1958-60 Gibson Les Paul Standard

The Les Paul Standards made by Gibson between 1958 and the end of 1960 represent the very pinnacle of American electric guitar craft and are collectively known as “Bursts”

 

1712 total "Bursts" were made, with 957 known to still exist
        ○ 1958 - 434 made, 187 known to still exist
        ○ 1959 - 643 made, 505 known to still exist
        ○ 1960 - 635 made (mostly SG's), 265 known to still exist
 

 

These were the only years when the Les Paul Standard was built with a flamed maple top with a cherry sunburst finish, a stopbar tailpiece and Tune-o-Matic bridge, as well as a pair of PAF humbuckers

 

Although at the time, they were not well received, leading to them being discontinued after 1960, they are now highly collectible, and are widely regarded as one of the “Holy Grail” models sought after by guitarists and collectors with 1959 models being the most valuable

 

The "Burst" generation were replaced by what are now known as the "SG"  in 1961, before the "Les Paul" name was discontinued in 1963.  As a result, NO true SINGLE CUT Les Paul's were made from 1961-1967, and NO Les Paul's AT ALL were made from 1963-67

 

The traditional, single cut Les Paul was re-introduced in 1968, but only as Gibson's 1st "Reissue" model, in the form of the '56 Goldtop with P90 pickups

 

Norlin purchased Gibson in 1970 and owned them through 1985.  Collectors refer to this time period from 1970-85 as the "Norlin Era" and consider the guitars from that time period "less" desirable. 

 

Because of the limited desirablilty for Les Paul's made from 1963-85,  many famous guitarists found a renewed interest in the earlier Les Pauls, in particluar the "Bursts".   With only 1712 "Bursts" ever made , this scarcity, combined with the renewed interest in "Bursts" led to them becoming one of the "Holy Grail"  guitars demanding prices in often in exess of $300,000, with at least 7 "Bursts"  selling for more than $500,000.

 

The most expensive "Burst" sold to date is the ‘59 “Greeny” purchased by Kirk Hammett in 2014 for $2,000,000 (Image #13)

 

Jimmy Page's 1959 "Number 1" estimated by Grok to be worth between  $2,000,000 - $10,00,000 if/when it ever sells!  - click on the menu to view the separate page titled "1959 Les Paul Standard Jimmy Page Number 1" for full details

 

 

More Les Paul History...

Slash's 1958 Les Paul "First Standard" SN 8-3096  - The 1st Les Paul Standard "Burst"  ever produced, is currently owned by Slash  (image #12)  - Gibson’s shipping records confirm Slash’s original 1958 Les Paul guitar (serial #8 3096) was one of the first two sunburst Les Pauls ever made and the first ever to feature a two-piece center-seamed maple top, a key feature of the Les Paul Standard. That makes Slash’s guitar the first production Les Paul Standard model!

 

Jimmy Page's 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard “Number 1”-  click on the menu to view the separate page titled "1959 Les Paul Standard Jimmy Page Number 1"  for full details

 

Kirk Hammett's 1959 Les Paul "Greeny" SN 9-2208 (image #13)- Previously owned by Peter Green of Fleetwood Mac, and blues legend Gary Moore, "Greeny",  Kirk Hammett of Metallica is rumored to have paid  $2,000,000 for this guitar in 2014

 

Billy Gibbons 1959 Les Paul "Pearly Gates" SN 9-1161 (image #14) - "Pearly Gates" has been used on every ZZ Top album to date, and for years was front and center for countless tours and live appearances.  Gibbons was allegedly offered $5,000,000 for this guitar, but refused to sell... 

 

Mark Knopfler's 1959 Les Paul SN 9-1258 - sold for $876,000 - Knopfler acquired this guitar in 1999, several years after Dire Straits disbanded in 1995

Mark Knopfler's 1983 ‘Money for Nothing’ Gibson Les Paul ‘59 Burst Reissue , Christies Jan 2024  $749,000

Mark Knopfler's 1958 Les Paul SN 8-6811 - Purchased in 1996, after Dire Straits disbanded in 1995, Knopfler still owns and plays this guitar

 

Ed King's 1959 Les Paul "Red Eye" SN 9-0891 - sold for $650,000 to Jason Isbell  - Ed King acquired "Red Eye" in 1983, many years after leaving Lynyrd Skynyrd in 1975

 

