In 1958, the men and women of Gibson Guitars had no idea that they were about to give birth to a rock and roll icon. Their flagship solidbody, the Gibson Les Paul Standard, had always worn a “Goldtop“ finish, but they were hankering to go for a different look. What about a sunburst finish? These new-look Les Pauls weren't an immediate hit when they arrived on the scene; in fact, Gibson sold less than 2,000 of them in three years of production before discontinuing the model in favor of the “Solid Guitar“ or SG. By contrast, in 1959 the Les Paul Junior outsold the standard seven to one! But, during the British blues explosion of the sixties and subsequent rock supernova of the seventies, the 'bursts ascended to rock and roll Valhalla after numerous iconic guitar players wielded the Standard as they played huge concerts and made legendary records. Many of these players gravitated towards the 1958 iteration of the Les Paul. Mick Ralphs of Mott the Hoople and Ba
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