Page 58 - Guitar Classics Magazine - The Les Paul Bible 2019

THE UK’S FIRST LES PAUL

“IT’S A TOTAL MONSTER, BECAUSE

IT HAS SUCH A BIG AND WIDE
SOUND. IT’S SO CLEAR AND WHEN

YOU’RE GOING FROM CHORDS TO for grounding. The Gibson guys hadn’t seen another
one and I even have the original box it came in.”
LEAD, EVERY NOTE IS SO CLEAN”
SOME KIND OF MONSTER
Since Cosmo has owned several Bursts, we ask how
the Tommy Burst compares. “It’s a total monster,” he
ABOVE Aside from a refret called Gibson and the serial number is 9-2222. You explains, “because it has such a big and wide sound.
and the removal of a Bigsby to couldn’t make this up.’ I signed the contract – they It’s so clear and when you’re going from chords to
reinstate its original stoptail, decided to call the ‘Gibson Burst’, but that series was lead, every note is so clean and you don’t have to
Cosmo has left the Tommy
discontinued before it went into production.” adjust. If you throw in a break, it just comes out.
Burst unmodded
Of all the Bursts we’ve encountered, none has “You don’t get that from reissues in the same way,
played better than Cosmo’s. Even so, it’s clearly a or even 60s guitars. You don’t even get that from all
OPPOSITE TOP One of the
PCAP-059 ‘bumblebee’ guitar that has seen a lot of use. “It has been played to the Bursts. But I don’t use pedals, so when I make a
tone capacitors in situ death,” Cosmo agrees, “but the only thing I’ve done mistake, there’s no hiding. That’s the downside.
is remove the Bigsby and put its original stoptail and “Front pickups vary quite a lot as well,” Cosmo tells
OPPOSITE BOTTOM The studs back on and had it re-fretted. The pickups and us. “Some are so overpowering, and others balance
Tommy Burst wears its history
pots have never had a solder break and the pickup quite nicely. When they’re really good, they have that
on its sleeve – or in this covers have never been off. It has a double white woody mellowness and harmonics, with the clarity. ”
instance, on its scratchplate,
where its jazz-playing at the neck and zebra at the bridge. The Gibson The debate about what makes Bursts special is
custodian’s ingers gradually guys loved the fingernail wear on the pickguard and never-ending, but we welcome the opportunity
warped the plastic over neck-pickup surround. Tommy fitted a rare Bigsby to compare notes with someone whose opinions
time. Hear Barrie Cadogan around 1961 that Selmer made while under licence are based on decades of experience of gigging and
putting the guitar through in the UK to distribute them. They look much like a recording with the real thing. “The pickups do make a
its paces at youtube.com/ standard B7, but are a few centimetres shorter, so the difference, but if you were to put these PAFs in a new
theguitarmagazine
fixing screw could touch against the stud insert post guitar and any repro pickups you like in my guitar,

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