Gary Rossington's 1959 Les Paul "Bernice" SN 9-0695 - Rossington's primary guitar used on every Lynyrd Skynyrd album, and for countless tours and live appearances 

 

Keith Richards 1959 "Keef Burst" Les Paul - Keith owned and played a sunburst Les Paul before any of his contemporaries, including many of whom became famous for their use of the instrument: Eric Clapton, Jimmy Page, Jeff Beck, Peter Green, Paul Kossoff, Mike Bloomfield, Billy Gibbons, Joe Walsh, Duane Allman... Keef had 'em all beat to the 'Burst.  This guitar was played during the Rolling Stones’ 1964 appearance on “The Ed Sullivan Show,” and used to record songs such as Satisfaction, Get Off My Cloud, Let’s Spend the Night Together.  Jimmy Page used this guitar on a recording session in July of '64, as he was a busy session musician in London at the time, and Keith and Mick were honing their craft as songwriters. A version of "Heart of Stone" from these sessions featuring Page and the "Keefburst" can be found on the 1975 Stones compilation album Metamorphosis.

 

Joe Perry's 1959 Les Paul "Tobacco Burst" SN 9-0663 (images #5 & 6)  -  Slash used this guitar in Gun's n Roses "November Rain" video, and in the studio while working on "Use Your Illusion".The story of its passage in and out of Perry’s hands over the years is riveting...  Joe Perry, Slash, Boston-area guitar legend Billy Loosigian and Eric Johnson have all owned number 9-0663 over the years, as it did the rounds through the various ups and downs of Aerosmith’s career.  After their divorce in 1982, Perry's wife sold the guitar to a music shop in Cambridge, Massachusetts for $4,500.  Billy Loosigian, an employee at the shop, bought it and sold it to a notable guitar dealer Gerry Beaudoin.  In 1984 Beaudoin sold the guitar to another legendary guitarist - Eric Johnson. Johnson ended up finding out that the guitar had previously belonged to Perry and offered to sell the guitar to him for the same price he paid for it, but unfortunately, Perry didn't have the money at the time, so the guitar ended up being sold to Slash in 1988 for a reported sum of $8000.  Perry found out that Slash had the guitar when Brad Whitford showed him a picture of Slash playing it in Guitar Player magazine. Perry tried to get the guitar back, offering Slash more than the guitar was currently worth, but Slash kept it; after all, the guitar meant a lot to him as well.  Perry was finally reunited with his old '59 when Slash gave it back to him at his 50th birthday party in 2000. "His heart is so big, I don't know how it fits in his chest," Perry told Conan O'Brien of the gift.  “It’s got everything a great Les Paul is supposed to have,” says Perry. “The neck isn’t quite as fat as, say, a ’54 Goldtop, but it’s still got a good, meaty neck. It’s not a high-output guitar, so it’s got a lot of tone … And it’s got all the natural sustain and warmth, and when you turn it up it growls.”   Click for further discussion on the Les Paul Forum

2017 '58 Les Paul “First Standard” #8 3096 Replica  MSRP $14,999  (image #12)  

• The vintage 1958 Les Paul “First Standard” #8 3096 is owned by Slash
• Gibson’s Custom Shop scanned the original for exact replication, capturing neck shape, finish wear, and even hardware corrosion. Slash called the prototype “mind-blowing.”  Limited to 300 units (50 Aged/Signed, 100 Aged, 150 VOS)

 

1958-60 Gibson Les Paul “BURST” Reissues (R8, R9, R0)

 

• 2018 Gibson Custom Historic Collection 1958 Les Paul Standard Reissue “R8”   MSRP $9999  -  The 1958 Les Paul Standard Reissue features all the painstaking historic construction methods of the famous '59 Reissues with a few historically-accurate spec differences that allow it to stand on its own.   Like the 1958 originals, it has narrow frets which help more of the fingerboard wood to be heard in the tone profile.  It also has a round, chunky neck profile for a full feel and maximum bending leverage.   And finally it has a beautiful plain maple top; each is unique and full of character.   Available in a variety of classic sunburst shades including Bourbon Burst, Iced Tea Burst, Lemon Burst, Washed Cherry Sunburst

 

