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2008 Gibson ES-165 Herb Ellis
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Serial #: 01568708, orange oval label
Body size at lower bout: 16". Scale length: 24 3/4" Nut Width: 1 11/16"
Materials: Solid mahogany neck; solid rosewood fingerboard; figured maple top sides and back; dual-parallelogram mother of pearl fingerboard inlay and thistle peghead inlay; triple bound top, bound back.
Hardware: 100% original gold hardware, including Grover Rotomatic tulip key tuners: 60's style wriggle trapeze tailpiece; compensated Tunematic bridge; Gibson floating humbucking pickup and electronics; beveled 5-ply pickguard; gold reflector cap volume knob.
Notes: How many guitar players have gone from Glen Gray and His Casa Loma Orchestra to the Joe Pass Quartet? Texas jazz guitar legend Herb Ellis has, achieving international renown with his bluesy, soulful sound. A disciple of the great Charlie Christian, Ellis is perhaps best known for his tenure with the Oscar Peterson Trio, a hair-raising job for any sideman.
The Gibson Herb Ellis model was introduced in 1991 as a tribute to the celebrated player, and it's been one of Gibson's most popular jazz guitars ever since. The design harks back to the original 1949 ES-175, which was fitted with a single pickup until 1951. By 1971 the single pickup 175 was discontinued altogether, making the originals highly prized by jazz purists. This example is from the original series, complete with a smooth quiet floating Gibson humbucking pickup.
The guitar has all-gold hardware, and is in immaculate virtually unplayed condition, free of pickwear, bucklewear, thumbwear or finish checking, and the arched maple body shows exceptional tiger flame. The mahogany neck produces an instrument that is notably well balanced, and with fine medium jumbo frets, the fingerboard is utterly effortless to play. The 24 3/4" scale is fast and nimble, the humbucker is fat and sweet, and the 16" body is easy to cradle and substantially resistant to feedback. A great instrument in a distinguished lineage that pays tribute to a true jazz legend.
Setup: The frets have been precision leveled, recrowned and polished as needed; trussrod tension and neck relief adjusted; bridge height adjusted; bridge compensation set; string slots at nut and bridge inspected and recut as necessary; bridge foot contour inspected and fit to top as necessary; bridge wheels and tuners lubricated; fingerboard and bridge oiled; body and neck cleaned and hand polished.
This instrument is strung with medium gauge nickel roundwound strings (.013-.056). The guitar will accommodate lighter or heavier gauge strings, according to preference. String action is set at 5/64" to 6/64" at the 12th fret, with moderate relief for acoustic playing with medium strings. The action may be lowered or raised to your requirements with the adjustable bridge.
Case: Original black alligator Gibson plush hardshell case with green velvet linig.
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