Gibson ES-175 Arch Top Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1952), ser. #A-10067, period brown hard shell case.

Gibson ES-175 Model Arch Top Hollow Body Electric Guitar (1952), made in Kalamazoo, Michigan, serial # A-10067, black lacquer finish, laminated maple body, mahogany neck with rosewood fingerboard, period brown hard shell case.

This is an extremely rare custom order example of an early ES-175 factory finished in black overall instead of the standard sunburst or natural. This model was Gibson's "Working Man's" electric archtop guitar, and non-standard examples are seldom encountered. An overall black lacquer finish was not standard on any Gibson model in 1952 (it had been in the 1930s, though) but we have seen a small number of other Gibson archtops from the late 1940s and early '50s done up this way, and some artists of the time may have liked the "tuxedo" effect of a black guitar. Les Paul certainly did as he specified it for his signature Custom model in 1954, and Bill Haley brandished a black L-12 in the mid-50s.

The ES-175 in general was introduced in 1949 and quickly proved successful, finding immediate acceptance for its excellent combination of sound and playability at a moderate price. This guitar's factory order number ink-stamped under the treble side F-hole (9859-8) is from late in the "pre-coded" series that ended with #9999 in early 1952. The "Artist" serial number on the label indicates it shipped out around March of that year. Just over 1,000 of these single-pickup ES-175s left Kalamazoo in 1952 but practically all were in the standard sunburst or, more rarely, natural finish. This would be one of a VERY few in any other livery!

The introduction of the double-pickup ES-175D at the end of 1952 broadened the appeal of the model somewhat, but many jazz players then and now still consider this original one pickup 175 the all-time classic for that genre. The 16" wide laminated maple body is triple-bound on the front and single bound on the back. The one-piece mahogany neck has a flatter profile than many early '50s Gibsons, a bit slimmer back-to-front than many '52s we have had. The rosewood fingerboard is single bound with split parallelogram fingerboard inlays. The headstock carries the pearl Gibson logo and crown inlay and Kluson Deluxe tuners with "keystone" buttons.

The hardware includes a single P-90 pickup with a black plastic cover wired to volume and tone controls with numbered amber knobs. The standard Gibson rosewood adjustable bridge is fitted along with the earlier cast L-7 style tailpiece and 3-ply laminated black plastic pickguard. The single pickup ES-175 is a well-known guitar, having been used by far too many jazz guitar greats to count but this ebony example has a special sort of badass elegance all its own. It is also a fine player showing only fairly light evidence of use over the last nearly 75 years.

Overall length is 40 1/2 in. (102.9 cm.), 16 in. (40.6 cm.) wide at lower bout, and 3 1/4 in. (8.2 cm.) in depth at side, taken at the end block. Scale length is 24 3/4 in. (629 mm.). Width of nut is 1 11/16 in. (43 mm.).

Overall this uniquely stately version of this classic is relatively clean showing only some light general wear. The all-original black lacquer finish shows some typical lacquer checking with minor dings, scrapes and dents overall, few of which go through the lacquer. A few small touchup spots are visible under blacklight. The headstock shows slightly heavier wear with some dings, scuffing and small chips along the edges. The back of the neck has some wear through the clear coat and a few tiny feelable dinks but no wear down to the wood, with some wear through the finish on the edge of the heel. There are no cracks or noticeable repairs, not even around the jack hole; there are a number of shrinkage check lines to the top laminate layer mostly on the upper back.

The hardware remains complete and all original and there was never even a strap button added; it all shows wear and patina commensurate with almost 75 years on Earth but no real damage. What appear to be the original small wire frets show very little wear as does the fingerboard; if this guitar was ever refretted it was a LONG time ago to factory spec. It really looks to have been only lightly played over seven decades and well cared for along the way.

While older custom-order Gibsons are primarily considered as "collectible" today this ES-175 also plays and sounds exactly as it should, with the classic warm Gibson tone heard on countless recordings from the 1940s through today and looks sharp as can be in its all-black, ivory-trimmed livery. This is really a pretty unique example of this classic vintage "jazz box" complete in a period brown-lined Lifton-made HSC, a style which is not typical Gibson issue but looks to have been with the guitar forever. This guitar has been in a single collection for almost 35 years and has now emerged back into the world. Overall Excellent Condition.