Gibson Les Paul Special

The Gibson Les Paul Special is a variation of the Gibson Les Paul guitar. It was introduced in 1955.^[1] It is designed to be an intermediate level instrument, at a price point and trim level between the low-cost Les Paul Junior and the standard Les Paul.

Gibson Les Paul Special
Gibson Les Paul Special Singlecut in Spearmint (1998)
Manufacturer	Gibson
Period	1955–1959[1] 1959–1961 (as SG Special)[1] 1972[2]/1974[3][4]/1976[5] 1977[3]/1978[5]–2013[6] 2015[6]–present
Construction
Body type	Solid
Neck joint	Set
Scale	24.75"
Woods
Body	Mahogany
Neck	Mahogany
Fretboard	Rosewood
Hardware
Bridge	Wraparound / Tune-o-matic (reissue)
Pickup(s)	2 Single-coil, P-90
Colors available
TV yellow, white, cherry red

Overview

Like most of Gibson's other budget models,^{[clarification needed]} the Les Paul Special was produced in a TV Yellow finish,^[7] which was made by Gibson as a finish that would look good on black and white television.^{[citation needed]} In 1958, the model received a major change when it was introduced as a doublecut model instead of the traditional singlecut.

In 1961, the Les Paul received a drastic change when it was redesigned into what would become known as the Gibson SG. Les Paul's contract had expired by 1963, bringing a change to the submodels. When the contract was renewed in 1968, the original models were rebooted.^[7]

Models

See also: Gibson Les Paul Junior

The list of Special models manufactured since 1955.^{[6][verification needed]}

Single Cutaway

Gibson Les Paul Faded Special TV Yellow (speed knobs were swapped for SG Top Hat knobs)

See also: Single cutaway

• 1955–1958: Les Paul Special (Single Cutaway)
• 1974:^[3][4] Les Paul '55 Special limited edition
• 1974^[6]/1977^[3]/(1978^[5])–1981: Les Paul '55 (Special Single Cutaway Reissue)
• 1989–1998: Les Paul Junior II (Les Paul Special Single Cutaway Reissue)^[8]
• 2019–present: Les Paul Special (reissue with wrap tailpiece; vintage cherry and TV yellow finishes)

variations

• 1996–1999: Les Paul Special SL
• 1999–2003: Les Paul Junior Special
• 2001–2005: Les Paul Junior Special Plus
• 2001–2002: Les Paul Junior Special With Humbucker
• 2003–(2005): Les Paul Special Faded With Humbucker^[9][10]
• 2003–2006: Les Paul Junior Special Faded With Humbucker
• 2006–2008: Les Paul Special New Century
• 2009–2011: Les Paul Junior Special Robot
• 2011: Les Paul Special Humbucker
• 2012–2013: Les Paul Junior Special Humbucker
• 2012–2013: Les Paul Junior Special P-90
• 2014: Les Paul Special AAA Flame Top Semi-Hollowbody

Double Cutaway

1960 SG Special
(renamed from "Les Paul Special Doublecut" in 1959^[1]) The guitar on the photo features later aftermarket Badass tailpiece bridge, similar to so called "Pigtail" bridge.

See also: Gibson Les Paul Doublecut and Double cutaway

• 1958–^[1]/1959^[6] Les Paul Special (Double Cutaway)
• 1959: Les Paul Special 3/4 (Double Cutaway)
• 1959–1961: SG Special (Les Paul Special Double Cutaway)
• 1976^[5]–1989: Les Paul Special Double Cutaway (1st Reissue)
• 1993–1995: Les Paul Special Double Cutaway (2nd Reissue)
• 2015: Les Paul Special Double Cutaway 2015

variations

• 1994: Centennial Les Paul Special Double Cutaway
• 1999–2002: Les Paul Junior Lite
• 2003–2008: Les Paul Faded Double Cutaway^[9][11]

Timeline