Gibson Custom B.B. King Lucille Electric Guitar  

TONE: The Gibson Lucille starts with a lot of things you'd expect on a quality Gibson and then goes beyond.  The semi-hollow body design, humbucker pickups, and the removal of the "f" holes that are normally found on a 345 give this puppy the tone that BB King made famous.  While tone selection can be as simple as the traditional, 3-way pickup selector those famously warm blues tones are only the starting point for this guitar that, thanks to the 6-position varitone switch, has multiple, favorable personalities.  While the varitone know gives you amazing diversity in tones, it also takes a bit of getting used to at first, but once you have explored its tonal options you will.  This is much more than just a "Blues" guitar and can handle everything from Blues, Classic Rock, Country, and Jazz.  While the guitar has "stereo" fucntionality, I rarely use it as it simply sends each pickup to a separate output.

PLAYABILITY:  I own ten guitars that include Les Pauls, Strats, an L6S, and more, and the Lucille, with its double cutaways and bound neck is one of my favorites.  The action and neck are comfortable and smooth and playing in the upper registers is a breeze.  Like other Gibson "ES" style guitars, this is a big box that produces great tones.  Despite its size, it is well balanced and won't drag your left shoulder like some heavy solid bodies.

AESTHETICS:  With its black finish, gold hardware, and body and neck bindings, this guitar has classic, simple elegance.  The custom inlay in the headstock has always been one of my favorites in the Gibson line.

SUMMARY:  Lucille is one of may all time favorite guitars.  It plays well, sounds great, and its simple beauty puts a smile on my face everytime I pick it up.

I have bought some guitars that needed intonation and action adjustments upon delivery, but my Lucille played and sounded great right from day one.  I have always been amazed at the precision wood-work that is required for a set-neck, bound, hollow (or semi hollow) body guitar and the Lucille is no exception.  The neck was finished to perfection, the inlays fit perfectly in the headstock and fretboard, and the neck bindings make moving up and down the neck a pleasingly smooth experience.  My only minor complaint is that in this day and age of digital electronics, I would replace the varitone switch with some digital alternative that made tone selection quicker and more precise.  Also, I have a slight preference to the bridges and tailpieces of other brands of guitars.  My particilar Lucille has a typical ABR bridge and stop tailpiece.  Not bad. The TP6 version offers more versatility. Otherwise, this is a great guitar.

Let's put this in perspective.  The first guitar I bought was a brand-new Les Paul Deluxe.  It came with a Gibson hard shell case, and my out-the-door cost was a great.  This may give you a clue as to my age  But, when you put this guitar's tone, playability, and looks togehter with today's economics, I am certain that you will be forever happy with the purchase of a Lucille.  The guitar is a keeper.  I just wish that high quality guitars weren't as expensive as they are.

While I have given many 9s here, this guitar comes closer to a 10.  It's got great tone, has a lot of tonal versatility, plays well,  is a thing of beauty, and as I have said before, it is one of my favorite guitars.   While I find the varitone switch to be a touch cumbersome, I have gotten used to it and find the tonal variations to be of value.  In general, Lucille gives you the tone, quality, and playability that you would expect from Gibson.  I highly recommend this guitar!