Evolution of Gibson Les Paul Reissues here at Norman's Rare Guitars
Vložit
- čas přidán 11. 09. 2024
- Jimmy Vivino, Conan's Band Leader, Keith Nelson from Buckcherry, Chuck Kavooras, Mark Agnesi, and Nick Dias on the couch with Norm discussing the evolution of Gibson Les Paul Reissues. If you're a collector, here's some very interesting information that you may not be aware of. What do you guys think?
More group gear chat videos like this would be awesome.
jordantothesmith agreed
I like the random Gretsch White Falcon lurking to the right of Norm xD
Kirk Wahmmett haha at 7:55 it looks like it wants to kill that Les Paul
Ready to step up as soon as a head stock breaks haha
Just straight boolin'
As a person who loves Bursts and my les Pauls, I appreciate this video more than ever. Loved the Page story too.
Just bought the 1982 Leo's Les Paul from Norman's last week. Beautiful guitar!! Thanks Mark.
I'd love to see what cool basses you've salted away. I remember fondly our hangs with Johnnie Johnson at Chicago Blues and elsewhere...
So IS THAT the ANSWER?
Norm we need more books. You should write one on the history of Les Paul's and include a chapter on re-issues. I'd buy it in a heartbeat...
That was fantastic! Found myself yelling at the screen YES! I wanted Jimmy to finish his point when you all went off track on the robo tuners. Point of the day: Best sounding vintage pickups are not overwound, "hot" pickups.
Great Vid. Love Norm and his panel guests.
My 21-year-old son will be starting his guitar lessons any day now. We found a good friend who is a Guitar! wizard who is going to teach him for 20 bucks an hour. That beats the $45 an hour that sylvan music wanted to charge.
Looking forward to driving down to Tarzana to visit norms rare 🎸 🎸
Simply the most watchable video to ever come out of Norm's Rare Guitars.
Great round table, some very valid points. My favorites were Gibson's continuing problems making a proper 50's LP case and the story about Jimmy Page's '59's having their necks shaved down...
I'm in agreement with you guys, I don't think the value of those guitars was hurt by Mr Page!!!
Mark and Jimmy had the two coolest fades, beautiful wood and paint jobs!
I have learned more here than any guitar book or mag. PLEASE please can we have some more.
This is f'n stellar...total treat! I know it's asking a lot, but to see these treats a little more often would be great! Thanks guys
Brilliant video! Would love to see more videos about the early reissues from the 80s and 90s. Keep em coming👍
Love to see more stuff like this! 👍👍👍👍👍👍
Thanks fellas, this is so much help for anyone trying to learn what really makes a difference in tone.
I remember hanging out at the guitar trader in red bank when i was in high school.. that place had some amazing vintage guitars.... it was like mini-norms🙂
All those guitars are so beautiful holy shit
Cool vid, Long live the Lester's 🎸
I live 10 miles from Redbank NJ
Mike M. I'm sitting in Red Bank (at the Wawa they're renovating) while watching this vid lol
Hulk Slayer
that's awesome. I go to the Downtown often, to catch my old band play. Stop in, I'll buy you a beer. screaming broccoli is the band, they're fantastic 🎸🍺🍺🍺
Norms Undisputed WOW !!!
Guys I love this super nerdy in depth analysis thing keep it going for other eras and model runs!!
This was the best can’t stop watching it lol
we want the Frank. don't ban the Frank show . is there another Mr entertainment in the room?
pablo9364
need me some Stallone 🎸👍🏼
pablo9364: He's busy polishing his brothers marble floors to payoff his last guitar.
pablo9364 Unfortunately this was the day he cleans Sly's pool.
The whole show i look at the heritage 80..just beautiful ❤️
I get it. Gibson LP people can get passionate about their instruments same as Fender Strat people or classic car people etc. I can relate. Enjoyable video for me.
NEXT STOP NERD VILLE
GuitarlosCarlos
absolutely. Joe already bought all the Fender tweeds 😂🎸
Carlos guitarlos is drug addict that behaved poorly with almost every musician he ever played with.
Sunshine Winter how do you know? and who cares anyway
Very nice fireside chat...I guess comes down to age of wood and materials from 50's...lacquer not drying properly...all factors of the holy grail...but for most part...Gibson still put out some fine les Paul's....however ,very expensive.
