Les Paul Studio History
Les Paul guitars have been a staple of the musical world for over 60 years. The innovative design, built for warm sounds and with the player in mind, has kept them steadily selling through the decades.
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Beginning
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Les Paul started building guitars in the 1940s, which were known famously as the "Log." These were made by Epiphone after Gibson initially turned down his design. Gibson wasn't far behind needing to compete with Fender's Telecaster market, and the Les Paul was born. The Les Paul we know was produced in 1952 for Gibson. It had a mix of wood, mahogany bodies and maple tops. The tail piece resembled a trapeze because the strings wrapped around it, which became a problem for intonation with this initial model. It had a P90 pick-up, mother of pearl inlays, and, most famously, the gold head, which Les thought looked the best on TV. The gold top's intonation problem was fixed in '53 when the changed they design of the neck and employed a dual wrap around tail piece.
Big Time
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In 1958, the Les Paul really hit the big time as it was in huge demand. The gold top was changed to sunburst and was dubbed "The Standard." This is currently the most coveted guitar on the vintage guitar market.
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Gibson vs. Fender
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Once again, Gibson was trying to invade Fender's market share by introducing a double cutaway model like that of the Stratocaster. The success of the '58 Standard lead to the Les Paul TV, as well as a smaller version called the Junior. These models had the 490r and 498t pickup that resided on the '57 models.
Parting of Ways
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Gibson continued to change design radically until Les Paul decided it was no longer in his name's best interest. He left Gibson in 1960. It wasn't long until Gibson wooed him back and re-introduced his line in 1968. Prior to that time, Gibson re-issussed several of its older models.
Studio
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From '68 on, much was the same with Les Paul's. Left-handed versions were introduced and other gimmicks, but nothing revolutionary. In 1983 however, they introduced "The Studio." This guitar was lighter, thinner and had no binding, as they were unnecessary for good sound. The Studio was meant to be used in the studio, and was designed without extras to streamline its sound. The technical aspects remained the same as far as sound output, but the body was no longer mahogany and maple, it was made of alder. One of its ascetic highlights is the trapezoid shape inlays on the finger board. The Studio is still in production today, and played by a wide variety of guitarists, including Slash from Guns-n-Roses.
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