Right now, at this very moment, we have three authentic Bursts. We thought we'd take the time to tell you about them, and just what makes these beautiful guitars so important.

The Burst evolved out of Gibson's very first solid-body guitar, the 1952 Les Paul. Issued initially as a Gold Top, the Les Paul got a new look in 1958, when Gibson introduced a new model with a sunburst finish: the Les Paul Standard. Coloring the solid Honduran mahogany bodies with aniline dye, Gibson's Les Paul Standards featured a deep red hue that, with time, would react to ultraviolet light and other environmental conditions to bleed, fade, and otherwise change. Our '59 Burst, '60 Burst, and '60 "Scarface" Burst are excellent examples of this landmark guitar and beautifully illustrate how each early Burst is different from any other, both visually and sonically.

While the Les Paul was changing with almost every year since it's initial release, the debut of the Les Paul Standard in 1958 is perhaps the most significant and substantial change to the legendary model, made more so by the 1957 introduction of the humbucker.

Designed to "buck the hum" of the P90 single-coils Gibson installed on all Les Pauls until this point, Seth Lever's "PAF" humbucking pickups ditched the noise altogether, contributing a signature, high-output tone that is generally agreed to be the essence of the Les Paul sound.

THE DETAILS

Finish: Original Top

Material: Maple Top

Body Material: Mahogany Body

Body Details: One piece mahogany solid body with two piece maple cap.

Neck Material: Mahogany Neck

Fingerboard Material: Brazilian Rosewood

Neck Profile: medium/slim 60s "C"

Neck Thickness (IN): 1st- .83" 12th- .86"

Fingerboard Radius: 12.00

Nut Width: 1-11/16"

Scale Length: 24-3/4"

Neck Details: One piece mahogany neck with bound Brazilian rosewood board and trapezoid inlays.

Electronics: The pickups are original PAFs. Both pickups have black bobbins. All four pots date to 1959. The caps are 50s bumblebees. These parts are era correct for a low serial number '60 Burst. There are several touched up solder joints throughout, including both pickup leads, and both ends of both capacitors. The yellow shielding is missing from one end of the neck tone capacitor. The ground wire going from pot to pot is a smaller gauge than is usually used by Gibson in this era

Pickup Measurements: Neck 7.8k ohms, bridge 7.4k ohms

Hardware: The tuners and neck pickup ring have been replaced. The tuners are era correct Kluson single line, double rings (the original Kluson single line, single ring tuners with deteriorated tips are included in the case). The rest of the hardware is original. The guitar has holes in the top and around the rear strap button from a Bigsby that was installed at some point and has since been removed.

Cosmetic Condition: The guitar has light play wear for its age. The finish is glossy with light scuffs and scratches throughout. The hardware is nicely tarnished. The face of the headstock is glossy with light scuffs and scratches. There is light wear around the edges of the overlay. There are two touched up blemishes (possible cigarette burns) on the bass edge of the overlay between the low E tuner and the nut. The back of the headstock is glossy with only very minor scuffs. There is very light wear on the tip edge above the serial number. A small chip of wood has broken off the back corner of the bass side headstock tip. The back of the neck is clean a glossy with very minimal wear. The back of the body is glossy with very light buckle rash and light wear around the edges. There is one more significant dent on the back edge near the front of the control cavity. The edges of the body are glossy. There are minor scuffs and scratches, particularly around the lower bout. There are four filled/touched up holes around the rear strap button from the Bigsby install. The finish on the top of the body is glossy with minimal play wear. There are two filled/touched up snake bite holes on the top from a Bigsby that has since been removed.

Case Details: Original hard shell case with original tuners.

Modifications / Repairs: The tuners have been replaced with era correct Kluson single line, double rings. There are two touched up blemishes (possible cigarette burns) on the bass edge of the overlay between the low E tuner and the nut. The neck pickup ring has been replaced. At some point a Bigsby was installed. Two holes were drilled in the top and four around the rear strap button. The Bigsby has been removed and all six holes were filled and touched up.

Tech Notes: The guitar plays well with low action. The frets are wide with medium height and light play wear. The serial number dates to 1960.