I really enjoyed this very interesting discussion. I think Jimmy Vivino made the most important point, namely that the player is more important than the instrument. Obviously a great player can play even better with a great guitar, but, for the average player like me (and I am being generous), even if I could afford a vintage burst I would still be confined by my limited talents. I also appreciated his remarks about the excessive use of effects. We all know that adding a bit of drive can make things seem to sound better than they really are. But if I could ask Chuck a question it would be this. With the advances in signal processing and recording technology to what degree is it possible to achieve the tone of ones dreams? If I want the sound of a vintage ’59 burst but I can't afford the instrument can I get the same thing by spending my money on the necessary effects and signal processers, which in the long run would probably cost less? And as far as Keith taking his vintage instruments on the road with him, if he feels that it helps him play his best more power to him. But as he points out very few of the folks in the crowd would know the difference. My overall point is that we love vintage instruments for many reasons. They are functional works of art that are a joy to own and play. But at the end of the day the best instrument is the one that best serves the needs of the artist and if you can get the sound you want from a Univox Les Paul well good for you. The story about Jimmy Page’s LPs is a good example. He is a working musician who modifies his instruments to enable him to play the way he wants. Did he “destroy” them with his modifications? I am sure it never entered his mind because he does not see them as collectors items but rather the tools of his trade. Remember it is not the sound but rather what you do with it. The best definition of music I ever heard was that it is “sound organized to express something.” So the sound does not matter as long as it the one you have chosen to express what you want to say.
TO answer your question best as can be, to get the "tone of ones dreams", that person would have to work at it with whatever means possible or affordable to get what one hears in their own perception of sound. Some can get great vintage tones with modern guitars, and like Jimmy Page make people perceive a Tele is a Les Paul or vice versa. Look at Jeff Beck and listen to Jeff Beck....he even talks how he can get his newer modern Strat to sound better than any Les Paul...that's his capability. There are NO RULES on how to get tone, it is all relative to so many variables and individuals. You said it best with the comment about what best serves the needs of the artist.
Thanks Chuck for your response. I totally agree that it is the responsibility of (and also the challenge to) the artist to find their own special sound. And of course Beck is the perfect example. No matter the song he is playing or the instrument he is using you always recognize him as soon as you hear the first note. And of course that is because he is tremendously gifted but it is also because he is truly and honestly expressing himself. While we all learn through imitation the moment that you begin to find your own sound is when your journey as an artist begins. When I was young I was a huge Grateful Dead fan. I remember how proud I was the first time someone told me that I sounded like Garcia. But in time I came to realize that that really meant that it was time to stop trying to play like Jerry because I could never play his music as well as he could and that it was time for me to try and find my own voice. I’ve been at it for more that 40 years now with varying degrees of success. But that is the great thing about the creative process because it gives us a way to explore and find out who we really are.
A picture of high cholesterol
lol
It's funny.
But also kind of inappropriate. Because ur also gonna be like that at some point.
Hopefully people are gonna want to hear what u have to say when you reach their age.
Andrew Saldivar When is Mark going to show his Glass Eye again. That was a trip! I never noticed before....
Don't forget enlarged prostates
Wondering if these guys are still capable of having a good hour of cock sliding action
The remark towards the end concerning the importance of the player - a great player can make anything sound great - really says it all, I believe.
where's Frank Stallone ?
mrj33v3s - Frank's at home laying the prettiest 19year-old blonde girl any of us have ever seen.
Darr Whyask brilliant
mrj33v3s Cleaning Sly's pool.
jjchopper02
Dude.. what the hell.
LOL.
Frank Stallone was working the cash register that day.
So much knowledge and so much talent. I can dig it.
Norm, thanks so much for posting these great videos!!!!! They are beyond entertaining......
Thanks to norm and the gang for their insight and experience, both of which make all the difference when the discussion is about guitars from their era!
I've got a Gibson Les Paul. 58 cos,and very happy with it..
We can't recreate the wheel or the original guitars,as they were of their Time,but that's not important... playing them to the best of our ability and enjoying the journey is where it's at..
Great and very entertaining video..
All the best for now
This is just a bunch of cork sniffers circlejerking on minute details, but I loved every second of it!
