Now in its 130th year, the iconic instrument brand has redefined music by balancing craftsmanship and innovation.
If you’ve attended a concert, listened to the radio or a streaming service, or watched music videos at any point in the past half-century, you’re no doubt already familiar with Gibson guitars. Whether you’re into jazz, bluegrass, metal or classic rock, it’s likely that many of your favorite guitarists are Gibson players: B.B. King, Chuck Berry, Wes Montgomery, Jimmy Page, Joan Jett, Slash, Tony Iommi, Les Paul, Robby Krieger, Duane Allman, Angus Young, Billy F. Gibbons, Joe Perry—all, and countless others, wielded a Gibson.
The point is, Gibson isn’t just a guitar brand—it’s a symbol of musical heritage. Gibson, Inc. and its related brands—which include Epiphone, Kramer and Steinberger—produce some of the most widely used electric and acoustic guitars, basses and mandolins on the planet. For 130 years, this storied instrument company has built a legacy spanning many musical eras, new genres and profound industry changes.
Music & Arts proudly carries hundreds of Gibson products, from instantly recognizable classics to signature artist models and affordable versions produced under the Epiphone brand. Today, we’re celebrating Gibson with a look into its history, innovations and best-selling instruments.
Gibson History 101
Orville Gibson first set up shop in 1894, selling handcrafted mandolins and guitars from his one-room workshop in Kalamazoo, Michigan. In 1898, he received a patent for an innovative new mandolin design, and in 1902, he officially established the Gibson Mandolin-Guitar Manufacturing Company Limited. The company grew quickly, moving into its own full-scale factory and office building (now on the National Register of Historic Places) by 1917—just a year before Orville passed away.
The next era of Gibson saw many changes. First, instrument designer Lloyd Loar took over, creating the famous F-5 mandolin and L-5 archtop guitar—the first guitar with violin-style F-holes—before leaving in 1924 to be replaced by Guy Hart, who helmed the company for the next two and a half decades. During the turbulent period from 1924-1948, Gibson produced one of the first commercial electric guitars, the ES-150, as well as the pivotal Super 400 archtop, survived the Great Depression by introducing a line of wooden children’s toys, and converted the factory to produce wood and metal parts for the military during World War II.
During that period, a New York company called Epiphone, started by an immigrant from the Ottoman Empire, arose as Gibson’s main competitor in the archtop guitar market. The two companies vied for market dominance for decades, but Gibson ultimately pulled ahead, thanks in part to its collaboration with jazz guitarist and multitrack recording pioneer Les Paul, whose iconic signature model debuted in 1952. (Paul, who’d been an Epiphone player, also pioneered a solidbody guitar known as The Log in the Epiphone factory—more than a decade before his Gibson was introduced.) In 1957, Gibson bought out Epiphone, bringing the two brands together in Kalamazoo.
From the late ’50s through the next several decades, Gibson issued some of its most iconic designs, including the ES-335, Explorer, Flying V and SG (which Les Paul reportedly didn’t care for). Meanwhile, Epiphone became a means to produce more affordable versions of Gibson instruments overseas while retaining its own brand identity, signature instruments and reputation for quality.
In 1976, Gibson began shifting production to Nashville, Tennessee, and eventually closed down the Kalamazoo factory in 1984. Over the past few decades, Gibson has opened and closed additional factories, relocated its headquarters to the massive Cummins Station building in Nashville, and undergone a period of corporate restructuring and leadership changes. The company now owns a diversified portfolio of brands, including KRK Systems monitors, MESA/Boogie amplifiers and Maestro effects pedals.
Craftsmanship & Innovation
Top-tier craftsmanship and attention to detail play a major part in Gibson’s legacy. Prized vintage Gibsons more than half a century old are still in the hands of players today, and over time, the company has introduced several innovations that have pushed the art of luthiery forward. Let’s take a look at a few.
Archtop Guitars and Mandolins
Orville Gibson wasn’t the first to use violin-style construction in guitar and mandolin design, but he was the first to patent a carved-top-and-back archtop design in the United States. Rather than the flat tops and bowl-shaped backs of European mandolins and guitars, Gibson’s instruments featured elegantly carved back and top pieces of varying thickness and no internal bracing that could “rob the instrument of much of its volume of tone,” according to the 1898 mandolin patent.
The Tune-o-matic Bridge
In the early ’50s, Gibson President Ted McCarty, who led the brand during its years of breathtaking innovation, developed a new bridge system that provided far more accurate intonation and enhanced sustain. In contrast to the older, violin-style tailpieces, the Tune-o-matic system anchors the strings just behind the bridge, which is equipped with tiny movable saddles for each string. Adjusting the saddles changes the scale length of each string slightly, making it possible to achieve near-perfect intonation.
P.A.F. Humbuckers
While Gibson didn’t invent humbucking pickups, they certainly perfected the concept early on with the “P.A.F.” model. Developed by Seth Lover and named for the “Patent Applied For” sticker that came on them, these dual-coil pickups improved on the single-coil P-90 with excellent noise reduction, clear and bold tone and a remarkable sensitivity to dynamics (especially when paired with overdrive). Gibsons with P.A.F. pickups were issued from 1956-1962.
15-Point Quality Control
Although Gibson has grown into a massive international operation, it still maintains a strict quality-control process to ensure that every instrument gets the love it deserves. “We’ve introduced 15 different checkpoints with the quality team,” said CEO Cesar Gueikian in a 2021 interview with Music Radar. “It’s a very involved quality-checkpoint process leading all the way down to final inspection, and then once we put the guitar in the case, it sits in a humidified warehouse, and we’re very conscious of that.”