• 1993-present Les Paul '59 Flametop Reissue (LP59/LPR9) MSRP $8504
• 1999-2000 Les Paul '59 Figured Top Reissue (LPR9F) MSRP $8162
• 1999-2000 Les Paul '59 Plaintop Reissue (LPR9P) MSRP $6231
• 2006-12 Les Paul '59 Standard (LPR9VO/LPR9T)  MSRP VOS/TH $12,200 /  Murphy aged $15,729
• 2006-12 Gibson Custom Historic '59 Les Paul Standard Reissue
• 2018 Gibson Custom Historic Collection '59 Les Paul Standard Reissue “R9”  MSRP $9999 (image #15) - Gibson Custom's 1959 Les Paul Standard is a painstakingly-accurate replica of these highly-valuable guitars rendered in detail so intricate that even the chemical composition of the parts has been scientifically examined and re-engineered – and that's just one small example. Sonically, visually, and tactilely, owning a 2018 Gibson Custom Historic '59 Les Paul Standard is as close as one can get to owning a priceless original. Available in four beautiful sunburst variations in Gloss or VOS (vintage patina, shown) finishes.

 

• 2018 Gibson Custom Historic Collection '60 Les Paul Standard Reissue “R0”  MSRP $9999 - 1960 was the last year for the original Les Paul Standard and single-cut Les Pauls in general, as the SG model was lined up to replace them with a more "modernistic" look. This year also saw the adoption of new "reflector" knobs and a new slim neck shape, a perfect profile for the many famous musicians who played '60 Bursts including Eric Clapton, Joe Walsh, and Paul McCartney. Gibson Custom's '60 Les Paul Standard is a painstakingly-accurate replica of the highly-valuable originals rendered in detail so intricate that even the chemical composition of the parts has been scientifically examined and re-engineered – and that's just one small example. Sonically, visually, and tactilely, owning a 2018 Gibson Custom Historic Les Paul Standard is as close as one can get to owning a priceless original.  Available in four beautiful sunburst variations in Gloss or VOS (vintage patina, shown) finishes.

 

 

2010-17 Gibson Collectors Choice  - Gibson offered the “Collector’s Choice” Line Up from 2010-2017 where they reissued some choice examples of 1958-1960 Gibson Les Paul “Bursts” that Collector’s Owned.  42 Models were created based on 39 Guitars (where 3 had two separate issuings as both Aged and VOS CC1, CC29, CC4).   All other models had aging of varying extremities based on the original guitar.  8 of the guitars were not your usual “Bursts” featuring 2 Goldtops, Painted Over Black Burst, Firebird III, Les Paul Custom, ES-335, DC LP Junior, and a ’68 Les Paul (CC10, CC12, CC19, CC22, CC34, CC36, CC42, CC47)

• 2010 Gibson Custom Collector's Choice™ #1 Gary Moore '59 Les Paul Standard  MSRP $34,500 Aged & Signed - With only 125 made, these rarely come up for sale and are by far the most desirable of the entire Collector's Choice series.  An incredible 1959 Reissue guitar like no other model. Almost black rosewood fingerboard, lightweight, vintage top with lots of character, wonderful aging by Tom Murphy, and the Gary Moore connection with signed COA make this the top Collector's Choice model ever to be made.

 

Gibson Artist Series - Guitars Collector

 

OTHER

• Kirk Hammett's "Greeny" '59  Les Paul Standard  MSRP $19,999

• Mark Knopfler's  ‘Money for Nothing’  1983 Gibson Les Paul ‘59 Reissue , Christies Jan 2024 $749,000

Slash's 1st "Les Paul" was actually a REPLICA:  1975 Max Baranet“Hunter Burst” ‘59 Les Paul Replica  SN 9-2824 Gotta Have Rock n Roll 2023  $1.5-2M est DNS  (image #7)

• Slash’s 1st “Les Paul” (replica) acquired from Guitars R Us on Sunset Boulevard in Hollywood in 1985
• The name “Hunter Burst '' speaks to its dual rockstar ownership as it was first owned and played by Steve Hunter of Lou Reed and Alice Cooper
• The Hunter Burst was not an original Gibson Les Paul, but a replica built by a well-known guitar luthier Peter “Max” Baranet
• Slash regrettably hocked/sold this guitar in mid-July of 1986 to buy drugs, as told by Slash in his self-biography
• "This guitar went on a 30 year journey since it last hung on the wall of my store back in 1986. Ironically, sometime in 2016 I was offered and re-purchased this guitar from a very nice guy who had been the steward of it for very many years.  Slash and I got together and I reunited him with it.  He had not held or seen this guitar since letting it go back in 1986 or 87 but stated it was fun to visit with it again.  The guitar did change hands and currently resides with a happy collector." - Albert Molinaro
• The guitar was put up for Auction in 2023 with an estimate of $1,500,000 - $2,000,000 but did not sell...

