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Instant Karma
Inspired By Series John Lennon Les Paul
With a Charlie Christian pickup at the neck,
stock P-90 still intact at the bridge, Tune-
O-Matic bridge, stop tailpiece and tobacco
burst finish sanded clean off, John Lennon’s
famous Les Paul Junior had been added
to, subtracted from, and changed time and
time again. The modifications were made
at the hands of New York luthier and repairman
Ron DeMarino, who had worked
extensively with John and Yoko Ono to purchase,
evaluate and modify guitars.
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On August 30, 1972, Lennon played the
guitar onstage at New York’s Madison
Square Garden for a benefit performance
that would turn legendary – it was his last
full-length concert. Though Lennon owned
many equally well-known guitars in his
time, including his Gibson J-160E and his
Epiphone Casino, the image of John from
this performance is unforgettable, and the
Gibson Custom Shop has recognized this
moment in rock history.
Though the original now sits on display at the
John Lennon Museum in Japan, 300 Lennon
fans will now be able to experience Lennon’s
personal customization and feel as the
Gibson Custom Shop adds the John Lennon
Les Paul to their Inspired By line.
In the Custom Shop’s quest for accuracy,
designers worked closely with Yoko Ono,
who gave the guitar designers the go-ahead
for a detailed review of the original
in a hands-on environment – down to the
plugged holes from the original wrap tailpiece.
Because of this experience, the guitar
was designed with all of the original details in
mind for an accurate and beautiful recreation.
In keeping with the aging methods that the
Custom Shop has perfected in their VOS
line, the Lennon Les Paul features specially
aged chrome hardware and a finish meant
to perfectly represent the sanded-down
look of Lennon’s guitar. Gibson stays true
to the original with a P-90 in the bridge, a
Charlie Christian pickup in the neck and an
ABR-1 bridge with stopbar tailpiece.
The Lennon fans who purchase the guitar
will also get an exclusive package of extras.
A certificate of authenticity is included
in a green cloth folder embroidered with
Lennon’s signature, along with an interview
with DeMarino, a Lennon print signed by
the artist, Allison Lefcort, and a replica of
Lennon’s “New York City” t-shirt – sans
sleeves, of course.
“It is an honor to work with Yoko Ono on
a guitar inspired by one of the world’s
most passionate and prolific musicians
of our time, John Lennon,” said Henry
Juszkiewicz, Chairman and CEO of Gibson
Guitar. “The Gibson Custom Shop has produced
a guitar which expresses Lennon’s
legend and is inspired by his very own
1950s Les Paul Junior guitar. It is a model
designed with Lennon’s own spirit, genius
and creative works in mind.”
The guitar was announced mid-July and
Gibson held a special event in early August
celebrating the announcement in Tokyo’s
Gibson Japan Showroom, featuring the original
Lennon LP.
The MSRP for the guitar is $7527. gibsoncustom.com/lennon
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Lennon Les Paul
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Body & Hardware:
Solid mahogany body
Aged chrome hardware
Lightweight aluminum tailpiece
Two thumb wheels on treble
side of bridge, one on bass
Wraparound holes plugged &
ABR-1 added; Stopbar moved back
3-way Switchcraft switch added to normal Les Paul positioning
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Neck & Headstock:
1-piece mahogany neck with
long neck tenon
22-fret rosewood fingerboard
Pearloid dot inlays
Early ’50s rounded neck profile
24 3/4” scale length,
1 11/16” nut width
Schaller tuners
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Electronics & Strings:
P-90 single coil pickup in bridge position
Charlie Christian pickup
in neck position
Pickguard modified for Charlie
Christian pickup
1 volume, 1 tone control
Vintage Reissue .010 strings
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