sweeter looking top on an LP. Simply gorgeous!

Even when comparing multiple examples of the same model, I've typically found significant differences in sound. That was the case when I purchased an '06 ES-335, '09 ES-339, and '12 ES-330 VOS. In this case, you are comparing two different models, so it would seem even more normal to expect noticeable differences in tone. Especially in the world of hollowbodies, it's a scenario that's rather similar to acoustic guitars, in that no two pieces of wood are exactly the same, and to a certain extent, the final tone will depend on each individual body. Just go for the one that works best with the type of music you enjoy playing.

I've been an acoustic player since the '70s, and then discovered the joy of electrics in 2001. From then until around 2014, I went through a lot of Gibsons from both Nashville and Memphis. In my own experience, and painting with a rather broadly generalized brush, the instruments coming out of Nashville have not benefited from consistently attentive quality control - while both Memphis and Montana have displayed more consistency with their overall build quality. So from my perspective, I would naturally be inclined to carefully inspect any instrument coming out of the Nashville plant- and in this case, it's very fortunate that BBB went in for a deeper look. A good lesson learned for us all.

Quite a few years ago, I harbored a desire to own a birth-year '51 LG-3. Eventually, I found one & was quite underwhelmed. It quickly came to mind that I'd be much better served to always focus on finding the best example I could of any particular model. Haven't been motivated by the birth-year thing since.

Yes, there certainly can be regional differences, but to my knowledge these two artists only had one major charting hit. I grew up in the LA area, and never heard anything else from either of them. I do know that Maurice Williams had a long & successful career, and Arthur Conley was an Otis Redding protégé, but I'm not aware of either artist recording another high charting "hit" that received widespread airplay.

A few favorites: > Do You Love Me - The Contours > Sweet Soul Music - Arthur Conley > Do You Want To Dance - Bobby Freeman > Treat Her Right - Roy Head > Come Go With Me - The Del Vikings

Well, then you can't buy any more Gibsons. Gibson bought the Garrison factory in Canada, and produced a line of acoustics there which were labeled Gibsons. And on the electric side, I know of at least one exclusive limited-edition Gibson 335 model that had a body made by the Terada factory in Japan (Terada has manufactured Epiphone Elitist models for Gibson since 2002).

Love that SirNed's '64 Hummingbird still has it's original plastic adjustable bridge. And as a rather low-key & lazy bird watcher, I do indeed appreciate his grandpa's work.

I use D'Addario PB EJ-15 extra lights. Suits my fingerpicking style to a tee on many guitars, including my J-45 Rosewood & J-50. One person's poison is another person's pleasure!

Hmm, I've owned a lot of Gibsons over the years & have never come across anything like that. Scary stuff!

We now live on the north Oregon coast, but used to live in Eugene - relatively close to Three Finger Jack. Have seen it from a distance, but never hiked directly in. Was completely amazed the first time I rode through the moonscape-like McKenzie Pass volcanic area back in the early '70s on a motorcycle. Seemed like just about the cleanest air a person could breath, and Three Finger Jack could be viewed through one of the portals of the rock observatory near the summit of the pass. Thanks for sharing & bringing back some great memories!

As mentioned in the text, it's a P-90, and it certainly does look like a typical Gibson P-90. If the pickup is of the same vintage as the pot codes ('61), then it's got the potential to have first-rate tone. But still, $2000 for an LG-1 seems pretty steep. There certainly are a lot of very nice used Gibsons out there for that kind of money - and even some nice new ones!

How about a Cremona for $25? Of course, that was procured at a flea market back in the '70s! This one was from the '30s, with a carved top & ornate vertical art deco "Harmony" headstock inlay that looked like a theatre marquee. The word "Cremona" was done in a 45-degree banner style, running through the midpoint of the vertical Harmony. The bound fingerboard had six block inlays, with a center stripe inlay running the length of the fingerboard & dividing the blocks. And although my fuzzy old Polaroids don't show it clearly enough, as I recall, the binding around the top had a rope pattern inlay. It's tone was very nice, but the chunky neck profile, which I'm sure would be Zomby-Approved, didn't work so well for me!

Pass, unless the tone completely knocks you out. The warped looking back mentioned above is not an issue, as this is an arched & laminated back. But not yet mentioned is that the neck heel appears to be separating a bit from the body - which in conjunction with the low saddle, is a recipe for a neck reset. Also, if they're telling you that the soundboard crack has been repaired, the job was poorly done. This type of crack is common, and is typically caused by shrinkage of the plastic pickguard material. Repair is relatively easy, but the repair should make the two sides level & draw them more evenly together. There just isn't much to recommend spending good money on this particular instrument.

Actually, many manufacturers do not brace instruments with solid sides, including Gibson, Martin, Guild, and Larrivee. These days, if you see bracing on the sides, it may depend on whether or not it's a reissue of a vintage piece. Yes, once upon a time, cloth side supports were fairly standard. Wood supports have also been used, as on a '90s Guild I have. But Gibson has not used them for a long time.

When Gibson finally came out with a very nice ES-330 reissue in 2012, it was based on a '59. I tried a number of them, but the necks were way too chunky for me. Then as fate would have it, I came across one with a profile that was significantly less beefy. Don't know how it slipped through, but it was perfect - and it's my desert island electric (assuming there's a place to plug in!).

Really like the colorized pic. Looking forward to more film info!

Seems like about five years ago when I tried to figure out how many guitars I'd owned up to that point, it was around 125. Some have come & gone since then, and currently it stands at 31 guitars & 2 mandolins. I feel fortunate to own the variety of acoustics & electrics that I have, and find it tonally inspiring to switch from one guitar to another. It's all good!

My favorite neck shape on an electric is what Gibson advertised as the 30/60 profile awhile back. I think the first year of it might have been 2007, with the release of the ES-339. I have an '09 ES-339, '10 ES-330L, & '12 LP Special, all sharing a similar profile. It's supposed to be a bit wider than the a '60s slim taper. Just super comfy & easy to negotiate. It might be that your '12 has this profile, or something very close to it. Good luck in your hunt for the right ES-175!

Back in the '70s, I used to regularly buy guitars at flea markets for $10-$25. Some very good acoustic archtops were included in that group, but also some old solid spruce & rosewood parlor guitars. It's amazing what a little box like that can put out when well executed. Congrats & have fun with that one!