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From Our Research Team:

A limited-run reissue of the axe that changed blues guitar!

Gibson Custom announces the Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S. This guitar — combined with Mike's fiery playing — was instrumental in shaping the sound of blues rock in the '60s. The Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S. is equipped just as it would've been in it's original year — except, of course, for the special touches on Bloomfield's Les Paul. This beauty boasts Grover kidney-button tuners, a pair of Burstbucker pickups, and CTS pots and bumble-bee capacitors. Capture the vintage tone of a legendary guitar with the Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S.

Gibson Custom Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S. at a Glance:

• History
  
• Recreating a legend
  
• Electronics
  
• Finish

History
The Gibson Les Paul Standard became one of the most revered electric blues guitars of all time during the late 1960s and early '70s, and Bloomfield's Les Paul became an iconic example of this seminal instrument in the process. After soaking up the work of countless blues originators in his hometown of Chicago — Muddy Waters, Magic Sam and Howlin' Wolf among them — Michael Bloomfield made his mark with The Butterfield Blues Band, The Electric Flag, Bob Dylan (most notably on Dylan's classic Highway 61 Revisited), and the Super Sessions album with Al Kooper and Stephen Stills, which is probably the most successful recording of Bloomfield's career. Along the way, a 1959 Gibson Les Paul Standard became the key to his signature sound.

Bloomfield acquired his sunburst 1959 Les Paul Standard with original "Patent Applied For" humbuckers in 1966 in a deal made with acclaimed guitar technician Dan Erlewine, then an aspiring musician himself. Erlewine got a Les Paul Gold Top plus $100 cash, Bloomfield got the '59 Les Paul. Unfortunately, Bloomfield lost his Les Paul in 1974 or '75, and it is believed that a venue owner in Vancouver retained it as compensation for an abandoned performance date. Its current whereabouts are unknown.

Recreating a legend
After careful study of existing records and photographs of Bloomfield's original guitar, and extensive consultation with the Bloomfield estate, Gibson Custom has produced an intricately crafted recreation of this hallowed '59 Les Paul. Constructional details include a carved figured maple top, solid non-weight relieved mahogany back, thin toggle-switch washer and jack plate, one-piece mahogany neck with long neck tenon, rounded period-correct '59 neck profile, and Grover kidney-button tuners — a modification that was made to the Les Paul by Dan Erlewine before Bloomfield acquired it.

Electronics
The electronics, too, seek to capture all the vibe and tone of Bloomfield's original guitar, with a Gibson Burstbucker 1 in the neck position, a Burstbucker 2 in the bridge position, CTS potentiometers and "bumble bee" capacitors. Gibson Burstbuckers are made with unpolished Alnico II magnets and unpotted coils that are wound to slightly different numbers of turns — just like the originals — to give the pickups a little more edge and bite.

Finish
The Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standards comes dressed in a finish dubbed the "Bloomfield Burst," which faithfully captures the beauty of the blues artist's own legendary guitar. Other standard appointments include single-ply creme binding around the body and the fingerboard, all nickel hardware, an ABR-1 bridge and lightweight stopbar tailpiece and original holly headstock veneer. Each guitar also comes with a standard Gibson Custom case silkscreened with Bloomfield's signature, a custom care kit and certificate of authenticity.

Gibson Custom Michael Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S. Features:

• Carved figured maple top
  
• Solid, non-weight relieved mahogany back
  
• Single-ply cream binding on top Nickel hardware
  
• ABR-1 Bridge and lightweight stop-bar tailpiece
  
• Thin toggle switch washer & jackplate
  
• Bloomfield Burst finish
  
• 1-piece mahogany neck w/long neck tenon
  
• 22 fret rosewood fingerboard
  
• Acrylic trapezoid inlays
  
• Single-ply cream binding
  
• 1959 rounded neck profilecertificate
  
• 24 3/4" scale length, 1 11/16" nut width
  
• Holly headstock veneer
  
• Grover kidney tuners
  
• BurstBucker 1 (R) and 2 (T) pickups
  
• CTS pots and bumble bee capacitors
  
• 2 volume, 2 tone, 3-way selector switch
  
• String gauge set .010
  
• Limited Run: 200 V.O.S.
  
• Includes Custom Shop case, certificate of authenticity, and custom care kit

A legendary Les Paul with the Mike Bloomfield 1959 Les Paul Standard V.O.S!

Specification Detail Manufacturer Part Number LPMBVBFBNH1