Gibson Guitar Body Styles: A History by Model

Gibson's catalog spans over a century, but a handful of body styles account for nearly everything the company (and its budget line, Epiphone) is known for today. This page covers the origin, major production gaps, and key era changes for each of Gibson's core body styles — the same ones we cover in our Epiphone vs. Gibson comparison guide.

Les Paul

Years in production: 1952–1960, 1968–present

Gibson introduced the Les Paul in 1952 as one of the first mass-produced solid-body electric guitars, originally with a gold-top finish and P-90 pickups. The 1957 model added Seth Lover's new humbucker pickups ("PAF" — Patent Applied For), which became the pickup design most associated with Gibson ever since. In 1958, the gold-top finish gave way to the now-legendary sunburst finish.

Here's the twist most people don't expect: those 1958-1960 sunburst Les Pauls, now among the most valuable production guitars ever made, were a commercial failure at the time — only about 1,700 units sold across those three years. Poor sales led Gibson to discontinue the single-cutaway Les Paul entirely in 1960, replacing it with a slimmer double-cutaway design that eventually became the Gibson SG. The Les Paul name didn't return to a single-cutaway guitar until 1968, when rising demand (driven by guitarists like Eric Clapton and Jimmy Page) convinced Gibson to bring the original body style back.

Major variant: The Les Paul Custom launched in 1954 as an upscale version with an ebony fretboard and, for a time, three humbuckers — distinct enough from the Standard to be considered its own line within the Les Paul family.

SG

Years in production: 1961–present (as "SG" specifically from 1963 onward)

When the original Les Paul was discontinued in 1960, Gibson replaced it with a new double-cutaway design — initially still called the Les Paul, despite looking nothing like the earlier guitar. Les Paul himself was reportedly unhappy with the redesign, and when his endorsement deal ended in 1963, Gibson dropped his name from the guitar entirely and renamed it the SG (Solid Guitar). It's been in continuous production under that name since.

ES-335 (Semi-Hollow)

Years in production: 1958–present

The ES-335 launched in 1958 as Gibson's first "thinline" semi-hollow guitar — a solid center block running through an otherwise hollow body, designed to cut down on the feedback that plagued full hollow-body guitars at high volume while keeping much of their tone. It's stayed in continuous production for over 65 years, longer than almost any other Gibson body style, with changes over time mostly cosmetic (pickguard shape, neck profile, inlay style) rather than structural.

Flying V

Years in production: 1958–1959, 1963 (small run), 1967–present

Gibson launched the Flying V in 1958 alongside the Explorer as part of a "Modernistic" series meant to compete with Fender's more futuristic-looking designs. It was a total commercial failure at launch — only 98 units shipped across 1958 and 1959 combined before Gibson discontinued it. A small number were assembled from leftover parts and shipped in 1963. The design didn't return to regular production until 1967, and it took guitarists like Jimi Hendrix adopting the shape in the late 1960s for the Flying V to become the icon it's known as today.

Explorer

Years in production: 1958–1959, small runs into the early 1960s, 1976–present

Released the same year and for the same reason as the Flying V, the Explorer fared even worse commercially — only 22 units shipped before its 1959 discontinuation. Unlike the Flying V, the Explorer stayed dormant for nearly two decades; it wasn't reissued until 1976, reportedly after competitor Hamer Guitars found success selling similarly-shaped guitars and prompted Gibson to bring its original design back.

Firebird

Years in production: 1963–1965 ("Reverse" body), 1965–1969 ("Non-Reverse" body), 1972–1979 (Reverse reissue), 2002–present (various reissues)

The Firebird arrived in 1963 with a radical reverse-body design (the treble horn longer than the bass horn) and genuine neck-through-body construction — a first for a Gibson solid-body. It also didn't last: production issues, fragile headstocks, and a patent dispute with Fender (who claimed the reverse headstock too closely resembled the Stratocaster's) pushed Gibson to redesign the entire guitar in 1965. The "Non-Reverse" Firebird flipped the body shape, switched to a standard glued-in neck, and lasted until 1969. The original Reverse design was revived in 1972 and has been the basis for most reissues since; the Non-Reverse body didn't get its own reissue until 2002, as a Custom Shop model.

J-45 (Acoustic)

Years in production: 1942–present

Gibson's best-known acoustic, introduced in 1942 as a low-cost successor to the Depression-era J-35. Its rounded "slope-shoulder" body shape distinguishes it from the squarer-shouldered dreadnoughts Martin popularized, and it earned the nickname "The Workhorse" for its no-frills reliability across genres. It's been in continuous production since its introduction, aside from wartime manufacturing disruptions in the mid-1940s when Gibson's factory temporarily converted to military production.

Hummingbird (Acoustic)

Years in production: 1960–present

Introduced in 1960 as Gibson's first square-shouldered dreadnought (as opposed to the rounded shoulders of the J-45), the Hummingbird was aimed at competing more directly with Martin's dreadnought design while distinguishing itself visually — it launched as Gibson's second-most-expensive production acoustic, known for an elaborate pickguard design and "showmanship" styling. It's stayed in continuous production since, with changes over the decades mostly limited to wood sourcing, bracing, and finish options rather than any structural redesign.

Up next: how Epiphone's versions of these same body styles compare to the original Gibsons — where the gap is real, and where it's smaller than you'd think.