Which Les Paul came first...single or double cut?

[nosajwp]

Title pretty much says it all.

[Dave Orban]

Single

[ricoh]

I wondered too.........................thanks Dave

[daddyo]

Here it is 1952 Les Paul.
http://i49.photobucket.com/albums/f251/daddyopapa/52LP.jpg

[Dave Orban]

Gibson was a pretty traditional guitar builder, having spent a lot of years building traditional archtops and flatops. Cutaways came later.

When they contracted w/ Lester Polfus, he, too, had been playing traditional archtops -- albeit with a cutaway -- and only wanted to go "solid" as a way of minimizing feedback.

The double-cut shapes came later, probably as a way to have something "hip" in the line that would compete with those wild shapes that Leo Fender had been making...

[John C]

I think the first double-cut Juniors and Specials date to around 1959 - fairly late in the year also. The change to the SG body style was 1961, but it was only called a Les Paul for the first year or so.

Someone please correct me if I'm wrong, but I think I've read that the Junior and Special carried on in the double-cut Les Paul shape until sometime in 1962 - or maybe even until 1963. I guess the question is has anyone owned (or even seen) a 1962 SG Junior or Special?

[eric-d]

I thought the double cut juniors and what not started popping up around Late '58? Maybe it was early '59 - but I could have sworn I've seen double cut '58's...

[nosajwp]

Another unrelated question...anyone know what SG stands for?

[hilikus989]

Another unrelated question...anyone know what SG stands for?

solid guitar

[fredjago71]

SG = Solid Guitar, if I remember correctly.

[Uniphasian]

... thought it was "Standard Gibson"

It's nice to learn something new every day.

[The Golden Boy]

I thought the double cut juniors and what not started popping up around Late '58? Maybe it was early '59 - but I could have sworn I've seen double cut '58's...

Double cut Juniors were announced in June of 58- then appeared shortly later. Specials switched in November or December.

[The Golden Boy]

But wait! There's more!!! In late 59/60 the Les Paul screen was replaced with the crown inlay- so those would be the first SGs. It's goofy.

[Caretaker]

I`ve owned double cut 58`s and a friend has a 57 TV Yellow double cut jr, one or the rarer Gibsons I`ve ever encountered.

[John C]

Double cut Juniors were announced in June of 58- then appeared shortly later. Specials switched in November or December.

Thanks! You know, after I typed in "1959" above I had the nagging feeling I was off by a year. I know my Fender chronology better than my Gibson chronology.:o

[Vintage-tone]

The TV 57 might be an early 58 with 4 digits starting with a 7.
note that early 58's have a slightly large tortoise guard also.
The 1 st batch of SG shaped guitars were called Les Paul, the earliest i ve seen was a late 60 even tho people commonly think they came out in 61. History says that the old man didn t like the shape and didn t want his name on them so they were renamed SG for Solid Guitar in 63. Could also be a simple marketing twist from Gibson that wanted to give the guitar a new image and get away from the old name who knows.
So the JR's followed the Standard model as always.
SG shaped Juniors are called " les paul Junior" from 61 to 63
and after that are called SG standards and SG junior :D

To confuse the masses, Gibson still produced single cut JR and Specials up to late 59's, that s the latest single cut I ve seen but it doesn t mean they wouldn t do a custom order in 61. Left overs or custom orders or both... Same thing with the Double cuts, I ve had a 61 Les Paul Jr DC that should have had the SG shaped body ...

[The Golden Boy]

Same thing with the Double cuts, I ve had a 61 Les Paul Jr DC that should have had the SG shaped body ...

But did it have the LP screen on the headstock?