 

Slash's FAVORITE & Main Studio Guitar is a REPLICA:  1986 Kris Derrig ‘58/59 Les Paul Replica SN 9 0607 (image #8)

• Ironically, Slash's FAVORITE GUITAR – the one Slash used on Appetite for Destruction – is not a Gibson... it is a replica made by Kris Derrig of MusicWorks, a guitar store located in Redondo Beach, California
• Slash was playing a BC Rich Warlock during the time Guns & Roses went in to record their debut album, but he wasn't satisfied with the sound of it.  Alan Niven, the band’s original manager, gave Slash the 1986 Kris Derrig ’58/59 Les Paul Standard replica sometime during the recording “Appetite For Destruction”.
• The top, like those of the most sought-after original Les Pauls, features highly figured book-matched maple, but with no cherry tint around the edges of the top
• The serial number is ink-stamped in the style of a 1959 Gibson, but the neck profile is actually that of a ’58
• The special sound of this guitar comes from a pair of Hard-To-Find Seymour Duncan APH1NJ and APH1BJ pickups (This is the Appetite for Destruction tone) with black-and-white “zebra” coils and some vintage electronics that the maker had in his shop
• The Kris Derrig was his main guitar through the beginning of the first Guns N’ Roses tour.  Although this guitar is not used on the road since the first tour, it has been used on ALL Slash albums since.
• "When I go in to do pre-production, I’ll just take one guitar – the first ’59 Les Paul replica by Kris. I record all the basic tracks with that guitar, then go back and re-do some parts, trying different stuff." - Slash
   

Slash's Backup Guitar on 1st Tour was a REPLICA:  “Skull and Crossbones Max” Max Baranet #2 ‘60 Les Paul Replica (image #9)

• Slash got this guitar from Howie Hubberman – the same person who sold him the Hunterburst.  Slash agreed to buy the guitar from Howie for $2600 – which he didn’t pay until two years later.  As the part of the deal Howie got the keep the original PAFs, so they took the guitar to Roman Rist who put in Seymour Duncan Alnico II Pro pickups instead.
• What’s interesting about this guitar was the Skull and Crossbones design which appeared naturally on the maple top behind the bridge. Because of that Slash refers to this guitar as “Skull and Crossbones Max”
• This was his backup guitar (#2) through the beginning of the first Guns N’ Roses tour
• Slash used this guitar in the "Welcome to the Jungle" video

 

Slash's Main Stage Guitar is a REPLICA of a REPLICA (but is an actual Gibson):  “Jessica”  - 1987 Gibson Plaintop "Kris Derrig‘59 Les Paul Replica" Replica serial #81757532  (image #10)

• "Jessica" was custom made for Slash in Nashville on 24th June 1987, and is a Gibson made “replica” of the Kris Derrig “replica”!    
• "Jessica" is recognizable by double black pickups and a cigarette burn on the top,
• “It became my main stage guitar with Guns and through Velvet Revolver, and it still is.  Jessica is the main Appetite guitar on stage.  I use her for ‘It’s So Easy’, ‘Brownstone,’  ‘Paradise City’ and ‘Welcome to the Jungle’ ” - Slash
• As for what makes the now heavily worn instrument stand apart from his many other Les Pauls?  “The guitars that you take out on tour and play the most are the ones you feel most comfortable with, the ones that give you what you want from them, the ones that are consistent.  Back then it was one of two guitars that I had for the road, so I made it work.  And now it’s a central part of what I do.  This guitar has been with me since 1988,” says Slash when asked about Jessica, the Les Paul Standard that’s been his number-one live guitar for more than three decades. “It’s faded, I fucking dropped a cigarette on it. I named it when I was drunk, but I don’t remember what the catalyst for that was!”
• "Jessica" was the guitar Slash used for the "Sweet Child of Mine" & "Paradise City" music videos

 

Slash's 1st REAL "Burst" - 1959 Joe Perry's Les Paul Tobacco Burst serial number 9-0663  ”November Rain” - (see the above tab titled "Artists & Notable Guitars" for more details about this guitar)

 

SLASH SIGNATURE LES PAULS

 

