Gibson Custom Shop Murphy Lab 1959 Les Paul Standard Reissue Plain Top BOTB #122 Light Aged

Some guitars don’t need to shout to be heard across the universe.

This Gibson Custom Shop Murphy Lab 1959 Les Paul Reissue Plain Top is an exacting tribute to the legendary Burst featured on page 122 of Yasuhiko Iwanade’s Beauty of the Burst—a guitar that embodied purpose over flash. While many ’59s are celebrated for wildly figured maple tops, this instrument represents the workingman’s Burst: understated, battle-ready, and relentlessly powerful.

Finished in Murphy Lab Light Aging, the guitar feels as if it’s already lived a lifetime of late-night sessions and world-shaking performances. The plain maple top allows the tone to take center stage—raw, open, and harmonically rich—while the fully cherry aniline-dyed back glows like a dying star under stage lights.

At the heart of this tone machine is a set of unspotted Custombucker Alnico 3 pickups, delivering that unmistakable late-’50s PAF voice: warm lows, vocal mids, and a top end that cuts through the mix without ever becoming harsh. The legendary ’59 “Carmalita” neck carve fills the hand just right, offering a perfect balance between comfort and authority.

This model is part of the limited “Greatest Hits II” release from the Gibson Custom Shop—a collection that celebrates the most iconic Bursts ever documented. From the celestial sustain of Jimmy Page, to the snarling grind of Joe Walsh, the haunting phrasing of Peter Green, the Texas heat of Billy Gibbons, and the arena-sized roar of Slash, this guitar taps directly into the cosmic source of rock history.

Not flashy. Not polite.
Just pure, vintage Les Paul gravity.

Welcome to orbit.

Model: CS GHII BOTB #122
Body Construction: Solid
Body: 1-Piece Lightweight Mahogany
Body Top: 2-Piece Plain Maple, Hide Glue Fit 
Body Finish: Murphy Lab Aged Nitrocellulose (Light-Aging) Fully Cherry Aniline Dye Back
Body Binding: Single-Ply Royalite
Neck: Mahogany
Fingerboard: Indian Rosewood
Fingerboard Inlay: Aged Cellulose Nitrate Trapezoid
Nut: Nylon, 1.69"" 
Neck Profile: "Carmalita" (.860" - .975")
Neck Joint: Long Tenon, Hide Glue Fit 
Frets: Historic Medium-Jumbo 22 
Truss Rod: Authentic 1950s No-Tube
Radius: 12"
Fingerboard Binding: Cream, Single Ply Royalite
Scale Length: 24.75"
Headstock: Holly Head Veener, Ebony Stinger
Bridge Pickup: Custombucker Alnico 3
Neck Pickup: Custombucker Alnico 3
Controls: 2 Volume, 2 Tone, CTS 500K Audio Taper Potentiometers, Paper-in-Oil Capacitors
Pickup Selector: 3-Way Switchcraft
Outpuck Jack: 1/4" Switchcraft
Bridge: No-Wire ABR-1 (Nickel-Plated Brass Saddles)
Tailpiece: Lightweight Aluminum Stop Bar
Hardware Color: Nickel
Pickup Covers:  Authentic Profile Nickel Silver
Strap Buttons: Aluminum
Switchwasher: Replica Cellulose Acetate Butyrate
Pickguard: Laminated Cellulose Acetate Butyrate
Truss Rod Cover: Authentic Stepped 2-Ply 
Switch Tip: Amber Catalin 
Tailpiece: Lightweight Aluminum Stop Bar
Tuning Machines: Grover Milk Bottle Tuners 
Mounting Rings:  M69 Cellulose Acetate Butyrate 
Control Covers: Black Royalite 
Control Knobs: Gold Butyrate Top Hats
Case: Brown/Pink Lifton Reissue 5-Latch Case
String Gauge: .010, .013, .017, .026, .036, .046
Weight: 8lbs 13oz. 
Accessories: COA, Historic Reissue Hang Tags, Gibson Custom Switchplate Medallion 9w/Historic Black Plastic Cover in Case) 
Case: Brown/Pink Lifton Reissue 5-Latch