I played a 2003 Les Paul 58 reissue the other week. It was the first proper Gibson that I've ever played, and it sounded sweet through a Fender amp. The fat neck was so nice. Sadly I couldn't afford the £2700 price tag, but now that I have visited the top of mount olympus, I now want to live there.
great videos wish I could visit the shop, greetings from Spain
More vids like this please!! Maybe 1 a month on the evolution of different males and models???
Great to see you guys chatting away about Les Pauls since I do own one. Peace, Flood!
I could sit there all day listening.
Never seen Norm so relaxed. He on intravenous Jack Daniels? If so, keep it up!
I used to own one of the Guitar Trader reissues. I miss it bad. I often wonder where it wound up or if the current owner even knows what it is. I sold it back to Guitar Trader after they relocated. I let it go back around 1990 to bring in some money. Never should have done that.
This is awesome, thank you!
Cool man. I am a broke guitarist so I was jamming on my early '80s '59 Burny copy while watching. It looks just like Keith's guitar. This is the best show on TV.
I love these vids from a few years back because you get to compare what was being said then to now.
In 2024 the Gibson custom shop R9 is really close but still not dead on to a old original most say. Here's the problem though the guitar
they used to make the clones was a original '59 named "Carmelita" so IF you have never played that burst you wont know if the neck shape is exact or the top carve is the same? Joe Bonamassa owned Carmelita at one point so he would know! Hey Joe whadda you think?😁
I would love more vids like this!
Fun to see the alterations of the reissue concept over time.
When are the Reissues of the Reissues arriving?
Great video... awesome stories as well... thanks for sharing. My favorite guitars to play in over 30 years of trying many axes.... Lot's of love from a Gibson Les Paul owner and lover. Cheers from Costa Rica. Rock on!
Stop blowing my Mind!!!! My Lord, awesome info!! I live for this!! 👍
The greatest thing about Buckcherry was their guitar tone. That’s the one thing that punched me in the face. I instantly envied his tone . It shows how much of tone dude he must be. I loved the Gibson collectors video he did with Mark. If you haven’t seen it your missing out.
I could watch this for ever so Cool !
I love Les Paul's as much as anyone, I own 4 of them. However, we are now at the point of debating the splitting of hairs between the various models. The differences in Les Paul's from year to year is often so minuscule that the human ear (or eyes and hands) can tell little difference "angle of headstock, pickup ring thickness, height of headstock, bridge angle, cut of carved top" blah blah blah. 99.9% percent of this is marketing strategies from Gibson (and others).. Make a small tweek and introduce the model as new or improved or reissue or classic or R8/9/0 etc etc... A Les Paul is a Les Paul. Now what does matter is old growth wood.. can't replicate that..... When you guys are playing music for an audience, do you think the standard fan is talking among themselves saying "listen to that LP from the Norlin years compared to the other players R9 from 2010, listen to tone difference due to the headstock angle and inferior tone & volume pots" LOL
You are right. It is the guy and the amp and the attack that determines the sound. Billy Gibbons has his guy make his one pedal and wont tell anybody whats in it. Says 1 out of 10 hit the sweet spot. He aint selling his exact sound cause he is still using it it is his sound mixed with the bass and drums and you get zz top. Other guys can get close but you are not the guy. The guy figures it out. LOL and for Billy that means turn it up loud, REALLY LOUD! We left a ZZ show after about 6 songs. It was the Loudest Rock Band in the World tour at Cincinnati Gardens, an old 10,000 seat hockey rink because it was too loud.... loved it but couldnt take it. But that is part of his sound... wouldnt be the same at lower volume.
The phrase that you stated below is the exact statement I said to my friends... Cool to have the same perception as you are...
If Les Paul was like these guys, the Gibson Les Paul would never exist. He would have dedicated his life to trying to recreate the Ro-Pat-In Frying Pan
Norm love your videos,Mark and the rest of your guys there are first class keep it going.
What a great video guys! Make more of these, it would be awesome if you made a section with a nice title and good periodicity. cheers!
great video Norm, love it!
I love all videos from Norm's ..Lots of information and great guitars ..Im gonna make it out there one day and buy a guitar.
Great insight! Years of experience and knowledge on the subject! More videos like this on '58-'60 Bursts and Reissues would be awesome!
Interesting discussion. Thanks. Stop living in the past and work toward making a better future.
All talking over each other. Great to listen to.
