Throughout its long and esteemed history, Gibson
has kept its guitars associated
with artists. Top players were
often seen in Gibson advertisements and catalogs, and a few
models were named after leading artists of the day, including
Nick Lucas, Les Paul, Hank
Garland, and Billy Byrd. By the
early 1960s, Gibson accelerated
this tradition by concentrating
on even more artist-endorsed
models. The list of ’60s players
with signature Gibson guitars
includes Tal Farlow, Johnny
Smith, Barney Kessel, the Everly
Brothers, and Trini Lopez.
The two Artist Models featured this month share the same
body dimensions, wood, and
unique double-cutaway. They
are striking, distinctive guitars—especially when displayed
side-by-side.
The Barney Kessel model was
introduced in 1961 with input
from the famous jazz guitarist. Kessel was a well-known
swing and bebop player, and a
sought-after session musician
who backed Artie Shaw, Benny
Goodman, Billie Holiday, and
many others. His innovative guitar work and arranging for Julie
London in the ’50s established
his ability to provide orchestral sounding accompaniment
with only an electric guitar and
upright bass. Kessel also released
a number of superb albums
under his own name. The
Barney Kessel model came in
two versions: the Regular (
pictured) and the fancier Custom.
The Trini Lopez model
was introduced in 1965 with
input from the popular singer.
After moving from Dallas to
Beverly Hills in the early ’60s,
he was discovered by Frank
Sinatra and signed to Reprise
Records. Lopez had several hit
records, including covers of “If
ABOVE: Other than its distinctive double-cutaway, this Barney Kessel shares many attributes with earlier Gibson archtops, including a carved solid rosewood bridge and traditional f-holes. LEFT: This Trini Lopez Deluxe sports a standby switch and matching diamond-shaped soundholes and fretboard inlays. BELOW: The Barney Kessel model’s headstock has a familiar Gibson shape and three tuners on each side, but the 6-inline Trini Lopez Deluxe veers unabashedly into Fender territory. Note the full-sized Grover Roto- matic tuners—this is an elongated headstock.
I Had a Hammer” and “Lemon
Tree.” The Trini Lopez model
also came in two versions: the
Standard (based on an ES-335),
and the Deluxe (based on
the Barney Kessel). The main
features that make the Lopez
different from the Kessel are
an asymmetrical “Fender-like”
headstock, diamond-shaped
soundholes and fretboard inlays,
and a standby switch.
DAVE’S GUITAR SHOP
Dave Rogers’ collection is tended
by Laun Braithwaite and Tim Mullally
and is on display at:
Dave’s Guitar Shop
1227 Third Street South
La Crosse, WI 54601
davesguitar.com
Photos by Mullally and text
by Braithwaite.
