This blog is most commonly searched for information about Bob Marley's Les Paul Jr. Bob Marley is probably the most legendary guitarist and musician (along side with John Lennon) to ever play a Les Paul Junior. People probably assume that the Les Paul Jr isn't a full-grown or real guitar by it's name and are surprised that Bob Marley and John Lennon amongst many other guitarists (you can view our post about other guitarists who played this guitar) favored this guitar.
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NEW GIBSON LES PAUL 59 VOS RI 1959 REISSUE HISTORIC R9 | 0 Bid | US $4,950.00 | 25m |
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Genuine GIBSON Les Paul Standard Pickguard |  |
1 Bid | US $.99 | 29m |
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CHROME BRIDGE TAILPIECE FITS GIBSON EPIPHONE LES PAUL | |
0 Bid | US $.99 | 38m |
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1999 Gibson 59 Reissue Les Paul 40th Anniversary AAAAA | |
0 Bid | US $4,940.48 | 41m |
Here is some information about Bob Marley's guitar:
Bob Marley played a legendary mahogany Gibson Les Paul Special.
Although the guitar is known for it's raw and thick sound, Marley was one of the first people to play it's clean tones. He focused on the up strokes rather than the four on the floor rock sound that the guitar is best known for. The difference between a Les Paul Junior and a Les Paul Special is very minimal. They came out the same year. Originally the Les Paul Junior was intended to give entry level guitarists an affordable but nice guitar. Later that same year the Les Paul Special came out with a second pick-up and was a more versatile model (as far as tone is concerned) but was slightly more expensive.
Many variations of both the Les Paul Jr and the Les Paul Special have come out since then, including many signature series guitars like Billy Joe Armstrong's (from the band Green Day) Custom Les Paul Jr.
Junior Marvin was the lead guitarist for the legendary recordings on Exodus and many other albums recorded with Marley and the Wailers. He is known for his heart throbbing leads and smooth tones as well. He too played a Gibson Les Paul Special and recorded Exodus on a TV Yellow Les Paul Special. TV Yellow was a fairly unique shade of yellow that was made to make guitars look better on black on white TV. When color TV came out the TV Yellow guitars were still quite popular and almost building a legendary status to them. Some of the vintage TV yellow guitars sold on Ebay are extremely expensive and sought after.
Junior Marvin and Bob Marley were best known for their smooth tones and upbeats rather than the thick distorted sounds that their Les Paul's are known for. They are both iconic guitarist and without question the most influential reggae musicians of all time. Their dedication to their sound and craft, show that the Gibson Les Paul sound is not only one of the thickest rock sounding guitars, but also one of the most versatile guitars ever.