Mark was right about the top carving. Why can't they do them by hand? They make enough money to do it. As vintage guitars go, I bought two Hamer's last year. A mint 78 Sunburst and a Mirage. What superb guitars. The Sunburst is as good as a real 59 any day.
niptodstan because sadly, it's no longer about making enough money for the work put into it. Everything is about making as much "profit" as possible.
Yeah it's not a labor of love like it was in the 50s. Those guys and gals took pride in their work and it showed, there wasn't profits or CEOs or giant marketing, just making the best possible guitar bc "only a Gibson is good enough".
Buy a Heritage. Still built like they were back in the 50's, at a price that equals, or betters, the price of a Gib$on.
But we're talking Custom shop. it should be better. Heritage are great guitars, but resale isn't as good. if I had the money I think I'd buy a Knaggs.
+niptodstan If you're buying them because of resale value then you're part of the problem. No modern guitar is going to have the value of an original from almost 60 years ago.
I know this discussion is old. Hoping someone who "knows" can reply. In 1984 I bought a Gibson Les Paul Standard 1959 reissue whose serial on the back of the headstock is "4 0102" in black ink. No serial number inside the control cavity. The pots are dated 26th week of 1983 and first half of 1984. Honey burst top with considerable flame, matched maple book top (split line down the center), small black fret marker dots on the side of the neck, open "b" and "o" in the Gibson logo, dot is high above the "i". Cavity covers are black and back and sides of guitar are red. It's not a Guitar Trader reissue from the descriptions I've read. It comes close to a Leo reissue but doesn't have the "L" serial number. The neck profile is medium, rosewood fingerboard, no writing on the truss cover. Pickup rings are cream and pickups are double black. I purchased the guitar from a local NY guitar shop and was told it was sold to them by a Gibson sales rep. At a guitar show in Austin TX I ran into a guy who claimed to have been the guy who built the thing. He said it is one of the first reissues. Thanks for any info you can provide.
Sounds like a good private replica to me? Many guys have built them over the years and some are really really good like Gil Yaron or max baranet.
agnesi was sweating anytime someone said a negative about Gibson
I'm a little surprised there was no discussion of frets. The first good guitar I ever owned was a '73 Black Beauty that I bought new in '73. I still have it, though it's been through the wars at this point. I LOVED those flat "fretless" frets. The action and the comfort and what I can play on it is like no other guitar. And the frets have held up pretty well. But as far as I know, there are no current editions that have those frets-- if I'm not mistaken you just can't get them anymore. I'd buy a new/updated fretless wonder re-issue in a heartbeat. They should get over any disdain they have for "Norlin-era" designs and recognize there were some good guitars made back then...
More videos like this would be pretty cool. I don't even like LPs but this was great to watch.
Loved it much Respect !!!
Hey Jimmy V..Love the Prisoners of 2nd Ave
Fantastic video. Thanks
Great show with guys that have a ton of knowledge about the build & tone of guitars. I would wager that many of those guitars play and sound as good or better than many originals. They just won't have the prestige.
what a likeable guy norm is. so next time they have a guitar round, they should ask each guy who their favorite les Paul wielding guitar player is.
Are the )59 les Paul's really that different sounding ?, I think it's more hype than anything
They say, that they are, but ALL products suffered from lower quality in terms of materials and built quality from the 70's and up. Somehow they found out that its bad business to produce "high end" products as cheap as possible to increase profit. They kind of saved their reputation by changing direction later on in the eighties, but they were surely nearly killing the industry. See Crazy Uncle Dukes "RANT" above ;-)
Yes, they really are THAT different sounding. The electronics are primarily what made this the case. I'd suggest looking up some more about it before formulating an opinion based on ignorance...
Sharky no not at all they are just $400'000 for no reason...................
this video is a plessure for every reissue player! pretty much the same topic me and my friend are always talking about! :D
Great video! You guys should definitely do more of those.
Cheers
Most interesting, thank you very much for this video... Hi Jen :)
i could listen to these guys all day les pauls i love i own one ok its a 2008 traditional but it has a great top and because it was only £1300 ive spent £500 more making it a guitar i love.
