Gibson ES-175 Model Arch Top Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1950), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, sunburst lacquer finish, laminated maple body, mahogany neck, original brown hard shell case.
A spectacularly beautiful early single-pickup ES-175, Gibson's classic "working man's" jazz guitar. This guitar was built when the 175 was still a rather novel instrument but already a very successful design, finding immediate acceptance with players for its combination of great sound and playability at a moderate price.
The sunburst laminated body is triple bound on the front and single bound on the back; the neck is single bound with split parallelogram fingerboard inlays. The headstock carries the earlier "joined dot" Gibson logo and crown inlay. The very early Kluson Deluxe single-ring enclosed tuner shafts are not anchored on the far side of the coverplate, a short-lived feature.
Narrow P-90 pickup cover, rosewood bridge, 5-ply beveled-edge pickguard, and tall "barrel" knobs. White Gibson label with "Artist" serial number dating to around November 1950. As used by far too many jazz guitar greats to count; Herb Ellis especially is often pictured with a guitar virtually identical to this one.
Overall length is 40 3/4 in. (103.5 cm.), 16 in. (40.6 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 1/4 in. (8.2 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.).
Extremely clean overall; all original except one tuner (a later single-ring Kluson) and the tailpiece, which is from the period but not standard issue on a 175. Excellent + Condition.