• 1996 Gibson Custom Shop Slash Signature "Snakepit" Les Paul   (image #11) - These guitars are by far the rarest and most collectible of any of the Slash Signature Les Pauls, with SN SL05X listing for $149,900 in 2025...  The first 50 have a certificate that says "limited 50 pieces", but the production was increased to 100 pieces,  Slash received the first four including the prototype, the only one with the carving on the body turned 90 degrees to be viewed right side up when displayed on a guitar stand.  In 1998 Slash's studio was broken into and his guitars were stolen, including the Snakepit prototype, so the Gibson Custom Shop built him a replica including Seymour Duncan Alnico 2 Pro. "I had Gibson make this for me in 1996. It's got the embossed Slash logo on it and the snake inlay in the neck. It's a gorgeous guitar. I only have one of those and they are very rare."  -Slash

 

• Ex Slash guitar similar to Mach Five model:  2013 Gibson Joe Perry/Slash '59 Les Paul MSRP $17,645 (image #5 & 6) -This limited-edition run from Gibson’s Artist Collection is designed to replicate Joe Perry’s iconic 1959 Les Paul Standard based on exclusive access to the original SN 9-0663, which was famously used by Perry, Slash (in Guns N’ Roses’ “November Rain” video), and Eric Johnson.  Gibson captured the tone, feel, and look of Perry’s ‘Burst, described by Perry as having a “meaty neck,” “natural sustain,” and “growl” when turned up, it features Custombucker humbuckers (Alnico III magnets, 42 AWG plain-enamel wire) - neck pickup ~8k ohms, bridge pickup ~8.5k ohms - designed to match the original PAFs in Perry’s guitar.  Gibson’s Custom Shop used advanced measurement techniques and Tom Murphy’s aging expertise to ensure authenticity.  It is available in a limited run of 50 guitars aged and hand-signed by the artist, 100 aged guitars, and 150 finished in Gibson’s VOS process.

 

• 2018 Gibson Custom Shop Slash Signed 1958 Les Paul Standard "Brazilian Dream" Dark Burst  MSRP $12,999  - limited to 150 units, each hand-signed and numbered by Slash, including a genuine Brazilian rosewood fingerboard

 

• 2010 Gibson Slash Signature Les Paul Appetite For Destruction - This guitar replicates the Kris Derrig-built Les Paul copy (not a Gibson), limited to 100 units of Murphy Aged and hand signed guitars for an MSRP of $16,468, plus a separate run of 300 non-signed, VOS-finished (lightly aged, non-Murphy) units was released concurrently with an MSRP of $9,174  Guitars Collector site

 

• 2004 Gibson Custom Shop Slash Signature Les Paul Standard (LPSLASH) MSRP $6980 - limited to 1200 units, with Fishman Piezo Powerbridge was something of a "proof of concept" model.  Note:  After 1200 were sold worldwide, this platform became the Gibson USA standard production Slash signature model for throughout the 2000s

 

• 2008 Gibson Slash Signature Les Paul Standard  MSRP $3499

 

• 2024 Slash "Jessica" Les Paul MSRP $3199 - The Slash “Jessica” Les Paul Standard - Premier Guitar

 

• 2024 Slash Les Paul Standard, "November Burst" MSRP $2999 

 

SLASH SETUP

• PICKUPS - “I find that the Seymour Duncan Alnico IIs – that I actually got turned on to by the Derrig guitar because it just happened to have those in it – are still the greatest rock ’n’ roll pickups you can get.  I’ve been using them for a very long time. So they’ll go into anything I buy, new or used, that’s not vintage.  And if there’s anything I get new from Gibson, I’ll always put those pickups in.”
• AMPS - "Marshall built me an amp (Marshall’s first-ever signature model) based on the Jubilee series that I’d always used"
• STRINGS - "I use an .011-.048 custom Ernie Ball set for the electrics, and for the acoustics, a .013 set"
• ACTION - "The action isn’t too high or too low, and I like a lot of tension.  I play really hard and intonation is a big deal with me.  But if I’m not careful, I’ll bend the strings too far, so I like everything to be very tight"
• PICKS - "I also use 1.14 mm Dunlop Tortex picks"

 

Slash Guitars - Guitars Collector

Slash Signature Les Paul | Gibson guitars

Slash Paradise | Everything about guitarist Slash

Slash on his love of Les Pauls | Guitar World

The Mach Five  Guitar is a 2008 Gibson Slash ‘59 Les Paul "November Rain” Limited Edition 1 of 1600 SN 005280412  (image #1, 2, 3, 4)

 

Working closely with Slash, Gibson USA recreated his favorite #1 Les Paul Standard.  "I've got one of these on the road right now," Slash says. "It's probably one of the best live guitars that I've had in a really long time. It's all the best qualities of Les Pauls rolled into one. All in all, it's a pretty badass guitar."  

