Gibson Les Paul Custom

A lot of guys don't have that proof, and they wind up eating it, knowing that they were screwed.

I mean, going back to the old electronic auction site, a very, very, very dear friend of mine, um, who recently just passed, he, um, bought a white Les Paul Custom, and Gibson Les Paul Custom, and what was delivered? A white Epiphone Custom.

And the electronic auction site would do nothing for him.

Nothing.

Uh-huh.

In fact, he did the '74 Les Paul Custom I have on the road with me.

Oh.

He actually did the, the 1964 Stratocaster-

[laughs]

...

Black Beauty Les Paul Custom.

Bobby D. Shout out to Bobby D.[laughs] Right there, yeah.

We have a Revolta baritone tuned to C standard.

He's got an ES-335, a Gibson Les Paul Custom 54 spec, a Gretsch Black Falcon.

For amps, he's got a 1964 Vox AC-30 Super Twin head and cab.

It's a Super Twin.

So that's cool.

Huh? Yeah.

And then this was like a made to measure, I think he said custom Les Paul custom, but it's a staple pickup there.

Yeah.

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So today we're talking about one of the most elegant and coolest electric guitars ever made, the Gibson Les Paul Custom.

With its black finish, gold hardware, multiple ply binding, block inlays, and split diamond headstock, the Les Paul Custom has always looked a little more sophisticated than the standard Les Paul.

But underneath all that decoration is a guitar with a fascinating history, and one that has found its way into everything from jazz and blues to hard rock, punk, and heavy metal.

The Les Paul Custom debuted in 1954, about two years after Gibson introduced the original Les Paul model.

Les Paul reportedly wanted a more upscale version of his signature guitar, something elegant enough to look appropriate when he was performing in formal clothes.

The black finish helped inspire the guitar's famous nickname, the Black Beauty.

Instead of the gold finish of the original Les Paul model, the Custom received its distinctive black finish with elaborate multi-ply binding around the body and headstock, large pearl block fingerboard inlays, a bound neck, gold-plated hardware, and Gibson's ornate split diamond headstock inlay.