Gibson Melody Maker Solid Body Electric Guitar (1959)
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Item # 13162
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Gibson Melody Maker Model Solid Body Electric Guitar (1959), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # 933446, sunburst top, dark stained back and sides finish, mahogany body and neck, rosewood fingerboard, original brown alligator chipboard case.
There's a good case for 1959 to be named the greatest year in Gibson's long history with the flame-top Les Paul, new ES-335 family, Flying V and many other of the company's greatest creations cataloged side by side. At the bottom of the electric price list was this then-new humble Melody Maker, as simple an instrument as the company offered yet still a superb playing guitar for the price. Originally the Les Paul Junior was the most basic student grade electric, but Gibson saw an emerging market with thousands of teen prospects looking for even more affordable options. This even more basic model was originally announced in mid-1959 as the "Les Paul Melody Maker" but someone at Gibson realized that that meant they'd have to pay him a royalty on each one sold, so the endorsement was quickly removed.
This late '59 first-year Melody Maker is a cleanly simple instrument, with no frills but eminently playable retaining the superb handling of the company's more expensive solid-bodies at the lowest possible price. It is pretty much unadorned with some basic economies (single-layer pickguard, openback Waverly strip tuners, a single-coil pickup with no polepieces and a narrow headstock with a decal logo) but in the important ways this is still a Gibson instrument. The ultralight stop tailpiece/bridge and amber knobs are standard fittings for the time; the visible pot date is to the 43rd week of 1959.
The brown-yellow sunburst top is the finish until recently employed on the Les Paul Juniors, the body itself is the same shape as the pre-1959 version of that favorite but noticeably thinner at the rim. This one has a fairly beefy neck for a student guitar, with the classic Gibson rounded '59 profile many consider an all-time favorite. The one single coil pickup is lower in output than other Gibson units, with a bright but still sweet sound. This early example is wound on the slightly larger bobbin used on the model through mid-1960; some feel the fatter coil has a better sound than the ubiquitous 1960s version.
This instrument sold in 1959-60 at $99.50 (without the case) for either this or the 3/4 size variant, which Gibson more actively promoted at first. The full 24 3/4 scale version has usually been preferred by most players, but was outsold the first year by the short-neck model. 1397 of these were shipped 1959, a decent number at the time but well below the multiple-thousands a year the model would sell in in the 1960s. This first-year version is generally considered the best of all Melody Makers, one of the friendliest guitars to play ever made.
Overall length is 38 3/4 in. (98.4 cm.), 13 in. (33 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 3/8 in. (3.5 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a very nice example of the earliest style Melody Maker, showing light wear overall but all original with no alterations or repairs. The finish shows light checking with small dings, dents and scrapes to the finish, most heavily to the body edges. The lower back of the headstock has a few chips just above the nut area. The rest of back of the neck is comparatively clean with only very small dings and the original frets show some minor wear.
All hardware inside and out is original; there is some general plating wear to the tailpiece and bolts. This is a very good player, very lightweight as Melody Makers tend to be and super easy to handle. This would make a great gigging 1959 Gibson solidbody, a fine survivor 65 years along still housed in its original alligator-grain chipboard case, somewhat battered but still more or less functional. Overall Excellent - Condition.
There's a good case for 1959 to be named the greatest year in Gibson's long history with the flame-top Les Paul, new ES-335 family, Flying V and many other of the company's greatest creations cataloged side by side. At the bottom of the electric price list was this then-new humble Melody Maker, as simple an instrument as the company offered yet still a superb playing guitar for the price. Originally the Les Paul Junior was the most basic student grade electric, but Gibson saw an emerging market with thousands of teen prospects looking for even more affordable options. This even more basic model was originally announced in mid-1959 as the "Les Paul Melody Maker" but someone at Gibson realized that that meant they'd have to pay him a royalty on each one sold, so the endorsement was quickly removed.
This late '59 first-year Melody Maker is a cleanly simple instrument, with no frills but eminently playable retaining the superb handling of the company's more expensive solid-bodies at the lowest possible price. It is pretty much unadorned with some basic economies (single-layer pickguard, openback Waverly strip tuners, a single-coil pickup with no polepieces and a narrow headstock with a decal logo) but in the important ways this is still a Gibson instrument. The ultralight stop tailpiece/bridge and amber knobs are standard fittings for the time; the visible pot date is to the 43rd week of 1959.
The brown-yellow sunburst top is the finish until recently employed on the Les Paul Juniors, the body itself is the same shape as the pre-1959 version of that favorite but noticeably thinner at the rim. This one has a fairly beefy neck for a student guitar, with the classic Gibson rounded '59 profile many consider an all-time favorite. The one single coil pickup is lower in output than other Gibson units, with a bright but still sweet sound. This early example is wound on the slightly larger bobbin used on the model through mid-1960; some feel the fatter coil has a better sound than the ubiquitous 1960s version.
This instrument sold in 1959-60 at $99.50 (without the case) for either this or the 3/4 size variant, which Gibson more actively promoted at first. The full 24 3/4 scale version has usually been preferred by most players, but was outsold the first year by the short-neck model. 1397 of these were shipped 1959, a decent number at the time but well below the multiple-thousands a year the model would sell in in the 1960s. This first-year version is generally considered the best of all Melody Makers, one of the friendliest guitars to play ever made.
Overall length is 38 3/4 in. (98.4 cm.), 13 in. (33 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 1 3/8 in. (3.5 cm.) in depth, measured at side of rim. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).
This is a very nice example of the earliest style Melody Maker, showing light wear overall but all original with no alterations or repairs. The finish shows light checking with small dings, dents and scrapes to the finish, most heavily to the body edges. The lower back of the headstock has a few chips just above the nut area. The rest of back of the neck is comparatively clean with only very small dings and the original frets show some minor wear.
All hardware inside and out is original; there is some general plating wear to the tailpiece and bolts. This is a very good player, very lightweight as Melody Makers tend to be and super easy to handle. This would make a great gigging 1959 Gibson solidbody, a fine survivor 65 years along still housed in its original alligator-grain chipboard case, somewhat battered but still more or less functional. Overall Excellent - Condition.