Gibson USA's Slash Signature Les Paul Standard is a heartfelt tribute to Slash and “Jessica”, the guitar he's used for more than 20 years to create some of the most powerful and popular hard rock of all time, and is a limited-edition run of only 1,600 guitars worldwide. 

Slash has always been partial to Les Pauls with darker finishes, so the craftsmen at Gibson USA worked closely with him to develop the perfect Antique Vintage Sunburst finish for the Slash Signature Les Paul Standard. The finish is applied to a solid mahogany body with a AA maple figured top, no pick-guard, and dark back featuring Gibson's period-correct weight-relief structure, consisting of a series of “Swiss cheese” holes that give it a comfortable yet heavy feel, exactly as Slash likes his Les Pauls. 

 

All Gibson Les Pauls feature a glued neck joint, guaranteeing solid “wood-to-wood” contact between the neck and the body, leaving no air space in the neck cavity, and allowing the neck and body to function as a single unit.  The solid mahogany neck on the Gibson USA Slash Signature Les Paul is modeled after Slash’s original Les Paul, which is hybrid of Gibson’s two traditional neck profiles: the thickness of the slim-taper necks of the ’60s blended with the round profile of the late ’50s necks. The result is a thin, comfortable profile made to Slash’s personal specifications.   These necks are machined in a rough mill using wood shapers to make the initial cuts. The rosewood used by Gibson is inspected and qualified before it enters the factories. Noted for its denseness and resiliency, rosewood makes fingerboards extremely balanced and stable, and gives each chord and note an unparalleled clarity and bite. The 12-inch radius of the fingerboard provides smooth note bending capabilities and eliminates “dead” or “choked out” notes, common occurrences on fingerboards with lesser radiuses. Once the fingerboards are glued on, the rest of the construction—including the final sanding—is done by hand, ensuring every neck will have its own distinct, but traditional, feel.  A combination of nickel and silver alloy (~80 percent nickel and 20 percent silver) is shaped by hand into Gibson’s traditional “medium-jumbo” size and cut to an exact 12-inch radius. Each one of the 22 frets is then hand-pressed into the fingerboard, where a machine then finishes the job using the revolutionary Plek system —a computer controlled set-up that carefully measures and dresses each fret, accurately measuring the height between the fingerboard and the string, eliminate any gap that might exist between the bottom of the fret wire and the fingerboard virtually eliminating string buzz and providing unbeatable playability.

 

Trapezoid inlays have graced the fingerboards of the most iconic stringed instruments in the world, including the new Slash Signature Les Paul Standard from Gibson USA. They are manufactured from a figured, swirl acrylic to get that “classic” pearl look, then inserted into the fingerboard using a process that eliminates gaps, thus doing away with any need to use fillers.

 

The headstock is carved out of the same piece of mahogany as the neck and precisely angled at 17 degrees which increases the pressure on the strings and helps them to stay in the nut slots. This also diminishes the loss of string vibration between the nut and the tuners, which equals better sustain.

 

Unique to the new Slash Signature Les Paul from Gibson USA is Slash's skull and crossbones, top hat logo, and signature that adorn the headstock.  The headstock logo is made from hand-cut mother of pearl, inlayed into a pressed fiber-head veneer, glued to the face of the mahogany headstock, and protected by a thin coat of lacquer.

 

The binding on a Les Paul Standard, though some people assume it is applied for aesthetic purposes only, the binding actually protects the body’s edges against damage and eliminates the sharp edges of the frets, providing a much smoother neck and easier playability.  The process of applying the binding to any Gibson guitar is something that has to be seen to be truly appreciated.  A lone craftsman carefully glues and fits two pieces of binding around the entire body of a Les Paul.  A single, very long piece of narrow cloth is wound around the entire body until the entire surface is nearly covered.  The body is then hung to dry for a full 24 hours before it is unwrapped and moved into the next phase of production.  It has been done the same way at Gibson for over 100 years.

