Another Les Paul Replica - Mick Ralphs

stonevibe

I wrote about it on GearNews and got attacked for alluding to it being a bit of a money grab

https://www.gearnews.com/gibson-custom-shop-recreate-mick-ralphs-1958-les-paul-standard/

Lodious

Ossyrocks said:

Some of you chaps love a whinge. 

Fooking hell....wait until you buy one and find out the neck pickup only measures 7.12k. Then there will be some whinging!

RandallFlagg

I think it looks great, Tastefully aged and really has a look that makes you want to play it.

As with all modern CS reissues though the control knobs sit too high off the body as the pot shafts are too long. They get it right on regular factory traditionals but not in the Custom Shop for some reason.

I guess the pot shaft length varied in the late 50s but a lot of the pics I've seen of original 'bursts, incluidng Bernie Marsden's, have the knobs sitting more flush to the body.

SteveRobinson

I thought that was vintage accurate?

Ossyrocks

Lodious said:

Ossyrocks said:

Some of you chaps love a whinge. 

Fooking hell....wait until you buy one and find out the neck pickup only measures 7.12k. Then there will be some whinging!

Ha ha, I’d probably put some Wizz PAFs in it anyway, I don’t care much for Alnico III Custombuckers. 

Having played the original, at volume, through a pinstripe 18 watter, I’m not sure any replica could deliver the haunting quality of that neck pickup in the original guitar.

ourmaninthenorth

Skipped said:

The wording of the thread title caught my attention.But guitars4you is not teasing us.
It seems that Gibson are attempting to redefine/reclaim the word Replica as we understand it in the guitar world.
The word Replica is part of the official name of this model.

Good.

Several dictionary definitions say that a Replica is a reproduction by the original maker,
"a copy or reproduction of a work of art produced by the maker of the original or under his or her supervision"

I've been banging on about this for bloody years on the LPF...seemingly to the approbation of almost every one of the old guard, who've long mistakenly been calling fakes replicas. Only Gibson can make replicas. Every other Les Paul type guitar is a fake. 

Like Rob, I also know the owner of 8 7049, smashing bloke. I'm made up for him that this has finally become a reality for many reasons, chief amongst them, he's me mate. 

ourmaninthenorth

Ossyrocks said:

Lodious said:

Ossyrocks said:

Some of you chaps love a whinge. 

Fooking hell....wait until you buy one and find out the neck pickup only measures 7.12k. Then there will be some whinging!

Ha ha, I’d probably put some Wizz PAFs in it anyway, I don’t care much for Alnico III Custombuckers. 

Having played the original, at volume, through a pinstripe 18 watter, I’m not sure any replica could deliver the haunting quality of that neck pickup in the original guitar.

Did you get down to Chiswick recently Rob? 

Ossyrocks

ourmaninthenorth said:

Ossyrocks said:

Lodious said:

Ossyrocks said:

Some of you chaps love a whinge. 

Fooking hell....wait until you buy one and find out the neck pickup only measures 7.12k. Then there will be some whinging!

Ha ha, I’d probably put some Wizz PAFs in it anyway, I don’t care much for Alnico III Custombuckers. 

Having played the original, at volume, through a pinstripe 18 watter, I’m not sure any replica could deliver the haunting quality of that neck pickup in the original guitar.

Did you get down to Chiswick recently Rob? 

No, it wasn’t at that meet up, it was a couple of years ago now. Here’s a video reminder of the day. The Mick Ralph’s 58 is on a stand back left. 

https://youtu.be/SLOu6Kvw8hg

ourmaninthenorth

I remember that one well Rob, you lads had a bloody blast. I had the right hump with myself for months that I couldn't  get organised to honour the invite.  He'd not had it that long then had he?  

As an aside that 2 x 10 18 watter (2nd from the left)....that's the one I'd be running up the road with...

Ossyrocks

ourmaninthenorth said:

I remember that one well Rob, you lads had a bloody blast. I had the right hump with myself for months that I couldn't  get organised to honour the invite.  He'd not had it that long then had he?  

As an aside that 2 x 10 18 watter (2nd from the left)....that's the one I'd be running up the road with...

It was a treat indeed! Shame you missed it. Yes, John had only just returned with the guitar and was still getting his head around it really. The neck pickup was like nothing I have ever heard. All the 18 watters were great, but my fave amp of the day was a ‘59 tweed Super, I loved that thing. When Joe was playing the JTM45 we all had our fingers in our ears! It was pretty loud.

ourmaninthenorth

Ossyrocks said:

ourmaninthenorth said:

I remember that one well Rob, you lads had a bloody blast. I had the right hump with myself for months that I couldn't  get organised to honour the invite.  He'd not had it that long then had he?  

As an aside that 2 x 10 18 watter (2nd from the left)....that's the one I'd be running up the road with...

It was a treat indeed! Shame you missed it. Yes, John had only just returned with the guitar and was still getting his head around it really. The neck pickup was like nothing I have ever heard. All the 18 watters were great, but my fave amp of the day was a ‘59 tweed Super, I loved that thing. When Joe was playing the JTM45 we all had our fingers in our ears! It was pretty loud.

Some youtube footage of Joe Bonamassa playing it at the Albert Hall in battle conditions, when he goes onto the neck pickup...it took my breath away too, utterly mind bogglingly fantastic. 

Don't suppose you have it in your files? I can't find the bugger in mine. 

