Gibson CEO rumours

stonevibe

So a little birdy tells me a certain Gibson CEO has been removed from power.

Did anyone get any hard evidence yet?

As my source cannot be named, unfortunately...

Bridgehouse

*Please let @WezV have the job, please please*

stonevibe

With @ICBM as his 'right hand man'

WezV

Bridgehouse said:

*Please let @WezV have the job, please please*

sadly not, but if they are looking I might consider it 

ICBM

Coincidence that it's in the same week as Robert Mugabe?

stonevibe

PMSL, but yeah!

Bridgehouse

WezV said:

Bridgehouse said:

*Please let @WezV have the job, please please*

sadly not, but if they are looking I might consider it 

richardhomer

Has Trump taken over? “We’ll be making beautiful guitars - beautiful guitars. You’ll love how beautiful our guitars are....”

Bridgehouse

richardhomer said:

Has Trump taken over? “We’ll be making beautiful guitars - beautiful guitars. You’ll love how beautiful our guitars are....”

USA! USA! USA!

TTony

@guitars4you is normally our man who hears things ...

stonevibe

TTony said:

@guitars4you is normally our man who hears things ...

I've already pm'd him

guitars4you

stonevibe said:

TTony said:

@guitars4you is normally our man who hears things ...

I've already pm'd him

Doug at Coda maybe better placed  I do'n't sell new GIbson Guitars so unlikely to get first news on this but will have a phone tomorrow to a few sources for any update

With such a debt then maybe not surprising as the bank/backers will probably be demanding some better plan of attack - will watch this blog with interest

Mark

meltedbuzzbox

richardhomer said:

Has Trump taken over? “We’ll be making beautiful guitars - beautiful guitars. You’ll love how beautiful our guitars are....”

Imagine if it was fender...

jellybelly

I’m looking forward to some radical rethinking, like making good quality guitars around a few core lines (budget, classic, high performance and vintage reissue), not changing these lines/models on a yearly basis as a matter of course, and keeping the prices realistic across the range.

Or robot tuners for everyone! No, wait... 

Bucket

Here's hoping Gibson don't get what Zimbabwe will probably be getting - eg more of the same.

They could hire me - I already sussed out a totally revised, comprehensive product line for them back in July:

[originally posted by me]

Ok...

A range of cheap sub-£500 things like the current brightly-coloured Melody Makers/Firebird Zeros etc - containing:

 - Firebird Zero
 - The 24-fret wrap-around SG they're doing
 - The Les Paul Special thing
 - A '67-shape Flying V with a single P-90 and a wrap-around
 - An Explorer with one humbucker and a wrap-around - not like the old Melody Maker one though. A proper pickguard.

A good basic range of "staple" models, up to about £1500, containing:

 - A Les Paul Standard (more modern features, the most expensive in the series)
 - A Les Paul Traditional (choice of 50s/60s necks, a couple of hundred less than a Standard)
 - Fuck the Les Paul Studio
 - A Les Paul Junior DC
 - An SG Standard (batwing pickguard natch, and 22 frets)
 - An SG Special with P-90s (again, batwing and 22 frets)
 - A Firebird I
 - A Firebird V
 - A '67-style Flying V
 - A '76-style Explorer
 - An ES-339
 - An ES-335 (this may cost a little more)
 - An L6-S (yes really)

Then a "Custom" range at a similar level, although with prices set at a maximum of perhaps £2k. All available in black, white, wine red or silverburst, with multi-ply binding and Richlite boards:

 - A current-spec, non-reissue Les Paul Custom
 - A Flying V Custom
 - A Firebird Custom
 - An Explorer Custom
 - A Midtown Custom

Then a standardised Custom Shop Reissue range, from £2k up to about £3.5-4k - no True Historic bullshit, just good accurate reissues.

