• From: Ohio
  • Registered: 2007-09-10
  • Posts: 957

Topic: decisions, decisions...

I am preparing to enter the world of Les Paul. I don't make a whole lot of money, so my brother and I are going halves in it for now, and who ever leaves the house first gets to keep it. Anyway, we are both torn between a '57 goldtop or a '59 flametop. I am completely and totally in love with both of them. The only problem is I play strats and he plays ibanez ( he has one of those cool 1987 rg550 reissues) so neither one of us are used to playing on a 50's style neck. I have never seen a newer les Paul with the deep, wide banded flaming of a '59, and the R0's are a rare find. If anyone wants to share advice that would be fantastic.


Thanks,
Logan (and brother)

Block inlay Gibson ES-335, 50th anniversary American Strat, '61 RI White SG, '62 RI Relic Strat, Replica Korina Flying V, Gold Tone Paul Beard Resonator,  '58 Les Paul RI, American Highway 1 Fender Strat, Breedlove Acoustic, Stonetree Joe Bonamassa Custom, HIWATT Lead 100R, Reeves Custom 30.
  • From: North Carolina
  • Registered: 2008-10-26
  • Posts: 2,926

Re: decisions, decisions...

You could go with a 1960's VOS.  They are the same price as the 59' VOS but 1960's was the first year of the slim tapered neck so maybe that would feel better to you.  I've tried the 58' VOS and played nothing but strats at the time and had no problem switching my playing style to it.  But when your playing style has no style thats no problem.

AD3THREE's Website

3 Reply by gingerpaul (edited by gingerpaul 2008-11-15 08:44:11)

  • From: UK
  • Registered: 2008-08-18
  • Posts: 93

Re: decisions, decisions...

It's worth noting that as a general rule the 57s and 58s tend to have fatter necks than the 59s, and as has been said already, the 59s are fatter than the 60s. There are inconsistencies in production of course and Joe's guitar is a 57 with a 59 neck for example.

In my view the 59s offer no benefit over the 58 as the difference in the neck is not a great deal and you can get 58 flame tops (although not as extreme as you'll find on some 59s). The price difference that exists between them is bonkers if you ask me. Mind you, Joe favours the 59 so perhaps he'll chime in too. lol

Being in a similar position to you not long ago I went for a 58 with a subtle flame. However much I to to like it the gold tops just do nothing for me. I was lucky enough to track down the rarer chambered version (search for cloud 9 on google for more information) and it really adds a little extra something that half of the guitars I tried were missing. It's lighter too, which was a bonus.

Ultimately it comes down to personal preference. If you're lucky enough to have a good Gibson dealer near you then get out and try a few out. Just like with girls, half the fun of guitar shopping is finding the right one. That said, I wouldn't share my girlfriend with my brother.  wink

Edited for speeling

  • Registered: 2008-11-01
  • Posts: 103

Re: decisions, decisions...

In my case I was thinking of a 59 but I came across a used 57 that weighs 8.4 lbs and sounds better than anything I've played to date. That made my mind up for me. I also prefer goldtops anyway so that was a plus.
What I did do was reduce the neck so it's smaller than a 59 and extremely comfortable to play. If you do that have it done by someone who's qualified. It usually runs between 150-200 but it makes a huge difference in playability and hasn't changed the tone one bit.
I also put gotoh locking vintage tuners on it to stabilize tuning at different temperatures.
I do a lot of stage work and it's a fantastic stage guitar, very reliable and consistent at all types of venues.
One of those guitars that you can't seem to put down.

  • From: Ohio
  • Registered: 2007-09-10
  • Posts: 957

Re: decisions, decisions...

Eventually I will have both :-D.

Hello, my name is Logan... And I'm an addict

Block inlay Gibson ES-335, 50th anniversary American Strat, '61 RI White SG, '62 RI Relic Strat, Replica Korina Flying V, Gold Tone Paul Beard Resonator,  '58 Les Paul RI, American Highway 1 Fender Strat, Breedlove Acoustic, Stonetree Joe Bonamassa Custom, HIWATT Lead 100R, Reeves Custom 30.