 

The Tune-o-matic bridge on the new Slash Signature Les Paul is TonePros’ TP6, which is the locking version of the Nashville Tune-o-matic, combined with TonePros’ T1ZSA aluminum featherweight locking “stopbar” tailpiece.  Both pieces are exactly as they are on Slash’s original Les Paul.  

Kluson-style Gibson tuners.

 

The pickups in the new Slash Signature Les Paul from Gibson USA are identical to the ones in Slash’s original Les Paul. “I have Seymour Duncan Alnico II’s in all my Les Pauls,” Slash says. “They’re just great pickups. They’re actually low-output pickups so they’re a little bit cleaner than your average humbucker. They’re very sweet sounding. They handle gain very well, and they don’t over distort. They don’t try and add any phony dynamics that I don’t need. They’re as natural sounding as I can get.”  The Alnico II magnets on these Seymour Duncan pickups yield a warm, sweet tone with more natural string vibration for increased sustain. Since Slash gets most of his distortion from the amp rather than the pickup, these pickups allow him to back off the crunch and achieve beautiful, clean tones with a softer attack. 

 

At Slash’s urging, the electronics of the Tobacco were enhanced to include proprietary wiring, caps, resistors and tone pots that give it its own unique tone. Four gold top hat knobs (two v, two tone), three-way pickup switch

 

A custom-made, smooth black case with white interior featuring Slash's logo, and a black & red certificate of authenticity accompanies every guitar.

1, 2, 3, 4 - The Mach Five Guitar - 2008 Gibson Slash ‘59 Les Paul "November Rain” Limited Edition

5 & 6 - Joe Perry/Slash 1959 Les Paul "Tobacco Burst" SN 9-0663

7 - 1975 Max Baranet “Hunter Burst” ‘59 Les Paul Replica

8 - 1986 Kris Derrig ‘58/59 Les Paul Replica SN 9 0607

9 - “Skull and Crossbones Max” vMax Baranet #2 ‘60 Les Paul Replica - used in "Welcome to the Jungle" video

10 - “Jessica” - 1987 Gibson "Kris Derrig ‘59 Les Paul Replica" Replica SN 81757532 -  Slash's Main Stage Guitar

11 - 1996 Gibson Custom Shop Slash Signature "Snakepit" Les Paul

12 - Slash with 1958 "First Standard"

13 - Kirk Hammett & Peter Green with "Greeny"

14 - Billy Gibbons with "Pearly Gates"

15 - Gibson "R9" 1959 Les Paul Reissue

 

Guns N' Roses - November Rain

Guns N' Roses - Welcome To The Jungle

Guns N' Roses - Sweet Child O' Mine

Gibson Playlsit: Greeny - playlist by Gibson | Spotify

What Is The 1959 Les Paul Sound?

Gibson Playlist: The Les Paul - playlist by Gibson | Spotify

Gibson 1958-’60 Les Paul Standard 

Les Paul Standard: '58-'60 - FUZZFACED

The Gibson Les Pauls, the 1958 - 1960 “Bursts”: A Short History

The Gibson Les Paul: A Short History

Gibson Vintage - Guitars Collector

Slash Paradise | Everything about guitarist Slash

Slash on his love of Les Pauls | Guitar World

Slash's Guitars Page

Slash owns a collection of 221 guitars that represent a total value of over 2 millions dollars, as of 2018

Elite Guitars - Formerly known as: GUITARS R US

Slash Live Gear  - "I think there are about 16 guitars used on stage. I’ve got a backup for every guitar. I have a few different Les Pauls – my regular Standard, a goldtop, and a black Standard with a Bigsby. I also have a couple of B.C. Rich Mockingbirds and a B.C. Rich Bich 10 that I use as a six-string. There are a pair of Guild doublenecks I designed with Guild a while back. It’s acoustic on the top and electric on the bottom, and a red Gibson EDS-1275. Everything is fairly new. I think the red Mockingbird is the oldest one I take out. I bought that from some guy on the street – literally on the sidewalk. I was at a club and he told me about it, and I bought it from him. I use it is primarily for the vibrato because I won’t take a Strat on the road. The tremolo on the Mockingbird is a Floyd Rose. All things considered, me and the Mockingbird go back and forth, but I use it for “Sucker Train Blues.” I use the Bich for Stone Temple Pilots songs." - Slash