More NAMM news...
Gibson release the new 'Suspicious '59' Les Paul.
As the supply of real, minty '59 Les Pauls slowly disappear into the bank vaults of the mega rich, Gibson is starting to honour those downright suspicious Les Pauls that crop up on the used market.
Features include such bespoke features as;
Mysterious lacquer over-spray on the headstock.
Ambiguous chew marks on the back of the headstock that may indicate Grovers were fitted.
A finish that may or may not glow under a UV lamp, but certainly wont do it evenly.
An off-center seam on the top. Was it really a goldtop that got refinished? I've seen genuine bursts with off-center seams, so shut up or I'm going home.
One reproduction M-69 pickup ring and one cracked, heavily sanded original. Reason for sanding not apparent.
Router chew marks in the control cavity that will spark at least ten pages of frantic discussion on the usual forums.
A sneaking suspicion that the thing has been re-topped, because the carve just doesn't look right to me, and I held a '57 at Arlington last year.
Telltale Bigsby marks in the finish, but no Bigsby. For an $100 upgrade you can have a fugly, seized NOS Norlin-era bridge fitted.
The dot of the 'i' in 'Gibson' sits just a teeny tiny bit too high for some folk.
One PAF and one 'Tar Back' pickup. Neck or bridge; your choice. The PAF cover raises further suspicion with those in the know.
A sneaking suspicion that the neck has been replaced entirely some time in the '70s, or that the whole damn thing has never been near Kalamazoo.
Suspiciously fresh looking solder in the control cavity, and one pot replaced with one with a 1982 date stamp.
One inlay that totally looks replaced.
Yours for $75,000 because the last owner told me that it used to belong to Joe Walsh. Or Clapton. One of those geezers.
