2018 Historic Collection 1959 Les Paul Standard

I love a Gibson Custom Shop Les Paul guitar. The heavy guitar feels right in my hands. The strings vibration is nothing like any other guitar I’ve played. For the past decade, or so, I’ve collected four Les Pauls, and I reviewed two of them for you here: My valued ’57 Les Paul VOS and my beloved 56′ Goldtop.

In the image below, you can see all four of my Les Pauls, and the newest one, on the front left, is my 2018 Historic Collection 1959 Les Paul Standard “Dark Bourbon Fade” just purchased from Wildwood Guitars in Louisville, Colorado — and on the front right, is the first Les Paul Standard “Iced Tea Burst” I purchased back in 2008.

I find it wildly fascinating that the two guitars, built a decade apart from each other, so closely resemble each other, while also being alarmingly different in distinctive, yet charming, ways. 2008 was the first wacky year for “The New” Les Paul Standard that included “weight relief” holes carved out of the body, an asymmetrical neck and locking tuners. My new Les Paul is part of the Gibson Custom Shop Historic Collection, and it arrived yesterday, fresh from Wildwood.

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Fret Doctor Bores to the Fingerboard Rescue

The internet lives in mysticism and myth — especially when it comes to adding magical mojo to your guitars — but there’s one bit of medicinal shamanism for any non-sealed guitar fingerboard that you should know about right now; and that well-kept secret is a special bore oil formulation called “Fret Doctor.”

I am a wild and obsessive supporter of this miracle oil when it comes to preserving and bringing out the real personality of a rosewood or ebony fretboard.

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Joe Bonamassa is Back in the Dust Bowl

Joe Bonamassa is back, baby!  We were so thoroughly disappointed in his last album — Black Country Communion — because that effort was so un-Joe-like in execution and expectation and style and tone, but today, Joe sets everything right again with the just-dropped release of: Dust Bowl.

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Bluesman Gary Moore Dead at 58

We are shocked and saddened to learn today of the death of Great Bluesman Gary Moore — of Thin Lizzy fame — in Spain yesterday.  He was 58.  He cause of his death is as yet unknown.

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The Gibson Historic All Gold 1956 Les Paul Gloss Review

I have a dangerous hobby.  I frequently visit the Wildwood Guitars homepage and salivate over all the great guitars they have in stock.  I’ve always wanted what I consider to be my Holy Grail Guitar — a Les Paul Gold Top with soapbar P-90 Pickups — and one day, a few weeks ago, I happened upon a Gibson Historic Custom Shop version of their hallmark 1956 guitar on the Wildwood site, and I was hooked.

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The SKB 56 Deluxe Les Paul Case Review

Protecting your gear while out in the wilds is important — especially if you have a nice guitar like a Les Paul.  For around $120.00USD, you can buy the SKB 56 Deluxe Guitar case with TSA locks and protect your vital investment while you travel the road.

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Peter Green: The Green God with the Holy Grail Guitar

Few people today realize what a great and immense talent Peter Green was when he founded Fleetwood Mac.  Forget Mick Fleetwood.  Forget John McVie.  The original spark of brilliance that started it all for Fleetwood Mac was the composition brilliance of, and singing skills of, Peter Green.

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