A closer look at a Gibson Melody maker from 1964. The Melody Maker is one of Gibson's best ever selling guitars - despite it's comparatively low price it didn't skimp on Gibson tradition: well-built instruments, constructed from the finest materials. The body and set neck are both of South American mahogany whilst the fingerboard is South American rosewood. With a sunburst nitrocellulose finish the Melody Maker certainly looked the part. In fact the Melody Maker had more in common with many higher end Gibson instruments than guitars of a similar price bracket made by other manufacturers. The circuitry was simple; just a volume and tone control for one single coil pickup. See also Gibson Melody Maker shipping figures
Details and information on the Kalamazoo KG2a electric guitar. The beat boom of the mid 1960s heralded a huge demand for electric guitars; youngsters up and down America were looking for affordable, well-built solid-bodies, with modern looks and a great sound. Gibson, better known for it's high-end jazz guitars, responded by producing the KG guitar and KB bass lines, under the Kalamazoo brand. They were initially modelled on the Fender Mustang, though soon took the shape of the Gibson SG, which was rapidly rising in popularity. The resulting instruments used modern composite wood technology, Fender style construction and actual Gibson hardware. They looked good, played well, and sold in large quantities. See also Kalamazoo KG shipping figures, a 1966 Kalamazoo KG1 (single pickup) and listen to the Kalamazoo KG soundclips.
Gibson / Monzino guitar catalogue, 1971. America saw numerous promotional publications from Gibson in the first years of the 1970s, but new models were coming and going at such a rate, that some never made it into print. Just one US catalogue was printed in 1971: the Low Impedance for High Performance mini-catalogue, which contained just the Gibson Les Paul Recording guitar, and the Gibson Les Paul Triumph bass. However other countries were producing their own literature, capturing a snapshot of the Gibson range not seen in print in the US. This brochure was printed by the new Italian distributors, Monzino, and shows several instruments yet to be seen in US catalogues (the SG range in particular) and one that would never make it: the Gibson SB400 bass.
The Gibson Victory MV (multi-voice) guitars were launched towards the end of 1981, with a production period lasting just over two years. There were two models, the Gibson Victory MV2 and the Gibson Victory MVX. Both were very fine passive guitars with maple bodies and set maple necks. They had coil-tapped pickups for either humbucking or single coil sounds, but neither managed to give Gibson the Victory they required in terms of sales.
The Gibson SG came in several varieties; and the Special is a typical 60s Gibson in many ways. Naturally, it has a mahogany body with a set mahogany neck, in true Gibson style. The pickups are typical Gibson single coil P90s, and the control layout, too, is classic Gibson. Have a closer look, or check out the SG Special soundclips of this guitar, through various vintage amps.
A closer look at a 1979 Gibson ES-175D. By the late 1970s, the ES-175D had followed the path of most Gibson guitars and changed it's mahogany neck, in favour of a maple neck with volute. It didn't last long, and the neck was again mahogany by 1983. Details of the changes in the ES-175D over time are detailed in the ES-175 timeline.
Electric Guitar advertisements originally published from 1975 onwards. Click on the images for larger copies. Check out other vintage Gibson advertisements
Gibson Marauder - No one ignores the Marauder (1975) You don't monkey around with Gibson's new Marauder. It's an evil power machine. Designed to shatter. WIndows. Nerves
Gibson Marauder - KISS Knows looks Aren't Everything (1976) Rolling Stone calls Paul Stanley, "A sensuous purveyor of thunderous chords" His Gibson Marauder guitar helps Paul attain that acclaim. The action is fast. And the neck has one of the smoothest fre...
Gibson Marauder - Gibson Guitars. To the Tune of $399 and Up (1979) Gibson electric guitars begin with the Marauder at $399. And it begins where most of its competitors leave off—with high power electronics, a full range pan pickup potentiometer and the same crafts...
Gibson's latest solid body contribution is the Marauder. Its Humbucking rhythm pickup puts out a popular, powerful sound. And the totally new design lead pickup delivers a biting, treble sound that's a new high in itself. Or, combine the two tones for the best of both worlds.
Available in solid maple or mahogany body construction. Single cutaway. Shaped, double sided fingerrest. Wide travel, chrome-plated adjustable Tune-o-matic bridge. Chrome-plated stop-bar tailpiece. Two entirely different pickups for tremendous tonal versatility. Front pickup — "Super Humhucking" Back pickup — A totally new design with accented treble frequencies. Master volume and tune controls.
Promotional Record
In 1974/75 Gibson produced a number of promotional 7" 45 rpm records to promote various new instruments. These included one for the Ripper bass, and one for the Marauder guitar. Unlike the earlier flexi-discs made for the Les Paul Recording guitar and Triumph bass, these were actually made of vinyl, with a proper sleeve.
This disk demonstrated the guitar with, and without, accompaniment, and in a range of styles
Side one: narrated by Steve Baron. "Playing the guitar is a way of life; whether you're into country, rock, blues, or a combination of each, the instrument you choose to play, often becomes a leading factor in the way you musically live."
This side is split into five parts - each with a separate piece of music, and each in a different style. The into and outro are accompanied, but the three 'pickup' sounds are the Marauder alone. Clip 4, featuring both pickups shows that this was with recorded with an early Marauder, fitted with a three-way switch rather than the blend control that allowed the two pickups to me mixed to varying degrees.
Introduction to the Gibson Marauder - country-style
The bridge pickup - piercing blues licks
The neck pickup - mellow jazz
Both pickups - jazz rock(?)
Outro
Side two: a track highlighting the Gibson Marauder, featuring Bruce Bolen (Gibson Marauder guitar), Henry Sterlicky (Gibson Ripper bass), Johnny Propst (Keyboard), Drums Larry Londin.
Marauder demonstration track - this piece of music blends jazz, disco and rock for a sound that must have been completely in vogue when the record was recorded. Bruce Bolen, a Gibson employee and distinguished jazz guitarist, plays a number of styles throughout the track.
If you are looking for specific vintage guitars for sale, you may have to keep an eye on numerous vintage guitar stores, classifieds websites and ebay listings. Below are just the auctions - Vintage guitar stores tend to advertise theirs in their ebay online vintage guitar stores - have a look because there are some different listings.
Gibson's latest solid body contribution is the Marauder. Its Humbucking rhythm pickup puts out a popular, powerful sound. And the totally new design lead pickup delivers a biting, treble sound that's a new high in itself. Or, combine the two tones for the best of both worlds.
