If late-’50s sunburst Les Pauls are the most lust-worthy electric guitars ever made, this entrant in Gibson Custom’s Collector’s Choice series takes “desirable” right off the charts. Tracked down by collector and author Vic DaPra over the course of 30 years after it first appeared publicly for sale in an ad in Guitar Player magazine in 1980, this dramatically figured burst with wide chevrons in its carved maple top—newly recreated as Collector’s Choice Les Paul #9, serial #9-0850 aka “Believer Burst”—is one of the most beautiful original bursts in existence, and also one of the most famous. It became the centerpiece of DaPra’s collection in 2008, and appears on the cover of his 2013 book Burst Believers. Thanks to DaPra’s close cooperation, Gibson Custom has scanned, traced, and measured every curve and parameter of the “Believer Burst” to bring this most exalted of ’59 Les Pauls into the hands of discerning players and collectors today. From its classic full, round neck, to tone described as “an amazing balance of boldness and clarity”, to its faded finish and precise hand ageing, this is as close as you can get to owning one of the world’s most coveted vintage Les Pauls… without selling the house to buy the real thing.