Ossyrocks

ourmaninthenorth said:

Ossyrocks said:

ourmaninthenorth said:

I remember that one well Rob, you lads had a bloody blast. I had the right hump with myself for months that I couldn't  get organised to honour the invite.  He'd not had it that long then had he?  

As an aside that 2 x 10 18 watter (2nd from the left)....that's the one I'd be running up the road with...

It was a treat indeed! Shame you missed it. Yes, John had only just returned with the guitar and was still getting his head around it really. The neck pickup was like nothing I have ever heard. All the 18 watters were great, but my fave amp of the day was a ‘59 tweed Super, I loved that thing. When Joe was playing the JTM45 we all had our fingers in our ears! It was pretty loud.

Some youtube footage of Joe Bonamassa playing it at the Albert Hall in battle conditions, when he goes onto the neck pickup...it took my breath away too, utterly mind bogglingly fantastic. 

Don't suppose you have it in your files? I can't find the bugger in mine. 

I don’t have it saved. It was the night after the meet up, Joe had the day off the day of the meet. I could have gone, but it meant travelling back down to London the following day. Should have done it really, free gig at the Royal Albert Hall and I turned it down!

AlexC

Thing is - guitar players go out and buy a guitar. Could be a 50s model, 60s, 70s whatever... Decades later the particular model they bought (serial number blah blah) is 'replicated'. What makes Mick Ralph's a composer and player of all time classic rock songs is his - wait for it - ability and talent. It'll be a great guitar and so it should be for that price. But how many people have played a LP? Thousands. Hundreds of thousands. How many were in Mott The Hoople and Bad Company... One! The guitar has very little to do with it. These signature, replica, oh look at the exact scuff mark made in Haight Ashbury in '72 machines are just a racket. Buy a decent guitar. Learn to play. Learn to express yourself and get on with it.

Ossyrocks

ourmaninthenorth said:

Ossyrocks said:

ourmaninthenorth said:

I remember that one well Rob, you lads had a bloody blast. I had the right hump with myself for months that I couldn't  get organised to honour the invite.  He'd not had it that long then had he?  

As an aside that 2 x 10 18 watter (2nd from the left)....that's the one I'd be running up the road with...

It was a treat indeed! Shame you missed it. Yes, John had only just returned with the guitar and was still getting his head around it really. The neck pickup was like nothing I have ever hewere great, but my fave amp of the day was a ‘59 tweed Super, I loved that thing. When Joe was playing the JTM45 we all had our fingers in our ears! It was pretty loud.

Some youtube footage of Joe Bonamassa playing it at the Albert Hall in battle conditions, when he goes onto the neck pickup...it took my breath away too, utterly mind bogglingly fantastic. 

Don't suppose you have it in your files? I can't find the bugger in mine. 

Here’s one, no neck pickup though..
https://youtu.be/r1b0H9Lcutw

ourmaninthenorth

Cheers Rob. 

Blacksheep

AlexC said:

Thing is - guitar players go out and buy a guitar. Could be a 50s model, 60s, 70s whatever... Decades later the particular model they bought (serial number blah blah) is 'replicated'. What makes Mick Ralph's a composer and player of all time classic rock songs is his - wait for it - ability and talent. It'll be a great guitar and so it should be for that price. But how many people have played a LP? Thousands. Hundreds of thousands. How many were in Mott The Hoople and Bad Company... One! The guitar has very little to do with it. These signature, replica, oh look at the exact scuff mark made in Haight Ashbury in '72 machines are just a racket. Buy a decent guitar. Learn to play. Learn to express yourself and get on with it.

Thing is - everyone knows this. But a thread about a new replica of Mick Ralph's Les Paul is, by its nature, going to feature a discussion of:
a: Mick Ralphs 
b: Les Pauls 
c: the accuracy, or lack of, of said replicas. 

guitars4you

Straight Shooter was one of the first rock LP's I ever purchased - Still put Paul as one of the finest rock singers - love the tone of his voice - as such always had a fondness to Bad Company Mick and Paul and love the tone of the solo on Shootin' Star - I assume it is this LP but someone might tell me otherwise - first at 2.37 then 3.51 then on the fade out/ending at 4.39 onwards

IvisonGuitars

guitars4you said:

Straight Shooter was one of the first rock LP's I ever purchased - Still put Paul as one of the finest rock singers - love the tone of his voice - as such always had a fondness to Bad Company Mick and Paul and love the tone of the solo on Shootin' Star - I assume it is this LP but someone might tell me otherwise - first at 2.37 then 3.51 then on the fade out/ending at 4.39 onwards

Im not sure which time period the new ‘replica’ burst featured as he had a couple over the years (as well as an original Korina V and ‘54 Strats etc). The ‘famous’ one was a ‘59 with a shaved heel for upper fret access which done before he got it - although he is/was a notorious tinkerer of Guitars, as Rick at NKRG told me, the provenance is, you know you have an ex. Mick Ralphs guitar if the control cavity walls have been scorched with a soldering iron! Sure enough, they are present and correct on mine! 

Alnother great Mick story is when touring with Mott in the early 70’s, he and the band would scour pawn shops looking for old Gibson’s & Fenders etc. They walked into one with a DC Junior hanging in the window, Mick went to the counter and asked how much. The guy said 100 bucks. Mick not believing his luck said “100 bucks?!!” And the guy said, “oh ok, 70 then!”