 - A '54 reissue Les Paul Custom
 - A '55 reissue SC Les Paul Junior
 - A '56 reissue SC Les Paul Special
 - An R7
 - An R8
 - An R9
 - An R0
 - A '57 reissue Les Paul Custom
 - A '58 reissue 175
 - A '58 reissue 335
 - A '58 reissue Flying V
 - A '58 reissue Explorer
 - A '59 reissue DC Les Paul Junior
 - A '59 reissue 330
 - A '59 reissue 335
 - A '59 reissue 345 and/or 355
 - A '60 reissue DC Les Paul Special
 - A '61 reissue SG/Les Paul
 - A '62 reissue SG/Les Paul Junior
 - A '62 reissue SG/Les Paul Custom
 - A '63 reissue Firebird I
 - A '64 reissue Firebird III
 - A '64 reissue EDS-1275
 - A '64 reissue ES-335
 - A '64 reissue ES-345
 - A '65 reissue Firebird VII
 - A '67 reissue Flying V
 - A '74 reissue Les Paul Custom (with a maple neck, and available in black, white, wine red, cherry burst and natural, and there would be a natural version with a maple fretboard available too)
 - A '76 reissue Explorer
 - A '79 reissue RD Artist - yes, really. It'd definitely sell.
 - An '81 reissue Explorer E2 CMT

Then a Custom Shop Contemporary range, priced up to around £2.5k:

 - A CS-336
 - A couple of shades of Les Paul Axcess
 - A new model based on (hear me out) the Victory shape, and possibly reusing that name, but would be similar in silhouette only. We're talking about a thru-neck, 24-fret, HSS modern rock guitar to rival Suhr, PRS etc. Would be available with a fixed bridge or a non-locking trem, in a variety of solid and transparent finishes. It would be similarly contoured but have no scratchplate, and it would have the same inline headstock as the original. If it does well, introduce a lower-end bolt-on model. Maybe even introduce a 7-string version - it'd sell.

Then it would get interesting - a "laboratory" range of sorts, featuring some more esoteric creations at varying price points, anywhere from sub-£1k up to £2k:

 - A '58-style Flying V with two P-90s
 - A '67-style Flying V with two Firebird pickups (I would get royalties for this)
 - A Les Paul Custom with only a bridge humbucker
 - A reissue of the Les Paul Music City Jr., with a less shit scratchplate
 - A '58-shape Flying V with a Floyd and no scratchplate, in solid colours. High-output passive humbuckers.
 - An Explorer similar to the above
 - A Les Paul with EMGs, aimed at metal players but with a classy, subdued aesthetic - nothing OTT.
 - A Futura or a Moderne perhaps?
 - An L6-S with a trem and a Sustainer
 - An M-III reissue - a good one this time, with a scratchplate and a bolt-on neck.
 - A US-1 reissue, but perhaps offering a choice between a fixed bridge and a non-locking trem
 - Maybe offer versions of the latter two with a Sustainer...


Well, it took a very long time to dream that up and write it out, but there you go. That's probably what I'd do if I was in charge of Gibson's product development.

You'll note - only one of each model. No special runs or groups of minutely different models that all look the same. No traditional/high performance stuff - leave pretty much everything with traditional features, and then have the Laboratory series for anything more daring. Maybe the occasional special run finish like Fender does, but nothing much beyond that. Plenty of new models to appease those who want more daring, modern features from Gibson, but plenty to keep the traditionalists happy - including the introduction of several new reissues that haven't really been done before.

Oh, and on everything but the vintage reissues, all the necks would be titanium reinforced and have volutes.



You know it makes sense. Vote for me!

bingefeller

Gerry Adams is stepping down in the new year, I sense a change of career for him.

Philtre

The author, William Gibson, would be a good choice as a new CEO. He has his finger on the future button, keeps up with technology and trends and, you know, has a very handy surname.

Legionreturns

@Bucket ... "Fuck the studio"?! 

That's possibly their best bang for buck guitar of the last ten years and they are uniformly very bloody good! (Which is why they've sold so many of them!) 

The rest of your list seems reasonable.

kt66

They should take Karen Brady, please take her. 

Bucket

Legionreturns said:

@Bucket ... "Fuck the studio"?! 

That's possibly their best bang for buck guitar of the last ten years and they are uniformly very bloody good! (Which is why they've sold so many of them!) 

The rest of your list seems reasonable.

I have a vendetta against it because Les Pauls without binding look shit.

Legionreturns

Bucket said:

Legionreturns said:

@Bucket ... "Fuck the studio"?! 

That's possibly their best bang for buck guitar of the last ten years and they are uniformly very bloody good! (Which is why they've sold so many of them!) 

The rest of your list seems reasonable.

I have a vendetta against it because Les Pauls without binding look shit.

I absolutely love the smokehouse burst in this years lineup... Can't wait until these get cheap! Tell me that's not gorgeous?!