Aerosmith’s Buck Johnson played Gibson acoustic guitars at Music & Arts’ Rock Road Show 2024.
Top Gibson & Epiphone Models
Les Paul Family
The most recognizable Gibson model is undoubtedly the Les Paul. Its single-cutaway body and set-neck design give it a rich, weighty tonal quality with legendary sustain. The Les Paul Standard features a carved maple top, mahogany body and two humbuckers in the neck and bridge positions, but many different variations exist. As with the range of Gibson’s output, Les Pauls feature a nitrocellulose-lacquer finish that better allows the tonewoods to resonate, and ages the guitar in an organic, visually stunning fashion.
- Gibson Les Paul Standard – The classic, available with or without a pickguard.
- Gibson Les Paul Studio – SlimTaper neck, maple top on a weight-relieved mahogany body, no binding and coil-tapping pickups.
- Gibson Les Paul Special – Flat-top, mahogany body, P-90 pickups and dot inlays. Some models have a double-cutaway body.
- Gibson Les Paul Junior – A stripped-down flat-top variation with a single P-90 pickup, available in single- and double-cutaway versions.
- Gibson Custom Les Pauls – Special editions, reissues and signature models. Also check out the Gibson Les Paul Supreme, with its AAA-figured maple top and chambered mahogany body.
- Epiphone Les Pauls – Affordable models produced outside the U.S. with high quality.
SG Family
Introduced in 1962, the Gibson SG (Solid Guitar) offered a slimmer, lighter body that was more affordable to produce and more forgiving for performers. Its double-cutaway design and reduced heel joint provided easier access to the upper frets, while the slimmed-down neck facilitated faster playing. Although Les himself was not a fan of the design, the SG later became a symbol of hard rock and heavy metal thanks to players like Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi and AC/DC’s Angus Young.
- Gibson SG Standard – The best-selling original. Standards are also available as 1961 reissue models, and models with a Vibrola vibrato.
- Gibson SG Special – Loaded with P-90s. Fast-playing SlimTaper neck.
- Gibson SG Modern – AA-figured maple top, compound-radius fingerboard and coil-tapping.
- Gibson Custom SGs – Special editions, reissues and signature models.
- Epiphone SGs – Affordable models produced outside the U.S. with high quality.
- SG Basses – The classic short-scale four-string electric bass. Played by Cream’s Jack Bruce and other icons.
ES-335 and ES-339
Combining the elegance of a traditional archtop hollowbody guitar with the playability of a modern solidbody electric, Gibson’s semi-hollowbody guitars are beloved by players working in a wide range of styles, from jazz and fusion to rock, blues and R&B. These double-cutaway instruments can be configured with standard Gibson Tune-o-matic bridges, vintage-style tailpieces and Bigsby vibrato systems.
- Gibson ES-335 – The classic model with F-holes, humbuckers, Tune-o-matic bridge and stopbar tailpiece. Laminated maple/poplar/maple body, mahogany neck, solid maple centerblock to reduce feedback.
- Gibson ES-339 – A slightly smaller and lighter version.
- Gibson Custom ES-335/339 – Special editions, reissues and signature models.
- Epiphone ES-335/339 – Affordable models produced outside the U.S. with high quality.
Unique Shapes
Starting in the late ’50s, Gibson’s “modern” designs veered away from traditional body styles in favor of striking, futuristic silhouettes. The Flying V, Explorer, Firebird and Thunderbird guitars all deliver signature Gibson tone with powerful humbuckers and Tune-o-matic bridges, plus an extra bit of swagger from their bold styling. Although ahead of their time, these models came to be embraced by rock and metal guitarists of the 1970s and ’80s.
- Gibson/Epiphone Flying V – The love-it-or-hate-it, retro-futuristic shape.
- Gibson/Epiphone Explorer – A sweeping, angular design that’s easier to play seated.
- Gibson/Epiphone Firebird – A more rounded take on the Explorer shape with a unique pickguard design and optional vibrato tailpiece.
- Gibson/Epiphone Thunderbird Bass – A four-string bass version of the Firebird.
Gibson Acoustics
While Gibson’s electric guitars are certainly legendary, their acoustic offerings are no less revered for their refined tone, playability and high-quality craftsmanship. From the old-school F-5 mandolin to the beloved J-45 acoustic guitar and the striking Dove and Hummingbird models, Gibson’s acoustic instruments deserve just as much attention as their electrics.
- Gibson/Epiphone J-45 – The classic 1942 dreadnought design with round shoulders, from the Kalamazoo era, beloved by players.
- Gibson/Epiphone SJ-200 – Gibson introduced the Super Jumbo flat-top acoustic in 1937, and its deep, balanced, room-filling resonance and projection made it a go-to instrument for singer-songwriters and country troubadours.
- Gibson/Epiphone F-5 Mandolin – A legendary model in country and bluegrass circles.
- Gibson/Epiphone Dove and Hummingbird – Gorgeous square-shouldered acoustics introduced in the early 1960s.
Gibson Today
After a period of restructuring in 2018, Gibson has come back with renewed vigor. The company hired Cesar Gueikian as Chief Merchant Officer that year; later, he rose to Brand President and finally CEO in 2023. Recent years have seen the creation of the Murphy Lab custom shop, where instruments are expertly aged; Gibson TV; the Gibson Garage showroom in Nashville; the Gibson Records label and the Gibson Generation Group (G3), a mentorship and artist acceleration program for young guitarists. Even after 130 years, it’s safe to say the Gibson legacy is as strong as ever.