Collecting 101

Gibson Les Paul

Gibson’s Les Paul model, endorsed by the pioneering American guitarist, lasted only eight years in its original versions. It was the Michigan-based firm’s first solidbody guitar, launched in 1952 as a reaction to Fender’s growing success with this type of construction. The Les Paul—Goldtop, black Custom, or sunburst Standard—has since become recognised as one of the great electric guitars, used by everyone from Muddy Waters to Jimmy Page (Led Zeppelin) and Carl Perkins to Peter Green (Fleetwood Mac).

Bonhams sold serial number 01 of a 2010 limited edition Eric Clapton “Beano” Gibson Les Paul for $39,040 in 2011.

Gibson Flying V

Gibson had a long and wide-ranging history of guitar making when in 1958 it launched the radical Flying V. In contrast to the traditional waisted body of almost all previous guitar designs, the distinctive new model showed that a guitar could now be any shape that a maker might devise. Although a commercial failure at first, the V has gone on to shine in the hands of many fine guitarists, including Albert King, Lonnie Mack, and Andy Powell (Wishbone Ash).

Bonhams sold the 1967 Gibson Flying V owned by K.K. Downing (Judas Priest) for £150,000 in 2018.

Gibson SG

Gibson replaced the original Les Paul models in 1961 with a brand new design, the SG (the name stands, simply, for “Solid Guitar”). Its thin, sculpted body set it apart even from Fender’s stylish offerings, and the SG has since run alongside the reintroduced Les Paul models in Gibson’s lines as a long-lived and important instrument. Notable players of the SG have included Angus Young (AC/DC), Robby Krieger (The Doors), and Frank Zappa.

Bonhams sold the circa 1967 Gibson SG Special played by Pete Townshend (The Who) for £37,500 in 2014.

Martin

The predominant brand in American flat-top acoustic guitars, Martin was founded in 1833 by Christian Frederick Martin, at first in New York City and soon afterward in Nazareth, Pennsylvania, from where the firm still operates today. Martin’s large-body Dreadnought style, introduced in the ‘30s, became a darling of the folk scene in the ‘60s, with the workhorse D-18 and D-28 and the high-end D-45 particular favourites. Martin players range from Willie Nelson to Chris Martin (Coldplay).

Bonhams sold on behalf of the Action for Brazil’s Children Trust a 2006 Martin D-28 Marquis owned by Jimmy Page for £26,250 in 2013.

Vox Phantom

Vox was a brand used by Jennings Musical Industries (JMI), set up by Tom Jennings in the early ‘50s in Dartford, south-east England. JMI made Vox amplifiers, adding guitars in 1959. The Phantom, introduced in 1961, had a distinctive five-sided body, with none of the curves of conventional designs, but it lasted in the Vox lines only until 1968. Sightings are relatively rare, but Phantom fans have included Tony Hicks (The Hollies), Sterling Morrison (The Velvet Underground), and Tom Petty.

Bonhams sold a 1967 Vox Phantom VI owned by Ian Curtis (Joy Division) for £162,562 in 2020.

Vox

In contrast to the five-sided body of its Phantom model, Vox next came up with a notably curvaceous look for what at first was called the Phantom Mark III, later renamed more simply as the Mark VI. It was introduced into the Vox lines in 1964, alongside the brand’s better-known amplifiers. The design’s later nickname, the teardrop, describes well the rounded, symmetrical body style. Players seen using Mark models range from Brian Jones (Rolling Stones) to Will Sergeant (Echo & The Bunnymen).

Bonhams sold a Vox Mark XII 12-string associated with David Bowie for £13,750 in 2013.

Travis Bean TB

Travis Bean introduced his aluminium-neck guitars from a base in Sun Valley, California, in 1974. His intention with this unusual construction, including a distinctive T-frame headstock, was to provide improved sustain and reduce vibration, with a metal “through neck” completed by a conventional wooden body. Bean’s business was shortlived, however, and the company disappeared at the end of the ‘70s. Guitarists who have grasped a Travis Bean neck include Keith Richards (Rolling Stones), Steve Albini (Shellac), and Joe Perry (Aerosmith).

Bonhams sold a Travis Bean TB1000 Artist owned by Jerry Garcia (Grateful Dead) for $300,000 in 2007.