Have owned a ton of nice (expensive) new & vintage guitars… really thought my PRS 594 was the best guitar I’ve played. (Also own some nice non-RI LP’s) .. Just bought a 2007 R8 and just blown away how much better it is than anything I’ve owned/played. Has some real magic that just comes out almost like it’s not me playing it … it’s crazy but it sustains forever and has a feel/resonance that it beyond explanation…. Makes my 2020 50’s Standard sound dead by comparison. I really thought all guitars were just a bit better versions of the same thing…. Until now. Never experienced it before in all my years of playing … but it’s really eye opening There are certain guitars that, for whatever reason defy explanation. 👍
2007 is a good year all around for Gibson Custom Shop
I wonder how it would sound if you removed the Gibson logo from the headstock.
Great conversation!
While I enjoyed this, I am one of those kids with the sharpie 2015 Les Paul deluxe(at near 40 years of age) and I love how it plays. Robot tuners are fine for home playing...you would probably need a spare guitar for broken strings at a gig though. I'm guessing these guys all drive model t fords as well.
I bet all the tone wood deniers are screaming at their screens. haha
Norm should do this discussion again but discuss the best Les Paul alternative and who makes the best 'copy'. Derrig, Nash etc.
Excellent Educational on the History!
Great conversation. Glad you mentioned the neck thickness thing. I would love to buy a historic.. but those large necks are ridiculous. I've never played a vintage burst, but I always suspected the necks were not that big. Thanks for sharing.
Gibson and the beat goes on/Reissues?? Some day they'll figure it out?
Man, I'd love to see a blindfolded comparison between a reissue and the real thing. :)
I'm definitely not a historical les paul guru had the pleasure of playing a real 57 gold top many years ago and have used that experience as a reference point for all other les pauls that I play i must say that the custom shop models from 2013 and on are AMAZING guitars and have a very similar feeling and sound
That was excellent, very informative, thanks!!
awsome i own a 2002 thoroughly enjoyed
Considering the round table discussion was over 5 years ago, and included some great players, and historians (especially Norman) the younger Cats, especially Marc Agnesi should've taken note! This was amazing! However:
After 9+ years, being tutored by the imperical, all knowing Norman, Marc left to be the director of brands for Gibson guitars and it appears he only focused on copyright lawsuits and gave no, if any interest on building a high quality Les Paul, SG, or 335. What happened Marc? Was it fame, fortune, or the sell out to the all mighty corporate dollar? I'm now 63+ years old. I sure wish I had my 73 delux cherry sunburst with P90's. The best sounding and playing guitar I've ever owned. My collection of more than 30 electric guitars doesnt compare to the 73. What a mistake I made selling it for a KM model. I sold that 4 years go but made a lot of money. However. My 98 LP classic is the best of my 4 LP'S. One custom, one studio, one standard. The studio is 2nd best. Also. My All American II is better than the 3 aforementioned. Go figure. Bottom line.. Quality control is king!. Lawsuits destroy (in more cases than not, plaintiff loses) marc. Think quality. Not lawsuits. We all know Gibson could be king. Get it? We know who started the culture. It wasn't cheap $hit China. Just follow Norman. Omg! Consult him before you screw up again.
Kurtiss (citizen Joe)
Really really good. Thanks.
GREAT video
I'm not so sure that the custom shop is so misleading about the thicker neck profiles from the late 50's. I have a 1958 LP Jr and it definitely has that thick baseball bat neck you hear about. And I have a Gibson custom shop True Historic R8 and I think the neck profile is identical to my vintage 1958. So in my very limited experience with vintage neck profiles the custom shop was spot on with the thicker neck profile.
I PICKED UP A LPR 6 GIBSON AT HALF PRICE FROM A KID ~ HIS PARENTS TOLD THEY WERE GLAD THAT I GOT IT AS THE SON NEVER APPRECIATED IT ~ MINT AT A MORE THAN FAIR PRICE ~ I WANT TO GET A LPR 7 GOLD TOP IN EARLY AUGUST ~ CARLOS GUITARLOS 90042
DJD 4157 you haven't been around enough... Carlos knows...he knows...
Nice chat, thx for the edgumication
About PAF's, if you don't think anyone has yet nailed the tone of one, buy a set of OX4's, Throbaks, or Wizz's. You'll change your opinion really quick.
You gotta make more of em history videos
no tele Tuesday? it's almost 10pm and hasn't uploaded
Awesome stuff!
great just like all your vids
I Love it , the case well said Sir !!!
Enjoyed this but Keith Nelson left Buckcherry a couple of months ago, surprised he did not correct Norm.
Awesome!